Sound Isolation

What is it?

Children are able to hear and identify initial, final, and middle sounds in words.

Importance: Children need to be able to learn to hear individual sounds and be able to identify their positions in
words. When children can hear individual sounds in words, they can later connect the sequence of letters that
represents sounds.

How do I teach it?

You can embed sound isolation into your everyday routines: morning message, read alouds, snack time, dressing,
math, music, and transitions.

Students typically learn to isolate initial sounds first, followed by final sounds and then sounds in the middle (this can
be both vowels or consonants, such as in sky and big). Ensure you use the sounds and not letter names when talking
about sound isolation.

• Sound scavenger hunt- Have the students find things around the room or school that begin or end with the
same sound. Eg. Find objects that begin with /p/ (the p sound), find objects that end with /m/ (the m sound).

• Clip Cards for Vowels- There is picture of an object and the vowels below, students put a clothespin on the
vowel sound that is in the middle of the word. See reference below for link for the activity.

• Read alouds and shared reading- Read a poem, chant, or story – read a selection of text in which several
words start with the same sound (eg. Alliterative books). Reread emphasizing the words with the same sound.
Ask the child what is the same about the keywords. During read alouds have students listen for words with a
specific target sound.

• Sort picture cards-Students are given picture cards to sort either by the beginning, middle, and end sound. As
students become comfortable with the activity, they identify what the sound is.

• Classroom Routines When students are lining up, “everyone whose name starts with /p/, now everyone
whose name starts with /g/…”

Resources for Sound Isolation

• Bemelmans, Ludwig. Madeline

• Lionni, Leo. Frederick
• McCloskey, Robert, Blueberries for Sal
• Zimmerman, H. W. Henny Penny
• Clip cards for Vowels: https://www.themeasuredmom.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/MidVowClCrds.pdf