Procedures: 

1. Say: Our language is like a secret code! It is fun to learn, but it can be hard. The way that we move our mouths when we say words can be hard to learn. Today we’re going to work on how we move our mouth when we say /p/. We spell /p/ with the letter P. The letter P looks like a ping pong paddle, and the way we say /p/ sounds like a ping pong ball hitting the paddle.

2. Let’s pretend to play ping pong! Let’s hit our ping pong ball with our ping pong paddle. [Act out playing ping pong, hitting a ping pong ball with a ping pong paddle]. When we say /p/, we have our mouths closed, lips touching, and teeth apart. As we open our mouths, a puff of air is pushed through our mouths to make the /p/ sound.

3. I’m going to show you how to find /p/ in the word pop. We are going to stretch out the word “pop” and say it in slow motion, and listen for the ping pong ball hitting the paddle. Pp-o-o-opp. Now we are going to say it even slower: Ppppp-o-o-opppp. Did you feel your lips puff air and make the “p” sound? I did! I felt my lips move and puff out air to pop!

4. Now we are going to do a tongue tickler! I have a friend who is named Polly. Polly really likes pretty things and her favorite color is pink. Polly also likes playing ping pong. One day she was hitting her ping pong ball with her ping pong paddle in her backyard, when her ping pong ball plopped right into a puddle! Here is our tongue tickler: “Polly’s pretty pink ping pong ball plopped in a puddle”. First, repeat our tongue tickler after me! Now, let’s say our tongue tickler a couple of times together. Now let’s say it again, but this time we are going to stretch out the /p/ in all of the words. “Pppolly’s pppretty pppink ppping pppong ball ppplopped in a pppuddle.” Let’s try it again! But this time, we are going to break the “p” sound off of the rest of the word when we say it. “/p/ olly’s /p/ retty /p/ ink /p/ ing /p/ ong ball /p/ lopped in a /p/ uddle”. 

5. [Have students take out primary paper and pencil] We use the letter P to spell /p/.Let’s start by writing a lowercase p. Start at the fence, go straight down into the ditch, come up and put his chin on the sidewalk. Now you’ve made a lowercase p! After you finish your first, I want you to draw nine more like it. [write 10 lowercase p’s]. Next, we are going to write a capital P. To write a capital P, we go down, pick up, and around to the fence. Good! Now draw nine more just like that. 

6. Say: “Let’s look at an alphabet book. We are going to read about two dogs named Nan and Pap. Let’s read to see what they do!” [Read short alphabet book]. After reading book, say: “Where do Nan and Pap take a nap? Yes, that’s right! In a pan! Can you think of any other words that have the letter “p” in them?” Have students say different words that have the letter “p” in them.

7. Show PIG and model how to decide if the word says pig or dig. The P tells me to play ping pong, so this word is ppppp-ig, pig. Now you try some! PIT: Pit or hit? LICK: Lick or pick? PIG: Pig or wig? PIE: Pie or die? 

8. For assessment, students are to complete the partial spellings and color the pictures that begin with P. Call students individually to read the phonetic cue words from number 7.

9. At the end of the lesson, hand out drawing papers and crayons. Let students draw pictures for words that start with the letter P from the word bank at the end of the handout.