‘Zip,
Zap, Zoom’
Starter Instructions
Resources:
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Text (Choose an extract with a variety of punctuation. Ideally it should
include some interesting choices of punctuation that will lead to discussion.)
Text with sounds added.
Sound cards – A4 sheet folded in half with word of sound written on front and
corresponding piece of punctuation marked under the flap.
Punctuation fans.
Mini-whiteboards.
Activity:
1. Read the text aloud and ask students to note down on their mini-whiteboards
any punctuation they hear.
2. Introduce concept of game – they will hear the passage read again with sounds
replacing pieces of punctuation. Introduce the different sounds; zip, zap,
zoom, boing, bop.
3. Ask for five volunteers to come to the front. Allocate each volunteer a card
with the name of the sound written on it e.g. ‘Zip’.
4. Instruct the volunteers that when they hear their sound in the next reading,
they must stand up and then sit back down again i.e. they are a visual
representation of where the punctuation occurs.
5. Instruct the rest of the class that they must try to work out which piece of
punctuation each sound represents.
6. Read the text aloud with the sounds replacing the punctuation. Volunteers
stand up as explained in 4 and the rest of the class makes notes on their miniwhiteboards.
7. Organise students into small groups – give them time to reach a consensus
about which pieces of punctuation are represented by which sounds.
8. Feedback: ask each volunteer at the front which piece of punctuation they
think they represent and follow this up by asking the rest of the class to hold
up the appropriate piece of punctuation from the punctuation fan to show
what they think. Then, ask the volunteer to reveal what they represented by
unfolding their card. Was everyone correct? Repeat for all sounds.
9. Read through the text a final time, (with sounds), but this time the volunteers
have to stand up and show the punctuation mark rather then the word.
10. Discuss any interesting uses of punctuation.