Contraction Relay
A. Goal(s):
 To identify two words that make up a contraction
 To create a contraction out of two words
B. What you will need:
 Index Cards
C. Let’s Go!
 On a separate index cards, write a contraction (you’re) and the two words that make up that
contraction (you) and (are). *You can color code the cards or words to make it a little easier for
your child if necessary.
 Place the cards in different areas of the house.
 Have your child run from one room to another picking up the cards to create the contraction. *Use
a stopwatch to time him/her as appropriate.
D. Alternative Activities:
 Play a matching game where your child will simply match the three cards. Can be done at a table
or sitting on the floor.
 Instead of Contractions, use this activity to practice/review…
i. Math Facts (addition, subtraction)
ii. Math Concepts
1. Shapes – one card has the word square, a second card has the properties of a
square (4 equal sides), and a third card has a picture of a square. *You can just
use two cards as necessary if reading is difficult for your child.
2. Telling Time – One card has a picture of an analog clock, a second card has a
picture of a digital clock, and a third card has the time written out.
iii. Classifying Objects
1. One card has s general word (Animals) other cards have types of animals written
on them (cat).
iv. Parts of Speech
1. One card has a part of speech on it (Noun) other cards have a variety of words
from all different parts of speech.
v. Letter Recognition
1. One card has a letter written on it (T) other cards have words that begin with
that letter (truck).
vi. Rhyming Words
1. Choose a word to use as a starting word / sound (cat) other cards have words
that rhyme with that original word (sat, rat, hat).
Building Sentences
A. Goal(s):
 To improve fundamental reading skills / word recognition / writing sentences
B. What you will need:
 Index Cards
C. Let’s Go!
 On a separate index cards, write down high frequency words.
 Spread out cards on the floor.
 Have your child read the words and choose words to build sentences.
D. Alternative Activities:
 You choose the words that make up a complete sentence, scatter them on the floor, and have your
child create the sentence.
 Include words that are written with capital letters.
 Include end punctuation marks (period, question mark, exclamation point).
Spelling / Writing
A. Goal(s):
 To review / practice spelling and writing high frequency words
B. What you will need:
 Magnetic Letters and something they can stick to
C. Let’s Go!
 Place the magnetic letters on the floor. Ask child to find the letters needed to spell a given word.
D. Alternative Activities:
 Use specially designed crayons to write words in the shower or bath tub.
 Use foam letters to practice making words in the shower or bath tub.
 Use sidewalk chalk outside to practice writing the words in the driveway, patio, etc.
 Using a squeeze bottle of glue, have your child spell out the word on a piece of paper. Sprinkle
glitter over the wet glue that was used to spell out the word.
Snowball Fight
A. Goal(s):
 To improve/develop reading skills / word recognition
B. What you will need:
 Paper
C. Let’s Go!
 Write down words (high frequency) onto pieces of paper
 Crumple the pieces of paper into “snow” balls
 Line up on opposite sides of the room
 Throw the paper “snow” balls back and forth simulating a snowball fight
 After 15/20 seconds, declare a truce and read the words that are on your side
D. Alternative Activities:
 Us this to review vocabulary words – have to tell the definition of the words that are on your side
 Write down math problems on the paper – have to solve the problems that are on your side
 Any math concept
Twister/Tic-Tac-Toe
A. Goal(s):
 To improve number sense / computation skills
B. What you will need:
 Index Cards
 Tape
C. Let’s Go!
 Write down math problems on index cards
 Write down answers on separate index cards
 Spread the answer cards out on the floor (spacing similar to a Twister board) – put a piece of tape
on them so they stick to the carpet/floor better
 Call out which foot/hand to be placed on a card
 Pick a card to show the problem (say out loud)
 Child solves the problem and then places foot/hand on to the card that has the correct answer
D. Alternative Activities:
 Use for letter recognition / vocabulary review
 Use for any math concept
 Create a Tic-Tac-Toe Board follow the same steps but instead of using hands/feet to mark a spot
use X and O
I - Spy
A. Goal(s):
 To improve reading skills / word recognition
B. What you will need:
 Paper
C. Let’s Go!
 Choose a letter of the alphabet and have your child find objects around the house or outside that
start with that letter
 Have your child write them down
D. Alternative Activities:
 Use magazines or newspapers to have your child cut out the words or pictures of objects that begin
with the letter
 Find consonant blends
 Find shapes
Let It Rain
A. Goal(s):
 To identify two words that make up a contraction
 To create a contraction out of two words
B. What you will need:
 Paper
 Timer
C. Let’s Go!
 On separate sheets of paper write a contraction and the two words that make up that contraction
(make up several different examples)
 Have your child stand around you while you throw the pile of papers into the air causing them to
“rain down” onto him/her (placing them on a ceiling fan then turning on the fan is another fun way
to make it “rain” – use the fan stopping as your timer)
D. Alternative Activities:
 Use this activity to review math facts (addition and subtraction) – two addends and the sum
 Use this activity to review any Math concept
o Shapes - one piece of paper has the word square, a second piece of paper has the
properties of a square, a third piece of paper has a picture of a square
o Telling Time – One piece of paper has an analog clock, one has a digital clock, a third has the
time written out in words
o Parts of Speech – Two categories (nouns and verbs) write examples of each onto pieces of
paper – place them in the correct category after they “rain down”
o Letter Recognition – One piece of paper has a letter written on it (T) and the other pieces of
paper have words that begin with that letter (truck) as well as words that begin with a
different letter – find the “T” words (you can also use more than one letter at a time)