I found Valentine buckets at my local dollar store. Containers like these can be added to learning centers and give a seasonal or thematic feeling to those activities. I made this fun activity to practice beginning sounds during our Valentine’s Day theme.
Valentine Beginning Sounds Activity
To create this activity you will need:
- Valentine containers
- objects that begin with sounds your students are learning to identify (I used objects from the Lakeshore Letter Sound tubs.)
- a marker
- index cards
- tape
- a paper bag
Select objects that begin with three different sounds and place them together in a brown paper bag.
Write the corresponding letters on index cards and tape to the front of the containers.
To play, invite students to take turns selecting an object from the paper bag, identifying the beginning sound, and placing the object in the correct container.
If you have students who are second language learners make sure to introduce and name all the objects before playing the game.
Ideas for Variations to the Activity
You could use white paper bags with die-cut hearts attached to the front for containers.
To adapt the game, use only two containers. Label one container with a letter and the other letter with a red circle and slash. Children can sort items as beginning with that one sound or not beginning with the sound.
Add photos of your children to the game for sorting by beginning sound of names.
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