Kindergarten · Reading · week 11

Read Cat, Sat, Mat: First Words!

Add a beginning consonant sound to the word at to read the three-sound words cat, sat, and mat.

Big day. Last week you read at. This week you add one more sound to the front and build a whole new word. Add c to the front of at: cat!

Try it again. Add s to at: sat. Add m to at: mat. One new sound at the front changes the whole word. These are your very first real, three-sound words.

📋 For the teacher
Teach it (10–15 min):
  • Cover the at part with a finger first so your child reads the beginning sound alone, then slide your finger away to reveal the whole word.
  • Say out loud that changing just the first sound builds a whole new word, since that idea unlocks many more words later.
  • Celebrate this moment. Reading a real three-sound word for the first time is a genuine milestone.
  • Mix the three words into random order and ask for them one at a time, so your child is truly reading, not just reciting a memorized list.
Talk about it:
  • What sound did we add to at to make cat?
  • What is the same about cat, sat, and mat?
  • How did it feel to read your first real words?

Mastery looks like: They read cat, sat, and mat by blending a beginning sound onto the known ending at, in any order, without hints.

Common stumbles: Reading only the at part and skipping the new beginning sound; needing the words in the same order every time instead of reading each one on its own.

Homework for this lessonType it, write it with a stylus, or print it for pencil & paper.open →
Records attendance + 15 min of Reading for this learner.
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