Teaching number words

In my opinion, teaching Aikman how to read has been an extremely hard task.  It’s not that he struggles with it – he does seem to pick it up at a fairly quick pace, not quite as fast as he does math, but still at a very quick pace – but rather it’s a matter of me knowing techniques to help him learn it, find it engaging, and create a desire to want to read.

So, to teach the number words, I set out to spend a day playing with the words, using several techniques, and then to reinforce these words for the next few weeks…

 

 

I first introduced Aikman to the number words using these magnets, which came as a set from the Dollar Tree.  I stuck the numerals to the inside of a small tray, and then showed him how to sound out each word, unless it was a sight word (one, two).  This sometimes involved showing him the double letter vowel sounds and vowel combinations (ee in three, ou in four, eigh in eight) as well as the CVCe long vowel words (five, nine).

 

 

 

 

 

I started out with just the sight words one and two.  For some reason, one was quite easy to understand that when he saw it, it was the number 1.  However, two was a different matter.  He continually wanted to sound it out – “tt wwh ahh”.  He would laugh that it wasn’t a word, but it sounded close to “two”, and then knew that two would match up to 2.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A while back, I remember seeing this post that used a Candyland game to help with sight words.  To build on Aikman desire to play games, I created a number words game based around Chutes and Ladders.  I printed off 4 sets of each number word, from one to ten.  On your turn, you draw a card from the pile, read the word, and then move your pawn that many spaces on the game board.  If you can’t read the word, then you cannot move your pawn on that turn.

Here’s a link to the Chutes and Ladders cards that I made, in case you’d like to use them too.  (They are nothing fancy… just the number words written out as game cards.)

 

 

 

Need additional resources for teaching sight words?  Below are links to several online games and other printables that I’ve found useful…

Online games:

 

 

Match the number to the number word – from primary games

 

 

 

 

Number Labeling from crickweb (scroll down half way down the page to find the applet)

 

 

 

 

 

Ordering number words 1-20 from Roy the Zebra

 

 

Printables: (all are FREE)

Fun in the Sun File Folder game from Positively Autism

 

 

 

Sending Love Word Sort from Mrs. Wills Kindergarten – perfect for Valentine’s Day that is quickly approaching!

 

 

 

 

 

… and another Valentine’s themed printable that we have be using this next week. I have Aikman put the designated number of conversation hearts on top of the number word on the printable.  (Grrr… this link has disappeared!  If you know where this printable is from, PLEASE let me know so I can link to it!  We’ve been playing it, and Aikman loves it!)

 

 

 

 

 

Jan Brett’s number/word self-checking puzzles

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enchanted Learning has these super cool number wheels that practices counting as well as reading the number AND the number word.

 

 

 

 

Bar graphing idea using “One, two, buckle my shoe” from Bright Hub

Music:

 

 

 

Sing and Read Number Words cd from Frog Street Press ($$)

 

 

 

For more ideas for teaching sight words, make sure you check out my sight words pinterest board or the Reading and Writing Readiness pinterest collaborative board, which is a board of ideas on teaching reading and writing from bloggers around the world!  (click on either image below to be taken to the respective board!)