Week 2, lesson 3 Tricky words (we,me,be) - Phonics Phase 3 - Lesson plan

In the third lesson of Week 2, young learners are introduced to three new 'tricky words' as part of their Phonics Phase 3 journey. The objective of the day is clear: to familiarise the children with the words 'we', 'me', and 'be'. These words are deemed tricky because, unlike regular phonetic patterns, the letter 'e' in these instances represents a long /ee/ sound, which might not be intuitive for early readers. The lesson starts with a quickwrite activity where children practice writing different graphemes on their whiteboards in response to phonemes spoken by the teacher.

During the teaching phase, the new tricky words are sound-talked, helping the students to understand their unusual phonetic pattern. The practice part of the lesson includes a 'Tricky Word Race', where children review flashcards of words learned so far, including the new additions. This activity not only reinforces recognition but also adds a fun competitive element to the lesson. The application of their learning continues with a 'Yes/No' activity, where children decode phrases and display their understanding by holding up the corresponding answer card. They also engage in mini whiteboard work to spell the tricky words, and there are extension activities available, such as using magnetic letters and printing. To aid in teaching these phonemes, the use of sound buttons on the whiteboard is suggested, providing a visual cue to help distinguish between single letter graphemes and more complex digraphs or trigraphs.