My 4-year-old LOVES this hands-on activity. It’s great for building the muscles in little ones’ fingers as well as helping them to read and spell. Quick and easy Peg and Popsicle Stick Word activity coming up!
Materials Needed to Build the Word
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How to Build Your Peg and Popsicle Stick Words
- In a coloured felt tip pen, write the desired vowels on the sticks (A,E,I,O,U).
- In a different coloured pen, write the desired consonants on the pegs.
How to Use Your Peg and Popsicle Stick Words
- Place the pegs around the sticks to create a vast array of words for your child to read.
What words can I create?
For ideas on the words you can create with the letters we’ve learned so far, please look at our word lists.
Extending your Building the Word Activity
Digraphs and Trigraphs
Your child learning consonant digraphs (2 letter sounds) like ll, ss, zz? No sweat! Use slightly wider pegs to easily fit double letters on.
How about when they learn the vowel digraphs like oi, ai, ur and ee? Or even trigraphs (3 letter sounds) like igh? No worries! Use a new peg and write them on the peg like to had for the single vowels previously.
Grow with Your Child
What I really love about this activity is that you do not need to create pegs and sticks for ALL sounds straight away. If your child is one Week 1: S,A,T,P then you only need a popsicle stick with a on it and 3 pegs with the s, t, p written on. As your child learns new letters and sounds, your collection can begin to grow.
Spelling Part 1
Give your child some pictures with labels (available soon from us), such as cat, tap, pin. Ask your child to create the word to go with the picture using the labels to help them match.
Spelling Part 2
Give your child some pictures of simple words (available soon from us), such as cat, tap, pin. Ask your child to create the word to go with the picture.
Spelling Part 3
Don’t give your child all the letters!
Let me give you can example. You write ‘ca’ on your peg and stick. Can they tell you the missing letter and finish building it to check if they are correct?
Spelling Part 4
Give your child a word and a pre-chosen vowel stick. Ask them to spell a word and let them create the word from the choice of letter sticks given.