Digraphs and Blends

2nd and 3rd Grade Digraph and Blend Intervention Lesson

The teacher began by giving students the definition and examples of a digraph and blend.

A digraph is 2 consonants that make 1 sound.
       Examples: ch, sh, th, wh, ck
A blend is 2 consonants that make 2 sounds.
       Examples: sp, st, sl, cl, cr, gr, dr

The teacher then showed a few words on index cards that the students had to decide if they contained a blend or digraph.

The students were then given a cup of milk. The teacher went around and put a little chocolate syrup in every cup and asked the students to mix the two. When finished, the teacher asked if they could now seperate the chocolate from the milk. The teacher explained that the chocolate milk is a lot like a digraph. Once the two letters are together they become one, making only one sound. They cannot be broken apart to make two different sounds when they are beside each other.

Next, the teacher gave every child a cookie. She later went around to add sprinkles to every cookie. Afterwards she asked if every child would remove the sprinkles from the cookie. The teacher explained that the cookie and sprinkles were a lot like a blend. When the two are together they can be broken apart back to their original state. The 2 letters will still say their original sound just like the cookie and sprinkles could be broken apart and would remain the same.

The teacher then gave a quick whole group assessment of the students' knowledge of digraphs and blends. A few students were given a word and asked if it contained a digraph or blend. If it contained a digraph, the students drank a sip of chocolate milk. If it contained a blend, the students ate a bite of cookie with sprinkles.

The students were individually assessed afterwards with an index card with one word. Students had to decide which side of the graph the word went on, digraph or blend.