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#5 Compound Words

Lesson Title/Subject/Grade Level
Compound Words
Reading
Grades 2 and 3

Materials Needed
- On 8" by 10" tag board, print the following Dolch words using a black felt pen: snow, top, birth, box, day, bread, tree, ball.
- Tape
- A list of Dolch words that can be used to make compound words: bird, house, birth, day, snow, top, box, bread, hot, tree, back, ball, friend, boy, girl, dog, doll, some, him, farm, fire, game, hill, her, horse, self, ground, man, nest, school, your, thing, one, where, play, light, work, my.
- Printing paper for each child
- A pencil for each child

Goal Statement
Students will use Dolch sight words to create compound words.

State Standard Addressed
In this section, the teacher cites the state standard focused on in the lesson.

Review Previous Skills
Review reading basic Dolch words.

Anticipatory Set
The teacher should say, "Did you know that sometimes two words can be combined to make a completely different word? Today we are going to learn how to do that."

Instruction
snow, top, birth, box, day, bread, tree, ball

Tape the eight words on the tag charts to the chalkboard randomly. Take the word "birth" and move it to the left side of the board. Show the class that the word that "birth" can be combined with "day" to make a new word "birthday." Move "day" next to "birth." Underneath the two words, print the word "birthday" as one word. Explain that the day a person is born, called a birth, is their birthday. Ask someone to use the word in a sentence.

Ask if anyone can choose a word to "go with" the word "snow" to make a new word. Someone will come up with "ball." Move the charts together and print the new word underneath. Ask someone to use it in a sentence.

Continue on in this manner until all the words are matched: treetop, breadbox.

Read all the words together.

Explain that these are called compound words because to make them, two words are compounded, that is, put together to make a new word.

Also explain that to make a compound word, there must be two complete words. A word such as "lightly" is not a compound word because "ly" is not a word.

Guided Practice
Next, hand out the printing paper, pencils, and the list of Dolch words. Ask the students if anyone can use two of the words to make a compound word. As the students come up with compound words, print them on the board as they print them on their papers. Tell them it is fine to use a word more than once to make a different compound word. See how many they can create and then read them all together.

Independent Practice
For homework, send home a list of words that can be matched to make compound words.

Closure
Ask the students if they can think of any more words that are compound words, even if the words are not on their Dolch list. If necessary, give hints, such as "We drive our cars on it." (Freeway) Or, "We carry it with us and use it to call friends." (Cellphone) Or, "People throw a ball into a basket when they play." (Basketball)

Review
As you teach reading and spelling, have students find any compound words in the text or create them from spelling words.

Create a matching words game for your classroom. Print words on 3" by 5" cards that can be matched to make compound words. Store the game in a manila envelope or small box.