Do you struggle to keep phonics instruction fun and engaging in your classroom? If you said YES, I can totally relate! As a long-time first-grade teacher, I've had days when my kiddos seemed less interested in diving into our phonics activities too. Luckily though, I have a solution to share! If you're looking for a new way to add phonics practice to your lessons, come along as we chat about my top 4 reasons to use color-by-code phonics activities.
Fun Phonics Activities For First Grade
In first grade, we live and breathe phonics! Whether we're learning word families, mastering sight words, or working on CVC words, you're bound to see some kind of phonics activities woven into our day. Since we spend SO much time working on phonics, it's really important to me that our lessons be engaging for students. Keeping our lessons fresh helps to make an extended practice of any topic more fun. In my classroom, I like to rotate through a variety of phonics activities daily including:
- Fun songs and videos to teach phonics skills
- Small group lessons with manipulatives & hands-on learning materials
- Center games and activities targeting phonics skills
- Whole group games and activities (like BINGO)
- No-Prep printable worksheets (like Color by Code)
If you teach in the primary classroom, I'm sure you also use a blend of activities to teach phonics in your classroom. We all know that variety keeps things fun for our kiddos, right? One of the phonics activities I always have in the rotation is color-by-code worksheets. Curious why? Here's what I've seen happen in my room when we use color-by-code phonics activities!
1. Color By Code Phonics Activities Are Engaging
First up, the number one reason I love using color-by-code phonics activities is that they are SO engaging to students! We work hard on phonics and sometimes my kiddos just get worn out. This is when Color By Code Phonics Activities will save the day. When students are weary from a long day of learning, coloring activities are the perfect way to continue learning in a fun way.
In my classroom, I have students use phonics coloring pages that feature a fun twist, unlike many other color by code worksheets. Our phonics activities feature a secret code on every page that students must solve prior to completing their worksheets. To solve the secret code, students will identify the beginning sound for each picture in the code box. After they identify all the letters, a word will be revealed. This added element makes these activities exciting to my students and gives them even more practice with beginning sounds.
My students love "solving the mystery" and then working on their coloring page. Since kiddos are excited to complete these worksheets, it never takes much coaxing to squeeze in a little more phonics practice, no matter how late in the day we start working on them.
2. Color By Code Phonics Activities Are Versatile
Secondly, I love that color-by-code phonics worksheets can be used across a variety of skills. In my classroom, I use similar worksheets to target many different phonics skills. Since the directions and format of the worksheets are all the same, my students grow familiar with these activities and know what to do no matter what concept we're working on. Some of the things we target include CVC Words, Beginning and Ending Blends, and Digraphs.
I love that I can have my students practice so many different skills with the same type of activity. This means I can use color-by-code activities all year long, no matter what phonics lessons we're currently working on. For each skill, the words revealed in the secret code will apply. For example, when we work on CVC words, I use pages that feature CVC words in the secret code for every short vowel.
3. No Prep Pages Make Color By Code Simple To Use
Another great benefit to using color-by-code activities for phonics is their ease of delivery. In the first-grade classroom, we use a lot of hands-on learning materials, center games, and manipulatives for centers and small groups. These are absolutely essential and used on a daily basis, but they also require a fair bit of prep work.
Most teachers in the primary classroom agree that in order to balance your allotted preparation period with your lesson plan, you'll need to supplement those hands-on activities with engaging no-prep printables. This is where color-by-code phonics activities come in so handy! I love that I can simply choose a skill, print a bunch of worksheets off, and know that I have an engaging, simple activity that's ready to go.
4. Provide Opportunities for Extra Phonics Practice
Finally, I find myself using color-by-code phonics activities frequently since they are such an easy way to sneak in extra practice! We all know practice makes progress, and firsties need lots of it when it comes to phonics. By using simple, no-prep worksheets, I can make sure my students get just that. Some ideas for extra practice opportunities include:
- Homework pages
- Early finisher activities
- Independent desk work
- Emergency sub plans
- Time fillers (print a few of these off and keep them handy so you can fill an extra 10 minutes in your day with meaningful practice easily)
Adding these activities into your day will give your students more opportunities to work on phonics skills without adding more work to your plate or taking a lot of time to prepare.
Grab Your FREE Phonics Color By Code Activities
Convinced you need these in your life?! I hope so! They really are such a great addition to any classroom looking to add engaging phonics practice to the mix. You can grab a free sample of my Color by Code Phonics Activities to get started right away. In this resource, you'll find 4 pages that target short vowels. You'll find one page each for CVC words, beginning blends, ending blends, and digraphs all focusing on short vowels. This freebie is a great way to try out these activities with your students!
Continue Working on Phonics Activities All Year Long
I know your students will love working on phonics activities with these "secret code" coloring pages! If you want to keep the learning rolling and make planning your phonics practice activities simple, be sure to check out the full bundle of these activities. You'll be able to target CVC Words, Blends, and Digraphs all year long!
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