A 5–10 MINUTE ACTIVITY
Fan, fish or something else?
Use the displayed picture, two or three large paper letter cards and a familiar spoken example. No independent word reading is required. Begin with a modeled turn; stop or simplify if the task becomes a vocabulary or motor challenge.
Model a gentle /f/ with fan. Name frog and explain that you will listen only to its first sound for now.
Match F and f, then place the pair beside the frog illustration.
Say fan, fish, moon and frog. Let the learner point to f for the target words, then explain moon’s different beginning.
Teach it. Then check.
Objective
Pair F/f and hear /f/ without making the frog blend a prerequisite.
Check for learning
After modeling fan, ask the learner to choose between fish and ball, then between f and m.
Make it more accessible
Use fan and fish before frog. Accept a silent choice rather than demanding a mouth movement.
Extend when ready
Stretch /f/ in frog, then notice the next /r/. Compare this with the single initial consonant in fan.
Try it at home
Find a picture of a fish or fan and have a grown-up write its first letter. Match the printed F and f forms.