The Listening Center: Rhyming Activities

Words rhyme when they have the same ending sound segment. Initially, children may think that everything ending with /t/ rhymes and need help learning to focus on the final sound segment in words.  

Rhyming skills unfold in stages. First, children listen to a pair of words and then decide if they rhyme. Next, they can listen to three words and identify the word that doesn't belong.  Context clues become valuable when completing open ended rhymes like this: I see a bunny whose ears just flop. He eats carrots and loves to _____. Children  complete the sentence without even realizing they have created a rhyme. The most difficult skill requires that children generate rhyming words. This comes with practice and many experiences with nursery rhymes, books and songs.

Young children are drawn to stories and songs with rhyming words. The ability to focus on similarities and differences of sounds is a skill woven into all stages of phonological awareness. Rhyming requires children to listen to a specific part of a word, identify the sound and then determine if other words have the identical sound in the same location. 

Playing with sounds in a series can help set the stage for rhyming activities. Listen to a series of three sounds such as a horn, a rattle and a sneeze. Identify the final sound. This activity focuses attention on the last sound heard, a skill important in the development of rhyme. When talking about sounds in a series, use words like beginning, middle and end to describe the location of sounds.

Listening Center Activities:
1. Nursery Rhymes - simply have students listen to nursery rhymes and songs at the listening center

2. Rhyming Pairs - invite students to listen to the word and find the picture/word that rhymes (can play like BINGO)

3. Which One Does Not Belong - have students listen to 3 words (you can say them only or have a sheet with pictures/words on it). Ask the student to identify the 1 word that does not rhyme with the other two. They can circle or draw a line through the picture/word that does not rhyme. Use a wipeoff sheet so it can be used over and over.

4. Finish the Sentence - Say a two sentence rhyme leaving the last word blank. (I see a bunny whose ears just flop. He eats carrots and loves to ____.) Invite the students to fill in the blank with a rhyming word using the clues in the sentences. Again, you could use a sheet to go along with the listening activity.