Tt

Written By: Greg Whitfield
Copyright © 1996 Greg Whitfield

If you can point your tongue and put it
Right behind your front top teeth
Push a little air until your tongue comes down
Then you can learn to say the sound
That's made by letter T
And it really is a very useful sound

'Cause if you learn to say the sound
That's made by letter T
Then you can say the number twenty-two
Or tapdance with a turtle
Or tickle a tiger's toes
Or drive a tractor on a Tuesday afternoon

You can telephone a turkey
You can tattle on a toad
You can toss a red tomato at a tree
You can terrify your teacher
With a toy tarantula
Or play tug-of-war upon a trampoline

You can take a train to Texas,
Tennessee, or Timbuktu
And the only thing you really need to know
Is how to make the T sound
It's an easy-as-can-be sound
The sound of T is all you need to know

Suggested Activities

Because of the percussive nature of the sound of letter T, it is a sound that's easily identified by pre-readers. Discuss how the /t/ sound is made by putting the tongue behind the front top teeth and pushing a little air. Check for accuracy with a mirror.

As you did for letter F, use construction paper strips to make giant letter T's, and on these write words with 't' in them. You can also use objects around the house to make both upper and lower case T's (utensils, pencils and pens, sticks, tootsie rools, candles).

Compile a list of words containing the /t/ sound, some with the sound in the initial position (top, tap, tug, ten, tell, etc.), some with the sound in the final position (bat, hit, not, fat, get, etc.), and some with the sound in the medial position (bottom, butter, little, water, pretty, etc.). Write these on index cards with the letter T in a different color from the rest of the letters in the word. Say the words orally, and see if your child can hear where the /t/ sound occurs. Have them identify beginning, middle or end, then use the card to verify their answer. This type of training is so valuable, as hearing the position of sounds in words is a key skill in reading readiness.

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Other Songs and Activities:

A | B | C | D | E | F
G | H | I | J | K | L | M
N | O | P | Q | R | S | T
U | V | W | X | Y | Z