Letter of the Week: B

August 12-16
Letter of the Week: B
Theme: Beach

Image from the LiPS Program by Lindamood-Bell‘B’ is a consonant.  /b/ is one of the first developing speech sounds.  From a speech perspective, ‘b’ is a lip popper.  The lips are doing the work to make this sound.  The lips are closed and then pop open as we force a burst of air out.  ‘B’ is a noisy sound (we turn on our voice – vocal cords vibrate – to make this sound).

In therapy:  We will be reading 'b'/beach themed books, playing a beach themed game and exploring the sound and symbol (letter) for 'b'.

Suggestions for home:  Pick out the ones that appeal most to your child (and you!).  Sprinkle ‘b’ throughout the week.  Most important, have fun!

BOOKS

• My “b” Sound Box (Sound Box Books) by Jane Belk Moncure
• At the Beach by Anne & Harlow Rockwell
• Beach Day by Karen Roosa
• Bats At The Beach by Brian Lies
• Sand Castle by Brenda Yee
• When the Tide Is Low by Sheila Cole
• Miko Goes on Vacation by Brigitte Weninger (also an app in the App Store)
• On The Seashore by Anna Milbourne
• Hush Little Beachcomber by Dianne Moritz
• Did You Ever Wonder About Things You Find At The Beach by Vera Vullo Capogna

For more inspiration, check out these 13 books about the beach for kids from No Time For Flashcards:

FOOD
Eating the Alphabet - B:  Add a few "b" foods to your menu this week and about about "eating 'b'".  Here are a few ideas:
 
Banana      Banana bread     Beef      Broccoli      Bacon      Bagel    

Beans      Barbeque      Berries      Biscuits      Bread      Brussel sprouts

Brownies      Burger      Burrito
 
Feeling adventurous?  Plan a cooking activity with your child and make bread, banana bread or banana muffins.  Or enjoy some end of summer weather and have a BBQ!

ACTIVITIES
Scavenger Hunt:  how many ‘b’ things can you find around the house, while shopping at the market, in a magazine or store ad flyers?

Field Trip:  

• go have fun at one of our local beaches – build sand castles, explore, look for water/beach life, use fingers or sticks to draw in the sand
• visit a bakery
• Zoo/Aquarium:  how many animals can you find with ‘b’ in their name?

I Spy:  look for the letter ‘b’ in a variety of texts (books, magazines, newspaper, road signs, license plates).

Sensory Play:

• Water balloon fun: write several upper and lower case ‘b’s with sidewalk chalk on the sidewalk or driveway then blast each letter ‘b’ with a water balloon; to start working on discrimination skills, write both ‘o’s and ‘b’s but only blast the ‘b’s with water balloons

• Draw a large ‘B’ or ‘b’ on paper for your child, then have him/her cover it by gluing dry beans on the letter following the lines

• Make several ‘b’ signs (draw/color the letter or pictures beginning with /b/, cut pictures beginning with the /b/ sound out of magazines or ads, etc.), then find a large open space (indoors or outdoors) and post the signs several feet from each other.  Have your child do different actions to get from one sign to the other (e.g. “hop to the red ‘b’”, “crab walk to the ‘ball’, etc.)

 What other 'b' or beach-related activities can you think of?  Share!