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Vowel Sound Explorer

Run the Vowel Sound Explorer MicroSim Fullscreen

About This MicroSim

The Vowel Sound Explorer helps kindergarten students understand that vowels are special letters that can make different sounds. Each vowel can make both a "short" sound and a "long" sound (its name). This MicroSim allows children to explore both sound types through interactive discovery.

Features

  • All 5 Vowels: A, E, I, O, U displayed prominently
  • Two Sound Modes: Toggle between short and long vowel sounds
  • Visual Markers: Breve (˘) for short sounds, macron (¯) for long sounds
  • Example Words: Common words for each vowel sound
  • Emoji Pictures: Visual associations for each example
  • Color Coding: Each vowel has its own color
  • Audio Playback: Hear sounds and example words spoken

How to Use

  1. Select Mode: Click "Short Sounds" or "Long Sounds" to choose
  2. Click a Vowel: Tap any vowel letter to hear its sound
  3. Listen: Hear the vowel sound and an example word
  4. Learn: See the example word and picture
  5. Compare: Switch modes to hear how the same vowel sounds different

Vowel Sounds

Vowel Short Sound Example Long Sound Example
A /a/ (ah) apple /ā/ (ay) cake
E /e/ (eh) egg /ē/ (ee) tree
I /i/ (ih) igloo /ī/ (eye) ice
O /o/ (oh) octopus /ō/ (oh) boat
U /u/ (uh) umbrella /ū/ (you) unicorn

Iframe Example

You can include this MicroSim on your website using the following iframe:

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<iframe src="https://dmccreary.github.io/reading-for-kindergarten/sims/vowel-sound-explorer/main.html"
        height="472px"
        width="100%"
        scrolling="no"></iframe>

Lesson Plan

Learning Objectives

After completing this activity, students will be able to:

  1. Remember: Recall that vowels can make two different sounds
  2. Understand: Explain the difference between short and long vowel sounds
  3. Apply: Identify whether a vowel sound is short or long in simple words
  4. Analyze: Compare short and long sounds for the same vowel

Key Concepts

  • Short Vowels: Make a quick sound (apple, egg, igloo, octopus, umbrella)
  • Long Vowels: Say their name (cake, tree, ice, boat, unicorn)
  • Visual Markers: Breve (˘) marks short sounds, macron (¯) marks long sounds

Suggested Activities

  1. Sound Sort: Sort picture cards by short or long vowel sounds
  2. Name Check: Determine if each student's name has short or long vowels
  3. Word Hunt: Find classroom objects with short or long vowel sounds
  4. Body Sounds: Stand up for long sounds, crouch for short sounds

Assessment Opportunities

  • Ask students to identify if a word has a short or long vowel sound
  • Have students generate words with target vowel sounds
  • Observe which vowel pairs cause the most confusion

Differentiation

  • Support: Focus on one vowel at a time; use kinesthetic movements
  • Challenge: Introduce words where context affects vowel sound (e.g., "use" vs. "us")

Teaching Notes

  • Long vowel sounds are the same as vowel names - helpful for students who know letter names
  • Short vowel sounds are often harder to learn because they're less distinct
  • The macron and breve symbols are standard phonics notation

Technical Notes

  • Uses p5.js for interactive graphics
  • Web Speech API for sound pronunciation
  • Web Audio API for selection tones
  • Touch and mouse input supported
  • Responsive design adapts to container width

References