Overview
The children will pretend to be quail who quickly follow Queen Quail as they practice saying the /kw/ sound as in queen, quail, and quick.
 

Click here to view a video demonstration similar to this lesson.

Literacy Activities
Follow the Queen Quail

• Show the children the quail graphic and explain that when quail are young, they quickly follow their parents.
• Give each child feathers or feather graphics and have them attach the feathers to strips of paper to make a quail headband.
• Choose a student to be Queen Quail and explain that Queen Quail will tell the children to act out words that start with Q.
• Show the children the action cards and point out that every word starts with the letters qu, which make the /kw/ sound.
  • Explain that the letter Q is usually spelled with a U after it.
• Have Queen Quail read the action word cards, and have the children perform an action when each card is read. Use the following actions or create your own:
  • Quiet: Hold a finger to lips and say “shhh”
  • Quake: Shake as if afraid
  • Quack: Hold hands to lips like a duck bill and quack
  • Quick: Jog in place quickly
  • Quit: Sit down and say “I quit!”
• Repeat the activity as desired with a different child acting as Queen Quail during each round.
• End the game by saying, “Queen Quail says quit!”

More Practice
Read the target letter

• Have the children underline the letter Q on the action cards and on the Queen Quail name tag.
• Point out that the letter Q makes the /kw/ sound.
• Help the children read the action cards (support as needed).

Write the target letter

• Help the children write the uppercase letter Q and the lowercase letter q while they produce the /kw/ sound.
• Have the children write the letter Q and lowercase letter q on their headbands.