Overview
The children will make thump and thud noises and associate the th digraph with the /th/ sound.

Literacy Activities
Pretend to be Thumper

• Tell the children that Thumper was a rabbit that would often thump his foot.
• Put rabbit tracks with th (see below) on the floor.
• Let the children thump their feet as they follow a path of th tracks.
• Say “Thump, thump, thump your foot along the path.”  

       OR 

• Have the children trace their foot on paper and put a th on the paper foot.
• Let the children place the foot on the floor and thump the paper foot with their foot.

Find th objects

• Invite the children to be Thumper and find a thing to hold up.
• Show the Thumbs Up sign (see below) and comment, “That’s a thing, and that’s a thing.”
• Invite the children to thump their feet and say “Thumper sees a thing.”

Put th on thumbs that go thump   

• Let the children make a thump and thud with their thumb and thumbnail.
• Invite the children to put th on paper thumbs (see below). 
• Let the children see if the paper thumb can make a thump and a thud.
• Ask the children, “Do you hear that /th/ sound in thump, thud, and thumb?” 
• Tell the children to produce the /th/ sound as they make a thud or thump with their thumbs.

More Practice
Read about Thumper

• Read the Thumper Goes Thump target text (see below) to the children.
• Read the text again and invite the children to perform the actions. 
• Invite the children to thump their feet every time they hear the th sound.

Read and analyze the words

• Write the words thumb, thump, and thud on the board.  
• Call attention to the silent b in thumb by covering it up and pronouncing the word.
• Have the children write the word thumb, hold their thumbs over the b, and read the word.