State and Model the Objective
Tell the children that they will compare cats and dogs and that they will read and write short-vowel words, such as cat, dog, sit, not, rag, tug, and that.

Literacy Activities
Read Cats and Dogs

• Read the Cats and Dogs target text (see below) with the children.
• Have the children read short-vowel words (e.g., cat, dog, lick, rag, catch, tug, jump, lap).
• Have the children write short-vowel words from dictation.

Compare cats and dogs

• Tell the children to label one column of the chart (see below) Cats and the other column Dogs.
• Have the children put a check in the Cats column if the description fits cats, put a check in the Dogs column if the description fits dogs, and put a check in both columns if the description fits both cats and dogs.

Identify, blend, and manipulate sounds

• With word-building cards (see below), have the children make new words by changing a consonant or the vowel.
  • Change the beginning consonant: cat→ mat, dog→ log, dust→ must
  • Change the vowel: cat→ cut, dig→ dug, net→ not
  • Change the ending consonant: cat→ can, dog→ dot, sit→ sip