Overview
The children will make some metal rings ding and sing as they read and write words ending in –ing such as ping, string, swing, and ding.

Literacy Activities
Make rings ding

• Teach the children the Ding-a-Ling Rings target text and then sing it together. 
• Demonstrate how to put the rings on the string to make them ding. 
• Have one child stand opposite you and hold one end of the string so it is tight. 
• Put the rings on the string.
• Strike the rings with the spoon or swing the string (like a jump-rope) to make the rings ding.
• Separate the children into pairs to copy your demonstration. 
• Sing the Ding-a-Ling Rings song again. Have the children hit the rings with the spoon each time they sing a word ending with –ing. 

More Practice
Identify, blend, and manipulate sounds

• With word blending cards, have the children make new words by changing either of the consonants or the vowel:
  • ding → sing; ring → ping; string → swing
  • sing → sang; ring → rung; ding → dong
  • sing → sink; swing → swim; ding → dig

Read target words in a text

• Display the text of the Ding-a-ling Rings song target text on the board so that all of the children can easily see it.
• Read the text together as a group. 
• Read the text again, fading support.
• Allow one child at a time to underline an –ing word from the text. Repeat until all –ing words have been underlined.

Write target words

• Make a list of –ing words from the song on the board.
• Write a song together about how rings ding-a-ling, using some of the –ing words from your list. (Choose a well-known tune and write new words to it). 
• Play and sing it for parents, another teacher, other children, or an administrator.