Run to the Sun

Lesson Plan
Target Words:
- run
- sun
- fun
- bun
Materials:
- Run to the Sun game board*
- Spinner, word wheel, and -un game pieces*
- Sun cards*
- Brass brads to connect pointer to spinner
- Word-building cards*
- Picture of a sun*
- Run to the Sun target text*
*Items included below.
Overview
The children will play a board game called Run to the Sun and will read and write words that end with -un, such as run, sun, fun, and bun.
Literacy Activities
Run to the Sun
- Divide children into small groups and give each group a game board and some sun cards (both found below).
- Give each of the children an -un game piece (found below) and have them put their initials on it.
- Demonstrate and explain the rules of the game:
- Put the sun cards in a pile face down
- Take turns drawing a sun card and follow its direction (e.g., go 1 space, go 2 spaces).
- If a child lands on a space next to a letter, have him or her read the word created by the letter and their -un piece (e.g., f→un reads fun).
- When children reach the sun at the end of the game, have them say, “A run to the sun is fun!”
Spin to find -un words
- Take turns spinning the spinner (found below) and reading the word it lands on.
- Identify whether the words end with -un or not.
More Practice
Identify, blend, and manipulate sounds
- Use the word-building cards (found below) to make different words by changing either the beginning or ending consonants or the middle vowel.
- Change the beginning consonant: run→ sun, sun→ bun, fun→ run
- Change the vowel: fun→ fin, run→ ran, bun→ bin
- Change the ending consonant: bun→ bud, fun→ fur, run→ rub
- For each of the words that the children make, have them produce the sounds for each letter and then blend those sounds back into the word.
Read target words in a text
- Read the Run to the Sun target text (found below) to the children.
- Engage the children in reading the text with you.
- Read the text again with the children, fading support.
Write about this activity using target words and phrases
- Play Pass the Sun with the children:
- Draw a giant sun on the board
- Have the children take turns passing the picture of the sun (found below).
- When a child gets the sun, have them say a word that ends in -un.
- Write each new word inside the giant sun on the board.
- Repeat the game, but have the children who get the paper sun write their word on it before passing it on.
- Let the children use the large sun as a word wall and write a sentence about the sun.
Read More
SEEL Target Texts
Spun for Fun
You spun and got to say the word “Run.”
A friend spun and got to say the word “Sun.”
Another friend spun and got to say the word “Bun.”
Everyone spun and spun and spun.
Did anyone get to say the word “Fun”?
If you did not get to say the word “Fun,” you still spun for fun!
How to Play the Run to the Sun Game
Would you like to run, run to the sun?
It’s a lot of fun to find words that end in -un.
Find -un words as you run to the sun.
Pick up a small sun card.
See if you get to run.
The small sun may say to go one space—
one space closer to the great big sun.
Pick up a small sun card.
See if you get to run.
Run to the words that end in -un.
When you run to the sun, you’re done.
Read More
SEEL At Home
Print
Objective
Read and write words that end with -un.
Materials
- Run to the Sun game board*
- Sun cards and -un game pieces*
*Items included below.
Activity: Run to the Sun
- Each player will choose an -un game piece and will put their initials on it.
- Demonstrate and explain the rules of the game:
- Put the sun cards in a pile face down.
- Take turns drawing a sun card and follow its direction (e.g., go 1 space, go 2 spaces).
- When someone lands on a space with a word, have them read the word.
- If the word is an -un word, the player gets to keep the sun token and take another turn.
- When everyone gets to the sun, count the sun tokens to see who has the most.
- As each player reaches the sun, say, "It’s fun to run to the sun!"
- Ask the child to tell you how to play the “Run to the Sun" game and write the directions together.
Read More
Standards
SEEL lessons align with Common Core Standards. Please see the standards page for the code(s) associated with this lesson.

http://education.byu.edu/seel/library/
56619
Run to the Sun