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A Super Special Soup
Text Type: Fiction • Word Count: 276

READ-ALOUD LESSON
A Super Special Soup
Consonant Ss /s/

Other Resources
Decodable Book
Sam and the Sap
Instructional Focus
  • Introduce and expose students to the /s/ sound represented by the letter s.
  • Build oral comprehension skills.
  • Model fluent reading.
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Story Summary
The narrator invites his friends over on Saturday for a special soup. He describes the contents of the soup, which include scrambled slugs, squashed snails, slippery squid, and slimy snake. At the end of the story, he reveals the real menu for Saturday's supper: spaghetti, salad, spongecake, and soda. 

Build Background
Ask students if they have a favorite soup. Invite them to describe the soup, such as what ingredients are in the soup and who makes the soup. Have them explain why this soup is their favorite. 

Preview the Book
Read the title and ask students to identify the sound at the beginning of the words super, special, and soup. Explain that you will read a story aloud that has many words with the /s/ sound. Have students say the /s/ sound. 

Write super, special, and soup on the board. Read each word aloud to students. Have volunteers come to the board and take turns circling the letter that stands for the /s/ sound in the words. 

Open the book and show students the illustrations on each page. Ask them to identify any words with the /s/ sound from the pictures. Invite students to predict what the story might be about. 

During Reading
Read the story aloud with expression, emphasizing the /s/ sound in the words. Ask students to clap their hands each time they hear the /s/ sound. Point out that they might hear the /s/ sound at the beginning or end of the word. 

Allow students to ask questions during reading. Pause occasionally to ask students to predict what might happen next. 

After Reading
Reader Response
Have students explain whether the book is fiction or nonfiction. Invite them to summarize the story and/or describe their favorite part. 

Comprehension
Ask specific questions that allow students to demonstrate their understanding of the book.

  • What ingredients are in the soup?
  • Why do the friends "look scared?"
  • What foods are really on the menu for Saturday's supper?