Image of a child walking into a wig store with a pig
Shutterstock.com (All Images)
Silly Decodable,

Pig in a Wig

Wigs, Wigs, Wigs!

By Janice Behrens
From the September 2023 Issue

Learning Objective: Students will be able to decode words with a short vowel CVC pattern and understand the sequence of events in a story.

Lexiles: 130L
Guided Reading Level: D
Word List: big, bin, bit, dig, fit, fix, hit, is, it, kid, pig, pin, rid, rip, sit, wig, will
Featured Skill: Fluency, Vocabulary,
Common Core Standards
  • English Language Arts (2) Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: beginning reading and writing. The student develops word structure knowledge through phonological awareness, print concepts, phonics, and morphology to communicate, decode, and spell. The student is expected to: (A) demonstrate phonological awareness by: (iii) distinguishing between long and short vowel sounds in one-syllable words; (B) demonstrate and apply phonetic knowledge by: (i) decoding words in isolation and in context by applying common letter sound correspondences; (4) Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: fluency. The student reads grade-level text with fluency and comprehension. The student is expected to use appropriate fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) when reading grade-level text.
TEKS Standards
  • English Language Arts (2) Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: beginning reading and writing. The student develops word structure knowledge through phonological awareness, print concepts, phonics, and morphology to communicate, decode, and spell. The student is expected to: (A) demonstrate phonological awareness by: (iii) distinguishing between long and short vowel sounds in one-syllable words; (B) demonstrate and apply phonetic knowledge by: (i) decoding words in isolation and in context by applying common letter sound correspondences; (4) Developing and sustaining foundational language skills: fluency. The student reads grade-level text with fluency and comprehension. The student is expected to use appropriate fluency (rate, accuracy, and prosody) when reading grade-level text.

Magazine View
See Student View

I am a pig.

I will get this wig.

It will be a hit.

No, pig. It will not fit.

It is big.

I will get this wig.

It will not be big.

No, pig. It did not fit.

It will rip. Get rid of it. 

OK, kid. Will a pin fix it?

I will get you a wig that will fit.

Sit for a bit.

I will dig in the bin. 

This is it.

It will fit.

A pig in a wig!

It is a hit.

Slideshows (1)
Activities (3)
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
Slideshows (1)
Activities (3) Download All Quizzes and Activities
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)

More About the Article

English Language Arts Focus 

Phonics and phonological awareness

Fluency

Phonics Focus

Engineering and technology

Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Download the Lesson Plan

Implementation

Whole Group

Technology Time: Have children listen and read along by clicking the read-aloud button on the digital article.

Pairings and Text Connections

  • From the Storyworks archive: “Paired Text: Could You Be a LEGO Master?” May/June 2023
  • Suggested books: How to Build LEGO Cars by Hannah Dolan

Before-Reading Resources

  • Vocabulary Slideshow: (5 minutes) Race car, engine
  • Video: Making a LEGO Car (5 minutes) Use this video to encourage children to make connections between their background knowledge and the article.

Suggested Reading Focus

Phonics and Comprehension (20 minutes)
  • Review short vowel sounds. Then isolate and practice the short ī sound. Emphasize the difference between the short vowel sounds for the letters e and i.
  • Practice the CVC short -i pattern by creating a word ladder. Using a dry erase easel, draw a simple ladder.
  • On the top rung, write the word big. Write it again on the next rung. Erase the b and replace it with a d to make the word dig. Continue in the same way, erasing each changing letter and replacing it to make a new word. Build your 
  • ladder with words in order: big, dig, dip, lip, lit, sit
  • Review high-frequency words from the story. Students can practice reading words with a partner, as a class, and individually.
  • As children read, check comprehension. What does the pig want? What does it mean for something to “be a hit”? Does the pig get a wig? Is the wig a hit? How do you know?
  • Last, have students review the story and highlight words with the CVC short-i pattern.

After-Reading Skills Practice

  • Skills: Writing/Phonics (15 minutes)

Extension Craftivity

Skills: Main idea/Understanding idioms (15 minutes)

  • Remind students that if something “is a hit” that it is popular or well-liked. Challenge students to draw and color a pig in a wig. Review the wigs in the story. Students should design a wig that they think will be a hit!

Text-to-Speech