To young children (i.e., kids age 5 to 8), explain that words have parts called syllables and that they can break words into their syllables. Point out that a short word has one or two syllables, and a longer word has more syllables. Play the song "A Syllable Count" in Anne L. Steele's "Reading for Every Child: Phonemic Awareness, K-1"; have children listen to the song. The song asks children to tell how many parts they hear, to say the words slowly and to clap for each part. Per Steele, students can add verses at the end of the song by choosing a different object name for the first line of the second verse -- "Oh, how many syllables does 'goat' have?"
For a one-on-one activity, use counting blocks that a child can associate with individual syllables. Introduce one wooden block as standing for one syllable. Say the word "bag" and point to the block. Explain that "bag" has one syllable, so one block stands for that syllable. Then provide two blocks and say a two-syllable word such as "baggy." Point to one block as you say the first syllable and to the other block as you say the second syllable. Provide another two-syllable word and see if the child can associate the syllables with the blocks. This activity also offers youngsters opportunities to practice one-to-one correspondence, meaning that every object gets counted only once. This skill will be needed in kindergarten for counting physical objects and for associating spoken words in a sentence with one word in the print representation.
Students that can decode some words still need to practice counting syllables. Have children work in pairs. Give each pair a set of sentence strips; each strip should have a short sentence printed on it. Sentences should include both short and longer words. Have partners work together to read each sentence, clap out the number of syllables in each word and write the count above the word. This activity also works with a worksheet, and you only need one worksheet for each pair of children.
Play the song "Do-Re-Mi" from the movie "The Sound of Music." Teach how to make up words with different syllables. If you teach children all eight syllables in the song -- do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do -- they can create different combinations, just as Maria does in the movie. Andrews sings combinations such as "re-fa-fa-la-ti-ti" and "do-re-do." Have students count the number of syllables in invented words like "re-fa-fa-la-ti-ti." They can clap as they count or use their fingers to count syllables.