Troup Kindergarteners Sound It Out

Ever heard of a digraph? It’s ​“two letters that come together to make one sound,” Troup kindergartener Jose told his classmates.

That was just one of the many takeaways from Gyna Grant’s kindergarten class Wednesday morning at Troup School at 259 Edgewood Ave.

The class of 14 students started their day at 8 a.m. by filing into Grant’s classroom in the morning and storing their bags and coats in their cubbies. They sat at their desks with their school breakfast. 

As students took the start of the class to eat, Grant navigated YouTube in search of their daily ​“good morning song” and a ​“phonics song” by Gracie’s Corner. Some students updated Grant on what they got up to after school the day before, while others sang along. 

Earlier in the morning, Grant was recognized for her hard work at Troup over the last 15 years with a surprise award.

After morning announcements, students cleaned up their breakfast scraps. Like clockwork, one student gathered a boxful of leftover unopened foods, like milk and almond butter. Another student then carried that box over to a mini refrigerator in the corner of the classroom. 

A duo worked together to organize the items and place them into the fridge and a designated storage bin, which acts as a classroom foodshare. 

The students’ reading and writing lesson on Wednesday tasked them with identifying and using digraphs and vowel sounds to spell three- and four-letter words. 

Students practiced with digraph sounds like ​“Sh” to write out words like ​“shop”.

They also practiced identifying the first, middle, and last sounds they hear for each word. 

After each learning accomplishment, Grant told the students to ​“give your brains a kiss” — to which they responded by kissing two of their fingers and pressing them to their foreheads. 

When students headed back to their seats, Grant said, ​“I love how safe you’re walking, amazing.” 

Wednesday’s lesson in digraphs continued as students picked up white boards to spell out the letters of each sound Grant said aloud.

As students moved on to the independent period of their reading lesson, some snapped their fingers to count the number of syllables in words. 

Later during Wednesday’s class, Grant called on each student at random to share aloud some information each of their assigned Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). Since the start of the school year, Grant has tasked her students with learning about HBCUs while also rewarding them with pennies to place in a jar on each of their desks. The students shared the name of the college they were assigned and the year they were each founded. After, Grant rewarded each student a penny to add to their jar. 

When Grant called on Isaiah, he declared that Delaware State University was founded in 1891.

By the end of the year, the students will get to keep their pennies and put them toward scholarship rewards. 

As Grant moved on to displaying the class’s daily affirmations on the smart board, middle school students popped into her classroom to say good morning and note their excitement for spring break.

Grant then guided the students through checking the weather and date on Wednesday. The students in unison said what day of the week it was, and the date — April 9, 2025. ​“How do we write the number nine?” Grant asked. 

The students put their fingers in the air to trace the number in front of them: ​“Make a circle, and go straight down.” 

To practice the days of the week, Grant asked the group, ​“If yesterday was Tuesday and today is Wednesday, what will tomorrow be?” 

Kindergartener Isaiah raised his hand: ​“Thursday!”

Then the seasons: Students said spring is a great time to go to the park, ride on scooters, and leave your heavy jackets behind. 

Meanwhile paraprofessional Jorgett Plunkett checked students homework folders and booted up each student’s Chromebook to later complete their writing and reading lessons.

“We have 100 percent!” Grant declared after Plunkett confirmed that all of the homework assignments were completed.