Search
You know that dogs bark and cats meow—but have you ever wondered how these words came to be? Say bark and meow out loud—do you notice anything interesting? That’s right—they sound like what they mean!
When a word sounds like or imitates the thing it describes, it is called onomatopoeia (ŏn–ō–mah–tō–pē–uh).
Here’s one to try with your student: “What sound does food cooking in a frying pan make? Did you make a hissing sound with lots of s’s and z’s? That’s because the food sizzles!”
Onomatopoeia is more common than you might think, and we teach it beginning in Level 1 of the All About Reading program. In fact, English contains so many of these words that it can be easy to overlook that everyday words like splash, knock, buzz, and clap are all examples of onomatopoeia.
Have some fun by trying these other examples with your student.
“What does a cow say?”
(Student makes a mooing sound.)
“Great! Now can you say that like a cow?”
Moo!
“What does a frog say?”
(Student makes a ribbit sound.)
“Can you say that like a frog?”
Ribbit!
“What does a car engine sound like?”
(Student makes an engine sound.)
“Now can you say that like a car?”
Vroom!
Onomatopoeia can be a lot of fun, but it can also be tricky for students to read these words if they’re not familiar with them. Take a look at how we teach onomatopoeia in the All About Reading program to get some extra practice! As you read the stories included below, have your student circle any examples of onomatopoeia they come across.
Learn the sounds of the circus with this story and activity from All About Reading Level 1.
AAR Level 1 introduces onomatopoeia in Lesson 27 with an activity called “Swish and Flip!” Many of the words introduced here are encountered in “The Big Top” and subsequent stories.
Download Level 1 Onomatopoeia Activity “Swish and Flip!”
Download Level 1 Story: “The Big Top”
Learn how a girl and her pony take care of each other with this story and activity from All About Reading Level 2.
Students are exposed to more examples of onomatopoeia in an activity from Lesson 24 called “Clip, Clop, Crack!” Many of the words introduced here are encountered in a short story called “Champ.”
Download Level 2 Onomatopoeia Activity “Clip, Clop, Crack!”
Download Level 2 Story: “Champ”
If you had fun learning about onomatopoeia, then you’ll love our other Fun with Words posts! Here are a few of our favorites:
I won’t beat around the bush—this blog post about teaching idioms takes the cake!
Introduce your student to portmanteaus and open up a whole new world of fun with words!
Let your students get creative and have some fun with palindromes!
Now that we’ve learned all about onomatopoeia and how to spot these fun words, please share your favorites in the comments below!
Axa Carnes
says:This was one of our favorite lessons. We’ve done L1-L3. My granddaughter loves the games. Right now she’s breezing through the lessons. AAR has given her a great foundation and made her into a strong reader.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceAxa,
So wonderful to hear that All About Reading is working so well for your granddaughter! Thank you.
Hannah
says:My son and I just recently finished Level 1, and he still talks about onomatopoeias!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceHannah,
Onomatopoeias are so fun! Glad your son enjoyed that lesson.
Charlotte Salvia
says:We are learning about onomatopoeia in our English lessons ( with my child who went straight into AAR level 3) My 5 year old has just started AAR 1, so im looking forward to teaching her about onomatopoeia too. Children use onomatopoeia so often naturally, it’s wonderful to teach them that they are infact using onomatopoeia most days – and they feel very smart!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceCharlotte, so true!
Stephanie
says:We switched to AAR this year and we are loving it!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceGlad to hear All About Reading is working well for you, Stephanie!
Abby Weldon
says:This looks like such a fun way to learn these reading concepts. So excited to be teaching with this curriculum.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you, Abby!
Stacey
says:AAR was essential in my dyslexic child’s learning journey!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you, Stacey!
Kathryn
says:With my first born, I would talk about all the animal sounds during diaper changes. Her first word was “ER-ah-ER” for a rooster.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceKathryn,
I love that! What a cute memeory!
Amy
says:So excited to start AAR and AAS with my kindergartener! It is exactly what we were looking for!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceI love your excitement, Amy!
Sarah
says:Love AAR! Excited to start AAS this year!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceI love your excitement, Sarah!
Db
says:We love aar
Sabrina
says:AAR & AAS really helped my older son , that is dyslexic, learn to read and spell! I’m going to be homeschooling my younger daughter (that is also dyslexic) next year, and winning a set would be an awesome blessing for our family!!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceSabrina,
I’m happy to hear how much All About Reading and All About Spelling helped your son! Thank you for sharing.
Kate
says:I’m so excited to try out AAR!
LW
says:Love learning with smiles, how wonderful! This looks like a great curriculum!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you!
Lauren
says:My homeschool daughter just met with her cohort teacher about this topic! It’s so fun. But yes, as an early childhood educator I know these words don’t always look right or easy. But they’re interesting and add excitement. Thank you for this post!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Lauren. Onomatopoeias are definitely interesting!
Deborah
says:Fun! I love All the “extra” things we learn with AAR
Robin
says: Customer ServiceGreat to hear, Deborah!
Amanda Kaye King
says:So fun! Thanks for sharing!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Amanda!
Jessica H
says:My favorite example of onomatopoeia is “hiccup”. My kids get a huge kick out of me acting like I have them. My son is very eager to read and I am very excited to start teaching him!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceJessica,
Hiccup is a great onomatopoeia!
Christy
says:All about spelling has helped my 11 year old learn to spell. I almost lost hope. I now have a 5 year old that will need to learn to read. I have chosen to go with all about reading based on my experience with all about spelling working so well.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceChristy,
I’m so happy to hear that All About Spelling helped your child learn to spell after other struggles!
Darlene Dionne
says:what a wonderful collection of the fun words of language. I’m a tutor and can’t wait to be able to use these. Thanks
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Darlene! I hope you and your students have a lot of fun with these!
Glenda Miller
says:All About Reading has been a great choice for our school! It’s very teacher and student friendly! My students love the variety of activities! I like how adaptable it is depending on your student’s needs. I would highly recommend this curriculum for those with dyslexia.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you, Glenda! I love hearing that All About Reading is working well for your school!
Aja
says:Just heard about All About Spelling from a fellow homeschooler-very excited to try it!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceI love your excitement, Aja! Let me know if you have questions about placement or anything else. I’m always happy to help!
Rachel
says:AAR Level 1 Lesson 27 was actually the one my daughter completed today. As usual, she enjoyed the lesson. She had fun reading all the onomatopoeia words… and had fun even just saying, “onomatopoeia!”
Robin
says: Customer ServiceRachel,
The word onomatopoeia is one of the most fun words to say! Even more fun than parallelogram!
I’m glad to hear your daughter is enjoying All About Reading.
Abby Fahl
says:Hi! I would love to win a level of AAR. I would either use it with my children or give one to a family at my co-op
Sally
says:With the increasing number of exceptional words we have put into jail along our AAR journey and always say, English language can be tricky!” It’s a nice balance to look into the numerous fun words such as the Onomonopea Catergory! Thank you for all info to help us stretch into the nooks and crannies. It helps us avoid gaps and learn to appreciate the language we have.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Sally!
Amy
says:This made me laugh! I was recently in a chat forum where onomatopoeias were part of a playful conversations.
Classic comic books and (Adam West) Batman are full of them ;)
Robin
says: Customer ServiceAmy,
Oh, so true about comic books and comic book derivatives!
Sally
says:Oooo yes good point on the comics!
Vickie
says:This curriculum is so important for teaching good reading skills!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you, Vickie!
Lane Hissong
says:You guys think of great ways to make learning fun!
Leanna Osborne
says:The way you guys teach it in the levels are amazing, but the extra resources are extra blessings!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you, Leanna! I’m glad the resources are helpful for you.
David Canfield
says:These are great suggestions, my first and third grader will love this. Thank you!
Ashlee Jennings
says:We love all about reading!
Marge
says:What an enjoyable way to help my grandson learn about onomatopoeia and duplicate the sounds. Thank you for this great resource.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Marge!
Linda
says:Fun. I used AAS with my dyslexic son. Now I get to use AAR to tutor one of my grandchildren! Looking forward to it! :)
Robin
says: Customer ServiceLinda,
It’s great to hear that All About Spelling and All About Reading are working out well for you!