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Sight words are words that kids need to know “by sight” – not sound out, not use picture clues, or any other strategies.
Recently, we started a Word Wall for JJ’s sight words — okay, a Word Refrigerator – so I thought I’d share about the Wall and some other ideas for learning sight words.
Repetition
Word Walls are great repetition and practice for beginning readers. JJ can practice the words she knows on the Wall, Refrigerator. Also, we like to add in some counting! JJ counts up the total number of words she knows; she feels so proud of herself knowing that she can read words.
Sight Words in Context
I like to teach sight words as we read books. Right now Cat the Cat books by Mo Willems are JJ’s favorite.
1. I’ll give her a sticky note with a preprinted word like “the” and she’ll look for it while we’re reading. She adds this to her Word Wall after reading.
2. Other times we’ll read through the book. When JJ comes to a word she doesn’t know, I’ll tell her the word, we’ll practice it and try to find it again in the book. Finally, JJ will write the new word on the blank green sticky note for her Word Wall.
Resources
Printable DOLCH Sight Word List
These are the Post-It Sight Words and Post-It Write Your Own Sight Words that we use.
I also have these Magnetic Sight Words.
More Sight Word Activities
Teach Mama has a fun Sight Word Bingo game. Here’s a Sight Word Bingo card creator.
Write the sight words in rainbow colors and cut up into an easy puzzle.
Make a Sight Word book.
Play this Sight Word Match Game on the computer
Download an iPad & iPhone Sight Word App.
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Melissa Taylor is a mom and educator from Denver who is passionate about playful learning. Thanks for visiting the site!
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great post and sight words can be made fun to learn.
Although the school my son attends does send home word cards that have words for him to learn by site, they take it one step further. They ensure the word itself is fully defined and he understands the word before they make him memorize the word by site.
We find the combination method of ensuring the word is understood (with sentences to show usage) and the word cards to be very helpful.
thanks, Dana. That sounds great.
[...] Word Wall for Sight Words [...]
[...] Word Walls for Sight Words [...]
When my kids were toddlers, I made cards with words around the house and hung them with painter’s tape by the various items I was labeling. I made a card for every room, and some objects, like table, mirror, chair. Those aren’t sight words, but it helped the kids.
We used a magnetic board and colored magnet strips that used an Expo 2 wipe off marker for our word wall. Others have used the refrigerator or freezer door. If you use 2/3rds of the area for new words and the rest for words that you have nearly mastered, it’s an easy way to keep track of progress and move the words off the wall to make room for more.
The biggest hint – read, read, read with your kids.
I am way behind in reading your blog, but I definitely have to save this link! Thank you so much for such a great resource!!
[...] Imagination Soup [...]
[...] the sight words. I should have been keeping up on this, you’re right. We had done our sight word wall for a few months, I thought she was good to go. But, not so much. Not when it’s not practiced [...]
Many thanks, Melissa, for this fabulous post–packed full of ideas and resources and including one of mine! What a surprise, and an honor, to be a part of it!
cheers–
amy
[...] Sight Word Ideas [...]
[...] daughter is old enough to practice writing Sight Words using Sight Word Cards as a [...]