Looking for fun ways to teach sight words to kids?
Here are some simple yet engaging sight word activities that you can do at home to help your child learn sight words.
>>>>>Grab your FREE Dolch Sight Words Chart at the end of this post<<<<<<
Before we get to the fun part, what are sight words anyway?
What is a Sight Word?
Although a sight word can be any word that you read by sight without much effort, in the field of early literacy, a sight word is a word that appears frequently in print.
Because these frequently appearing (high-frequency) words make up more than 70% of words in children’s books, children are often encouraged to memorize them by heart.
Here are some examples!
and, you, is, in, one,
There are nearly 300 such words that kids need to learn to become fluent and efficient in reading, check out our FREE Dolch Sight Words Chart at the end of this post for the sight words list to teach your child.
Decodable vs Non-Decodable Sight Words:
There are 2 types of sight words–decodable sight words and non-decodable sight words!
To achieve reading fluency, in English children should be able to recognize these two types of words easily.
1. Decodable sight words:
Decodable sight words are frequently appearing words that can be read by sounding out the letters.
For example,
The word ‘and’ can be read by sounding out the three letters in the word — /a/ /n/ /d/ and then by blending the three sounds together.
Although words like ‘and’ can be sounded out, children are still expected to read them by sight!
Why?
You might ask!
Well, because, if you take a book, how many times do you think the word ‘and’ would appear in the book when compared to words like ‘clock’ ‘time’ ‘bus’?
Many times right?
So imagine how a child might feel every time he or she has to sound out the letters in the word ‘and’ in order to read the word?
Moreover, sounding out each and every word in the sentence/book would take the child forever to complete the book!
On the contrary, if the child can read frequently appearing words like and, is, in, etc. without much effort, the child can then focus on decoding other less familiar words in the sentence without getting bored or frustrated.
2. Non-decodable sight words:
Non-decodable sight words are frequently appearing words that cannot be sounded out easily but have to be read by sight.
Reading these words can be tricky for children hence these words are also called tricky words.
For example,
The word ‘one’ does not have the letter ‘w’ but begins with the sound /w/ so the only option is to memorize the word by heart.
So the bottom line is, irrespective of whether a sight word is decodable or non-decodable, children are often encouraged to memorize them as a whole to:
- Reduce the time spent decoding words.
- Increase reading speed and fluency.
- Reduce frustration and boredom.
7 Fun Ways to Teach Sight Words to Kids:
Now that we know what sight words are, teaching them to kids can seem like a tedious task. But the trick is to turn teaching sight words into a fun game!
Here are 7 fun ways to teach sight words through games & activities!
- Sight Words Memory Game
- Fly Swat
- Erase/Circle the Word
- Follow the Path for Your Treat
- Sight Word Parking Lot
- Word Building
- Sight Word Count
1. SIGHT WORDS MEMORY GAME:
This is a standard memory game!
What I love about this sight word memory game is that it provides lots of opportunities to practice reading sight words while improving memory and concentration!
Things You Need:
- Two sets of sight word flashcards.
- Alternatively, you can also write two sets of sight words on chits of paper.
Instruction:
- Place the sight word flashcards/chits of paper face up and let your child read the word and find its pair.
- Alternatively, you can place the flashcards/chits of paper face down instead of face up and let your child pick the pair from memory.
2. FLY SWAT:
This is a fun sight word game that you can play with your child to build speed and confidence in identifying and reading sight words.
Things You Need:
- Toy bug swatter/bat or other similar objects.
- One set of sight word flashcards.
- Alternatively, you can also write two sets of sight words on chits of paper.
Instruction:
- Pick 10 sight word flashcards/chits of paper that you wrote the sight words on and place them on the floor.
- Pretend that the cards are bugs.
- Call out a sight word and let your child swat the card (bug) using a toy bug swatter/bat.
3. ERASE/CIRCLE THE SIGHT WORD:
This is a simple sight word game that provides your child with lots of opportunities to practice reading sight words as well as identify and differentiate them from one another.
Things You Need:
- Whiteboard.
- Dry erase marker.
- Eraser.
Instructions:
- Write 5-10 sight words on the whiteboard.
- Call out a sight word and let your child identify the sight word and erase/circle it.
4. FOLLOW THE PATH FOR YOUR TREAT:
This is a fun sight word game that you can play on a rainy day!
Especially, when you want to get some of that extra energy out of your child.
What I truly like about this game is that it involves a lot of movement while making the whole learning process fun and interesting for the child.
Things You Need:
- A treat.
- One set of sight word flashcards.
- Alternatively, you can write sight words on chits of paper.
Instruction:
- Decide on the list of sight words you want your child to practice.
- Accordingly, pick the sight word flashcards/chits of paper that you wrote the sight words on and arrange them face up to make a twisty path on the floor.
- Be creative and let the path go under the table and over the furniture for some extra fun.
- Your child has to read the sight word as he or she follows the path to discover the hidden treat at the end.
5. SIGHT WORD PARKING LOT
If you have a car lover, this game is a must-try!
I bet this game will keep your little car-lover entertained while providing the needed repetition to build speed and confidence in recognizing sight words.
Things You Need:
- Chalk.
- Toy cars.
Instruction:
- Using the chalk draw a parking lot with 10 parking spots.
- Write a sight word in each of the parking spots.
- Call out a sight word and let your child drive his/her favorite car to the correct parking spot.
Vrrrroooommmmm!
6. WORD BUILDING:
This is a quiet game that you can play on a Saturday afternoon!
What I like about this game is that it helps the child practice spelling and reading sight words.
Things You Need:
- Magnetic letters.
- One set of sight word flashcards.
- Alternatively, you can write sight words on chits of paper.
Instruction:
- Pick 5 or 10 sight words that you want your child to practice.
- Let your child use the sight word flashcards/chits of paper as a reference and build the words using magnetic letters.
7. SIGHT WORD COUNT:
An enjoyable game that adds an extra dose of fun and joy to your daily reading time while helping your child identify and read sight words in real-time. By the way, this is a fun way to introduce toddlers and preschoolers to the world of sight words!
Things You Need:
- Children’s storybooks.
Instructions:
- During your everyday reading session, pick simple 2 or 3 letter sight words and see how many times it appears in the book.
Resources to Teach Sight Words to Kids:
Now that you have 7 fun ways to teach sight words in your toolbox, grab your FREE Dolch Sight Words Chart to get the list of sight words to teach your child.
If you are looking for worksheets to do hands-on sight word activities with your child then check out our Dolch Sight Words Digital Bundle for Kids (Level 1 – 5).
This bundle includes:
- 100+ worksheets that are filled with amazing activities such as cutting, gluing, coloring, tracing, writing, unscrambling, and more!
- 220 Dolch Sight Word cards.
You can also get Level 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 Dolch Sight Words Digital Workbooks individually from our shop.
What are Dolch Sight Words?
By the way, if you are someone who is wondering what Dolch sight words are, here is a little background for you!
Dolch Sight words is a list of sight words that was originally created by Edward William Dolch, a children’s book author and a major proponent of beginning reading instruction.
He came up with this sight word list which includes the most commonly occurring words in children’s books to assist children in achieving reading fluency in English.
Since then this list of sight words has been used in most reading programs around the world!
So that is all there is about sight words!
I hope you found the 7 fun ways to teach sight words to kids and the resources shared in this post useful!
If you did, don’t forget to let us know in the comments below!
Also, share this post with your friends coz’ sharing is caring 😉
Final Notes:
f you are supporting your child to read at home, then you might want to read my blog post Teach Your Child to Read Using Phonics: The Ultimate 7-Step Guide for step-by-step instructions and all the necessary resources that you might need to help your child read and spell easily!
If you are looking for a kid’s reading program, I welcome you to join our LURN Phonics Kid’s Reading Program which is a step-by-step parent-led program that is designed to help your child read and spell fluently and efficiently!
To take up this program, you do not need any prior phonics knowledge or teaching experience!
Everything is so simplified for you that all you need is a playful attitude and the enthusiasm to set aside 10-15 minutes a day to teach your child to read!
The best part is, our reading program is multisensorial and fun-based so no more tears while learning to read but lots of fun and play!
So go ahead and check out our LURN Phonics Kid’s Reading Program and I cannot wait to help you help your little one become an amazing reader and speller 🙂