Parent guide
What are sight words?
Sight words are the small, common words children learn to read instantly, like “the”, “and” and “said”. Here is why they matter and how to practice them in a fun way.
What “sight words” means
Sight words are very common words that children learn to recognize quickly, without stopping to sound them out. Words like the, is, and, to, you, said appear on almost every page of a children’s book. When a child knows them by sight, reading becomes smoother and they can spend their energy on the new words.
Some sight words follow normal phonics rules (like and or it), while others are tricky because they do not sound the way they look (like said, was, of or the). Teachers sometimes call these “tricky words” or “high-frequency words”.
Common sight word lists
- The Dolch list has 220 common “service words” plus 95 common nouns, grouped by level from pre-primer to third grade.
- The Fry list has 1,000 of the most common words in English, in order of how often they appear. The first 100 are a common starting point.
Your child’s school may use its own list, so it is worth asking the teacher which words they are working on.
How sight words fit with phonics
Sight words work best alongside phonics, not instead of it. Phonics teaches children how letters and sounds work, so they can read new words. Sight words help with the very common words, especially the tricky ones. Many reading experts suggest that even tricky words are best learned by noticing which parts follow the rules and which part is “tricky”.
Fun ways to practice sight words
- Word of the day. Write one word on a sticky note and put it on the fridge. Every time your child reads it, they get a high five.
- Sight word hunt. Look for the word in a picture book. How many times can you find “the”?
- Flashlight reading. Stick word cards on the wall and read them by flashlight in a dark room.
- Hopscotch words. Write words in chalk and read each one as you land on it.
- Build sentences. Use word cards to make silly sentences: “The cat can see a big dog.”
- Short daily review. A few minutes a day is much better than a long session once a week.
How many words should my child know?
It depends on age, country and school. Many kindergarten and first grade classrooms work on a list of a few dozen to around a hundred words over the year. Focus on steady progress and enjoyment rather than a number.