11 ways to practice sight words -the FUN way!

Why sight words?

I never heard of sight words when I grew up. While we had plenty spelling tests, I guess the emphasis was on the letter sounds. While phonics can help spelling out and read new and unfamiliar words, memorizing words adds fluency. In addition many sight words are non-phonetic and can’t be spelled out. Those are the words we work to memorize at home and it’s boring to death reading them over and over again! With my oldest this quickly became a challenge and I understood that something a little more creative was needed in order to learn.

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Sight word lists

There are 2 main lists of sight words: The Dolch sight word list and the Fry sight word list. The Dolch list is compiled by educator Dr Edward William Dolch in 1948. The list is made up of the most frequently used words in children’s books at the time and is divided into grade levels. Once children recognize these words “by sight” (meaning “at a glance” and not having to spell the words out), they become more fluent in their reading. The Fry list is basically a more modern and extended list, that was developed by Dr Edward Fry in the 1950s. It was later updated in 1980. It includes 1000 common words used in reading materials for children. Thus, knowing these words, a child would be able to fluently read 90% of a typical book.

Creative ideas how to practice sight words

Now to the fun stuff.. Following is a list of 11 creative ways how to practice those sight words. While I didn’t invent most of these ideas, we added our own twist to some of them. Some ideas are really simple, while others require more preparation. Before we start, remember; it’s important for a child to know his letters before diving into the world of memorizing sight words.

1) Make funny sentences

I put this first on the list, because it’s my favorite. Easy and fun! Go to MrPrintables.com where you can find these really nice color coded (FREE) Dolch sight words flash cards to print out. OR just write words on small pieces of paper. Sometimes I get over ambitious. I want everything to be perfect, printed and laminated. Unfortunately perfectionism is a good recipe for not finishing creative projects… I have quite a few lying around the house.

Have the kids build (silly) sentences from the words on the cards and read them out aloud. Join the fun and make some sentences yourself too!

2) Sight word Bingo

Bingo is hardly a new concept for you, but it’s a lot of fun using to memorize sight words! Click HERE to download a free Bingo printable for the first 100 Fry sight words. It includes 6 boards and 100 small cards with words you can print out on card stock to mix and read aloud.

Tip: Take turns reading the cards aloud, as this is very good practice as well. 

3) Slap a word (or a fly?)

Start by putting out the words you would like the child to work with (on separate cards, on a big piece of paper or on the white board). Read one of the words aloud and tell the child to find the word and slap it, either using their hand or a fly swatter. This is the way we have been playing this and that’s the EASY, close-to-no-preparation-version. BUT then I came to think of how fun it would be to use cards in the shape of a fly together with the fly swatter… I checked out my friend Pinterest and of course -there it was! Fly swatting sight words! You can use this link to purchase this adorable game on Teachers pay teachers, if you’d like a more fun and exiting version.

Tip: You can use this idea for teaching letter sounds and even math problems too!

4) Sight word fishing

If you can slap the sight words, why not fish them?? I found this super-cute FREE printable at Differentiated Kindergarten. We printed out the Dolch list words on these adorable fishies and I had them laminated and cut out (my 8-year old helped cutting). My son has been fishing to his heart’s content ever since! Here’s his catch! Watch out for the sharks!

To make this game you need:

• colored paper
• printer
• scissors
• laminator (optional)
• hole puncher
• 1/2 inch paper fasteners
• a box or bowl to put the fish in
• dowel
• magnet
• string

5) Feed the penguin

For this one you can use the previously printed fish. Have the kids feed the penguin the words they were able to read OR use it as a separate game. Put the words (or fish) out, say a word, have the child look for it and feed it to the penguin. I usually say the word in a”funny” voice, as if the penguin said it;) We have used this penguin for letter recognition and math as well. I found the idea and instructions to make this penguin at Little Family Fun.

6) Find words in a book or text

This is a classic, and a very easy one. I like it, because it gives the smaller children a sense they’re actually reading a book! Have them find one word at a time and count how many times it was found.

7) Park that car

This is a widely known one and you can find ideas all over Pinterest. The idea is still worth mentioning, because 1) It’s very easy to set up and 2) It easily captures the interest of little boys, who otherwise find it difficult to sit still learning. It is also a good game when you’re first starting out memorizing sight words, as you read the words to the child first. This was my boy’s absolute favorite! Just draw a simple sketch of a parking lot on a big paper. Write words in each parking spot and tell the child where to park the car.

8) Park that car -bigger version!

After doing the previous activity (parking a small car on a paper), my 6-year old asked if we can please do this outside with a bigger car. So we did…I said the word and he parked the car:) I used painter’s tape to write the words, but if your driveway isn’t nearly as rough as ours, you can easily just use chalk.

And then we tried his bike…He seems to know this set of words pretty well by now!

9) Play detective

In a guest post (by Malia from “Playdough to Plato”) on “This Reading Mama”, you can get a FREE printable mystery print out. I really like it, because it’s a bit different than other ideas I have seen. It adds a pinch of mystery to it. So, get that magnifying glass out (or buy one) and start looking for the words!

10) More magic words..

Another mystery one from “Playdough to Plato”… You can get a free printable when you sign up for their newsletter (which I highly recommend anyway). Write the words with a white crayon (or have the kids write), then ask the kids to draw with markers to reveal the words! Maybe you could think of some kind of other surprise to be revealed as well…

10) Bead the words

While this activity is really hands on, I would recommend using the kind of letters on which you can feel the shape (and not these beads -all I have at the moment). You can find them at Lakeshore Learning. My boy didn’t like this as much as parking cars, but my girls -on the other hand- liked it a lot! I guess they found it “crafty”.

Online resources

I hope this has helped you finding some new and creative ways how to practice sight words. Remember: Lots of patience is needed to raise a reader. Have fun! Some additional resources:

–Sightwords.com has an endless amount of information on how to practice sight words. You can find lots of games and ideas to use in your teaching. You can also find both the Dolch and Fry sight word lists.

-At MrPrintables.com you can find some really nice color coded (FREE) Dolch sight words flash cards to print out.

–PlaydoughtoPlato.com  is another resource for great ideas.

I hope this has helped you to find some new and creative ways how to practice sight words. Remember: Lots of patience is needed to raise a reader. Have fun!

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