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Learning sight words is helpful for kids learning to read, because sight words are the most frequently used words in books. Reading a list of sight words or flipping through flashcards as rote drill isn’t much fun though.
Tell your child you’re going to play a game, and see how quickly his demeanor changes.
Here are seven simple sight word games for kids learning to read that are easy to put together, using only a few materials, and take sight word lists and flashcards to the next level.
Sight Word Swat
Spread out a set of sight word cards face-up on the floor. Give your child a fly swatter. On your signal, he swats the sight word that you call out. If you have two children of similar ability, give them each a fly swatter and have them both try to swat the word. Whoever swats it first gets to keep the card. The player with the most cards wins.
Go Fish
Write out two sets of of sight words on index cards or print them on cardstock. For two players, you will need about 25-30 different words. Shuffle the deck. Deal 3-5 cards to each player. Players take turns asking if the other player has the match to one of the sight word cards. If so, the player asking gets both cards, places them down, and goes again. Play continues until someone runs out of cards. The player with the most matched sight word cards wins.
Concentration
For this game you will also need two identical sets of sight word cards. Shuffle the cards and place them face down in rows on a table or on the floor. Players take turns flipping two cards to make a match. If a match is made, the player takes the cards, and goes a second time. If not, the player flips the cards back over, and the other player goes. When all the sight word cards have been matched, players count their word pairs to see who has the most.
Sight Word Hop
You will need a large, clear floor space. Randomly spread out a set of sight word cards face-up, spacing each card about a foot apart. As you read aloud a word, have your child hop onto the word card covering it with her feet.
Sight Word Spelling
This simple sight word game only requires a list of sight words. Read a sight word and ask your child to spell it. To make it more hands on, have her spell it using magnetic letters, letter cards, or by writing it on paper, chalkboard, or whiteboard.
Sight Word Squirt
Write sight words on your paved driveway, walkway, or sidewalk using chalk. Call out a word and have your child erase it by squirting the word with a squirt gun or spray bottle. Call out words until the your child has identified all the words, and the pavement is clean.
Sight Word Hunt
Hide a set of sight word cards (affiliate link) around your house. Have your child go on a hunt to find each word card. As he finds a card, he reads the sight word to you.
What Sight Words Do I Use?
Choose words from your child’s reading curriculum or use Dolch Words. Edward William Dolch put together a list of frequently used words in children’s books back in 1936. Some of the words can be “sounded out,” but many of the words don’t follow phonetic rules, so they are best memorized by sight. The list of 220 sight words represents between 50% and 75% of all words found in reading material.
A word wall is a visual tool for displaying all the sight words that your child is learning. For more information about word walls, read this post.
Conclusion
Learning sight words solely by flipping through flash cards or reading a sight word list is boring. These seven simple sight word games for kids learning to read make practicing words fun. By adding the game element and incorporating gross motor skills, your child will look forward to practicing sight words, and all with little effort from you.
Your Turn
What simple sight word games do you play with your child? Leave a comment.
