Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Practicing Sight Words

Dear Families:
The more sight words children know, the better readers they become. Sight words are words that appear frequently in print. The same words are among those used most frequently by children in their writing. When children build their sight word vocabulary, they become better readers and spellers. Try these easy activities for strengthening your child's sight word vocabulary.
Here are some fun and easy activities to play to get your child to practice their sight words. Remember just a simple 5-10 minute time block can make a huge impact.

1.      Skip count with words: Start with the first word on the list. Say it, skip the next, read the next, and so on. Repeat the activity, this time starting with the second word on the list.

2.      Say each word, then spell it, clapping once for each letter.

3.      Give each letter in the alphabet a number from 1 to 26. (i.e. a=1, b=2, etc…). Guess which sight word on the list will be worth the most points.

4.      The next time you are going somewhere with your child, play a sight word game. It’s easy – just have your child find as many sight words as he or she can on billboards, signs, and so on. You can play this game in a car, on a walk, even in line at the grocery store!

5.      Copy sight words onto small cards. (you can cut index cards in quarters or cut sturdy paper into pieces) Place the word cards in an empty container. Invite your child to shake the container, spill out the words, and read the ones that fell face up. Place the remaining words back in the can and shake and spill again.

6.      Play a game of “I’m thinking of...” One player starts by giving a clue about one of the sight words (i.e. “I’m thinking of a word that starts like horse and has three letters”) The other player looks at the list and tries to identify the word.

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