Reading can be fun, it opens up the world of imagination for everyone. But when a child is starting out on this journey, it is an exercise in identifying the alphabet, recalling the phonetics, and then connecting to form words that make sense. Not easy for a 5-year-old, for sure.
But if you stop to think about it, there are some words that appear often, such as the, and, it, you, me etc, which need not be broken down into the phonetic application to read. They can be remembered as ‘sight words’.
Sight words are introduced in Kindergarten to make reading easier and quicker.
Recognised at a glance, sight words are small words that children come across ever so often while reading. Learning them helps them:
For example, instead of sounding out “the cat and the dog” letter by letter, your child will start reading it smoothly. All thanks to these simple sight words.
The leap from identifying alphabets to reading simple sentences happens in Kindergarten. It may feel overwhelming at the beginning, but recognising sight words can ease the process for the children.
By memorising a set of commonly used words early, children can:
Created in 1936 by educator Edward William Dolch, this is a list of the most commonly used sight words to help kindergarteners ease into the next stage of learning - reading. The list includes 220 service words (like and, the, is, to) and 95 nouns (like apple, ball, dog).
From this master list, age-appropriate sets are:
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Here’s a kindergarten sight word list:
a, am, an, and, are, at, away, be, big, blue, can, come, down, find, for, funny, go, good, get, give, green
he, help, here, I, in, is, it, jump, like, look, little, make, me, my, not, no, now
of, on, one, play, red, run, said, see, so, she, the, they, this, to, too, up, us
want, was, we, where, what, white, who, will, with, yellow, yes, you
Focus on 5–8 new words a week. Repetition and play-based learning make them stick faster!
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To make memorising these words a playful exercise, there are simple kindergarten games that introduce children to the world of sight words:
Create bingo cards with sight words. Let the child identify them as you call them out. There is a mix of excitement and fun in this process of learning.
Write sight words on sticky notes and stick them on the wall or playboard. As you call out a word, the child shines the flashlight on the right one!
Create 2 sets of the same sight words. Let the child find the matching words. This simple game helps strengthen visual memory in children.
A powerful yet simple way to teach sight words is to encourage children to form short sentences with them. E.g., I can run. We go to school. This is a dual method teaching these words - children learn how to use them in sentences as well as gain confidence when they can form their own sentences.
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Sight words for kindergarten are more than mere memorisation. They give the child tools to read and communicate with confidence.
Make it fun. Stay consistent. With every new word they recognise, your child is one step closer to loving reading in the years to come.
