Sight Word Activities

Sight words are those words we see so often we know them by “sight.” They are memorized and need no “sounding out” to read them. In fact, most of the words regarded as sight words are those simple everyday words that do not follow phonics rules and so do not respond to the “sounding out” technique.

Words that are exceptions to phonics rules can be taught as sight words.

Presenting words as sight words is especially beneficial for learners who have difficulty with the “phonics” method and for those learners who have difficulty distinguishing sounds in English.

Teach words that are immediate and needed in the learner’s life, even if they are more difficult than his actual reading level.

A list of sight words follows on the next page.

Incorporate the following sight word activities into lessons when your learner is reading. They can be very valuable for building vocabulary.

• Have the learner begin a dictionary of personal sight words. He can add words learned from each reading.
• Use the daily newspaper, or a controlled-vocabulary newspaper such as English Express (available in Alberta, check with your coordinator). Ask the learner to find and underline, or highlight, sight words he has learned. You may want to make a flash card of the words as he learns them to use in practice drill.
• Before the learner reads a selection, ask him to skim through to identify unknown words. Make a list of the words to discuss later.
• For sight words that can be illustrated, make flash cards with words on the front and pictures on the back.
• Ask the learner to make sentences using the words from three sight words flash cards.
• Flash a stack of five sight words cards at the learner, slowly at first and then faster until he can read all the words rapidly. Add new cards to the stack and delete cards as he learns them.
• Categorize some of the new sight words alphabetically, by meaning, by sound similarity and so on.
• Spread some flash cards on a table with the sight words facing up. Have the learner find words as you say them.
• Deliberately mispronounce some of the words on the flash cards and have your learner catch the mispronunciations. (Be sure to explain to the learner that this is what you are doing.)
• Make up a crossword puzzle for some of the sight words.

Red Deer Adult Literacy Program tutor handbook. (n.d.). Red Deer, Alberta: Red Deer Public Library. Used with permission.

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