If you have a kindergartener or a first grader, you’ve definitely heard the term sight word, or high frequency words. For those who aren’t quite familiar with the term sight word or high frequency word, basically, those are words that can’t easily be sounded out using phonemic knowledge. It may be that your child hasn’t learned the phonemic generalization related to the word (like “igh” makes the long i sound), or the sound has an irregular spelling and doesn’t follow normal generalizations. Since these words occur with high frequency, teachers will usually have (have is a sight word) students memorize a number of words so that they can read simple texts.
If your child is struggling to memorize their sight words, you’re not alone. Many beginning readers struggle to memorize sight words. They don’t follow decoding rules, and sometimes don’t make sense. I mean, why is “sure” spelled without an “sh?” Or why is busy spelled with a “us” not an “iz?”
Many times, the list of sight words teachers provide don’t follow a pattern, and they involve rules that your child may not have learned yet. For example, in the curriculum I am required to use, “they” is introduced way before my students have learned the “th.” Talk about confusing!
If your child is struggling, here are some sight word games I have played with my students, and my own sons, when they were learning sight words. Understand that every kid learns at their own pace. I have two boys. My oldest was motivated, and wanted to get through his lists quickly. He just needed me to quiz him. My youngest had absolutely zero interest in memorizing sight words. I had to gamify it for him.
Sight Word Hopscotch
Do you remember the game hopscotch? Instead of writing numbers in the boxes, write your child’s sight words. If you don’t remember hopscotch, you basically draw a series of squares on pavement in chalk – first three boxes in a row, then two across, then one box vertically, then two across, then one more box and the “top.” If it doesn’t make sense, Google hopscotch and you’ll see plenty of examples. The player throws a rock, or small item into a square, and has to hop thorough each square to retrieve their rock. In my version, they have to read each word in the boxes. If they don’t know the word, they have to read it and spell it two times, then start all over again.
If you don’t have pavement and chalk, you can create a hopscotch game in your kitchen, or any room with hard surfaces, using painters tape. I did it in the hallway of our condo when my kids were younger. Your kid will get a kick out of it!
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Supplies: chalk, painters tape
The Floor is Lava – Sight Word Style
Do your kids already play “The Floor is Lava?” Make it a sight word game. Here’s how we played in my house. All furniture was off limits. I wrote sight words on individual sheets of paper and spread them out around the room. Some words were on a whole rug, some were on pillows to make it fun.
To play the game, I would say “The Floor is Lava,” and countdown 3-2-1. My kid had to be on a piece of paper to be safe. However, they weren’t really safe until they read the word. If they couldn’t read the word, they weren’t safe. They could only land on each word once, unless it was a word they missed and wanted to try again. This is a great game to get the wiggles out. You could try it with decodable words, or even with multiplication problems!
Sight Word Bingo
This game is super popular in my classroom! It is best played with three players or more. One player is the “caller,” and they other two player have their own game cards. Draw a BINGO card on a piece of paper. Your card should have five rows down, and six rows across. The first row along the top contains every letter of “BINGO,” one in each box. The very center square is a free square. Then, give your child a word bank and have them write one word in each square. If you don’t have 25 sight words, you can either use previously memorized words, or add some CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words to the word bank. Ideally, you offer them 25-30 words so that they have options. Every player’s game card should have the words mixed in a different order.
Once the game card is made, the caller can call out the word, and the players find it independently. If they aren’t at the point where they can do that, the caller can write the words on a white board or sheet of paper, so that they see the letters. Either way, you will need to keep track of the words so that you don’t repeat them. You don’t need to call out the column letter. The words can be in any column to get marked. The first player to get five words across, down, or diagonal wins!
Tip – if you put the game card in a sheet protector and have your child use dry erase maker to write words (and check them off), you can reuse the game card every time they have a new batch of words to memorize.
Supplies: white board, sheet protectors, dry erase markers
Sight Word Boom and/or Sight Word Memory
Sight Word Boom is hands down, the most popular game with all of my students. To play Sight Word Boom, you’ll need at least two player, but the more players, the better. Sight Word Memory can be played independently. You will need either index cards (preferable), or cut regular paper into same-size rectangles.
For Sight Word Boom, write each sight word on an index card. You’ll want between 20-30 cards. If you don’t have enough sight words, use CVC words. On one card, write BOOM. You’ll want to write in pencil so players can’t read through the card – trust me on this one. Place each card face down on a table. They don’t need to be neat, messy is better. Each player picks up a card, one at a time. If they can read the word on the card, they keep the card. If they can’t read the card, have them read it and spell it, then put in back on the table and mix the cards up. The person who picks the BOOM card gets everyone’s cards, and the person with the most cards at the end wins. My students try so hard to get that BOOM card. The best part is, since there is at least one BOOM card, even if your child misses a lot of words, they can still win if they get the BOOM. That’s what makes it fun for everyone.
Sight Word Memory is just like the classic Memory game your child probably played in preschool. You’ll need to write each sight word on two index cards. Try to have at least 8 sight words, no more than 20. Mix the cards up, then place them in rows. Your child will flip over a card, read the word, then try to find its match. If they didn’t find the match, they flip it back over. If they struggle to read the word, you can help them read it, then have them read it again, and spell it. The game is over when they’ve found all of the matches.
Supplies: index cards
Parent Reminders for Sight Word Practice
Every child learns differently, and some kids will need more time to memorize their sight words. Try not to stress too much if it is taking too long. With explicit instruction and practice, just about every child will learn to read. My youngest did not memorize all of his sight words in kindergarten. Then his school went into lockdown mid-year in first grade, and he didn’t return to in-person learning until third grade. Second grade was a wasted year. He barely learned, and despite his mom being a credentialed teacher, he would not learn from me. He’s now in eighth grade and reads at a college level. Eventually it clicked, and he took off with it and is a voracious reader. It wasn’t the “traditional path,” but he still got there. Your kid will too!
Ready-Made Word Games
If you’d rather just purchase something that is ready to go, these are great options.
We play this game in my classroom a lot. I don’t know the actual rules, but in my classroom, I have students use them for their sight word practice. For students who need a bit of extra support, I separate the vowels from consonants, so they can find them easier. Depending on how well they know their sight words, I either give them a list of words to make, or let them try to spell the sight words on their own.
This isn’t really a game, but flash cards are great for independent practice. If you don’t want to make your own, these are a great option.
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