12 Ways To Teach Kids Sight Words

You are probably at some point in time going to hear about sight words as your child progresses towards kindergarten and early literature readiness for reading. If you are not already familiar with the word “sight words”, then let me give you a brief definition of what sight words are and why they are helpful for the early stages of reading. I will also give you tips for fun sight word activities that you can do with your kids.

Sight words are common words that kids can recognize easily without having to sound them out during the early stages of reading.

It may or may not be different from how you were taught to read growing up. I was taught phonics when I was learning to read, but I do see the significance of having both bits of knowledge of sight words and phonics working together to help your child with early reading literacy.

Sight words can be tricky to teach your kids depending on their learning curves or abilities. Some kids are visual learners, while others can easily grasp information from listening. Using ways that are helpful for your child to learn sight words makes such a difference when learning to read.

My oldest son who has already started kindergarten is learning sight words. He is more of a visual learner and therefore I may use more activities that are engaging. My youngest is also learning sight words by just hearing them repeatedly.

We had a great opportunity to do a sight word fun class with the Children’s Board in our community, where we were able to learn even more new ways of teaching sight words to kids. I have included a few of them below as well.

The key is to practice sight words over and over with repetition in different ways. Break up the sight words into groups of 4 and do a group for at least 2 to 3 weeks to see how best they can recognize and learn the words.

Have you also found any activities that you could share? Please feel free to add to my list, or ask your questions or concerns below. I would be happy to help you!

“Sight words help kids to recognize words easier, especially when learning to read!”

1. sight word bingo

Who doesn’t love a game of good old-time BINGO? Add sight words to it and it’s nonstop entertainment for the kids. It‘s a really fun and interactive game for not only the kids but the grown-ups as well.

The game comes with cards that have sight words arranged on them. Sight words are then being called out to the players to identify.

The winner is the one who has gotten four in a row in any direction or a full house. This game can be purchased on Amazon.

2. Sight word painting

This is definitely a fun and very unique idea to teach your kid’s sight words. Remember repetition is key when teaching your kids their sight words.

What you need:

• White crayon
• White construction paper or card stock
• Paint
• Paintbrush

1. Use the white crayon to write the sight words on the white construction paper.
2. Using the paint and paintbrush, paint over the words on the paper and watch as they appear.
3. Once the words appear, have your child practice identifying them.

3. Sight Word Videos

There are songs that your kids can sing and then there are also sight word songs. The sight word songs are not only fun to do, but it helps your child to remember them. My youngest learned most of his sight words this way.

Here is a list of some of our favorite ones:

• Sight words – Jack Hartman
• Meet the sight words – Preschool Prep Company (you can start these videos from a younger age at 2)
• The Kindergarten sight word dance song – SandZ Academy

4. Writing the sight words

Writing the sight words helps with memory recognition of sight words. To make the activity a bit more interactive, you can do various activities centered around the writing of the sight word. There are so many printables that can be downloaded for free or that can be purchased to help with practicing sight words. Here is an example, of a printable download that we use to practice sight words:

Sight Words Construction Site -Teachers Paying Teachers

You can also purchase dry-erase pockets that can be used to practice sight words over and over again without printing numerous pages.

5. Sight word flashcards

Sight word flashcards are another way for kids to learn their sight words. They are colorful, double-sided cards that have the first 100 words from the Fry list. There are 4 games that come with the cards themselves with instructions on how to play them. It is very interactive and can be played with adults as well. I highly recommend it.

6. Magnetic Letters and Numbers

Magnetic letters and numbers can also be used to help kids to identify sight words on their own. This is also a great way for them to learn sight word recognition and pronunciation.

It can be purchased on Amazon.

7. Sight Word Mega Blocks

Here is another activity that you can do with mega blocks that you may already have at home.

Write the sight word on the long mega blocks, then write the letters for the sight words on the short mega blocks, then have your child match them together.

8. Find the ball under the cup

Find the ball under the cup was an all-time favorite with my eldest son. This activity was simply just paper cups written with sight words and a small ball that can be hidden under the cups.

What you need:

• White small paper cups
• Black marker
• Small ball

1. Use the marker to write the sight words on paper cups.
2. Place a ball under a cup and have your child try to find the ball.
3. Once they find the cup with the ball hidden underneath, have them try to identify the sight word.

9. Sight Word Excavation

This is another fun activity that can be used to help kids identify sight words. With the use of a sensory bin (small plastic container) and sand.

What you need:

• Sensory bin (square plastic container)
• Sand (Dollar store)
• Notecards
• Brush

1. Write individual sight words on note cards
2. Place the cards in the sensory bin.
3. Pour sand over the cards in the sensory bin
4. Have your child use the brush to remove the sand from the cards.
5. Then let your child Identify the sight word discovered.

10. Sight Word Workbooks

Workbooks are a great tool that can also help with sight word learning. They are pre-loaded with a lot of activities that are not only fun but engaging as well. This is an example of the activity below from a workbook, where the kids have to cut out the apples and then sort them into the right baskets. Workbooks are great for travel. They can be purchased on Amazon.

11. sight word clothespin game

Here is another fun game that can also help with sight word recognition.

What you need:

• Sight word cards ( can use sight word flashcards from number 5 above or make your own with index cards)
• Clothes pins (Dollar store)
• Markers

1. Write individual sight words on note cards
2. Write letters on the clothespins.
3. Have your child pin the clothespins to the matching letter of the sight word.

12. Sight word fly swat game

This is a fun game of fly swatting that your kid will definitely love, especially the ones who are not so eager to learn their sight words. After a word is called out, the child must then find the word and swat the word with the fly swatter while repeating the word. This game is no longer available on Amazon but here’s a similar one that can be purchased.

Overall, these are some of my top 12 favorite ways for kids to learn their sight words. I will update my list as I go. But for now, try a couple of these sight word games and see how well they are learning their sight words.

For more related blog topics visit:

• How To Get Boys To Love Math
• Free Educational Resources Available For Kids
• How To Get Boys To Love Reading
• Getting Your Child Ready For Kindergarten

Did you find the strategies listed in this article helpful? What were some of your favorite tips? How have they worked for you? Leave a comment below, I’d love to know what you think.

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