Like many teachers, my sight word instruction has shifted in my kindergarten classroom.
I used to teach rote memorization of many sight words during my phonics block every day. And while this is helpful for the development of reading in some students, it is not for all.
The concept of “sight words” is that they have tricky spelling patterns and can not be “sounded out” or decoded letter-sound or phonics pattern knowledge. This is only true for a small percentage of sight words.
So I created much larger sight word flash cards that I use to teach my students new phonics patterns while teaching the words. I do not display these on a wall or pocket chart, I just use them during whole-group phonics instruction and during my reading groups. I find they work much better and without the crutch of a word wall visible, my students are learning them much quicker!
I printed my set on bright colored paper and laminated them so I could easily write on the cards with dry erase markers. I love them!
This set of has 60 sight words. These are words that I used to teach in a phonics curriculum, plus all pronouns and some words I found to be most common in our readers. And they coordinate with my Sight Word Literacy Centers and my Literacy Assessment Portfolio.
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