Sight words
The words that turn up on every page. Which ones are worth knowing instantly, and how to teach them without guessing. Start with what sight words are.
All sight words resources
How-toExplainerWhy words your child knew last week slip away, the seven usual causes, and what to change for each one.
How-toExplainerThe few common words with a part that breaks the spelling rules, which part to learn by heart, a six-step routine for teaching one, and every heart word on our lists.
Word listWorksheetsAll 220 Dolch sight words, from the pre-primer and primer lists for kindergarten up to third grade. Each level is split into the words to sound out and the heart words to learn by heart, with worksheets for both. Only 49 of the 220 are heart words.
Word listThe Fry list ranks the 1,000 most common words in English in groups of a hundred. This page lists the first 300, sorted into the words your child can sound out and the 70 heart words to learn by heart, with free word cards. The other 229 follow spelling patterns a child learns in phonics.
Word listWorksheetsFry words 26 to 100, the next 75 most common words in English, sorted for a first grader: 54 to sound out and only 21 to learn by heart, with worksheets for both.
Word listWorksheetsFry words 101 to 200, sorted for a second grader: by the end of the year 78 of them follow patterns your child has been taught, and only 22 have to be learned by heart.
Word listWorksheetsFry words 201 to 300, sorted for a third grader: 81 follow patterns your child has been taught by the end of second grade, and only 18 have to be learned by heart. If your school uses the Dolch list instead, its third grade words are on the Dolch page.
Word listWorksheetsThe 25 most common words in English, from the Fry list, sorted for a kindergartner: 16 to sound out and only nine to learn by heart, with worksheets for both.
ExplainerWhich words on the list need memorizing, how many your child needs by grade, and which list your school uses.
How-toHow to sort the list your school sent, which words actually need memorizing, and what five minutes a day should look like.
GuideSight words take weeks of practice, so the app has to be one your child comes back to. How each kind works, who it suits, and where we fit in.
How-toNine no-prep games you can play tonight, which words belong in them, and how often to play without it turning into a chore.