Courtney Said:

Opinion on teaching children "sight words"?

We Answered:

Don't worry- schools are still using both methods. Grade schools (kindergarten on) always use both methods. Sounding out and blending words is a phonics skill that every child needs to know, and it is taught straight away from week 1 of school. Sight words are actually common words that typically won't work if sounded out. For example, the word "were" will not work if sounded out. Therefore, most sight words are words the child will see frequently and needs to know, but usually will not be able sound at that young of an age.

In preschool, the children are typically taught their letters and sounds. They may or may not be introduced to sight words.

Both methods are necessary and used. Hope this helps!

Dorothy Said:

K teachers: any advice on teaching sight words so kids will remember them forever?

We Answered:

I'm not a K teacher, but my son's K teacher was incredible. What worked best for him was a chant/clap when reviewing the words. He is extremely auditory and kinesthetic, so this really hit paydirt with his learning styles, but he can still practically do the chants and claps with the words, 5 years later :-)

Joann Said:

WHat is the best way to teach my daughter the 100 sight words?

We Answered:

I'm a teacher of 4 year olds and there are several ways to get your child to read.
1. Read , read, read, read to and with your child. Demonstrate 'book behaviour' - holding books correctly, turning pages, pointing to the words as you read them.
2. Make sure she knows her phonics - the sounds NOT names of the letters. Jolly Phonics is the best system I have found - many schools use this system and there are plenty of activities to do at home - see website www.jollylearning.co.uk. It has an action for each phonic so they say, see and do and action each time - brilliant for those children who do not learn by just seeing words etc. Once she knows these sounds he can 'sound out the more basic words - cat, dog, fish etc etc
3. Learning sight or key words as I call them can be done in a similar way - ActionWords teaches children their key words which is a similar system to Jolly Phonics - an action for each word this time. Flashcards are a good way of learning and playing games with the words you are learning. NO MORE THAN 5 at a time. Dont add more until those are consolidated. Use the words to make simple sentences that she can read (my mum said) - this will boost her confidence and make her want to read more.
With all of the above comes a tip - NEVER force a child to read or do activities etc - they will not learn. When they do want to do it - do more that time, if they dont want to for a few nights, leave it or just read to them.
I apologise if any of this is what you are already doing or not relevant I just am sharing what works with my 4 year olds.
Good luck

Jesse Said:

Please share some good ideas/activities for teaching sight words?

We Answered:

http://www.literacyconnections.com/DrJea…

Jennie Said:

So is learning sight words a good or bad thing?

We Answered:

It's not bad to learn sight words, as long as phonics is used concurrently, or eventually. Sight reading alone was big in the early to mid-80's in public school, but was eventually abandoned as a solo practice, and phonics reintroduced because it just works better.

Monica Said:

First Grade sight words?

We Answered:

I love sight words! They are fun to teach, and once a child learns them- WOW! Their reading can really take off!

I have a bunch of sight word games in my book, Tutor Your Child to Reading Success (available on Amazon), but an easy one to do today is TicTacToe.

Start with the three or four words you have already taught your daughter.

1. Draw a tic tac toe board on anything- paper, back of an envelope, etc.

2. Fill in the spaces with sight words. You can write the same word a few times.

3. When you or your daughter puts down a bead or makes an X or circle on a word, you must say the word correctly. If she misreads the word, you say, "Oh, sorry, sweetie, you pronounce that word 'enough.' I'm sure you'll get it next time." And, she will.

4. Play a few games, and let her fill in words sometimes.

5. Repeat words every day. Mix new words and old ones.

Kids love this game. They especially love beating adults! I love that it's a game, everybody is having fun, it's quick- and they're learning.

Sidney Said:

Phonics and Sight Words???

We Answered:

Start teaching him phonics yourself!!!! Complaining to the school dist. isn't going to do your son any good right now when he needs help. Start working with him one on one. And look for computer programs to reinforce what you and him work on.