What are Sight Words?
Sight Words are the 220 most common words and 95 additional nouns in children’s reading books. They provide children with a strong base for reading at an early age. They are called sight words because some of them can’t be sounded out, and need to be learned by sight.
How can I help my child learn the sight words?
Children learn the sight words through repetitive exposure to them. Perhaps the best exercise is to print the flash cards (see below), and use them to practice with your child. You can also visit MrsPerkins.com for many fun activities you can do with your child using the flash cards we have provided.
Dolch Flash Cards
Click on the links below to view, print and clip the flash cards for each grade.
| Preschool | Kindergarten | First Grade | Second Grade | Third Grade |
Dolch Word Lists
The Dolch Word List was compiled by Edward William Dolch, PhD, in 1948. The list was originally published in his book “Problems in Reading.” Dolch compiled the list based on words used in children’s reading books in the 1930s and 40s. The list contains 220 “service words” that must be quickly recognized in order to achieve reading fluency.
The Dolch Word List is also called Sight Words or The Dolch 220. It includes the most frequently used words in the English language. Sight words make up 50 to 70 percent of any general text. Therefore, teaching The Dolch Word List is a crucial goal of education in grades kindergarten through 3.
Preschool
| a | and | away | big | blue |
| can | come | down | find | for |
| funny | go | help | here | I |
| in | is | it | jump | little |
| look | make | me | my | not |
| one | play | red | run | said |
| see | the | three | to | two |
| up | we | where | yellow | you |
Kindergarten
| all | am | are | at | ate |
| be | black | brown | but | came |
| did | do | eat | four | get |
| good | have | he | into | like |
| must | new | no | now | on |
| our | out | please | pretty | ran |
| ride | saw | say | she | so |
| soon | that | there | they | this |
| too | under | want | was | well |
| went | what | white | who | will |
| with | yes | |||
First Grade
| after | again | an | any | as |
| ask | by | could | every | fly |
| from | give | giving | had | has |
| her | him | his | how | just |
| know | let | live | may | of |
| old | once | open | over | put |
| round | some | stop | take | thank |
| them | then | think | walk | were |
| when | ||||
Second Grade
| always | around | because | been | before |
| best | both | buy | call | cold |
| does | don’t | fast | first | five |
| found | gave | goes | green | its |
| made | many | off | or | pull |
| read | right | sing | sit | sleep |
| tell | their | these | those | upon |
| us | use | very | wash | which |
| why | wish | work | would | write |
| your | ||||
Third Grade
| about | better | bring | carry | clean |
| cut | done | draw | drink | eight |
| fall | far | full | got | grow |
| hold | hot | hurt | if | keep |
| kind | laugh | light | long | much |
| myself | never | only | own | pick |
| seven | shall | show | six | small |
| start | ten | today | together | try |
| warm | ||||