You can’t expect all children to have the same sight word list.
Some children can read a new word after seeing it once or twice. They’re the kids who zoom through their words. For others, successful sight word practice can mean needing twenty or more exposures before they recognize a word.
The best way to meet the needs of our students is by having our sight word activities differentiated. As time-consuming as that sounds, organizing the right sight words for your students doesn’t have to be. Editable sight word centers make it simple!
Save Time
Editable sight word packs are a huge time saver. It’s easy to create a range of sight word games and activities, all with the words you need.
First, grab and install this free Kimberly Geswein font.
Once you have it installed, open the pack and type in the words you want once. In seconds they appear on each activity sheet or game.
Print off what you need, save the pack or if you don’t want those words again, just close it. When the pack is reopened, the editable field is clear, ready to type in the words you need for another child or reading group.
As quickly as that, you’ll have sight word games and activities that are differentiated for the needs of every child in your class.
Sight Word Practice for Winter
If you’re getting ready for some fun winter activities, you’re going to love this winter pack of editable sight word activities.
Introduce up to six new words a week. If you’re only covering two or three new words that week, use the remaining spaces to include revision words.
Revising words is important.
Studies show that the average child requires between four and fourteen exposures to automatize the recognition of a new word. And some words are trickier to remember than others.
Focus on One Sight Word at a Time
When you’re introducing tricky irregular words, you’ll want to focus on just one word at a time.
Have your students read their word, find it, write it and then write it in a sentence.
Playdough mats make sight word practice so much fun.
At your station include the sight word cards the child needs, a tub of playdough, a whiteboard marker and letters. Your students read the word, build it with play dough, make it with letters and then write it.
This multi-sensory approach to sight word practice helps kids remember the word.
Encourage Independence at Centers
It’s wonderful when your kindergarten or first grade students can work independently.
First, teach kids the routine and procedures for using centers. Once you’ve done that, having a visual instructions card for both the worksheets and games makes it easier for kids to work without teacher help.
Of course, having similar activities for each themed sight word pack also helps. Your students will know what’s needed to complete each activity.
Grab a Freebie
Get started with editable sight words with these two free sight word practice activities.
Get Students Reading their Words
It’s important to make sure your kids are actually reading the words, not just finding words that look the same. After all, it’s easy to write, trace, daub or stamp a word without being able to read it.
You can easily turn an activity into a game so your students can read to each other.
In ‘Spin and Read’ have each player claim three sight word lists and color the matching dice. If their list is spun they read it to their partner.
The first to have three stars (one complete list) wins. Or you can extend the game by having kids color all nine stars before they can claim winner status.
In this activity, the student with the green pen was the winner!
Students completing the same activity can take it in turns to read their words to each other.
Get them to practice writing the words too. These are the words they’ll be using when they write their stories.
Sight Word Games
And of course, games are great for getting kids to read their words.
When you have a black ink copy as well you can easily send it home for an exciting way for kids to practice those new words with their parents.
Card games are another fun way to consolidate sight words and involve players reading to each other. Sight word practice is so motivating when you’re working with a partner.
Want Easy Prep Sight Word Centers?
If you’re eager to have sight word games and activities that are engaging, rigorous, and fun and suit the exact needs of your young learners, you’ll want to try this winter themed sight word pack.
The pack features:
♦ a single worksheet to focus on one word only
♦ 15 engaging worksheets to focus on six words of ANY length, many are perfect for partner play as well
♦ ‘I Can’ visual instructions
♦ 2 board games to use in small groups, one board game can be printed in color or black ink only so that you can send it home.
♦ A sight word card game
♦ 8 bingo cards
♦ a multi-sensory activity using your 6 focus words Children read the word, build it with play dough, make it with letter tiles and write the word with a whiteboard marker.
♦ an editable word list to use in class or send home
British English is included.
You can pick up a pack of winter themed editable sight words from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.
Or save big with this bundle of 16 themed sight word packs.
Editable sight word packs are going to make teaching sight words so much easier for you and lots of fun for your students. I know they’ll enjoy them as much as mine do.
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