

We often use these terms interchangeably, but technically there’s a difference. What’s the difference between sight words and high-frequency words? Examples include “come,” “because,” or “laugh.”ĭiscover much more about sight words here. English is a tricky language, with a lot of words that just don’t fit the usual pronunciation rules. These are words like “and,” “be,” and “go.” Kids can sound these out pretty easily, but since they appear so often, kids usually find it simpler to memorize them. Some sight words are decodable, meaning they follow the standard rules of spelling or the six types of syllables.

The goal is for students to be able to recognize these words within three seconds. The general belief is that being able to recognize these words on sight, rather than needing to stop and sound them out, will speed up emergent readers’ progress. In educational settings, sight words are those that appear frequently in everyday writing. This is a slow and painstaking process at first, but it speeds up over time. They do this by using phonics techniques: sounding out letters, blends, and syllables. In their early days, though, readers must decode each word they encounter. Over time, proficient readers recognize nearly all words on sight. But what are sight words, and why are they important? Find out more here. When kids begin learning to read, they’ll likely encounter something known as “sight words.” These are a big part of the early elementary years for most students.
