The Importance of Sight Words

“Sight word” is the term that many teachers use to describe a word in written English that cannot be sounded out, and therefore must be memorized. The reason that most sight words cannot be sounded out is because they do not follow the regular spelling patterns that are often taught to children when they are beginning to read.

Downloadable Project!
Sing & Spell #1 - VelcroTM Book Manipulatives

Downloadable project containing PDF files for all of the 25 sight words found on Sing & Spell Vol. 1, with instructions for use. This is a great addition to your Language Arts program.

Sing & Spell the Sight Words -Vol. 1
Basic Sight Words and Language Skills!
Words covered are:
and, are, can, for, go, have, he, here, is, like, me, my, of, on, play, said, see, she, that, the, they, to, was, with, you.

For example, in the word, “the,” the reader must first recognize that the “th” together forms one sound /th/, and the “e” makes neither the short or long /e/ sound, but a short /u/ sound. Likewise, the word, “said” may start and end phonetically, but the middle of the word has short /e/ sound spelled with two letters (“ai”) that are not sounded at all.

These types of words are quite common in written English and typically torture the beginning reader until that learner becomes fluent and begins to develop some automaticity in reading. (See http://academic.cuesta.edu/acasupp/AS/810.htm for a great list of words with silent letters.) Therefore, the purpose of sight word songs is to help the child focus on the letters in the word, and repeat the word and its spelling, in a fun and engaging way.

Colors and more Sight Words -Vol. 2
Colors and more Language Skills!
Words covered are:
red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, black, white, gray, pink, an, at, big, do, down, has, in, it, no/yes, not, small, this, too, up, we, what, who.

Even more Sight Words -Vol. 3
Read and Spell 30 More Sight Words!
Words covered are:
again, away, because, come, could, help, house, how, jump, little, look, make, one, run, should, their, there, they're, three, to, too, two, want, we're, were, when, where, who, why, and would

Fun Songs and Sight Words -Vol. 4
Read and Spell from the Dolch list!
Words covered are:
A (word), all, am, as, be, by, came, dear, did,
friend, from, good, had, his, I (word), if, love,
made, nice, now, out, over, put, some, then,
very, will, and your!

Downloadable Project!
Sing & Spell #1 - Songbook, Worksheets and More!

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The purpose of the accompanying melodies and movements is to take full advantage of the fact that young children learn quite naturally through movement, rhythm, rhyme, and song. When we add in the visual component of the word on the screen (as in the DVD) or on a flashcard (as in a teacher’s hand), then we have combined all of the major learning styles into one quick and efficient lesson, including the kinesthetic, visual, and auditory modalities. This is the essence of simultaneous multi-sensory teaching: all of the senses/learning styles are used simulatneously to maximize learning.

In addition, when the children find the words or movements amusing, they are also more likely to remember that song/word, since it touched their emotional side as well.
(See http://heidisongs.blogspot.com/2009/03/why-use-music-and-movement-to-teach.html for further explanation.)

All of this adds up to a learning tool that can reach even special needs children in a regular classroom setting, while at the same time keeping the faster learners happy and challenged as well- because ALL kids learn best when learning is FUN and ACTIVE!
(See http://www.mindhacks.com/blog/2009/01/learning_should_be_f.html)