But to become a fluent reader, it helps if kids don’t have to sound out every single word they come across. A child’s ability to decode (or sound out) words is crucial to reading. Because they appear so often, they’re also called high-frequency words.Īs kids learn to read, the four main reading skills are decoding, fluency, comprehension, and knowledge. The theory is that these words are used so often in print that they make up an estimated 75 percent of all words used in children’s books. There are 220 Dolch sight words, spread across sight word lists from preschool to third grade.
This list, by Edward William Dolch, was first published back in 1936 (and later published in his book, Problems in Reading). What are sight words? They’re words a child learns to recognize on sight.
