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Sight words

Primer Sight Words

All 52 primer Dolch sight words as printable practice. Trace and write them on handwriting lines, pick them out from similar-looking words, or print the list as a reference. Usually taught at kindergarten, around ages 5 to 6.

52 wordsTrace & writeFind the wordPDF · SVG
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Four steps

How to practise primer sight words

  1. 1

    Take three to five words

    Not the whole list at once.

  2. 2

    Read before writing

    Say the word, then trace it, then write it unaided.

  3. 3

    Test recognition

    Use the find-the-word sheet to catch guessing.

  4. 4

    Move on when automatic

    No pause at all, not just a correct answer.

The primer list

The next 52, introduced once the pre-primer list is secure. This is where the small connecting words that hold sentences together start to appear.

allamareatatebeblackbrownbutcamediddoeatfourgetgoodhaveheintolikemustnewnonowonouroutpleaseprettyranridesawsayshesosoonthattheretheythistoounderwantwaswellwentwhatwhitewhowillwithyes

Using this list well

Take three to five words at a time and stay with them until there is no hesitation at all. Covering all 52 words once achieves very little; a handful practised to genuine automaticity is what changes reading fluency.

Watch for the child who reads the first letter and predicts the rest. It looks like progress and it is not, and it is exactly what the find-the-word sheets are built to expose, because they put similar-looking words from this same list side by side.

Where this sits

Before this comes the pre-primer list of 40 words. After it comes the first grade list of 41 words.

Related printables

See all five sight word lists, turn this list into cards with the flashcard maker, or build the handwriting alongside with alphabet tracing.

Answers

Frequently asked questions

52. The next 52, introduced once the pre-primer list is secure. This is where the small connecting words that hold sentences together start to appear.

Kindergarten, around ages 5 to 6. Ages vary a great deal, and the list a child is on matters far more than the label on it. Move up only when the current list is automatic rather than merely familiar.

There is no pause. A word that takes a moment to work out is not yet a sight word, whatever the child eventually says. The find-the-word sheet is the better test, because it makes guessing from the first letter fail.

The pre-primer list, 40 words. It is worth confirming those are automatic before starting these, because the lists build on each other.

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Work through every level

Five Dolch lists from pre-primer to third grade, all on the same generator.

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