One of the most important things you can do to encourage your child’s speech development is to help them learn sight words. They are those words that are your recognizes instantly by the brain, without having to sound them out. They are often the most frequently used words in the English language, and therefore play a vital role in reading and writing. In this blog, we will be talking about why sight words are so important for speech development, as well as some tips on how you can help your child learn their first sight words!
In this article we will discuss:
What are sight words?
Sight words are important for speech development because they help children to recognize words quickly and without having to sound them out. This is especially important for words that are used often in everyday conversation. When children can quickly recognize these words, they are more likely to be able to use them in their own speech.
Development of sight words
Sight words usually develops in the early stages of reading development. In most cases, children will start by learning to recognize simple words such as “a” and “the”. As they become more familiar with the printed word, they will gradually learn to recognize more complex words. By the time they reach kindergarten or first grade, they should be able to recognize a variety of their first sight words.
Types of sight words
There are two main types: those that are common in the English language, and those that are specific to a particular subject area. The most common words include words such as “the”, “of”, and “to”. These words are essential for everyday communication and should be learned by all children. However, there are also many words that are specific to a certain subject, such as “math” or “science”. While these words may not be used as often in everyday conversation, they are still important for children to learn.
What sight words to teach your child
The best way to determine what sight words to teach your child is to ask their teacher. Teachers are typically familiar with the most common words in the early stages of reading development, and they can give you a list of sight words for kindergarten to focus on. You can also find lists of sight words online or in books about reading development.
How to teach sight words
There are a variety of ways that you can help your child learn sight words.
One effective method is to use flashcards. You can find them through flashcards online or in most educational stores. You can also check out list of sight words for kindergarten online!
Another option is to create your own flashcards using index cards and a pen. You can also play games with your child that focus on sight words. Many educational websites offer free games and activities that can help your child learn these words.
You can also incorporate sight words into your daily routine. Point out the words when you are reading together or when you see them around the house. Help your child practice writing sight words by having them write a sentence that includes the word.
Examples of first sight words you can teach your child
The following are some examples of what sight words are often taught in the early stages of reading development and a list of sight words for kindergarten:
a, and, away, big, blue, can, come, down, find, for, funny, go, help, here, I, in, is, it, jump, little, look, make, me , my , not , one , play , red , run , said , see , the , three , to , two , up , we.
You can also find more list of sight words for kindergarten from Dolch and Fry. They have lists of sight words for kindergarten that you can use to help your child learn even more words
These words are just a starting point. As your child becomes more familiar with sight words, you can add more words to their list. These words are some of the first sight words your child can produce, as well.
Are they the same as high-frequency words?
It is important to note that there is a difference between sight words and high-frequency words. Sight words are whole words that are recognized by sight. They do not need to be sounded out, and they can not be broken down into smaller parts.
High-frequency words are words that appear often in print, but they can be sounded out using phonics skills. Examples of high-frequency words include “cat”, “dog”, and “tree”. While high-frequency words are important for children to learn, they are not considered to be sight words.
Sight words and reading development
Sight words are an important part of reading development. As mentioned above, they help children to quickly identify words without having to sound them out. This, in turn, helps to improve reading comprehension.
In addition, sight words also help children to develop a better understanding of letter-sound relationships and word families. This knowledge can then be applied to other words, which will help them with spelling.
Finally, sight words play a role in developing fluency. When children can quickly recognize sight words, they are able to read with more fluency and expression. This, in turn, helps to improve comprehension and overall reading ability.
Why are these words important for speech development?
There are a few reasons why sight words are so important for speech development.
First of all, they help children to identify words quickly and without having to sound them out. This is especially
important for words that are used often in everyday conversation. When children can quickly recognize these words, they are more likely to be able to use them in their own speech.
Furthermore, these words help to build vocabulary and improve reading comprehension. By learning to recognize common words, children are exposed to a variety of new words. This, in turn, helps to build their vocabulary and improve their understanding of what they read.
In speech development, what they can do is improve a child’s ability to understand and produce words. When children are exposed to a variety of words, they are more likely to be able to understand and use them in their own speech. This, in turn, can help to improve overall communication skills.
Finally, these words are important for spelling development. When children learn to recognize sight words, they also begin to understand the concepts of letter-sound relationships and word families. This knowledge can then be applied to other words, which will help them with spelling.
Phonological awareness and sight words
Sight words are closely related to another important concept in speech development, phonological awareness. Sight words and phonological awareness are two different but equally important skills.
Phonological awareness is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulate individual sounds (phonemes) in spoken words. This includes being able to identify rhyming words, counting syllables, and segmenting words into individual sounds (phonemes).
Sight words, on the other hand, are whole words that are recognized by sight. They do not need to be sounded out, and they can be read quickly and accurately.
Furthermore, phonological awareness skills have been found to be predictive of later reading and spelling abilities. This means that children who are able to identify and manipulate individual sounds in spoken words are more likely to be successful readers and spellers.
While sight words are not a necessary prerequisite for phonological awareness, they can still be helpful. This is because they can help to build vocabulary and improve reading comprehension. In addition, sight words can also help to develop a better understanding of letter-sound relationships and word families.
What is phonological awareness?
One of the best ways to encourage phonological awareness is to help children learn sight words. As they learn to recognize these words quickly and without having to sound them out, they are also developing their phonological awareness.
After your child has learned some basic sight words, you can help them to further develop their phonological awareness.
Phonological awareness has five levels of development.
These levels are:
1. Rhyming – The ability to identify words that have the same ending sound. For example, “cat” and “hat” rhyme.
2. Alliteration – The ability to identify words that have the same beginning sound. For example, “cat” and “cow” both start with the /c/ sound.
3. Segmenting – The ability to break a word into its individual sounds, or phonemes. For example, the word “cat” has three phonemes: /c/, /a/, and /t/.
4. Blending – The ability to put individual sounds together to form a word. For example, the sounds /c/, /a/, and /t/ can be blended to form the word “cat”.
5. Manipulating – The ability to change the sound of a word to make a new word. For example, the word “cat” can be changed to “bat” by changing the /c/ sound to a /b/ sound.
How to develop and teach phonological awareness to your kids
There are a few different ways that you can help your child to develop phonological awareness.
One way is to read nursery rhymes and other poems with them. This will help them to become aware of the different sounds in words, as well as the different ways that words can rhyme.
Another way is to play games that involve sound discrimination. For example, you can give your child a list of words and see if they can identify which words start with the same sound. Or, you can see if they can identify which words rhyme with each other.
You can also use blocks or other toys to help your child segment and blend sounds. For example, you can say a word like “bat” and have your child build a “tower of bats” by stacking up blocks that represent each sound in the word.
Finally, you can help your child to understand that words can be different by manipulating the sounds. For example, you can say a word like “cat” and then have your child say it with a different beginning sound, like “bat”.
These are just a few ideas to start. There are many other games and activities that you can do to help your child develop phonological awareness. The important thing is to make it fun and interactive so that you and your child will make learning entertaining!
Speech therapy can help!
If your child is having difficulty developing phonological awareness, or if you would like some more ideas on how to help them, consider seeking out the services of a speech-language pathologist.
A speech-language pathologist can assess your child’s skills and abilities, and then provide you with specific activities and exercises to help them improve.
If you think your child might benefit from speech therapy, the first step is to contact your child’s doctor or another healthcare professional for a referral. At Better Speech, we offer online speech therapy services convenient for you and tailored to your child's individual needs. Our services are affordable and effective - get Better Speech now.
About the Author
Mikee Larrazabal
I am a Speech-Language Pathologist with 14 years of experience working with children and adults who have communication difficulties. I completed my Bachelor of Science degree in Health Science at Cebu Doctors' University and have been helping people overcome their communication challenges ever since.
I have worked with individuals of different ages, including toddlers, preschoolers, school-aged children, adults and seniors. I'm passionate about speech therapy and take great satisfaction in helping people overcome their communication challenges and improve their lives through better communication skills. In my spare time I like reading books, going hiking in nature and taking care of my dog Locas.
