Sight words games for 1st graders
Sight Words Games for 1st Graders Online
Reading Made Fun With Sight Word Games for 1st GradersChildren love to read. As babies, they love to flip pages and pretend to read a book.
The challenges of reading only become real when children start learning sight words. Sight word reading can be a long and challenging process for most children.
While some words stick to memory easily, others need consistent practice.
At SplashLearn, we have some amazing sight word games for 1st graders to make reading more enjoyable for your children.
Why Are Sight Words Important?While most of the words we read in our daily life can be spelled phonetically, certain words must be read by sight. Building sight word vocabulary and reading fluency will help your children read quicker and with more efficiency.
There are sight words of varying difficulty. Familiarizing your child with grade-appropriate sight words will help them learn things faster.
Sight word games make learning basic sight words and adding new words to your child’s vocabulary fun and exciting.
Interesting Ways to Teach Sight Words to 1st GradersLearning sight words can sometimes be overwhelming. For children who are more comfortable learning through phonetic sounds, this process may prove challenging and, at times, difficult.
Here are some of the best ways to make sight-reading for grade 1 easier and interactive:
- Online reading: There are several books that you can read online. These books flash the text on the screen and have a speech synthesis built into it. As the audio plays, the words on the page light up automatically. Children can familiarize themselves with sight words while enjoying reading their favorite books over and over.
- Word wall: You can now, quite literally, build walls with words. Make flashcards with sight words, one word on each card.
Now, you may build this wall in several ways. You can ask your child to pick a card, read it, and lay the brick(card) on the wall. Use some regular masking tape, or just place the brick on the floor. Another way to play the game is to scatter all the bricks(cards) face open, call out a word, and get your child to pick the right one and place it on the wall. Remember that in the learning process, recognition comes before the recall. - Word catch: This is a wonderful game for kinesthetic learners. Fill a tub with some plastic balls. Write a sight word on each. Get your child to pick a ball, read out the word, and throw it to you. Then you take your turn, throw another ball to your child, and ask him or her to read it.
- Tic Tac Toe: Once your child is quite familiar with sight words, introduce a new challenge. Make multiple tic tac toe grids and write down a sight word in each square. Play the game, as usual, ensuring the child reads the word in the square he or she wants to claim.
You can read out your words too, and help make it an interactive experience.
By the time your child has reached grade 1 sight-reading, he or she should already be able to feel familiar with some 2-letter sight words.
Always begin by practicing what is known. Then slowly introduce one or two new words a day. Try and follow these steps when learning:
- Show the word, spell it out, call the word out loud, and use it in a sentence.
- Now show the word again, and ask the child to repeat it.
- Spell the word, and call it out. Practice these steps a few times before you move on.
- Now show the child three or four words, and ask them to pick the sight word.
- Say the word out, and ask them to spell again.
- Practice reading a few simple, grade 1 sentences with the sight word in them. This will help them gain the context of the word.
First-grade readers are usually very excited about reading and spelling.
They may feel a little disappointed when they experience struggles or challenges. Therefore, it is essential to remember a few things when taking your child through the process:
- Take things at their pace. Don’t rush because that won’t help the child or you.
- Avoid comparing with other children or the grade level. Some children may require a lot of practice initially and may pick up very quickly later on.
- Revise and practice. There is a lifetime of learning waiting to take place. Spend time ensuring the child has understood and is comfortable with the words before you move on.
- Motivate and celebrate – even the smallest wins and the effort.
Teach your child the joy of sight words through SplashLearn’s interactive online sight word games for 1st graders. They’ll make your child look forward to a new learning experience every day.
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10 Interactive Online Games to Teach Sight Words to Beginning Readers
Sight words and high frequency words are an important part of teaching new readers.
These words have to be memorized, which means they require a lot of repetition and practice. I love using these online games to teach sight words in my classroom.
Sight word instruction can be really challenging in the classroom because you have a classroom filled with students who learn different things in different ways at different paces. 🥴
It requires so much repetition and practice, yet all of our students need those things in different ways.
I tackle sight word instruction from all sides. We read them in sentences, practice them with music and movement, do art projects, and more!
These 10 online games to teach sight words are FREE and super interactive. [Free as of August 2019] They give students the chance to practice identifying, matching and reading sight words, all while playing fun games.
Note: Did you know there is a difference between sight words and high frequency words? I thought they were the same for the longest time. Knowing their differences has helped me with my instruction.
Read more about that here!
Sight Word Bingo
This classic bingo game from abcya.com is a favorite for all of my students. The little amoeba monster at the top says a word, then the student identifies it and clicks it.
This game words great on a computer or on an interactive white board. I have my students take turns at the SmartBoard in my classroom during a center or we do it whole group when we have a minute to spare.
No matter when we use it, it’s a student favorite. 👍🏼
Sight Word Smash
Students love this fun, sight word identification game. The computer says a word. Then they use the pointer to find it and smash it.
I like this game because the word is on more than one block so students get the repetition of seeing and identifying the word multiple times!
Sight Word Memory
There are many, many sight word memory games online but this one is my favorite. I like that the computer says the word as you flip the card, whether it’s a match or not.
Seeing and hearing a word multiple times is perfect for auditory and visual learners. I also appreciate that when they finish a level, they can keep playing with new words!
Sight Words in Space
Students love this space themed sight word game. A cat says the word they are trying to find. Words float by in power cells and they have to click the right one.
The words are floating up so students have to identify them quickly. Just like in Sight Word Smash, words appear more than one time, too. 👏
Listen & Spell
I absolutely love this Listen & Spell game! We know that readers struggle with sight words because they do not follow phonics rules or because they are too advanced. We also know that students learn to read and write words at the same time.
This game gives them the chance to spell sight words with a limited number of letters at the bottom. First it says the word, then students use the yellow letters to spell it. The only letters available are letters that are in the word.
Playing this game helps students move on from “identifying” to “creating” on Bloom’s Taxonomy, which we know helps make information stick. Students will gain confidence in writing their sight words as well as reading them!
Sight Word Jigsaw
This identification game uses the same concepts as matching, except students are able to see all of the words at one time. They click the sound button on one of the yellow pieces to hear the word they are looking for. Then they find the blue word puzzle piece and drag it over.
I like that this game adds the element of looking at several words to find the correct one. It gives students practice at quickly identifying words by their beginning sounds.
Popcorn Words
Students playing this game are working the popcorn machine at a movie theater. A monkey comes up to the counter and says a sight word. Students click on the correct sight word to give it to the monkey.
Once they have handed out 10 popcorn buckets correctly, they get to play a quick in-between game and then are promoted.
Their goal is to become the manager. I’m sure it will not surprise you to hear that my students beg to play this game!
Kitten Hop
This silly game is another favorite of my students. They are playing a kitten who bounces from yarn ball to yarn ball. The computer says a sight word. That word is on one of the four yarn balls in front of the one your kitten is on.
Students love this game because they are racing three other kittens. The winner is the one who reaches the couch at the end of the game first. They have to be quick at matching the sight word their hear to the correct ball of year if they want to win!
Note: this game has options at the beginning for choosing a color, a name, etc. You will want to teach your students how to do this quickly (and set that expectation) so that they can do it independently.
Starfall Sight Words
Though I’ve already included a Memory Sight Word game, who doesn’t love Starfall? In this sight word game, the students need to determine if it is the same sight word by sight alone as it is not read until the match is made.
But I love that they have three stars in the upper left corner to show their progress to the next level.
Once the student completes the game, they can move on to Level 2, where the sight words are slightly more difficult. The students love moving up a level to show their achievement!
My Reading Tools
In My Reading Tools, students see a kangaroo get several tools to become a better reader. The first tool is a flashlight. He uses it to highlight words in a dark cave.
This game is more challenging than the rest because students are asked to finish the sentence with the word spelled correctly. The computer reads the sentence. Then students hover their flashlight around the cave to find the word. 🔦
In this example, I was looking for the word “again.” The other options in the cave were misspelled words “agin,” “agane,” etc. This game is perfect for students who are confidently reading many sight words and are ready for a challenge!
These 10 online games to teach sight words are perfect for giving students extra practice and lots of repetition during centers in my classroom.
Did I miss any of your favorites? How do you like to practice sight words? Let me know below! 👇
Digital Sight Word Lessons with Practice
Are you looking for digital ways to teach sight words?
I mean, what’s the point of practicing a word (even with the fun and free sight word games shared above) if a student has not explicitly been taught a sight word? 🤔
For this very reason, I’ve created 150 sight word lessons with practice.
These Google Slides lesson and practice can be used with any free Google accounts and are so easy to assign in Google Classroom!
As you assign words to your students one at a time, they will learn, identify, build, read in context, and master the new sight word. It’s explicit instruction and practice, all in one.
Don’t just take my word for it, watch the lesson in action in the video below. 👇🏽
While the lessons DO have audio, this preview video does not.
🎧 Students can have the words and sentences read to them, if needed.
You can purchase the 150 Digital Sight Word Lessons and Practice (for use with Google Slides™️ on my website or TpT.
Click HERE to buy on Teachers Pay Teachers
Click on the button below to purchase on my website (where you get lifetime access)!
Sight Words Distance Learning | Digital Sight Word Lessons | Homeschool
$25.00
Are you looking for the perfect way to teach new sight words and review old sight words while distance learning? You NEED this resource.
Digital sight word activities can be fun, but what good are they if students haven’t learned the sight word yet? Should they practice something that they haven’t learned about yet?
Enter: Digital Sight Words Learn and Practice! This 100% digital sight word resource is every sight word teacher’s dream! Yes, that you includes you, homeschool parents!
Each sight word activity (there are 100 words included!) guides students through learning the word, reading the word, identifying the word, building/spelling the word, and using the word.
Buy Now
This is such a fabulous digital sight word program and SO well-made!!!! Very creative…love the stickers they can give themselves at the end! -Lacy S.
Games for the development of visual perception in children with cerebral palsy - Elizabethan Garden
There are games aimed at developing all types of perception (visual, auditory, tactile-motor, etc.).
The success of physical, mental and aesthetic education largely depends on the level of sensory development of children, i.e. on, firstly, how perfectly the child hears, sees, feels the environment; secondly, how well he can operate with this information; thirdly, how accurately this knowledge can be expressed in speech. nine0006
Games aimed at developing visual perception.
Vision is the most important of the five senses. Vision helps the child understand how the space around him is arranged, how his body is located in space and how he can control his position.
In addition, the child uses the acquired visual experience to communicate with other people: establishes eye contact, uses sign language. Later, the child begins to use the information received through vision in interaction with adults: for example, if the toy he is interested in is at the other end of the room, and there is an adult next to it, the child can ask him to bring the toy. nine0003
General recommendations for children with visual impairments
- Comment on all your actions in simple words so that the child understands what is happening with him and around him (now we will play).
- Use simple language, describe the same type of action in the same terms to warn the child about what is about to happen (I take the ball).
- When you approach a child, first speak softly, affectionately to him. This will warn him and save him from fear. nine0003
- Put the toys your child plays with on a tray where he can take them. Once he gets used to the position of the tray, move him around.
In this way, the child will develop an idea of the permanent existence of objects.
— Hang toys over the baby's crib so that the baby can touch them without having to reach for the toy.
Visual stimulation
A visually impaired child usually has some ability to see, and it is very important to teach the child to make the most of the available vision. Try to stimulate the child's vision. Children with other disabilities may also need stimulation to look at and reach for objects. nine0003
Here are some tips for parents with visually impaired children:
- Use big toys. Small toys are difficult for visual and tactile perception.
Use bright colored toys. Our vision works on contrasts: start with black and white toys, then move on to colors like red and orange. Luminous toys and shiny or holographic colored paper are also good.
— Ensure that the child plays in a bright, well-lit room. nine0003
Example games
1.
Hello
• The child feels great pleasure when he sees your face.
• Lean close to your baby and sing this song:
Hello, hello, I love you so much.
Hello, hello, I can touch you.
Hello, hello, touch the little nose.
Hello, hello, kiss your little nose. nine0062
• Repeat the rhyme, while changing the last two lines, naming different parts of the face: eyes, ears, cheeks or lips.
2. Where is he hiding?
• Hold a brightly colored scarf in front of your child.
• Move him slowly from side to side and tell him how beautiful and bright he is.
• Once you are sure that the baby is looking at the scarf, slowly move the scarf aside.
• Continue to move him from side to side, making the baby follow him with his eyes. nine0003
• Try to play this way more often. You help children's brains develop!
Attention! As with any game, keep a close eye on your toddler for signs of fatigue and any desire to rest or play something else.
3. Playing with hats
• Your face is the first thing your child recognizes.
• Try playing the hat game with your baby. He will recognize your face, thus developing vision. nine0003
• Pick up as many hats as possible and, putting them on one by one, say the following words:
Hats, hats, hats, hats. (Slowly tilt your head back and forth.)
Mommy (daddy) ... (name) has a hat.
… (same person) loves … (child's name) When … (child's name) has a hat on his head.
• If you don't have enough hats, tie a scarf or ribbon around your head.
4. Peepers
• Be sure to get the child's full attention. Change your facial expression: smile, make a sound, or wrinkle your nose.
• Watching your baby's reaction when he follows your facial expressions is very exciting. His interest may be expressed in the fact that he will open his eyes wide or begin to move his arms and legs.
5. Look what I see
• Pick up some colorful toys and move them slowly side to side in front of your baby, one after the other, to get his attention. nine0003
• During this period, babies begin to pay attention to their hands. At first, they stare at them for a long time and finally discover that they can make them appear and disappear.
• Take the child's hands in yours and gently clap them in front of the baby's face:
Almonds, Altars,
Clap your hands.
Mommy … (name of the person playing with the baby) pat on the cheek.
Clap your hands.
6. Wonderful light
• If desired, the flashlight can be covered with colored film.
• Hold the child in your arms and light the flashlight.
• Move it slowly from side to side and watch your child follow the flashlight with their eyes.
• While moving the flashlight, say:
Wonderful light, wonderful light,
Here it is - wonderful, wonderful light.
• Not only is this a lot of fun for kids, but a lot of necessary connections are made in the brain while playing. nine0003
When a child watches moving objects, a neuron on the retina forms a connection with another neuron located in the area of the brain responsible for vision. The kid, one might say, is improving his vision.
7. Where did the toy go?
• Hold your child's favorite toy in front of their eyes, then hide it.
• Encourage your child to search with questions like "Is she in heaven?" and look up.
• Ask: "Is she on the ground?" - and look down. nine0003
• Then ask: “Maybe I have it in my hands? And, indeed, in the hands.
• As soon as your baby grows up, he will start looking for a toy that has disappeared from his sight.
• When he starts to pay attention to where you have hidden the toy, he will follow your movements when you remove your hand.
8.
Mirror games
• Looking at yourself in the mirror is an interesting and exciting activity. In addition, it gives the baby the opportunity to learn about himself from a new side. nine0003
• Here are a few things you and your baby can do in front of a large, full-length mirror:
– smile;
- move various parts of the body;
- make faces, making funny sounds;
- to pronounce various sounds with the help of lips;
- to imitate the voices of animals;
- swing back and forth.
Since the visual neurons begin to form quite early, children need stimulating visual exercises. nine0003
9. Hide and seek with a doll
• Put the cloth doll on your arm and hide it behind your back.
• Show your hand and say: “Ku-ku… (baby's name)”.
• Now hide the hand with the doll behind the back again.
• Continue repeating these steps until the child consciously waits for the doll to appear in a particular location.
• Now let the doll appear from behind your head, from behind the baby's head. Always bring the doll to the baby's face (but not too close) when you say "coo-coo". nine0003
Each game of hide-and-seek stimulates the creation and strengthening of thousands of connections between brain cells, gradually improving the complex network of connections that will remain in this state throughout your child's life. In a later period, such connections are formed with difficulty.
The article was prepared by Margarita Stanislavovna Trunova, a psychologist at the Elizabethan Kindergarten (ANO MMDC).
7 word games suitable for children of any age
When there is no energy left for active games that require careful preparation, word games come to the rescue. We've put together a selection of seven cool games that all you need to do is be in the company of more than two people and be in a good mood! You can also play them via video link. nine0003
1. "Guess the word!"
Number of players: from 2 people
Very simple and funny game.
Headphones are put on one player, in which music plays loudly so that he does not hear anything. His task is to guess the word by the lips when another player says it. If several people are involved, then you can explain the word in turn or split into pairs.
2. "I never..."
Number of players: from 2 people
Today this game has many variations. We offer the most common version. Participants take turns to name some action that they have never done. For example, player A says, "I've never been late for class." Everyone who was late for them bends one finger. The game continues until one of the participants has all their fingers bent. According to the main version of the game, the person who was the first to bend all the fingers lost, but lived the most eventful life! nine0003
By the way, you can also play in English if you want a different level of difficulty.
3. "Thematic words"
Number of players: from 2 people
The rules of the game are extremely simple.
You and other participants need to come up with a topic on which you will name the words. For example, "school". Then all participants in a circle should name nouns that relate to the main topic. If one of the participants thinks for more than five seconds or repeats an already spoken word, he is eliminated. The last one left wins. When the circle is over, you can start a new one on a different topic until one of the participants wins, for example, three times. nine0003
4. "P"
Number of players: from 3 people
First, all players need to agree on which words will be used throughout the game: only nouns, or names, verbs and phrases can be used. Then one player guesses a word in the ear of the other. He must explain it to another participant in the game, using only words that begin with the letter "p" to describe it. For example: “Please look, think, the postman brings mail ...” The task of all players is to name the hidden word. When it is named, the explainer comes up with a new one for the guesser.
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If this version of the game is already fed up, we suggest guessing not only a word, but also a letter with which the player needs to explain the word.
By the way, the explainer also needs to express agreement or disagreement with the train of thought of the players who guess, only in words beginning with the chosen letter. For example, "right" and "think better."
5. “I take with me on a hike ...”
Number of players: from 3 people
At the beginning of the game, you need to choose a leader. This person must come up with a principle by which he will take others with him on a campaign. For example, those who name objects with a specific letter, or those whose words consist of five letters. nine0003
Next, the players take turns saying the phrase "I'm taking with me on a hike ..." and naming the object. If he fits the conceived principle, then the leader answers: "Yes, and you are going on a hike with me." If the word does not fit: "No, you are not going camping with me.
"
The task of all players is to guess the principle by which the leader selects people. If one of the participants guesses, he should quietly express his guess in the ear of the presenter or write on the phone. The game continues until everyone has guessed the principle. nine0003
6. Alibi
Number of players: from 4 people
At the beginning of the game, you need to choose two people who will play the role of criminals. They must isolate themselves from the rest in another room and think through to the smallest detail what they did together on the day they robbed the bank: what the weather was like, what they were wearing, who they met on the street, the whole sequence of actions. The main goal of criminals is to come up with the perfect alibi.
While they are doing this, the other players turn into detectives. They need to come up with 10-15 questions that they will ask the criminals in order to bring them to clean water and solve the crime.
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When both teams are ready, the first criminal enters the room and begins to tell what he did on the day of the crime, from morning to evening. It is important that the second criminal at this moment remains in another room and does not hear the speech of the first. When the first one finishes speaking, the detectives ask him prepared questions and memorize the answers. After that, the second criminal enters the room, tells his story and also answers questions.
The team of detectives wins the game if they find three inconsistencies in the criminals' story. For example, one said that they were traveling in the morning by bus, and the other by car. If no disagreement is found, then the team of criminals wins. The number of questions and inconsistencies may change at the request of the participants. nine0003
7. "Contact"
Number of players: from 4 people
At the beginning of the game, a leader is chosen. He thinks of a word - a noun in the singular.
And calls the other participant the first letter. For example, "a".
Next, any player from the team who has come up with a word for this letter must begin to explain it to his teammates. It is necessary that they guess, but not the host. For example, Sasha says: "This is such a sweet large red fruit that everyone eats in the summer." If one of the players guessed what it was about, he should say: "There is a contact." After that, they together count aloud from one to five. If the word matches, the leader calls the next letter. For example, in". Players must now come up with words based on the beginning with "av". If the words of the players did not match or the leader managed to name the word while two players counted to five, then the participants continue to play with one letter. nine0003
Explain with an example. The host announces that his word begins with the letter "a". Sasha comes up with any word and says: “Guys, this is such a public transport ...” Roma guesses what it is about and says: “There is a contact!” Together they count to five, and both say the word "bus" aloud.
