What are sight words?

Sight words refer to a collection of commonly used words that children are encouraged to recognize instantly, without the need to sound them out phonetically. These words often do not follow standard phonetic rules, making them harder for beginning readers to decode independently. By learning to recognize these words at first glance, children can improve their reading fluency and comprehension, as they can focus more on the meaning of the text rather than struggling with decoding each individual word.

The goal of teaching sight words is to build a strong sight vocabulary that allows students to read more smoothly and efficiently. Many sight words are high-frequency words found in a majority of texts, which is why they are prioritized in early reading instruction.