Standard 2: Reading Foundations

Students will develop foundational skills for future reading success by working with sounds, letters, and text.

FLUENCY: Students will recognize high- frequency words and read grade-level text smoothly and accurately, with expression that connotes comprehension.

K.2.F.2 Students will read common high-frequency grade-level words by sight

(e.g., not, was, to, have, you, he, is, with, are). 

Student Actions 

Teacher Actions 

• Students will quickly recognize and read common grade-level sight words.

• Teachers introduce common high-frequency sight words to students, modeling how to analyze words for decodability or memorization.

• Teachers provide practice reading, spelling, writing, and using decodable and irregular sight words that are common, grade-level words.

• Teachers provide opportunities for students to identify and read sight words in context.

• Teachers monitor the acquisition of sight words and provide opportunities for students to receive feedback and interventions (e.g. sight word games or centers).

Supporting Resources 

Teacher Insights 

TPRI:  Fluency Activities (webpage)

FCRR:  High Frequency Words (PDF)

FCRR:  Fluency Activities (PDF)

FCRR:  Fluency with Connected Text Activities (PDF)

Teach "Sight Words" as You Would Other Words (webpage)

Predictable text with HFW (webpage)

Dolch Words (PDF)

Fry Words(PDF)

Word Fluency Activities (webpage)

Fluent, Automatic Reading of Text (webpage)

Why Are Sight Words Important(webpage)

• Children must learn to identify words quickly and effortlessly so that they can focus on the meaning of what they are reading.

• High-frequency words should be taught along with phonemic awareness, individual letter-sound relationships, and a concept of word.

• Many sight words do not follow basic phonics principles, thus cannot be sounded out.

• If students can read high-frequency words with automaticity, their fluency will increase and they can focus on the more challenging task of comprehension.

• Automaticity is the ability to do things without having to think about them at a conscious level.

• Students can practice reading high-frequency words in sentences and books.

Due to recursive nature of the standards, it is essential that teachers are aware of how all objectives within and between strands work together for optimal instruction.