Clearing up misconceptions about this important list of words for young readers
High frequency words. Red words. Heart words. Flash words. Sight words. What are they, and why are they such an important part of an early literacy program?
First, we need to be careful when labeling these lists of words. “Sight words,” “red words,” and “high frequency words” are often used interchangeably; however, they’re quite different.
Let’s explore high frequency words first. The term “high frequency words” refers to the most commonly used words in printed text. There are two widely-known lists: Dolch and Fry.
The Dolch list is made up of the most common words found in kindergarten through second grade-leveled texts. The Fry list is made up of the most common words found in third through ninth grade-leveled texts.
The Dolch list contains 220 words. Dolch did not include nouns. He only included “service” words. His reasoning was because nouns (such as walk, cat, and firetruck) are specific to the content or subject matter of a book, while the “service” words (pronouns, adjectives, prepositions, and conjunctions) can be tied to any book. Isn’t that cool? He didn’t include nouns because he felt that “service” words would be more helpful to kids as they read. (Later, Dolch DID make a list of 95 High Frequency Nouns.)
Did You Know? When you look up the Dolch list of high frequency words, you’ll probably see them divided by grade level. Dolch never divided his words by grade. That has been done by teachers. Teachers made Pre-Primer through Third Grade lists out of the Dolch words on their own.
Now, let’s talk about Fry… that OTHER popular list of high frequency words.
The Fry list is made up of 1,000 words, and it does include nouns. Fifty percent of all written material in English is composed of the first 100 words on the Fry list. Fascinating!
The Dolch and Fry lists are very similar. Many words are on both lists.
Because these lists offer words that will come up frequently in texts for young readers, teaching students these words early on will help them to read books written at their level.
So, now you understand what high frequency words are and where they come from. But, what about sight words (also known as red words, heart words, or flash words)?
The biggest misconception is that sight words are the same as high frequency words. But, THEY ARE NOT THE SAME!
Sight words are words that do not follow the usual phonics rules, and therefore must be memorized (recognized by “sight”).
Sight words taught in a classroom are often chosen from a high frequency word list since they’re common in texts for young readers. Makes total sense, actually.
When creating a list of sight words, teachers generally choose words from a high frequency word list that cannot be sounded out using basic phonics rules. For example, let’s take the word “the.” Not only does the “th” make a voiced th- sound, but the “e” makes a short u sound. If a young child uses the phonics rules he or she has learned early on, then he or she would likely sound out the word “the” incorrectly. Therefore, if students just memorize that “t-h-e” says “the,” then they will not get tripped up on that word while reading. They’ll have it memorized!
Fun Fact: “The” is the number one word on both the Dolch and Fry list. This means that “the” is the word used most in all texts from pre-kindergarten through ninth grade. And it DOESN’T FOLLOW COMMON SOUND OR SPELLING PATTERNS. Ugh. Go figure.
How should high frequency words and sight words be taught?
High frequency words can be divided into two groups. Words that are easily decodable using basic phonics rules and words that are not.
Words that are easily decodable using basic phonics rules can be taught through any phonics program. Words like “big,” “up,” and “not” are all found at the beginning of the Dolch high frequency word list. Using basic phonics skills, young readers can sound these words out. Therefore, there is no need to memorize them. Any phonics program used in the classroom will teach students the common consonant and vowel letter sounds found in these words. So, if you’re using a phonics program, there is no need to teach these words in isolation or in a special way.
On the other hand, high frequency words that do NOT follow common phonics rules become “sight words” because young readers must know them by sight rather than by sound. Students need a special method for learning words that “break the rules” by not following predictable spelling patterns. Because we do not teach the /u/ sound in “the,” the /e/ sound in “said,” and the /z/ sound in “his,” students must know the words automatically to decode any level-based or phonics-based early reader.
So, teachers – it’s your lucky day! I researched how sight words should be taught so you don’t have to! These methods have proven to be successful through real educational research. Here is a quick summary of what I found. (Sources are at the bottom.)
Method 1: A Multi-Sensory Approach
A multi-sensory approach to learning “rule-breakers” has a tremendously positive effect on students’ abilities to retain new information. This is because multiple areas of the brain are engaged at the same time, so stronger connections are made allowing learners to experience the information more deeply. (Think about music, songs, games, puzzles, movements like arm-tapping, and art.)
Dorn and Soffos (2001) stated “writing involved the brain in cross-referencing three types of perceptual data-visual, auditory, and motor-all of which are needed to produce an accurate spelling” (p. 59).
Gentry (1987) also discusses the importance of using a multi-sensory approach to teaching spelling, “for most children, effective methods for studying unknown words would include visual inspection, auditory inspection, kinesthetic reinforcement, and recall-always with the words treated as wholes” (p. 32).
Mercer and Mercer (as cited in Murphy, 1997) wrote that “a multisensory approach to spelling instruction may have an impact on spelling achievement. The multisensory method, also known a VAKT (visual-auditory-kinesthetic-tactile) implies that students learn best when information is presented in different modalities” (p. 1).
Shah and Thomas (2002) “developed and used student centers within the classroom to activate the multiple intelligences thereby increasing the retention of high frequency spelling words by moving beyond verbal/linguistic instruction” (p. 1).
Method 2: Explicit Spelling Instruction
Organize HFW by phonics patterns and fit them into phonics instruction. (Some do follow the rules.)
Organize irregularly spelled high frequency words so that words with similar spelling patterns are taught together.
“It does not seem important or necessary that one embrace any one particular approach to the teaching of spelling strategies; what is important is that children are indeed taught spelling directly” (Degeneffe and Ward, 1998, p. 28).
Gentry (1987) stated “research indicates that we do need to teach formal spelling lessons to supplement what kids learn about spelling through reading and writing” (1987, p. 9). This statement affirms that spelling must be taught to children; most children can not learn spelling solely from their experiences with reading and writing.
In an examination of ten studies, McNaughton and his colleagues found that fifteen to twenty minutes of spelling instruction per day was found to be effective (Greene, 1995).
Method 3: Meaningful Writing Experiences
Dorn and Soffos (2001) suggest that teachers instruct students to circle words that may be misspelled in their writing. The authors explained that teachers should teach children how to edit their writing by circling “the words that do not look right” (p. 52).
Offer immediate feedback on spelling mistakes of HFW that have already been taught during authentic writing experiences.
Gentry holds that purposeful writing experiences are the key to cognitive growth in spelling. Teachers can encourage purposeful writing, such as the writing of messages, lists, plans, signs, letters, stories, songs, and poems. Teachers can also provide opportunities for frequent writing, which, when integrated with all aspects of the curriculum, should be a natural part of the daily classroom routine. Frequent application of spelling knowledge by students while writing encourages spelling competency. (Lutz, 1986, p. 3)
Method 4: Self-Correcting Techniques
Gentry (1987) discussed the importance of having children correct their own spelling tests, “one technique frequently cited as being most effective is this: have children correct their own spelling errors immediately after taking a spelling test… having kids correct their own errors immediately seems to aid their visual memory” (p. 29).
Personal spelling dictionaries help students retain the words they’ve mastered throughout the year. This follow-up step ensures that students remain the keepers of knowledge – not you. No more asking, “How do you spell…?”. Instead, students refer to their own collection of words whenever they write.
Other Effective Teaching Strategies
Spelling instruction needs to be designed to give students strategies to break down words into smaller, more solvable parts (Degeneffe & Ward, 1998).
Creating a print-rich environment, through the use of a word wall, for instance, is very beneficial for helping students learn to visualize words.
Lutz (1986) discussed the importance of using instructional games for spelling instruction, such as games that allow students to practice letter/sound relationships, manipulating letters to make words, and alphabetizing.
Did You Know? Research suggests that poor spelling retention of the HFW is a result of two things: a lack of direct spelling instruction and a reliance on only one form of spelling instruction. So… try multiple methods to maximize your chances of success!
Conclusion
High frequency words are the building blocks of our language. Students must be familiar with them to be able to read and make sense of a story. The Dolch and Fry high frequency word lists both offer words that come up frequently in texts for young readers. Teaching students these words early on help them to read books written at their level. Some high frequency words will be automatically taught through phonics instruction; however, high frequency words that do not follow common spelling rules or phonics patterns should be taught in a different way to ensure memorization. By memorizing these words, young readers will read with more accuracy and fluency, improving their reading comprehension.
Want more?
A New Model for Teaching High Frequency Words
ARTICLE: If you scroll to the bottom of this article, you’ll find charts that break the high frequency words up into phonics lessons, such as CVC words, digraphs, blends, r-controlled vowels, vowel teams, schwa sound, and two- and three- syllable words. So, while we assume that most of these words must be memorized, we’re learning that there are areas within our usual phonics instruction where some of these words can fit.
Teaching Sight Words as Part of Comprehensive Reading Instruction
RESEARCH: Teach words that do not follow the rules in isolation and offer brief but frequent sight word instruction. Provide opportunities for immediate feedback (could be applied to immediate feedback during writing workshop).
A New, Phonics-Based Approach to Teaching High Frequency Words
PRESENTATION & RESOURCES: A little background on our BFFs, Dolch and Fry. Organize HFW by phonics patterns and fit them into phonics instruction. (“Flash Words”) Organize irregularly spelled high frequency words so that words with similar spelling patterns are taught together. (“Heart Words” since parts of these words have to be learned by heart.)
STUDY: Click on the top right “download full text” to read this research article or, just read the abstract on this site to get the gist. The researchers developed and used student centers within the classroom to activate the multiple intelligences thereby increasing the retention of high frequency spelling words by moving beyond verbal/linguistic instruction. In addition, students were immersed in a print rich environment through the display of a word wall, which students used to aid them in daily writing. Finally, students were encouraged to become more accountable for their learning by expanding the ways in which they gathered information and demonstrated their knowledge.
Sources:
Degeneffe L., & Ward, L.(1998). A constructivist approach to spelling strategies. [Electronic version] ERIC Document Reproduction No. ED 420848.
Dorn, D., & Soffos, C. (2001). Scaffolding young writers: A writers’ workshop approach. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.
Gentry, R. (1987). Spel… is a four-letter word. Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Heinemann.
Greene, G. (1995,Spring). A spelling test for teachers of students with learning Disabilities [Electronic version]. LD Forum, 20 (5), 1-7.
Lutz, E. (1986). Inventive spelling and spelling development. Urbana, IL: ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading and Communication Skills. (ERIC Document Reproduction No. ED 272922). Retrieved on December 1, 2005 from www.eric.ed.gov.
Mercer, C. and A. Mercer. Teaching Students with Learning Problems, Columbus, Ohio: Merrill, 1993.
Shah, T., & Thomas, A. (2002). Improving the spelling of high frequency words in daily writing through the use multiple intelligence centers. [Electronic version] ERIC Document Reproduction No. ED 471069.