1-2-3 Come Do Some Dolch Sight Word Activities With Me

Reviewing the Dolch sight words, or word wall words, can become a bit tedious and boring for students as the months fly by.  Yet it's important to keep at it, 'til recognition is automatic and students become fluent.

With that in mind, I designed the Spin and Read Dolch Word Game packet, which includes an alphabetical Dolch word list for Pre-Primer, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades, plus the Dolch list of nouns. 

It's that "something different" that will hopefully keep interest high and your students engaged, as they review the words in this fun way. 

The game is played as a whole group. Run off the word list of your choice, laminate and trim, so that you can use the game boards each year. (There are two game sheets on one page for quick printing.)

Children use a pencil and a paperclip to make their spinner.  They spin it to see how many words they will read. After their turn, another child spins their spinner and reads from their list of words. 

To make the game more interesting and fun, run off the 24 voice cards.  Children pick a card and read the word(s) using that kind of voice.  i.e. soft, loud, silly, mad etc. If you don't want to have separate cards, I've also included 3 voice choice posters that you can hang up.  Children can then look at the poster and choose a voice.

Be sure and demonstrate each voice, and then have students give it a try.  My firsties LOVED doing this so much that they asked to read stories using some of the voice choices.   For more practice, have students repeat the word after the person whose turn it is, reads it.

The packet includes:

• 5 Dolch word lists (PP-3rd, plus a list of Dolch nouns)
• 24 voice choice cards
• 3 voice choice posters to hang up
• a list of other sight word review games
• a list of links for Online sight word games & activities

Besides reading the sight words with a silly voice, I've included a few other activities that you can do to make reviewing the words more engaging and fun for your students; such as Flashlight Fun, Alphabet Adventures, Happy Highlights, Plastic Letter Play, Read the Room and Hangman.

There's also a list of links for Online sight word games and activities; such as star words, make a match, color word fun, sight word hangman, missing letters mystery, pick and click and spellbound.

Finally, there’s a quick 3-minute video on YouTube that reviews 100 high frequency words for PK-1st. The words are flashed on the screen and read in a child’s voice. I've listed all of these in the packet .

Click on the link to view/download the Spin & Read Dolch Word Games

Thanks for visiting today. It's my mom's 89th birthday weekend coming up, so there's much to do on my "To Do" list.  The sun is shining; the snow is sparkling, and I'm ready to hit the floor running. Woo hoo for energy. Wishing you a creative and cozy day.

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing you will be successful." ~ Albert Schweitzer

Hurry! Let's Make A Sentence!

A fun thing you can do with Dolch words is to print off my labels and press the stickers on large colored Popsicle sticks.

Simply download my template, put a sheet of large Avery (30 on a page) labels in your printer.  (In my HP you put the sheet face down, in my Epson printer it's face up.  Make sure you do a test, so you don't waste labels.) and then click print.

I wanted to use the big labels so that students could easily read them and I could use this cool font by Kevin and Amanda called “Tonight’s The Night”. Click on the link to check out their free fonts.

You’ll need to trim the labels down a bit so they fit, but I think it’s worth the effort because they show up nicely.  Press hard so that they will stay put.

Keep the sticks in a cute mug or basket that you can pass around.  Students choose a stick and read their word.  If they can, they stay in the game.  If they can’t, the stick goes back in, and they’re out of the game.

Challenge students to find other children with words that they can team up with to make a phrase or sentence.  See who can make the longest phrase or sentence, using the most words, before the timer goes off.

Students can go to this mug/basket and create sentences and phrases when they are done with other work, or use it as a writing center or Daily 5 activity, and have students choose sticks to make phrases/sentences and then write them on a sheet of paper using correct capitalization and punctuation.

Click on the link to view/download Dolch Word Labels There are 2 sheets for each Dolch Word List (Pre-Primer through 3rd Grade).  Enjoy! 

If you're looking for more Dolch Word activities, click on the link to zip on over to that section of my site.  The Dolch activities, especially the Dolch word Bingo games, are some of my most popular downloads! You can also scroll down to take a look at that blog article.

Do you have a Dolch Word or Daily 5 activity you can share or another way you used the word sticks?  I’d enjoy hearing from you! diane@teachwithme.com or feel free to leave a comment here, especially if you use one of my ideas. Thanks in advance for your time.

That's it for today. I'm off with my hubby to take a relaxing drive and enjoy all of the beautiful fall colors.  Thanks for visiting.  I hope you can stop by again for another fun teaching idea and FREEBIE.   I try and design new things every day, so do stop by often.   

"The wastebasket is a writer's best friend."  -Isaac Bashevis Singer

Turning On The Dolch Word Light Bulbs

Are some of your students struggling with the Dolch Word lists?  Here are some helpful tips that might turn the light bulbs on.

Children enjoy games.  Making things fun for students takes the drudgery out of memorizing things, as one of my little ones said:  “We were having so much fun we didn’t even know we were learning!”

I truly believe that learning and fun should go together.  If children enjoy learning they will WANT to come to school and you won’t have problems with discipline because students will be engaged in learning because they aren’t bored.

The Traceable Dolch Word Card packets  provide a tip list of a variety of activities you can incorporate into centers and games for students so they can immerse themselves with these words.

I've also designed Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza for all the word lists. If you get students looking for, and using the words they will learn them.

I've discovered that looking at the words separately and trying to figure them out, is difficult for some students. Memorization is also very boring.

We teach students all sorts of attack skills when they read, yet we give them a “list” of Dolch words and hope for success.

I find that some children do so much better if they can see these words in a group.  So I’ve made up phrases using the words.

These can be found in My Read, Trace & Write Dolch Word Phrase Packets.   They include trace and write the phrase-skill sheets, 40-60 phrase cards, a letter home to parents, 3 recording “good reader” sheets, and 2 certificates of praise.  These make great Daily 5 activities.

It’s important to get parents on board to reinforce lessons at home to get struggling children over the hump as there is just not enough time for all the one-on-one needed at school. 

Click on the links below to view/download whatever packet you need.

My Read, Trace & Write Pre-Primer Dolch Word Phrase Packet 

My Read, Trace & Write Kindergarten Dolch Word Phrase Packet

My Read, Trace & Write First Grade Dolch Word Phrase Packet

My Read, Trace & Write Second Grade Dolch Word Phrase Packet

My Read, Trace & Write Third Grade Dolch Word Phrase Packet

When a student achieves success with one packet they can correct the phrases and turn them into sentences by adding capital letters, punctuation and a word or two to complete the thought.   Continue to raise the bar, and challenge students to move on to the next level of words.

Finally, I really think that teaching students the words phonetically helps a lot.  I’ve had wonderful success turning the light bulb on when some students just don’t get it when I rhyme things.

I actually think it is much easier to break the words down this way and feel most students could learn a lot more words across the board if we taught them “off the list” and grouped them by sound instead.

I’ve compiled an anchor chart of a Phonetic Dolch Word List.  Click on the link to view/download it.

I hope these things help your students enjoy reading and learning new words, as those light bulbs turn on and start to shine brightly!

"The only place success comes before work, is in the dictionary." -- May Smith

Activities For Dolch Words

Looking for something different to do with Dolch Words?  Look no farther!

I’ve made traceable word cards for Pre-Primer through 3rd, that you can turn into an Itty Bitty booklet.

Students enjoy tracing the words, cutting out the cards and sequencing them in alphabetical order, adding a cover and turning them into a mini booklet that’s fun to share with their families.

You can use these cards for Memory Match “Concentration” games, “I Have Who Has?” games or sprinkle them on the floor and have students find and then sequence them as a whole group.

 Students can choose a partner and play “Speed” and several other card games too.

I've also included a set of bomb cards so students can play "Kaboom" as well.  Directions for these games are in the tip sheet.

There are also worksheets where students trace and alphabetize the words as well.

These things make nice Daily 5 activities too.

Click on the links for the various Dolch Word Cards and activities: Dolch Pre-primer cards, Dolch Kindergarten cards, Dolch First Grade cards, Dolch Second Grade cards, or Dolch Third Grade cards.

If you think up some other uses, I’d enjoy hearing from you diane@teachwithme.com or feel free to comment here.

Thanks in advance for your time.  

Be sure and pop back tomorrow for more interesting teaching tips.

Have Fun With Dolch Words!

Since the CVC word Bingo Cards were such a tremendous hit, I decided to make sets of Bingo cards for the Dolch words as well.

Here's what to do:

Run each set off on a DIFFERENT color of construction paper. This way you can tell that those color cards deal with a specific set of  25 words.

Laminate and cut out the cards.

Make an extra white set to cut into pieces.

There are 25 words per set.  Because of the FREE space, there are only 24 words used on each card.

Glue the white pieces onto the matching color construction paper for each set of Dolch Bingo cards.

These pieces will be the cards that you draw so that students can put their “markers” on their bingo cards.

Keep the pieces in Snack Baggies.

Put the matching Snack Baggie in a file folder with the matching set of Dolch bingo cards.

Dried beans are an inexpensive “marker”.

When your students have learned those Dolch words, challenge them to a higher level and move to a different set of cards from the next grade level.

For an explanation of 2 other fun things to do with the cards, click on the link to check out the CVC Bingo article!

After the game, award certicates to all participants. 

Click on the links below to view/print the Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza's of your choice.

Pre-Primer Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza,

Kindergarten Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza,

1st Grade Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza,

2nd Grade Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza,

3rd Grade Dolch Word Bingo Bonanza 

I also have a 53-page Dolch Word Help book that includes traceable word cards for all of the Dolch words from the pre-primer through the 2nd grade lists, as well as traceable cards for the Dolch noun, with matching picture cards + a story that includes all 220 words!

Click on the link to view/print a copy.  Dolch Word Help Book

Pop back tomorrow for bulletin board ideas!