First Grade · Reading · week 17

Mixed Decodables and Sight Words

Read mixed decodable text fluently while recognizing common sight words by sight rather than sounding them out.

Some words do not follow the sounding-out rules very well, like "said" and "was." These are sight words -- words you learn to know by sight because you see them so often.

By now you should know about 75 sight words. Mixing sight words with your decoding skills lets you read real sentences, not just single words.

📋 For the teacher
Teach it (10–15 min):
  • Keep a running list of sight words for your child and add a few new ones each week rather than all at once.
  • Point out that sight words are memorized because they do not always follow the phonics rules, not because they are more important.
  • Mix a few sight words into every decodable sentence so real reading feels natural, not like a drill.
  • Flash sight words quickly, one to two seconds, to build automatic recognition, separate from slow decoding practice.
Talk about it:
  • Which sight words feel automatic to you now?
  • Why do some words not follow the sounding-out rules?
  • Can you read a whole sentence with sight words and decodable words mixed together?

Mastery looks like: They read grade-level sight words automatically and blend them smoothly with decodable words in sentences.

Common stumbles: Trying to sound out a sight word letter by letter instead of recognizing it instantly.

See it visually

Interactive, spoken-aloud tools that show this idea in motion.

Blending & SegmentingSlide sounds together to read a word — /s/ /u/ /n/ → “sun”.try →Sight WordsPractice the tricky high-frequency words you can’t sound out.try →
Homework for this lessonType it, write it with a stylus, or print it for pencil & paper.open →
Records attendance + 15 min of Reading for this learner.
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