Er-u-di-tion’s Sight Words List

Sight words are the cornerstone of Er-u-di-tion. A sight word is a word commonly found in printed material that emergent readers are encouraged to recognize without phonetic decoding. Through extensive research, Dr. Edward Dolch and Dr. Edward Fry developed sight word lists. These lists were the primary source of the game’s sight word cards. The game exposes players to these words in a fun and engaging way that promotes instant recognition and comprehension.

During the 1940s Dr. Dolch compiled a list of the most common words used in children’s books. He believed that beginning readers should learn to recognize these words upon sight. Many words on the Dolch list cannot be sounded out phonetically, making instant recognition of these words even more critical. Dolch created a list of 220 service words (frequently used pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions and verbs) and a list of 95 common nouns. Our game cards include virtually all of Dolch’s 220 service words.

In the mid 1990s Dr. Fry further developed Dolch’s theories and created his own word list. Fry later, with assistance from Jacqueline Kress and Dona Fountoukidis, refined his list and presented it in order of frequency. Fry’s first 100 words represent approximately 50% of all printed material. Our game cards include 96% of these words.

In addition to Dolch’s and Fry’s lists, we referenced sight words from kindergarten curriculums in New Jersey, Maryland and Michigan as well as two sight word books. Based on the words’ prominence among these sources and professional judgment, with a focus on irregular words, we selected 317 words.

Over 70 of these 317 words do not follow typical phonics or spelling rules. Approximately another 70 of Er-u-di-tion’s sight words are irregular verbs (their past tense does not follow the “ed” rule). Game cards with irregular verbs include both the present and past tense. Through instant recognition of high frequency and common irregular words, emergent readers gain confidence and avoid confusion resulting from numerous exceptions to common rules. Each sight word game card also includes the word’s syllabication and definition. Syllabication assists emergent readers decode unfamiliar words, and the definition fosters reading comprehension.

Er-u-di-tion is a fun sight words game that exposes players to both phonics and sight words. The game cards are color coded to promote children of various skill levels to play together. Each of the blue cards, which are ideal for pre-school children, includes an upper and lower case letter with words emphasizing that letter’s phonetic sound. The green, yellow, and red cards contain beginner, intermediate and advanced level sight words.