Kindergarten Sight Words
The 50 kindergarten sight words in teaching order, with worksheets for every word, flash cards, games, sentences and little books.
The sight words year, in order
Learn the words
156 sheets readyThe kindergarten sight words list in teaching order, and a page of worksheets for each of the 50 words.
Practice and play
60 sheets readyQuick daily review with flash cards, games like bingo and word searches, and color-by-sight-word pictures.
Read them in sentences
31 sheets readyShort sentences and little books made from sight words and simple sound-it-out words, so children read the words in real text.
About kindergarten sight words
These are the kindergarten sight words, in the order we teach them: I, a, the, to, and, is, it, in, you, we, can, see, my, like, go, at, he, she, me, look, said, for, up, down, here, are, was, of, have, they, this, play, come, little, big, one, two, three, red, blue, yellow, green, do, no, on, with, what, where, be, that. Print the full kindergarten sight words list as one page, with the words in five sets of ten, plus a pre-K starter list and a 1st grade list for next steps.
Sight words are the small, common words that appear on almost every page of an early reader. Some can be sounded out (it, can, big), and some cannot (said, was, of), but children need to read all of them in a flash so they can focus on the rest of the sentence. Most kindergartners learn somewhere between 25 and 50 by the end of the year.
Teach a few words at a time. Start with the list, then give each word its own practice: every word has a page with three worksheets to trace and write it, read it in short sentences, and find and color it. Flash cards, games and color-by-word pages make daily review quick, and short sentences and little books let children read the words in real text.
Every page is black and white, prints on US Letter or A4, and is free to download with no sign-up. The sentences use only sight words and short sound-it-out words, so children can read them on their own.
Questions
What are the kindergarten sight words?
Our list has 50 words, in teaching order: I, a, the, to, and, is, it, in, you, we, can, see, my, like, go, at, he, she, me, look, said, for, up, down, here, are, was, of, have, they, this, play, come, little, big, one, two, three, red, blue, yellow, green, do, no, on, with, what, where, be, that. The sight words list page has it as a printable PDF.
How many sight words should a kindergartner know?
Expectations vary by school, but many kindergarten classrooms aim for 25 to 50 sight words by the end of the year. A child who reads all 50 on our list quickly and without sounding them out is ready for the 1st grade list.
How do you teach sight words to a kindergartner?
Teach two to four new words a week. Show the word, say it, spell it out loud and use it in a sentence. Then practice it a few ways: trace and write it, find it among look-alike words, and read it in a short sentence. Review the old words for a minute every day with flash cards or a game.
Should children sound out sight words?
Where they can, yes. Many sight words follow the usual letter sounds (it, can, big), and sounding them out helps. For the parts that don't (the a in was, the ai in said), point out the tricky part and practice the whole word until it is quick.
When should kindergartners start learning sight words?
Most classrooms start in the first weeks of kindergarten with words like I, a, the and to, alongside letter sounds. Children who are ready earlier can start with the pre-K list.
Are these sight word printables free?
Yes. Every list, worksheet, flash card set and game is a free PDF to print for your classroom or home, with no account or email sign-up.