Red Word & Green Word Practice Ideas for Home

It’s very important for your child to practice their words at home.  Being able to read and spell these words is an essential skill your child will need for reading success.  Practicing these words with your child at home will make a big difference and it should also be a fun experience!   I have searched through various resources and compiled a list of fun ways to help your child practice reading and spelling their words at home.  

Paper Plate Toss:

Write sight words on paper plates.  Use them like frisbees to throw after reading the word.  Add in some fun by adding a target.

Flashlight Words:

Turn off the lights.  Tape words to the wall or ceiling.  Use the flashlight to shine on the word, then have your child read it.  

Go Fish:

Use a set up word cards to play “Go Fish”.  You can easily make your own word cards out of index cards.  Remember you need to have 2 cards for each word to play the game.

Stepping Stones:

Place the word cards on the floor, making a fun stream going across the room.  Have your child walk over the stream.  As they step onto the stepping stone (word card), have them say the word before they move on to get to the other side of the stream.

Tic-Tac-Toe:

Make a tic-tac-toe board and write the words in the tic-tac-toe spaces.  Take turns selecting a space to read.  If read correctly, an X or O is placed on the space until someone wins.

WORD-O:

This is played just like BINGO.  Fill in a card with the words that your child is working on learning.  Call out the words and mark the spaces.  The first one with a card covered calls out the word “WORD-O!”

Word Hunt:

Look for sight words in books or in the newspaper.  If using the newspaper your child can highlight or circle the words she/he finds.  

Word Jump:

Write the sight words onto the driveway with sidewalk chalk.  Call out a word and have your child jump their way to the sight word.

Stair Chase:

Place 1 sight word card on each stair.  Have them read the cards as they walk up the steps, picking up and keeping the words they read correctly.

Coin Toss:

Put word sight cards on the floor.  Have your child toss a coin onto a word and say that word.  If they get the word correctly, they keep the coin.  

Concentration:

Create two sets of word cards.  Place the word cards face down.  Have your child turn over two cards, trying to make a match, continue until all of the words are matched.  

Who Am I?:

Lay out the word cards and give your child clues to guess the word.  For example, if the word is “like”, you could say- I have 4 letters, I end with the letter d, I rhyme with bike, etc… Have your child locate the word.

Beat the Clock:

See how many sight word cards your child can read in one minute.  Keep track and see if he/she can beat their personal best.

Cup Crash:

Write sight words on plastic disposable cups (one work on each cup).  As your child reads the words on the cups they build a cup tower.  After reading all the cups give them a small ball to throw at the cup tower and make it crash.  You can skip the crash part but it might be their favorite part =)

Sight Word Hunt:

To make a sight word hunt, you’ll just need some sticky notes or paper, pencil or pen, and tape. Simply write sight words on paper or sticky notes. Hang the words up around your house. Have your child find the words, read the words and write the words!

Nerf Gun Shoot:

Put sight word cards on the wall or around the house or in the yard or both. (You can use sticky notes or hang cards up with painters tape)  Then have your child go around and read the words and shoot any words they can read.