Sight Words Bingo: Dolch Pre-Primer List
The Dolch pre-primer list is the starting point for sight word instruction — the 40 most common words in children's reading material that appear so frequently, readers must recognize them instantly rather than decode them phonetically. Sight words bingo is one of the most effective ways to build that automatic recognition.
The Complete Dolch Pre-Primer Word List
These 40 words should be mastered by end of kindergarten:
- A: a, and, away
- B: big, blue
- C: can, come
- D: down
- F: find, for, funny
- G: go
- H: help, here
- I: I, in, is, it
- J: jump
- L: little, look
- M: make, me, my
- N: not
- O: one
- P: play
- R: red, run
- S: said, see
- T: the, three, to, two
- U: up
- W: we, where
- Y: yellow, you
Three Call Methods
Method 1: Word Recognition (Simplest)
Show the word on a card or projector. Say it aloud. Students find and mark it. Pure visual recognition practice.
Method 2: Word in Context
- "The dog ran fast." → find the
- "I can jump high." → find jump
- "Look at the bird!" → find look
- "We said hello." → find said
- "Come here, please." → find come
- "The cat is little." → find little
Method 3: Definition Clues
- "This word names the color of fire trucks." → red
- "This is the number that comes after two." → three
- "The opposite of down." → up
- "A one-letter pronoun for yourself." → I
- "The color of the sun." → yellow
Sequencing Instruction
Introduce 5-10 words at a time, using bingo to consolidate words already taught:
Weeks 1-2: the, a, and, I, to, in, is, it, of, you
Weeks 3-4: can, go, we, me, my, see, said, look, come, here
Weeks 5-6: find, help, run, jump, play, make, little, big, up, down
Weeks 7-8: away, blue, red, yellow, funny, one, two, three, for, not, where
Tracking Mastery
Keep a class checklist: 40 words across the top, student names down the side. After each bingo session, do a quick 1-minute individual check on the 5-6 words you called most. Mark each student as mastered (instant recognition, under 1 second) or still developing. Students with 35+ words mastered are ready for Dolch Primer.