Decodable Words vs. Sight Words
What are decodable words? How are they different from sight words? If you have a child who is learning to read, you may have come across both these terms. Hear from reading expert Margie Gillis...
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Decodable words are words that can be sounded out because they're phonetically regular. So you look at the letter and it has a specific sound. Some letters in English have more than one sound, but for example the word "sad," right? S is "sss." A is "ah." D is "duh." I put those sounds together and I get the word "sad." A sight word is a word that is supposed to be recognized instantly, right? And that's where sight word comes from. I look at the word and I automatically know what the word is. I don't have to sound it out. Sight words can be decodable like the example I just gave. "Sad," right? Or it can be irregular. And the phonetically irregular words often give kids trouble beca...
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Decodable words are words that can be sounded out because they're phonetically regular. So you look at the letter and it has a specific sound. Some letters in English have more than one sound, but for example the word "sad," right? S is "sss." A is "ah." D is "duh." I put those sounds together and I get the word "sad." A sight word is a word that is supposed to be recognized instantly, right? And that's where sight word comes from. I look at the word and I automatically know what the word is. I don't have to sound it out. Sight words can be decodable like the example I just gave. "Sad," right? Or it can be irregular. And the phonetically irregular words often give kids trouble beca...
