Where Do the Sight Words Sets Fit?

Most of you know that I've been renovating around here, reposting old lesson using a new (and hopefully better) logic behind my organization.

The only real advantage to the old, journal-style posts, was that you could see what order I was introducing the books in. If--and this is totally hypothetical--Day 54 ended Set 2, Book 5, and Day 55 began Kindergarten Set, Book 3, everyone was on the same page as far as book order went

Now, not so much.

Eventually, when all of the lessons for all of the books are posted, I'll try and write up a sort of "master map" that offers two or three routes through the books.

For now, let's just think for a moment or two about what use the sight words books are to you and your students.

I think the main benefits are:

• Extra practice and reinforcement of known sounds and concepts
• Increased familiarity with the sight words (obviously, this was the publisher's main purpose)
• A way to delay moving on when the next book is a big jump with lots of new sounds in it
• A way to catch up after a break

If you have the Kindergarten Sight Words and First Grade Sight Words sets handy, I encourage you to look at them. Try to imagine how they can help you accomplish your goals.

Sometimes, I save up a bunch of sight words books, even though my student is ready to read them, because I know a long summer or Christmas break is coming up, and it will be nice to "review" using new books rather than old ones. This is a great way to ease back into regular lessons after a break.

Right now, with Daughter A., I am working through Set 5. This is a harder set--more sentences on each page, and more pages in each book. It takes longer to get through a book. The sight words books are still quick and easy, though not a waste of time because the practice is good for her. What I've been doing is alternating between Set 5 books and sight words books. This helps her feel like she is still steadily completing her One Hundred Books Chart.

Even though I will eventually offer, like I said, a page that suggests a route through all of the Bob Books, that doesn't mean it'll exactly meet your goals for your students. The best thing you can do is familiarize yourselves with the sight words books so that you can judge where they best fit in your reading program.