Have you been told that high frequency or sight words are all the words that don't follow the rules of spelling?  I've heard that too and have since learned that it simply is not true.  Many of these words are regular for spelling - however, they occur so frequently in reading that it is best to learn them by sight.  It helps that they are short and because we see them all the time, we want our brain to process the information quickly and accurately.

Here is a pdf file you can download, print on cardstock, and cut apart for practice.  These are the first 300 high frequency words, the ones you see most often in print, to use in word isolation practice.  Use them like flashcards and tackle them 10 or 20 at a time.  Present the cards one at a time and alternately stack them in two piles so they are "shuffled" for the next time.  Repeated practice is important to ensure the words are permanently imprinted for immediate recall.  With mastery, move on to the next 10 to 20.  Study the new cards and then add them to the previous stack for continued review.  When mastery is achieved, cards can be retired to add new cards.

Just for fun, and to reinforce the high frequency factor of these words, choose a few and do a word search in a favorite book, article, or reading passage.  Tally or tab the words so you can count them and  keep track.  How many did you find?

I think I’ve been a Word Nerd most of my life.  I’ve always been fascinated with words and reading.  I learned to read with Dick, Jane, Sally and Spot.  The words were simple, repeated often, and had colorful pictures to help tell the story.  A really good story, though, required the reader to add a lot of embellishment and imagination.  “Go, Spot, go!” didn’t offer much – but I was so excited to be reading!

I was a good reader, but not very fast.  My older brother seemed to devour a book faster than I could get through the first page.  I savored the words and found myself rereading sentences or whole paragraphs sometimes to make sure I was getting it all.  My younger brother on the other hand didn’t care for books at all.  I never realized how much he struggled.  Now, I realize that he is dyslexic – and so is my dad.  I knew that school was not easy for them and I think that was part of my inspiration to become a teacher.  They are so smart, creative, and such amazing problem solvers that I decided they just weren’t taught in the right way.

As I became a teacher I was disappointed with the teacher preparation I received for reading.  My professor told me that only 40% of our English language is regular.  Once students were taught the alphabet and the long and short sounds of vowels – kids would just get it.   She said there was no point in teaching phonics and so our assignments focused on guided reading groups and comprehension projects.   As I became a second grade teacher, I had students – like my dad and brother – that didn’t get it.  They struggled and telling them to “sound it out” didn’t seem to help.

On my campus was an amazing teacher, Mrs. Laney.  She was a dyslexia therapist.  Students that had difficulty reading were often referred to her.  She conducted assessments and took the results for review and if a team of other therapists agreed, they were added to a small group for Mrs. Laney to work her magic.  And, it was magical.  Soon the students were gaining confidence and were actually READING!  They were making amazing progress and I wanted to know the secret.  What was she teaching that was so different than how I was teaching and why did it work?  That began my journey to become a dyslexia therapist, too.

Through my training to become a Certified Academic Language Therapist (dyslexia therapist), I’ve learned  that it’s not 40% or our language that is regular, it’s more like 85% and teaching the rules of our language – the way letters represent sounds and how they fit together to make words – just makes sense!  I’m so blessed to have learned the secrets that should be taught to everyone!  I know it works for students with dyslexia but it can help other students, too – even those that seem to “get it” right away.   Along with the other Word Nerds – we’re on mission to spread the news.  There is a connection between spelling and reading, the rules make sense, and knowing them can make anyone a better reader and speller.  So join us, become a word nerd, and discover these little know secrets to help you, your students, and anyone you know that struggles, become confident and competent readers and spellers.

My story about becoming a Word Nerd started about 15 years ago. My first 14 years of teaching were in the 1st grade classroom. This is where I learned the importance of building a solid foundation for reading and spelling for my students. However; there were always a couple of students every year who struggled and couldn't grasp the spelling/reading connection. This sent me on a journey to becoming an Academic Language Therapist. A BIG part of this journey started with Susie Word Nerd! Why has this become my passion? Seeing students struggle to read & spell brought back many memories of my own struggles in school. School was hard. It seemed easy for everyone else. I thought I was stupid. It wasn't until I was in college that I realized I was smart & capable, I just learned differently. I did not want one of my students leaving my First Grade class feeling the way I did growing up. My passion to accomplish this grew every year I taught. I had a great desire to know more about how to help my students, especially those who struggled the most, with reading and spelling. This is where Susie Word Nerd comes into my story. During my seventh year of teaching, I met Susie. She and a couple of other teachers on our fabulous first grade team were Certified Academic Language Therapists. I would listen to them teach & wanted to know how I could learn all the different rules and strategies that helped with the reading and spelling successes of their students. I couldn't wait to begin my training to become a Certified Academic Language Therapist. It is so fulfilling teaching students the rules, patterns and strategies of the English language to help set a solid foundation for spelling & reading! My two college aged kiddos & my husband are my biggest encouragers. They sometimes roll their eyes when I offer more information than they wanted about the spelling of a word or a spelling situation! But, they are always sure to tell me how proud they are of 3Word Nerds, the curriculum and my passion to help students. I hope you will hang out here and check out all we have to offer! Be sure to like our FB page so you can keep up-to-date with our sale offers & freebies!! Also, we love to share interesting info about words, the spelling/reading connection and more -