Welcome
Teaching high-frequency words is one part of an explicit phonics lesson sequence. This module provides guidance on incorporating the science of reading within high-frequency word instruction. Interactive module lessons include phoneme-grapheme mapping, the heart-word technique, and practice activities to reinforce the learning of high-frequency words.
Time Estimate: 3 hours
Welcome!
Welcome to the Primary Literacy (K-5) Series in the ALL Ohio Literacy library! We present modules in this series designed to assist all educators and other interested stakeholders in preparing students to be proficient in reading and writing.
In this module, you will learn about teaching regular and irregular high-frequency words and the brain science behind how words become sight words.
Whether you are a caregiver, teacher, administrator, paraprofessional, parent, related service provider, higher education faculty or candidate, or have another role in helping a child develop their reading skills, we want to first say THANK YOU. We know that your time is valuable and you would not be here if you weren’t interested in supporting outcomes for children and families.
Prerequisites
We recommend the completion of the following primary literacy modules before enrolling in this module.
Module Description
This module is the sixth part of a twelve-part Primary Literacy Series. This module focuses on how to teach high-frequency words as part of an explicit phonics lesson sequence. With high frequency words being such a large percentage of written text, teachers must have a strong understanding of how to teach high frequency words explicitly and systematically to their students to promote proficient word recognition skills.
The following topics are discussed in the text, linked resources, embedded audio, and video:
- The difference between sight words and high-frequency words
- The neuroscience behind sight words
- Aligning high-frequency words to a phonics scope and sequence.
- Instructional routines and practice activities for teaching students high-frequency words
"Research shows that readers store 'irregular' words in their memory in the same way they store 'regular' words. That is, readers pay attention to each letter and the pattern of letters in a word and associate these with the sounds that they represent."
Although this module will likely be most helpful for K-5 educators, educators and other stakeholders with students in all grades may find this module to be beneficial.
Module Learning Objectives
Identify activities to explicitly introduce, practice, and review high-frequency words.
Contrast effective high-frequency word activities with alternative practice approaches that are less effective at helping students learn high-frequency words.
Recognize ways to align high-frequency word instruction within a phonics scope and sequence.
Describe the role that orthographic mapping plays in the learning of high-frequency words.
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All Ohio’s comprehensive learning modules are relevant to any educator working to support students’ literacy development. In each module, you will find in-depth narrative text, linked resources, realistic scenarios, reflection activities, and embedded audio and videos.
Each module is self-paced. The approximate time for completion of the module is listed in the Simple View of Reading Module text box on the home page of the module.
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