Reading scores on the nation's report card are out! Here's what you should know about NAEP.

Skill Explainer

1. An Overview of Irregularly Spelled High-Frequency Words

Irregularly Spelled High-Frequency Words

The word "would" with a heart over "oul"
The word "for" with a heard over the "or"
Breakdown of high frequency words that can and can't be decoded

“A sight word is a word that is instantly and effortlessly recalled from memory, regardless of whether it is phonically regular or irregular. A ‘sight-word vocabulary’ refers to the pool of words a student can effortlessly recognize.”

— David A. Kilpatrick, Ph.D.

Graphic of a bed and a sheep with sounds mapped
breakdown of the word "said"

“Children vary in the amount of practice that is required for fluency and automaticity in reading to occur. Some youngsters can read a word only once to recognize it again with greater speed; others need 20 or more exposures. The average child needs between four and 14 exposures to automatize the recognition of a new word.” 

— G. Reid Lyon, Ph.D. on Reading Rockets (opens in new window)

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Dolch Word List by Phonics Spelling Pattern

The Dolch Word list is a set of 300 frequently used English words, many of which are decodable. Here they are organized by phonics pattern.

Reading Universe is made possible by generous support from Jim & Donna Barksdale; the Hastings/Quillin Fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (opens in new window); the AFT (opens in new window); the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation (opens in new window); and three anonymous donors.

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