We have talked before building early reading skills by mastering sight words.  Sight words are a small group of words (approximately 300-500) that account for large portions of the common texts we read. For example, words such as: this, that, then, he, she, and etc are considered sight words. Due to their high frequency, it is critical that students cultivating early literacy skills develop their sight word recognition skills.

When it comes to building sight word proficiency I have previously shared my On a Roll game. I use On a Roll as an early finisher activity or as a literacy center. Today I bring you another game I often use in literacy centers or as a stand alone activity.  Sight Word Go Fish uses the Dolch Sight words, and comes in kindergarten and second grade level words.  In each download you will find detailed instructions on preparation and game play.  Everything is available for download at my Teachers pay Teachers store!

Sight Word Go Fish

Preparation Instructions

1. To make one deck, print out two sets of the cards on card stock.
   1. Laminating them helps them last longer.
   2. If you would like to make the game shorter just print two sets of the page range you wish to use.
2. Cut out the cards using a paper cutter.

Game Play Instructions

1. Pair or group students
   • Pairs or small groups of three or four work well.
2. Hand out on deck per pair/group of students. Ask them to shuffle their deck.
3. Have the students deal 8 cards to each player, if playing with two people.
   • If playing with more than two people, deal 6 cards to each player.
4. Put the remaining cards in a pile, face down, in the middle.
5. The first player selects a card from their hand, and asks another player if they have the matching card in their hand.
   • For Example: “Do you have ‘BLACK’ in your hand?”
6. If the second player does, they surrender the card to the first player. The first player lays the pair in front of them face up and they have a point!
7. The first player continues, asking for a specific sight word card. When the player encounters a “no”, they are told, “no, Go Fish!” They draw a card from the pile in the middle, and their turn is over.
8. The next player goes and repeats the process.
9. When someone runs out of cards in their hand, they pull the top two cards from the deck.
10. Keep playing until there are no more cards. The person with the most points wins.