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High-frequency words are words that occur most frequently in written material and do not follow phonetic rules or, as we say in the EL Education curriculum, "don't play fair." Due to this fact, it is important that students are able to navigate these words with ease to improve their reading fluency and comprehension. While high-frequency words on their own don't carry much meaning, they are essential to sentences and help students gather meaning. Below you will find five activities for each day of the week that parents can do with their children at home as high-frequency words are being introduced cycle by cycle.
Read it, say it, write it, read it again
Use high-frequency words in sentences (oral and written)
Read a list of high-frequency words and time yourself on fluency (keep running list)
Search for high frequency words in sentences / poems and underline them
Fishing for high-frequency words (one person reads the word aloud, other students find the word in a stack of other high-frequency words)
Cycle 1:
In this cycle, students review the understanding that every syllable in a spoken word contains a vowel sound and that the vowel sound can be “shown” in print by a letter or a particular pattern of letters. Closed, Open, and CVCe syllable types, introduced and worked with in first grade, are reviewed. In addition, they begin to review and practice decoding two-syllable words with those syllable types.
Phonemes Introduced in This Cycle
Review of syllable types: closed, open, and magic “e” (CVCe)
High-Frequency Words
n/a
Cycle 2
Phonemes Introduced in This Cycle
Review graphemes for long “a”: “ai” and “ay”, and open and closed syllables
High-Frequency Words
“live,”“walk,”“two,”“new,”“ready”
Cycle Word List
In this cycle, students review the "ay" and "ai" vowel teams and analyze words that contain them to determine spelling generalizations. In addition, they continue to review and practice using their knowledge of known syllable types to decode one- and two-syllable words.
Cycle 3
Phonemes Introduced in This Cycle
Review graphemes for long “e”: “ee,” “ea,” and “y”; continued review of open and closed syllables
High-Frequency Words
“our,” “down,” “been,” “before”
Cycle Word List
In this cycle, students review the vowel teams "ee" and "ea" and analyze words that contain them to determine spelling generalizations. In addition, they review the "-y" at the end of a syllable and continue to review and practice using their knowledge of known syllable types to decode one- and two-syllable words.
Cycle 4
Phonemes Introduced in This Cycle
Review graphemes for long “i”: “igh,”, “ie,” and “y”; continued review of open and closed syllables
High-Frequency Words
“boy,” “only,” “open,” “once,” “tree”
Cycle Word List
In this cycle, students review the spelling patterns "igh" and "ie" and analyze words that contain them to determine spelling generalizations. In the process, they also compare "-y" and "ie" at the end of a single syllable to determine that the more common spelling pattern for the phoneme /i/ is the open syllable "-y" (examples: "try," "fly," "cry"). In addition, they continue to review and practice using their knowledge of known syllable types to decode one- and two-syllable words.
Cycle 5
Phonemes Introduced in This Cycle
Review graphemes for long “o”: “oa” and “ow”; continued review of open and closed syllables
High-Frequency Words
“school,” “sure,” “none,” “friends”
Cycle Word List
In this cycle, students review the vowel team spelling patterns "oa" and "ow" and analyze words that contain them to determine spelling generalizations. In addition, they continue to review and practice using their knowledge of known syllable types to decode one- and two-syllable words.
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