Preschool Sight Words
The preschool list is the 40 Dolch pre-primer words — a, and, away, big, blue and friends. Print the cards, read the notes, and keep sessions shorter than a cartoon. Below the cards: what "sight word" even means at this age, and the two-word-at-a-time rule.
Preschool Sight Words — Dolch Pre-Primer (40 words)
What a sight word is at age four
A sight word is one a child learns to recognize on sight, without sounding it out. At the preschool level the label is a little generous — most of these 40 words (the Dolch pre-primer list, compiled in the 1930s from the children's books of the era) are being learned as spoken vocabulary first. That is exactly right: a four-year-old who can point to "the" on the page when you say it is doing pre-reading, and that is the entire goal.
The two words that matter most come first on every list: a and the. They are also the two children see most on every page of every picture book ever read to them, which is the quiet engine of this whole list — these are the highest-frequency words in children's English, and exposure is already doing half the teaching. Your job is to make the seeing deliberate: a word on the fridge, a word in the book, a word pointed at.
Teaching tips
Two new words at a time, maximum
Introduce two cards, keep them in play for days, and only add more once both are named instantly. A preschooler with 6 fresh flashcards has zero flashcards.
Hunt the word in real books
After a card is known, hunt it during bedtime reading — "can you find 'the' on this page?" Finding a word inside a story is worth ten drills on a card.
Keep sessions under five minutes
Attention at 3-5 is a match, not a candle. One quick pass through the known cards, one new word, done. Twice a day beats one long sit every time.
Say it, don't spell it
These words are learned as whole shapes and sounds, not letter-by-letter. If your child can spell "away" but can't read it in a sentence, the drill has drifted.
Frequently asked questions
How many sight words should a preschooler know?
There is no requirement — but a child heading into kindergarten who knows 10-20 of these 40 words (especially a, the, and, I, it, is) is comfortably set up. Some pre-K programs teach the full pre-primer list; many teach none, and both are normal.
What is the Dolch pre-primer list?
The 40 highest-frequency words from the children's books Edward Dolch analyzed in the 1930s, sorted by difficulty level. Pre-primer is the first of five levels, followed by primer (kindergarten) and grades 1-3.
Should preschoolers learn letters or sight words first?
Letters, hands down — most of both names and sounds first. Sight words ride on top of letter knowledge; a child who can't tell b from d is memorizing shapes, not reading. A handful of the pre-primer words can come along the way.
Can I print these as flashcards?
Yes — the cards above print six to a row with the word in large lowercase type. Cut along the lines, and they are the right size for small hands and fridge doors.