What are High Frequency Words?
High Frequency words (HFW) are sometimes called common words. Some of them can be sounded out, and are decodable, but others are not. The ones that are not are also called ‘Common Exception Words’. Your child will need to know to read and eventually how to spell them all because they are useful words which are often used. There are two main lists
Learning to read or spell high frequency words can give your child a sense of achievement and develop their self-esteem, especially if they are involved if assessing their own progress.
Reading
Where do I start?
That depends on the age of your child and what level of reading they are at. Usually, it is best to start with checking that your child can read the words on the 100 HFW wordlist. Start with the first column of words called Phase 2 words (don’t worry; there are no words for Phase 1!). Ask your child to read the words from the 100 list. Tick off the words she can read on the checklist.
Here are the words from the 100 checklist.
This 100 HFW list is too hard! What do I do?
Don’t worry! It is all about finding out the right starting point. If the words from Phase 2 on the first column were really tricky for your child, you might want to use this Early Word grid with symbols to begin with. There are 26 words on this grid. So if your child can read 5 of them, tick the five words she can read and choose 5 more to teach next
My child can read some of the words on the 100 HFW list. What do I do?
Tick the words she can read on the checklist and circle the ones she can’t read yet. Start with the Phase 2 words then move onto the Phase 3, 4 and 5 words. However, you don’t have to do all of it. E.g., if your child finds the words in the Phase 3 column tricky, stop there. Add up how many words she can read with your child and write down the total. Select words from that column to for your child to learn.
My child finds the words on the 100 HFW list easy to read. What do I do?
Celebrate their success!! You could use the checklist for the 200 HFW. Remember, you do not have to do all of it. You could just stop at the first column of the 200 HFW wordlist and select some words to learn from there.
Here is the 200 HFW checklist and the words from the 200 HFW wordlist for your child to read to you.
Now I know which words my child needs to learn to read, how do I teach her how to read them?
- Use flash cards and stick them up around your flat or house!
- Make simple bingo games.
- Make two copies of each word. Muddle them up. Try and pair them up.
- Type them on the computer. Make a sentence using the word
- Race track games
Here is a way of teaching words called Match, Select, Name for pupils who are really struggling.
Here are some boards for use at school or at home. It can be good to put the pupil’s name in one or two of the boxes to personalise it.
I think she has learnt to read the 5-10 words I have been teaching her. What do I do now?
Go back to your checklist with a different coloured pen. Tick off the words she can now read. Celebrate success, e.g. you could say, “You could read 67/100 words and now you can read 74/100! Well done. Let’s learn some more.”
Spelling HFW
How can I teach the spelling of HFW?
Use the spelling column on the checklists to work out which words your child can spell and which words she needs to learn. Learning to spell is harder than learning to read the words.
Click this link for ideas on how to teach the spelling of HFW.
Simultaneous Oral Spelling (or how to learn spelling with your eyes closed)
Have fun!
Celebrate success!