The Dolch sight word list explained
In short
The Dolch list is a set of 220 common words, plus 95 nouns, gathered by Edward Dolch in the 1930s from children's books. It is split into five levels from pre-primer to third grade. Many of its words are decodable, so sort it before you teach it.
Where did the Dolch list come from?
Edward Dolch was a professor at the University of Illinois. In 1936 he published a list of the words that appeared most often in the books children read at the time. He called them service words, because they show up in almost every sentence a child reads.
The main list has 220 words. Almost none of them are nouns, apart from a few that can also act as other parts of speech. Dolch kept a separate list of 95 common nouns, covering things like family members, animals and objects in a home.
The list is nearly 90 years old, but most of its words are still among the most common in print. Words like "the", "and", "to" and "you" don't go out of date, which is why so many schools still use the list today.
What are the five Dolch levels?
Dolch split the 220 words into five groups, roughly by how early children met them in the books of his day. The groups are uneven in size.
| Level | Words | Typical grade |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-primer | 40 | Preschool or early kindergarten |
| Primer | 52 | Kindergarten |
| First grade | 41 | First grade |
| Second grade | 46 | Second grade |
| Third grade | 41 | Third grade |
Schools often turn these levels into goals. A kindergarten report card might ask whether a child reads all the primer words. That's a reasonable check, as long as the words are taught in a way that builds real reading rather than a memorized list of shapes.
Are all Dolch words irregular?
No, and this is the most useful thing to know about the list. A large share of Dolch words follow regular patterns. "Big", "run", "jump", "not" and "can" are short vowel words that any child who knows short vowels can sound out without help.
Other words follow patterns that are taught a little later. "Make", "ride" and "like" use a silent e, while "see" and "green" use the ee spelling. These words are regular too, just not yet for a beginner.
Only a smaller group is truly irregular. Words like "said", "of", "was", "once" and "could" deserve heart word teaching, because part of each word can't be sounded out with ordinary patterns.
| Group | Examples | How to teach |
|---|---|---|
| Decodable now | big, run, not, can, up | Phonics practice; no special teaching |
| Decodable later | make, see, like, play | Temporary heart word until the pattern is taught |
| Irregular | said, of, was, could, once | Heart word routine with the odd part marked |
How should I use the Dolch list?
Use it as a source, not as a lesson plan. Sort each level into the three groups above, based on your own phonics sequence. Then teach the irregular words with a heart word routine, and let your phonics lessons take care of the rest.
- Print the level your student is working on right now.
- Cross out the words your student can already decode.
- Mark the words that will become decodable soon in your sequence.
- Teach the remaining words two or three at a time, with the tricky part marked.
- Check the whole level every few weeks, reading the words in sentences as well as alone.
How is the Dolch list different from the Fry list?
Edward Fry built a longer list, later expanded to 1,000 words, ranked by how often they appear in print. The first 100 Fry words overlap heavily with the Dolch words. Fry also includes nouns, while Dolch kept nouns on a separate list.
Neither list is better for teaching. Both are frequency lists, and both mix regular and irregular words in the same levels. Choose the one your school uses, then sort it the same way.
Why do children memorize Dolch words and still struggle?
Because 220 memorized words don't add up to a reading strategy. A child who knows all of them by shape can read simple books that use mostly those words. When a new word appears, though, the child has no way into it except guessing from the picture or the first letter.
That gap usually shows up in late first grade or second grade, when books get more varied. The fix is the same at any age: teach the letter-sound patterns, then let students decode. Dolch words become easy once students can sound out most of them on their own.
How do you check Dolch words fairly?
Show each word for a second or two and note whether the child reads it instantly, sounds it out, or misses it. All three tell you something different. A sounded-out word on the decodable list is a good sign, because the child is using phonics as intended.
Then check a few words in sentences. Some children read a word perfectly on a card and freeze in a book, which means the word needs more practice in context.