The words

Tap any word to hear it. 26 of these 52 words are in the app, where each has its own sentence.

Dolch primer, 52 words

Listed alphabetically, as Dolch published it.

Where the primer level comes from

A primer was the first proper reading book, and Dolch named this level for the words a child needs to get through one. It is the second of his five levels and holds 52 words, more than any other. The jump from pre-primer is real: the words are longer, and the level introduces the question words, the color words, and the small verbs that make a story move, such as came, did, ran, saw, want and went. Add it to the 40 pre-primer words and you have 92, which is the number most kindergarten programs quote as their end-of-year target.

Five minutes a day at home

Fifty-two words is too many to hold in one stack, so split it. Test the level, then pull out the words your child missed and work on three to five of them per session. Show, say, repeat, spell aloud, say again, shuffle, repeat. Review yesterday's words before adding today's. Because this level is where sentences become possible, spend part of each session reading rather than drilling: four or five known words plus a noun makes a real sentence, and reading He did want the black cat does more for retention than another pass through the cards. Keep the whole learned stack for a weekly fast reread.

How this fits with phonics

Most of the primer level is regular. Black, brown, did, get, must, ran, that, this and went are all straightforward for a child who knows consonant blends and short vowels. The genuinely irregular members are few: are, do, four, have, into, our, said, they, was, what and who. Sorting the level this way before you teach it matches the federal practice guide, which asks teachers to apply letter sound knowledge to the regular high-frequency words and teach only the exceptions as wholes. It also means the irregular set is small enough to work on properly instead of being buried in fifty-two cards.

Practice tips

  • Split 52 into smaller stacks. Ten at a time is manageable; the whole level at once is not.
  • Sort the level into sound-it-out words and by-heart words before teaching. The by-heart group is short.
  • Once five words are secure, read real sentences made only from known words. That is what the level is for.
  • Review the full learned stack once a week to catch words that have slipped back.
  • Teach the color words together, and the question words together. Grouping by meaning helps at this level.

Related lists

  • Kindergarten sight words: This page prints the first two Dolch levels: 40 pre-primer words and 52 primer words, 92 in all.
  • Dolch sight words: The Dolch list is 220 service words in five levels, plus a separate list of 95 nouns, so 315 words in total.
  • Dolch pre-primer sight words: Pre-primer is the first Dolch level: 40 words, including a, and, I, in, is, the, to and you.

Sources