What is the primary purpose for playing sight word games with a group of students?

The primary purpose of playing sight word games with a group of students is to develop word recognition skills. Sight words are commonly used words that students are encouraged to recognize instantly without having to decode them, which is crucial for reading fluency. Engaging in games focused on sight words allows children to repeatedly encounter and practice these words in a fun and interactive manner. This repeated exposure enhances their ability to recognize these words quickly and accurately, fostering smoother reading experiences overall.

While the activities may also touch on aspects such as social interaction and engagement, and somewhat support oral language development through spoken participation, the core goal remains centered on enhancing students' ability to recognize sight words, thereby improving their reading proficiency. Phonics skills, which involve the relationship between letters and sounds, are less directly the focus of sight word games, as sight words are not always phonetically regular. Thus, the emphasis is squarely on developing word recognition as the primary objective in this context.