Know-Its: The Link To Reading

High Frequency Words are words that children should know without having to use decoding skills. Ideally, every word should be automatic, but beginning readers must use many different strategies to get to that point. (See article on Stretching, etc.) Some words are so common (like the words and, the, and of) that children learn these by repetition or simply by using them in context.

Research does not give an easy answer to what order the letters should be introduced. Age and emphasis make all the difference. For instance, beginning reading programs should give students letters and sounds that are commonly used. This quickly gives readers sounds to launch them into reading more words.