Sight words
Second Grade Sight Words
The 47 Dolch second-grade words, including because, their, would and don't, with hangman, difficulty scores and a printable.
Read the word list
Second grade brings 47 words, and several of them are long enough to be real spelling work: because, always, around, before. There are number and color words (five, green), irregular verbs (gave, goes, made, found) and a handful of the most mixed-up words in English, such as their, these, those and would.
This version of the list includes don't, the only contraction in the whole set. It is a good chance to teach the apostrophe: it marks the missing o. In the hangman game the apostrophe is shown as part of the word, so players guess the letters around it.
Most of these words appear in our modern ranking too, but fewer than at lower levels. Words like upon, wish and sing are on the Dolch list for their place in older children's books, and are less common in current text.
47 entries. Our solver needed 5.3 wrong guesses on average: 2 easy, 17 medium and 28 hard. The toughest is both (10 misses), the quickest these (0).
- always Medium · 4
- around Medium · 2
- because Medium · 2
- been Hard · 9
- before Medium · 3
- best Hard · 7
- both Hard · 10
- buy Hard · 10
- call Hard · 5
- cold Hard · 7
- does Medium · 2
- don't Hard · 5
- fast Hard · 5
- first Medium · 3
- five Hard · 7
- found Hard · 7
- gave Hard · 8
- goes Medium · 4
- green Medium · 3
- its Medium · 3
- left Medium · 3
- made Hard · 5
- many Hard · 8
- off Hard · 6
- or Hard · 5
- pull Hard · 9
- read Easy · 1
- right Hard · 6
- sing Medium · 3
- sit Medium · 4
- sleep Medium · 2
- tell Medium · 3
- their Medium · 2
- these Easy · 0
- those Medium · 2
- upon Hard · 5
- us Hard · 6
- use Medium · 3
- very Hard · 10
- wash Hard · 6
- which Hard · 7
- why Hard · 10
- wish Hard · 6
- work Hard · 9
- would Hard · 8
- write Hard · 6
- your Hard · 7
Words worth a closer look
- becauseBreak it into two chunks, be and cause.
- theirEi in the middle; the word means belonging to them.
- wouldThe ou sounds like oo, and the l is silent.
- writeSilent w at the start, like wrist and wrong.
Teaching it
Teach the confusable groups together. Their and there. Right and write. Its and it's. Would, could and should. Put each pair on a card with one example sentence, and let the student choose which one fits before they play.
For because, a trick that works is the phrase big elephants can always understand small elephants, which gives the first letters. If you dislike mnemonics, break it into be, cause and say the chunks. In hangman, students find the vowels first, then the c, then the s, and see the word emerge.
Print a Second Grade Sight Hangman worksheet
Eight puzzles on one US Letter page, with a clue, letter blanks, an empty frame to draw in, an alphabet strip to cross off and circles to count misses. Page two is the answer key.
Need another sheet?
Draw eight different words from this list, right here. Same layout, new answer key.
Keep going
- Dolch Sight WordsThe Dolch service words from pre-primer to third grade, with the history behind the list, a difficulty score for each word and hangman to practice.
- Pre-Primer Sight WordsThe 40 Dolch pre-primer words, the first level of the list, with hangman, difficulty scores and a printable worksheet and answer key.
- Primer Sight WordsAll 52 Dolch primer words, from all and am to who and yes, with hangman, per-word difficulty and a printable worksheet.
- First Grade Sight WordsThe 41 Dolch first-grade words, from after and again to walk and when, with hangman, difficulty scores and a worksheet.
- Third Grade Sight WordsThe 41 Dolch third-grade words, such as laugh, light, together and myself, with hangman, difficulty scores and a printable worksheet.
- Dolch NounsThe 97 Dolch nouns, from apple and baby to window and wood, with hangman, difficulty scores and a printable worksheet and answer key.