Tricky Words & First Captions (EYFS)

Inside Tricky Words & First Captions (EYFS)

tricky words we learn by sight — the, to, I, no, go, into, he, she, we, me, be — spotting them in captions, quick flash games, and reading our very first captions out loud. About 15 gentle minutes with a grown-up.

Learning objectives

• recognise the first tricky words by sight — the, to, I, no, go, into, he, she, we, me, be;
• spot tricky words hiding inside short captions and sentences;
• choose the tricky word that completes a caption so it sounds right;
• build speedy recall with flash card games made at home;
• read first captions like "the cat is on the mat" aloud, and show understanding by drawing them.

Activities in this book

1. Play 1 — Spot the Tricky Word

   read each caption together slowly, pointing at each word. Tricky words are the ones we can't sound out — we just know them by sight!

2. Play 2 — Finish the Caption

   say the caption out loud with the gap, then try each tricky word in the gap — your ears will tell you which one sounds right!

3. Play 3 — Flash Word Wizard

   make it quick and silly — flash a card for just a second and let your child shout the word. Speed makes tricky words stick, and giggles help too!

4. Play 4 — Read & Match Captions

   point at each word as your child reads. Sound out the short words and simply say the tricky ones — then let them draw what the caption tells them.

5. Play 5 — Tricky Word Hunt at Home

   storybooks, cereal boxes and street signs are full of tricky words. Hunt together and cheer every find — spotting words in the wild is real reading.

Suggestions for teaching

• Say, don't sound. Tricky words can't be fully sounded out — simply say the word, point at it, and meet it often until it is a friend.
• Point while reading. Run a finger under each word of a caption so your child links the spoken word to the written one.
• Little and often. Two minutes of flash cards at breakfast beats a long sitting — speed and repetition make sight words stick.
• Mix reading routes. In a caption, sound out the decodable words (c-a-t) and recall the tricky ones (the) — narrate which is which.
• Draw to show reading. Asking your child to draw what a caption says is a gentle way to check they truly read and understood it.