I Tried 4 Ways to Teach Fry First 100 Words - Only One Stopped the Crying
Six months ago, the word "the" made us both cry. My 5-year-old and me.
What Are Fry First 100 Words?
Dr. Edward Fry found that 100 words make up over 50% of everything kids read. Words like the, of, and, a, to, is, you, that.
Why Traditional Memorization Fails
Visual memorization is the weakest form. Brain needs Orthographic Mapping - linking shape, sound, meaning at same time.
The Method That Worked: See - Trace - Find (10 Minutes)
Step 1: SEE (2 minutes)
Ask: "How many letters? What's first letter?"
Step 2: TRACE (5 minutes)
Step 3: FIND - Hunt and Circle (3 minutes)
A Realistic Weekly Plan (10 Minutes a Day)
Monday: 2 new words | Tuesday: Same 2 words | Wednesday: 1 new word + hunt | Thursday: Review only | Friday: Color star
4 Mistakes I Made
1. Starting with hard words 2. Skipping sentence 3. Printing 20 pages at once 4. Waiting for 100% perfection
FAQ
My son is 4, should I start Fry 100?
Start with first 20 words only. Full Fry 100 is for ages 5-7.
Dolch or Fry?
Start with Fry - ordered by real frequency in modern books.
How many new words per day?
1 to 2 new max, plus review 3 old.
Comments and questions