When reviewing words such as said, are, they, come, and was, the teacher should emphasize that these words:

When reviewing words such as said, are, they, come, and was, the teacher should emphasize that these words:

• A. Follow phonics rules, so students should decode them phonetically
• B. Do not follow phonics rules and should be learned as whole words
• C. Are always pronounced exactly as spelled
• D. Should be avoided in early reading instruction

Answer: (B)

These are high‑frequency irregular words whose pronunciations aren’t predictable from their spellings using standard phonics rules. In early reading, trying to sound these out letter by letter often leads to wrong pronunciations or slows progress. So the teacher emphasizes learning them as whole words, recognized by sight, to support fluent reading. For example, said is pronounced /sɛd/ even though the spelling might suggest a different sound, and come, are, they, and was each have pronunciations that don’t map cleanly to their letter patterns. By teaching these as sight words through repeated exposure and practice in meaningful sentences, students can recognize them quickly and free up cognitive effort for decoding the more regular words surrounding them.

These are high‑frequency irregular words whose pronunciations aren’t predictable from their spellings using standard phonics rules. In early reading, trying to sound these out letter by letter often leads to wrong pronunciations or slows progress. So the teacher emphasizes learning them as whole words, recognized by sight, to support fluent reading. For example, said is pronounced /sɛd/ even though the spelling might suggest a different sound, and come, are, they, and was each have pronunciations that don’t map cleanly to their letter patterns. By teaching these as sight words through repeated exposure and practice in meaningful sentences, students can recognize them quickly and free up cognitive effort for decoding the more regular words surrounding them.