Tricky Word Cards
Some words just refuse to play by the rules.
Our tricky word cards focus on the common exception words that children can’t always decode using standard phonics rules. These are the words that pop up again and again in early reading books — and learning to recognise them quickly makes a big difference to fluency and confidence.
In some phonics schemes, including Read Write Inc., these are known as “red words” — words that need to be recognised on sight because part (or all) of the word can’t be sounded out in the usual way.
These cards are especially useful for:
- Building automatic sight recognition
- Improving reading fluency and flow
- Boosting spelling confidence with high-frequency words
- Quick-fire revision games and daily practice
Available in both colour and black and white versions.
Looking for a fun reading activity that uses this resource?
Tricky-word swat
Lay out the tricky word cards, call one out, and race to swat it. Fast, physical and surprisingly competitive for something involving the word "said".
Tricky-word memory
Play pairs with tricky word cards — turn two over, read them both, find a match. Classic memory game with real phonics value.
Silly sentence builder
Pick word cards and build the most ridiculous sentence you can. Read it aloud, laugh at it, build another one. The sillier the better.