16 Ways to Make Practice Sheets Fun

Feed the monster. Print and cut out the monster (page 7 or 10) and the appropriate Practice Sheets from the download. Have your child read each strip and then feed them to the monster. For a fun alternative, check out our adorable Feed the Puppy game.

Number the rows of words and sentences on the Practice Sheets from 1 to 6, repeating the numbers as necessary. If your child rolls a 2, he reads the words in the rows you marked with the number 2. If he rolls a 3, he reads the words in the rows you marked with the number 3.

Read with a buddy. Take turns reading lines on the Practice Sheets with your student. Learn more about how buddy reading can help your child in this blog post.

Use sticker dots to reduce your student’s frustration. Break up the Practice Sheets into more manageable chunks using sticker dots to create a “starting dot” and a “stopping dot.”

Play hide-and-seek with words and sentences. Cut up the Practice Sheets and hide the pieces around the room. When your child finds one of the pieces, he has to read it before searching for the next piece.

Choose a letter and have your student search for and read only the words, phrases, or sentences that begin with (or contain) that particular letter.

Play Swat the Words. Print and cut out the splat graphic from page 9 or 12 on the download. Attach the splat graphic to a new flyswatter, a plastic ruler, or even just your student’s hand. Cut out words from the Practice Sheet and lay them on the table. Have your student find and swat each word as you read it out loud.

Break up the Practice Sheet by covering it with a piece of paper, making the page seem less overwhelming for your child. Slide the paper down to uncover one line or section at a time.

Make progress more concrete. Allow your student to track his progress using colored highlighters or fun stickers. Simply have him mark the words or sentences as he reads them.

Play Fluency Hopscotch. Write fluency words in each square of a hopscotch grid. Gather a different marker for each student, such as a beanbag, stone, or bottle cap. Follow standard hopscotch rules, but when the student stops to pick up his marker, he reads the word(s).

Play Fluency Snowball Fight. Cut the Practice Sheets into strips and tape them to the wall. Have your child read the words. After each strip is read correctly, have your child stand back and throw a snowball at the strip! Use Ping-Pong balls, Nerf balls, styrofoam balls, or even crumpled paper as snowballs.

Use an online word search puzzle maker to create your own word search puzzle using your child’s fluency words. Have her read the words as she finds them.

Make a word road. Cut the Practice Sheets into strips. Place the strips end to end on a long table or on the floor to make a road. Have your student drive a matchbox car over the words as he reads them.

Illustrate the words. Select a few words from the Practice Sheets and have your student draw a picture for each one. For even more fun, ask your child to make a collage of the words and pictures.

Silly sentences. Have your student read a word from the Practice Sheet and make up a silly sentence using the word. Have a contest to see who can make the other players laugh first.