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Sight Words Last Card

  1. Overview
  2. Materials
  3. Activity
  4. Confidence Builder
  1. Variation
  2. Printable Last Card Cards
  3. Questions and Answers

1. Overview

Sight Words Last Card is a vocabulary-themed variation on the popular card game of UNO. Children will take turns playing their cards, matching them by number or color, reading the words printed on them before they can take a turn. The winner is the first one to play their last card. You can play this game with your child, or two to four children can play each other. This game is best for older kids who are familiar with the rules of UNO.
Image: Sight Words Last Card
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2. Materials

Create Last Card cards with our Last Card Card Creator and print the cards out on cardstock paper. One card set consists of 10 sheets of paper, or 90 cards. Cut apart the cards along the dotted lines. ↑ Top

3. Activity

Shuffle the cards, and deal seven cards (face down) to each player. The players should not show their cards to each other. Put the remaining cards in a face-down stack. Draw one card and place it face-up next to the stack; make sure it is a numbered card. This starting card is where players will place their cards as they play them. Flip a coin, roll dice, or draw cards to decide who goes first. Player A plays one card — it must match the number OR color of the starting card. For example, a starting card that is a pink 6 could be followed with a pink 3 or a blue 6. She must read the word on the card correctly before she can play it. If she cannot read the word correctly within a few seconds, go through our sight words correction procedure to review and reinforce the correct word. She must keep the card in her hand and let Player B take a turn. The special cards (Skip, Draw 2, Reverse, and Wild cards) add some excitement and variety to the game. A Wild card may be played on top of any card. The other special cards must match the color of the previously played card or be the same type of special card. Here’s how they work:
  • Skip Card — If Player A plays a Skip Card, then Player B’s turn gets skipped and it is Player C’s turn (or Player A’s turn if there are just two players). Player B cannot cancel a Skip Card by playing another Skip Card, but Player C could then play another Skip Card of a different color.
  • Draw 2 Card — If Player A puts down a Draw 2 Card, then Player B must draw two new cards from the face-down stack. Player B does not get to play a card until his next turn. Player B cannot cancel a Draw 2 Card by playing another Draw 2 Card, but Player C could then play another Draw 2 Card of a different color.
  • Reverse Card — If Player A plays a Reverse Card, the direction of play changes, and the previous player gets another turn. If there are only two players, then a Reverse card doesn’t change anything.
  • Wild Card — A Wild Card can be played on top of any other card. If Player A plays a Wild Card, she calls out one of the four colors. Then Player B must play a card of that color.
If a player does not have any playable cards in her hand, she must draw one card from the face-down stack and let the next player take a turn. When a player plays her next-to-last card, she should shout “Last Card!” If she plays the card and forgets to say this, another player can “catch” her by being the first to shout “Last Card!” If she gets “caught” in this way, she must draw two cards from the face-down stack. The first player to play her last card is the winner of the game. NOTE: If there is a word that no player can read correctly, the adult should set the card aside as a reminder to work on that word in the next day’s lesson. ↑ Top

4. Confidence Builder

If the children struggle with the complexity of the rules, remove all the Skip, Reverse, and Draw 2 cards to simplify the game. ↑ Top

5. Variation

Tell children they can match one card to the next by something besides color or number, such as the first or last letter of the word, or the number of syllables. ↑ Top

6. Printable Last Card Cards

Create your own custom Last Card cards.

6.1 Dolch Sight Words Templates

6.2 Fry Sight Words Templates

6.3 Top 150 Written Words Templates

6.4 Blank Last Card Templates

To download a template, right-click and select Save As.

These materials are provided under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Essentially, this means you can do whatever you want with the resources, provided you leave the attribution hallmark on the resources. You may use these materials in the classroom, at home, as part of a for-profit tutoring business, or for any other purpose. (Except starting forest fires. That’s bad.) You do not need to contact us for permission to use the materials. We want you to use them!

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8 Responses to “Sight Words Last Card”

  1. Ashley Mayle

    Some of the Dolch links don’t work… like 2nd, 3rd.

    ADMIN – Hi Ashley,

    Thanks for pointing that out. We have fixed the issue.

    Reply

  2. Alicia

    Thank you for this wonderful resource!!

    Reply

  3. Max

    6.3 Top 150 Written Words

    2nd 50 Words (50 words) — Does not work.

    Reply

  4. Snake Secrets

    Great.
    Amazing work.

    Reply

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