Fluency http://www.fcrr.org/assessment/ET/essentials/components/fluency.

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Fluency is the ability to read text quickly, accurately, and with proper expression.
Fluency develops over time through supported and repeated reading practice. Fluency develops as students are able to recognize words by sight, decode unfamiliar words, and construct meaning more actively and rapidly. It is important for teachers to understand that sight words are not just the small number of irregular words they directly teach students, but eventually all words become sight words as they are repeatedly read correctly in text. It is the students ability to recognize very large numbers of words at a single glance that is one of the most important factors underlying the development of reading fluency in the early elementary grades. Teachers should use read-alouds, recorded books, peer reading, and discussions to model the elements of expression, intonation, phrasing, and rate. One important reason for teaching students to read prosodically is that it will help to focus their attention on the meaning of what they are readingit is difficult to read with proper expression if students do not actively construct meaning as they read. Daily oral reading experiences with teacher feedback should be provided at the students instructional reading level. Practice at the students independent reading level is also necessary. Fluent readers are so skilled at identifying the words in print, and they do it so easily and effortlessly, that they are able to devote most of their attention to constructing the meaning of what they read.

Elements of Effective Fluency Instruction

In order for students to become fluent readers, they must first become accurate readers, so the ultimate development of fluency depends on:

Strong instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics Many opportunities to listen to models of fluent reading Multiple opportunities to practice reading with text at the right level of difficulty

Oral Reading Fluency Activities that Foster Fluency

Echo Reading- Students echo small sections of text read aloud by the teacher. The students can clearly see the print that the teacher is reading or they may have their own books. The amount of text is adjusted according to the abilities of the small group of students.

Choral Reading- A small group of students read text in unison with the teacher or another fluent adult reader. Audio-assisted Reading- Students listen to a recorded text at their independent reading level (95% accuracy) while following along with the printed text. Then the student listens again to the recorded text but also reads along with the audio. Next, the student practices reading a section or all of the book until his/her reading is fluent. Ultimately, the student reads the selection to the teacher so the student is held accountable for what they heard and read. Partner Reading- Students who are matched according to their reading ability take turns reading a book at the level of the weaker reader. Pairs should be maintained for at least a month and matched based on reading level and personality. Rank the whole class by reading level and split the list in half. Place the strongest reader with the top reader of the second list (class of 24 students, 1-12 and 13-24, place #1 with #13, #2 with #14, etc.). Students are taught specific techniques on how to give error corrections. Decodable Text Reading- Students read texts that include words with phonic elements they have been previously taught. Then the student reads a new text to apply and practice the specific phonics features. Timed Repeated Reading- Students read and reread the same text at their reading level while being timed to record the number of words read correctly per minute. Usually, about three repeated readings of a text produce maximal gain. Vocabulary instruction should provide students with an understanding of the meaning and use of words. This enables them to comprehend what they read and communicate effectively. Components of an effective vocabulary program include indirect and direct methods. Vocabulary can be acquired indirectly by engaging in discussion sessions after listening to recorded books on audio, teacher read-alouds, or reading independently. Direct methods include the explicit teaching of specific words and word-learning strategies. When teaching vocabulary, select 12 15 words per week that are outside of the students current oral vocabulary and that the students are likely to encounter frequently in text. The words should be interesting, useful, and offer students a more sophisticated way of expressing familiar concepts. Multiple exposures to the meaning of unfamiliar words deepen students understanding of a specific word and how it functions in different contexts. Word-learning strategies include morphemic analysis to understand the meaningful parts of words and contextual analysis to infer the meaning from the surrounding text and definitions. Teachers

should be aware that dictionary definitions are frequently not helpful to young students and the teacher will need to provide a student-friendly definition (e.g., fortunate when you are lucky, or absurd" -when something is silly or goofy). Students develop an increased interest in and awareness of words when rich and varied vocabulary experiences are provided.

Powerful Vocabulary Instruction Includes:

Teacher Read-Aloud Activities

Word-learning occurs for students through teacher read-aloud activities.

Indirect word-learning occurs during teacher read-alouds when:

Students are read to and exposed to rich and descriptive language through an abundance of different types of texts Students are exposed to the same word though multiple texts

Direct word-learning occurs during teacher read-alouds when:

Picture walks are used to promote discussion around vocabulary in the text Sophisticated vocabulary that may be present is defined and discussed prior to reading Lively, interactive, and challenging higher level discussions about the text occur Multiple exposures to words and their meanings occur in different texts Immediate discussions and interactions with vocabulary which may include writing following the teacher read-aloud Continued exposure and use of the words in activities throughout the week

Develop and Maintain Word Meanings

Specific Word Knowledge
A students specific word knowledge is developed by selecting appropriate words to teach based on the needs of the students in the classroom. The following activities may be used to actively involve the students in developing their specific word knowledge, but are not limited to:

Identifying the new word, pronouncing the new word, spelling the new word Writing the new word Describing the new word using other words that the student already knows Using semantic maps to categorize the new word with other familiar words Verbally using the new word in sentences Writing the new word in sentences Creating student-friendly definitions for the new word Identifying antonyms, synonyms, and homophones of the new word

Word-Learning Strategies
Word-learning strategies are tools students use during teacher read-aloud activities, specific word instruction, and independent reading. The following activities may be used to actively involve the students in developing their word learning strategies, but are not limited to:

Using context clues in text and illustrations to determine the word meaning Using word-part clues (morphology) to determine the meaning of a word: root words, prefixes, and suffixes Lively, interactive, and challenging higher level discussions about the text occur