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Phonemic Awareness: Part 4: Teaching Strategies
How Do I Teach Fluency?
You can help your students become more fluent readers (1) by providing
them with models of fluent reading and (2) by having students repeatedly
read passages as you offer guidance. In addition, you can help students
improve their fluency by combining reading instruction with opportunities
for them to read books that are at their independent level of reading
ability.
Reading Aloud—A Critical Component of Fluency Instruction
By listening to good models of fluent reading, students learn how
a reader's voice can help written text make sense. Read aloud daily
to your students. By reading effortlessly and with expression, you
are modeling for your students how a fluent reader sounds during
reading. Then have students reread the text on their own.
After you model how to read the text, you must have the students
reread it. By doing this, the students are engaging in repeated
reading. Usually, having students read a text four times is sufficient
to improve fluency. Remember, however, that instructional time is
limited, and it is the actual time that students are actively engaged
in reading that produces reading gains.
Encourage parents or other family members to read aloud to their
children at home. The more models of fluent reading the children
hear, the better. Some schools invite guest “celebrity”
readers, like the principal, the mayor or the high school football
players, to read aloud to children. Of course, hearing a model of
fluent reading is not the only benefit of reading aloud to children.
Reading to children also increases their knowledge of the world,
their vocabulary, their familiarity with written language ("book
language"), and their interest in reading.
Using Big Books for Fluency Instruction
A big book is an enlarged version of a commercially published book—big
enough so that all students can clearly see the text. It is usually
used in the primary grades. By pointing to each word as you are
reading (using either a pointer or your finger), you can show students
where and how you are pausing and how the text shows you when to
raise or lower your voice. Occasionally, you can also explain to
your students why you are reading in a certain way:
Teacher: Did you hear how I grouped the words
"Brown bear/ brown bear"? ?That's because the words brown
and bear belong together.? And then I paused a little before repeating
the words.
Teacher: Did you hear how my voice got louder and
more excited right here? That's because the author put in this exclamation
mark (point to it) to show that the speaker was excited or enthusiastic
about what she was saying.
Then, have the students practice reading the same text.
Here is a video example with a big book:
 |
Watch
a VIDEO CLIP (click here) |
| Description: Angi and her whole class read
a big book together. It is The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry,
and the Big Hungry Bear. Typically, the sequence for working
with a new big book is to make predictions about it during a
“picture walk.” This simply means that the teacher
pages through the book and discusses what the story might be
about based upon the pictures. The second time through the book,
the teacher may simply read the story. The third time through
is when the children read it with the teacher, as in these two
clips. This reading promotes fluency. After that, she may have
individuals read it. Teaching vocabulary, doing word sorts,
and doing phonemic awareness or phonics activities usually happens
after the class becomes familiar with the book, possibly on
the fourth or fifth day. Big books can be the context for many
activities. Another concept reinforced here is onomatopoeia:
“boom” and “sniff.” |
What should students read?
Fluency develops as a result of many opportunities to practice reading
with a high degree of success. Therefore, your students should practice
orally rereading text that is reasonably easy for them, i.e. at
their independent reading level. A text is at students' independent
reading level if they can read it with about 95% accuracy, or misread
only about 1 of every 20 words. If the text is more difficult, students
will focus so much on word recognition that they will not have an
opportunity to develop fluency.
The text your students practice rereading orally should also be
relatively short—probably 50-200 words, depending on the age
of the students. You should also use a variety of reading materials,
including stories, nonfiction, and poetry. Poetry is especially
well suited to fluency practice because poems for children are often
short and they contain rhythm, rhyme, and meaning, making practice
easy, fun, and rewarding.
Oral Rereading Practice
There are several ways, outlined in the following sectons, that
your students can practice orally rereading text, including student-adult
reading, choral (or unison) reading, tape-assisted reading, partner
reading, and readers' theatre. - adapted from http://www.nifl.gov/partnershipforreading/publications/reading_first1fluency.html.
In student-adult reading, the student reads one-on-one with an adult.
The adult reads the text first, providing the student a model of
fluent reading. Then the student reads the same passage to the adult
with the adult providing assistance and encouragement. The student
rereads the passage until the reading is quite fluent. This should
take approximately three to four rereadings.
In choral, or unison, reading, students read along as a group with
you (or another fluent adult reader). In order to do so, students
must be able to see the same text that you are reading. They might
follow along as you read from a big book, or they might read from
their own copy of the book you are reading. You can also use the
overhead to project text for choral reading. Choose a book that
is not too long and that you think is at the independent reading
level of most of your students. Patterned or predictable books are
particularly useful for choral reading, because their repetitious
style invites students to join in. Begin by reading the book aloud
as you model fluent reading. Then reread the book and invite students
to join in as they recognize the words you are reading. Continue
rereading the book, encouraging students to read along as they are
able. Students should read the book with you three to five times
total (though not necessarily on the same day). At this time, students
should be able to read the text independently.
Activity: Scripting a Poem for Choral Reading
Look through some favorite books of poetry. Shel Silverstein
and Jack Prelutsky’s poetry works well as it naturally has
“kid appeal.” Some of the longer ones, like Silverstein’s“Sick”
work especially well. Have the children work in small groups to
determine how to divide the poem into speaking parts. Some of the
parts can be individual, while others can be groups, such as all
the boys, all the girls, or groups A, B, or C. The children then
practice reading the poem in their parts. Then, they perform it
for the class. Another good resource for this is Joyful Noise: Poems
in Two Voices by Paul Fleischman.
In tape-assisted reading, students read along in their books as
they hear a fluent reader read the book on an audiotape. For tape-assisted
reading, use books at a student's independent reading level and
a tape recording of the book read by a fluent reader at about 80-100
words per minute. For the first reading, the student should follow
along with the tape, while pointing to each word. Next, the student
should read aloud with the tape. Repeat until the student can read
the book independently.
In partner reading, paired students take turns reading aloud to
each other. For partner reading, more fluent readers can be paired
with less fluent readers. The stronger reader reads a paragraph
or page first, providing a model of fluent reading. Then the less
fluent reader reads the same text aloud. The stronger student gives
help with word recognition and provides feedback and encouragement
to the less fluent partner. The less fluent partner rereads the
passage until he or she can read it independently. Partner reading
need not be done with a more and less fluent reader. In another
form, children who read at the same level are paired to reread a
story that they have received instruction on during guided reading.
Readers' Theatre
In readers' theatre, students rehearse and perform a play for peers
or others. They read from scripts derived from books that are rich
in dialogue. Students take on the roles of characters or narrators.
Readers' theatre provides legitimate reasons to reread text and
to practice fluency. It also promotes cooperative interaction with
peers and is fun. Therefore, it is a highly motivating way for children
to practice fluency.
|
Watch
a VIDEO CLIP (click here) |
| Description: Heather’s second graders
demonstrate reader’s theater. Notice that this is casual
reading: each child reads from a script instead of memorizing
lines. They made very simple costumes, like crowns and paper
plate masks. Also notice their expression when they are reading.
This is an aspect of fluency called prosody, i.e. the rhythm
of spoken language, including stress and intonation. Research
(Rasinski and Padak, 2007) suggests that comprehension is improved
when children hear the text read with appropriate fluency and
prosody. That is why reader’s theater is a not only a
tool for fluency, but also for comprehension. |
Additional Techniques for Developing Fluency
Echo reading is a technique where in a proficient reader models
reading text and the child immediately repeats (echoes) what was
read. This is usually done one on one, though it could be done in
small groups or even in a whole group setting. In groups it is more
difficult to determine whether every child is echoing, though efficient
observation will help.
The Neurological impress method is a technique where in a proficient
reader reads text into the ear of a child who is also reading it.
This is done simultaneously. The purpose of neurological impress
is to help the child hear the correct phrasing and emphasis of the
text as he/she is reading it. This technique is used individually
and is helpful for struggling readers who may be focusing on word
identification instead of fluency.
More on Reader’s Theater
Reprinted from Aaron Shepard’s Readers on Stage,
Shepard Publications, 2004 (Copyright © 1996, 2004 Aaron Shepard.
May be freely copied and shared for any noncommercial purpose as
long as no text is altered or omitted.)
Reader’s theater was developed as an efficient and effective
way to present literature in dramatic form. Today as well, most
scripts are literary adaptations, though others are original dramatic
works. Popular first in colleges and universities, reader’s
theater has now moved to earlier education, where it is seen as
a key tool for creating interest and skill in reading. Young people
love to do it, and they give it their all—more so because
it’s a team effort, and they don’t want to let down
their friends! Repeated readings bring fluency, and if a script
is based on an available book, kids want to read that too. What’s
more, reader’s theater is a relatively simple activity for
the teacher, with no required setup other than making copies of
scripts.
Reader’s theater has been found effective not only for language
arts but for social studies as well. Performing stories based on
another culture is one of the best ways for students to become interested
in and familiar with that culture.
Free scripts that are already identified by level are available
at Aaron Shepard’s website:
http://www.aaronshepard.com/rt/RTE.html.
Tips on scripting, staging, and reading are found at: http://www.aaronshepard.com/rt/Tips.html.
To involve students in developing their own scripts, see this page:
http://www.aaronshepard.com/rt/sheets.html.
It contains five stories already in dialog. All students have to
do is determine how their group will divide the script up for performance.
Children can also develop scripts from their favorite books. This
should be done in small groups. This is an extension of the scripting
suggested on Aaron Shepard’s website in that no script is
provided and they must write the dialog. Classroom computers are
very useful in this activity as the scripts can be saved, modified,
and used again. I have done this successfully with second graders.
Activity:
Try developing a reader’s theater script from a basal reader
story. After the performance, test the children’s comprehension
on the end of story questions. My students have found that this
simple and fun activity increased the typical score on the end of
story questions. This is an informal affirmation that increasing
fluency increases comprehension. Should you feel guilty having fun
with reader’s theater? Absolutely not!
Teaching Resources
The Fluent Reader: Oral Reading Strategies for Building Word Recognition,
Fluency, and Comprehension (Paperback)
by Timothy V. Rasinski (Teaching Resources, 2003)
Aaron Shepard’s Reader’s Theater website: http://www.aaronshepard.com/rt/index.html
Readers on Stage by Aaron Shepard (Shepard Publications, 2004),
available through Amazon.com.
Reading A-Z website: http://www.readinga-z.com/fluency/index.html
Joyful Noise: Poems in Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (Harper Trophy,
1992)
Big Talk : Poems for Four Voices by Paul Fleischman (Candlewick,
2000)
I Am Phoenix : Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (Harper
Trophy, 1989)
Wham! It’s a Poetry Jam: Discovering Performance Poetry by
Sara Holbrook (Boyds Mills Press, 2002)
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein (30th anniversary edition,
HarperCollins, 2004)
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein (HarperCollins, 1981)
There’s a New Kid on the Block by Jack Prelutsky (Greenwillow,
1984)
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