Waiting on fluency
Rationale:
A student must be able to read fluently in order to become a skilled reader. This takes hard work and much practice! Fluent reading means a student can read automatically and easily. This makes room for reading comprehension, enjoyment in reading, and reading with expression. In this lesson, students will learn strategies and skills through modeling and practice to help them become fluent readers.
Materials:
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Waiting by Kevin Henkes
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Stopwatch (1 per 2 children)
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Cover-up critters (1 per child)
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Checklist for partner readings (1 per child)
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Comprehension worksheet (link attached)
Procedures:
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Say: Today we are going to work on becoming fluent readers. Reading fluently means you are able to read smoothly, effortlessly, and expressively. When you read fluently, reading becomes more exciting and interesting so it is important that we become fluent readers!
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Say: Being able to read fluently takes a lot of time and work. Sometimes you see a word you don’t know but have courage! If you come across a word like this, remember you can use your cover-up critter to help you read the word! Let’s take the word waiting. Take the cover-up critter and uncover the first letter w. Let’s move it to the next letter a. A says /a/. So far we have, /w/ /a/. Let’s keep moving the coverup critter. I says /i/. So it says /w/ /a/ /i/. Let’s keep moving! T says /t/, I says /i/. Now we have an n that says /n/ by itself, but when it’s by a g it says /ng/. So, our word is /w/ /a/ /i/ /t/ /i/ /ng/, wayiiting. That doesn’t sound right, Oh! Waiting!
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Say: Today we are going to read a book about waiting! Have you ever had to wait for something? [Allow students to share] Well, there are five friends in this book who are waiting for something… what are they waiting for? Let’s find out!
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Say: Before we read Waiting, I am going to show you what reading fluently sounds like. First, I am going to read without fluency to show you the difference. Tttt-hhh-ee-rr-ee, I mean there, w-ee-rr-e fff-ii-vv o-vv thhh-ee-mmm. Ooh, there were five of them! Aa-nn-d ttt-hh-ee-yyy, oh they, ww-eerrr w-aa-ii-tt-ii-nnggg, and they were.. oh waiting!. In this example I read without fluency because I read slowly and struggled with some words. Here’s what it would sound like if I read the sentence with fluency. [Read the sentence smoothly and with expression]. Did you hear the difference? I read automatically and even added some expression!
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Divide the students into pairs (maybe one struggling reader with one successful reader). Assign each pair a spot in the room so they won’t be distracted. Each group is given a copy of Waiting, a timer, two fluency checklists, a pencil, and two reading time sheets. Explain to the students that they will time their partner as they read. Be sure that they know they are not trying to race!
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In order to be successful readers, students not only have to read fluently, but they must also have reading comprehension. Have the students complete a worksheet focused on comprehension questions to assess their reading comprehension.
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Finally, after students turn in their worksheets, calculate each students’ reading per minute (words x 60/seconds). This will give you an accurate measure of the student’s reading speed and comprehension and track their fluency progress.
Resources
Worksheet:
Book:
Henkes, K. (2015). Waiting. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.