Increasing Reading Fluency in Beginning Readers
Simple Strategies for Building Reading Confidence in K-3 Students
Jul 22, 2009
As K-3 students move from the beginning reader to the independent reader stage, fluency becomes important. Rather than relying on word analysis skills, fluent readers have developed an extensive sight vocabulary, enabling them to read more rapidly and with greater understanding than before. Without fluency, students simply “word call,” decoding words individually without putting them together to make meaning.
As students move into the intermediate grades, and it becomes necessary to read longer, varied, and more difficult text, fluency becomes increasingly essential to reading success. At this critical juncture in the reading process, teachers can provide strategic interventions designed to increase confidence and motivation to read for practice, build fluency through rehearsal and repetition, and increase comprehension through greater preparation for reading.
Build Sight Vocabulary
Students who recognize words without having to decode them are able to focus instead on meaning. Help students build a strong sight vocabulary by practicing and memorizing high-frequency words (the Dolch list is a commonly used resource for these). Keep the words posted in the room, use them for spelling lists, and distribute flashcards for practice at home. Once high-frequency words are mastered, students have the best opportunity to read with fluency.
Use Pre-Reading Strategies
Teachers can prepare their students for reading by introducing vocabulary and concepts, activating prior knowledge, raising questions, and previewing the text. These strategies help children begin thinking about the words they may find in the text and provide initial practice with some of the more difficult ones. By helping students anticipate ideas they may encounter, teachers can raise fluency levels on the initial and subsequent readings.
Try Specific Strategies for Increasing Fluency
Several early reading strategies are designed to address fluency through repetition and practice, both of which build confidence. With Echo Reading, the teacher reads a sentence and students echo the reading, eventually reading the selection with the same expression as they are hearing. Done from a Big Book or chart, Choral Reading has children read repeatedly in unison, using each other’s voices to stay fluent.
Repeated Readings are done when individual support is needed. A student is given a brief instructional level passage, which is read aloud and timed. The initial time is plotted on a graph, and the child is given the passage to practice at home. When the passage is read again, a new time is plotted. Struggling readers gain confidence as they watch their times shrink; and once a passage is mastered, a new one is begun.
Provide Motivation for Reading Practice
The most important thing teachers can do to help readers become fluent is to keep reading fun. Providing lots of authentic reading experiences, and opportunities to respond to books, keeps reading real and children engaged. Building a love of reading, so that children choose to read often, is the single best thing to do to ensure their eventual independence.
Using these strategies, along with other oral reading activities, with plenty of time for rehearsal and practice beforehand, can help all readers improve their comprehension, sight vocabularies, and confidence when reading. Working on fluency within the context of a complete reading program can build enthusiasm for reading among struggling readers, and provide the extra support some need to move to the next level of independent reading.
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