Rationale: 

Students will be able to read with fluency, accurately, and effortlessly, which makes reading more enjoyable for students. Fluency is what happens in reading when nearly all the words read are sight vocabulary.  When students are able to read with fluency, they can add expression and emphasis to more fully understand the books being read. By completing repeated readings and one minute timed readings, students will be able to improve their fluency and sir reading rates. 

 Materials:

1. Book - Little Leroy

2. White board

3. Dry Erase markers

4. Partner check sheet

5. Speed reading record

6. Timer

 

 Procedures:

1. Say: “Today we are going to work on developing our fluency when we read. We are going to learn to be speedy while reading and learn how to comprehend better what we are reading. After we learn how to do this, we will all be able to read so speedily and smoothly! Fluency requires learning new words as sight words! When you learn to read fluently, speed and expression will be the result!"

2.  I am going to read a story aloud.  I want you to listen very carefully to the way I read it.  For this example, I am someone who is not very fluent with my reading.  Read the sentence like this: “La-e-roy, oh Leroy. W-a-s (pause) a l-ittle b-l-u-e fish. His-home-was (pause) n-e-x-t to a rack? Say: that doesn’t make sense! Oh a rock! His home was next to a rock!.”  Say:  "I think I need to read this sentence again so I understand it better."  Read the sentence again, but with no expression.  Say:  "That was fine, but I think I need to try one more time!"  Read the sentence a third time, this time with expression and emphasis.  Say:  "That's it!  Now that I know the words well enough, I can read the sentence with expression and fluency!"

 2. Now, review decoding steps. Say "What do I do if I get to a word and do not know what it is? I use the cover-up method. Show me that you remember how to use the cover-up method by trying it with me now." Use a word on the board to practice. Say "Let's try it with the word dog. First we find the vowel. Which one is the vowel? It's o. The letter o makes the /o/ sound. Then we uncover the letter d which makes the /d/ and say out loud by blending the /do/ together. Then we uncover the letter g which makes the /g/ sound. Then we blend all the sounds together to say dog. Then we check to make sure we blended correctly by rereading the sentence to check that dog makes sense. “

 3. Let each student find a partner. Pass out a book (Little Leroy) to each child. For the booktalk, say:  "Leroy is a fish and he is sooooo hungry. He really wants to eat, but doesn’t know what to eat! He goes looking for friends to help him. Do you think he’ll be able to find food? Will he go missing while searching for food? We are going to have to read to find out!"  "Follow along in your book while I read the first two pages. I am going to read them three times to practice reading fluently. When I finish, you will do the same thing with your partner.” Read the first two pages aloud to the students. The first time you read, read slowly and sound out each word. The second time, improve your reading by reading smoothly, quickly, and with emotion. "Now it is your turn. Read the whole story one time, then reread it again. While you read I would like partner 1 to read the even pages and partner 2 to read the odd pages. That means you are reading every other page (go over even and odd numbers depending on the age of the students).

4. As students are working, walk around and make sure students are working together and staying on task. 

 5. Once every group has read the story twice, pass out a stop watch and the chart to each group. "We are going to play the Fluency Game! Listen closely so you will know what to do. One person will be the timer and one will be the reader, then you will swap. I want partner one to start as the timer and partner two to start as the reader. The timer will set the stop watch to 1 minute. The reader will read until the timer goes off. The partner who is timing will count the number of words the reader read in 1 minute. Then, you will record it on the speed reading record I have passed out. There is also a checklist about how your partner read. Mark what you noticed. After you have recorded the reader’s number, I want you to swap jobs." As you are explaining the chart, show the students what you mean. Use an extra chart to visually demonstrate the oral instructions. "Do this three times."

Assessment:

After they have completed their three one-minute reads, collect their graphs. Use these graphs for your assessment. This will allow the teacher to teach the students according to the level they are on and know which students need additional help. To assess comprehension either ask the students questions orally or give a written quiz.

 

 

Reference:

McCue, George.  Little Leroy. Rainbow World, 1983.

Racing a Cheetah With Fluency; Growing Independence and Fluency, by: Clarice Smith:  http://cls0052.wix.com/eportfolio#!growing-independence-and-fluency/c1zk4

Sailing to Fluency, by Madison Wolanek. http://madisonwolanek.wix.com/lesson-designs#!growingindependenceandfluency/c13dq

Fishing for Fluency by Kate Farley. http://ksf0004.wix.com/ctrd#!Programs/cee5