Crazy
Racers!
Rationale:
Students must grow to be fluent readres, which means they read quickly,
smoothly, and expressively. One way to become a fluent reader is
to read and reread text. After fluency grows students will begin
to enjoy reading. In this lesson, students will read text a few
times in order to gain fluency.
Materials:
-Stopwatch for
each group of students
-Race car reading
chart for each student
-A race
track with a race car that goes around the track (velcro). Each
time the student reads, calculate the number of words read correctly in
one minute. Then move the car around the track to the number of
words read correctly.
-Chalk and
chalkboard
-Book: What
Will the Seal Eat? (Educational Insights book)
-Pencil and paper
Procedures:
1. Explain to students how important it is for readers to be fluent and
give examples of a fluent and nonfluent reader. "Today we are going to
practice reading passages quickly, smoothly, and with expression.
When we read fluently our reading sounds good and reading becomes much
more fun! Now, I'm going to read the first sentence out of our
book to you like a beginning read would. The s-s-se-sea-seal
ne-need-needs t-t-to ea-eat. That really did not sound smooth,
did it? Now, I'm going to try and say it smoothly. The seal
needs to eat. Okay, that sounds much better. How did I make the
sentence sound better?" (The kids should say...you read it
quickly and smoothly.
2. I will do a book talk: "The seal is very hungry and has a hard
time picking out what to eat. He doesn't really like human
food. What will he eat? Okay, you have to read the book to
find out."
3. Pair students up. "Read the second sentence out of our book to
your partner. Then each of you read the sentence 5 times to
yourself. By reading it over and over you will be able to
understand it better and read it quickly and smoothly. Now, read
the sentence to each other out loud again. Notice how each other
reads the sentence." (Read sentence out loud to students.)
4. Give stopwatches to each pair of students. Tell them they are going
to read the books to one another. "One person is to read the book
while the other times for one minute. Then cout the numer of
words read in one munite. Write down the number of words to keep
track. The student then should move their race car around the track to
the number of words in the book. Keep reading same passage and book 3
times. Practice makes perfect." There are 92 words in the
book. Before turning the students loose to do the activity, model
timing and reading for one minute.
5. "Now that everyone has gotten all the way around the race track its
time to write your name on the paper where you wrote down the number of
words per minute."
6. Assessment: Have students turn in paper with number of words read
correctly in one minute. There should be a steady increase in the
number of words.
References:
Cushman, Shelia
and Kornblum, Rona. What Will
the Seal Eat? Phonics
Readers. Educational Insights, 1990.
Williams,
Andrea. Start Your Engines!
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/connect/williamsgf.html
Overstreet,
Jill. Racy Readers.
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/connect/overstreetgf.html
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