Rationale:
The goal of this lesson is to teach students to read fluently. The
ultimate purpose of reading fluently is to comprehend what you are
reading.
Students who focus on decoding don't understand what they are reading
because
they are not focusing on what words mean. To read fluently is to read
fast and
smoothly with expression. In order to teach this, I will use 1 minute
reads.
Practice with timed readings will help develop fluent readers.
Materials:
~ Kitchen timer for teacher
~ Toad On The Road books for each pair of students
~ Fluency check sheets for each student with ''remembered more words,
read
faster, read smoother, and read with expression'' check boxes for 2nd
and 3rd
readings
~ Toad cutouts with glue on the back that you can reposition for each
student
~ Sheet of paper with lily pads showing the number of pages read
on them
(a row of 5 lily pads across with numbers on them 1-5 would be at the
top of
the page then four more rows with consecutive numbers on the pads would
be on
the page)
~ Extra books for students to read while waiting for the teacher to
assess them
Procedures:
1. ''Today we will start off by learning how to become more fluent
readers.
Fluency means reading accurately, smoothly, and fast. You will read a
book for
1 minute at a time to see how accurate and smooth and fast you can
read. Listen
as I read the first page in this book two different ways. I want you to
tell me
when I am finished which one is more understandable.''
2. Read the page first by sounding out each phoneme slowly and
stringing them
together to make the words. "I l-o-ve t-o dr-i-ve! I a-m a
T-oa-d. H-e-re
I c-o-me – T-oa-d
o-n th-e r-oa-d!" Then for the second one, read it fast and
smoothly with
expression.
" I love to drive! I am a Toad. Here I come—Toad on the road!" "Which
one of
the sentences did you understand more clearly? Why? Which kind of
reader do you
want to be?"
3. "Now we are going to learn how to read fluently. Get with your
partner
and I will pass out copies of Toad On The Road, fluency check sheets,
lily pad
sheets, and frogs. We are going to read the book to our partners
while I
time each of you for 1 minute."
4. "Let me show you what to do. I am going to read as smoothly and
quickly as I
can for 1 minute. Listen to how I make the words sound interesting.
This is
called reading with expression." (Start the timer and read. Show the
students
how to use the lily pad sheets and explain how to use the fluency
sheets.)
5. "Choose which partner will read first. Start when I say go, and have
your
partner keep track of how many pages you read during the minute. You
will stop
when the timer dings. Put your frog on the lily pad according to how
many pages
you read in the minute. (Demonstrate this.) Repeat this exercise with
the same
person reading. For the second time try to read the story more smoothly
and
faster and try to use expression. Be sure to move your frog from lily
pad to
lily pad as the number of pages you read increases. Have your partner
check off
the boxes that describe how you read on the fluency sheet after you
read the
second and third times. After your third time, trade places and repeat
the
exercise with the other partner reading. I will instruct you as we go
along and
will also be walking around listening to your reading." (Conduct the
exercise.)
Assessment: Have each student individually come up to the teacher and
bring
their fluency check sheets and lily pad sheets. Those who are slower or
whom
you observed having difficulty during the exercise, retest with the
teacher.
Have the other children continue practice reading silently that book or
other
books from the bookshelf while waiting their turns.
References:
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/fluency.html
"Faster, faster, faster!" Rachael Williams
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/discov/williamsrgf.html
"Speed Read" Shelley Bennett
http://www.auburn.edu/rdggenie/discov/bennettgf.html
Schade, Susan and Buller, Jon. (1992). Toad On The Road. Random House: