Growing
Fast Like a
Rabbit
Rationale: For
students to learn to be expert readers,
they must be able to read fluently and accurately.
This lesson gives students practice with
reading fluently. In this lesson,
students will increase their fluency by doing one-minute reads with a
partner using books on their reading level.
Materials:
-timer (one for each
pair of students)
-one-minute charts
(one for each student)
-a large selection
of decodable books (books need to be color coded according to their
instructional level)
-speed record sheet
-index cards with
color-coded dots (one for each student--colored dots should correspond
with the
colors of the books)
Procedures:
(1)To
engage the students in the lesson, the teacher should relate the word
fluency
to something that the students will know and tell them what fluency
means. Students,
today we will be practicing our reading fluency. Let's talk
about that word "fluency". What does that
mean? Ask for any of the students'
ideas. Good.
The word fluency means fast and without
messing up. Whenever you think of a
rabbit, you might think of the rabbit hopping along fast without
messing up. So, fluent readers read like
rabbits hop...fast
and no mess ups. Pass out the index
cards to the students.
(2)Ask
the students to close their eyes and picture a book in their minds that
they
really love to read. Boys and
girls, now we are going to close
our eyes and think about our favorite book.
Think about a book that you really want to learn how to read
with a lot
of feeling (the book has to be in our classroom library).
Think about a book that is not too easy and
not too hard for you to read. Whenever
you have the book in your mind you may go and get it off the shelf. Make sure that your index card dot matches
the dot on the book. Everyone should
return to their seats with their book and wait on the next direction. The teacher should also go to the shelf and
pick out a book so that s/he can model how to read fluently.
(3)
When all students are seated, the teacher should begin modeling the
one-minute
reading. Students, this is the
book that I picked for my one-minute read. This
book is called Slim's Outing. I like this
book a lot but there are some
words in it that make me not able to read it fluently.
But when I read Slim's Outing for the second
time and I knew those really hard words, I understood the book a lot
better. I wondered why those words seemed
easier the
second time that I read. Then, the light
bulb came on in my head. The more times
that you read a book the easier it gets.
Explain to the students that this is what they will be doing
for the
lesson. They will be reading and
rereading their books that they picked out.
(4)
The students now need to read their books for approximately ten minutes
to
familiarize themselves. Now, I
would like you to read your book
until I tell you to stop. If you read
through the entire book before I say stop then you may go back and
reread it.
(5)
After the ten minutes are, up the teacher should explain that s/he will
be
passing out the timers and that they are not toys and are not to be
played
with. The teacher should explain to the
students that s/he will now pair them with a partner and that whenever
they get
into their groups, they will take turns timing one another reading
their books. Next,
we I will be paring you up with a partner and giving you a timer. Please remember that these timers are not
toys and should not be played with. You
and your partner will decide who is going to go first and on my cue,
you will
set your timers for one minute and your partner should begin to read.
(6)
After each student has had a practice round with timing their partner,
the
teacher should explain to them that they will be recording their times
on the
speed record sheet. Boys and
girls, now we will be re-doing our readings three times and
for each time, we will record each time. After each student has
had a
chance to record their times, the students will be able to see that
their
fluency has improved. Now
students, I want you to compare each of
your times and see how you improved with your fluency.
Reference:
Audrey
Stockdale. Fast, Faster, Fastest.
http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/odysseys/stockdalegf.html
Speed Record Sheet
1ST TIME:__________________________
2ND TIME:__________________________
3RD TIME:__________________________