On Your Mark, Get Set, Read!!!


Ashley James

 Growing Independence Lesson Design

 Rationale 

Reading fluency is the ability to recognize words accurately, rapidly, and automatically.  In order for children to really enjoy reading, and to better understand what they are reading, they must read fluently.  Fluent readers must begin to read with automaticity so they can focus on the meaning of the text. Instead of having to spend time decoding individual words, a fluent reader can  recognize and decode words instantly, thus allowing them comprehension and enjoyment of the text.  In this lesson, students will learn how to improve their fluency by learning and using strategies such as cross checking.  In this lesson, students will also increase their fluency skills with repeated readings as well as one-minute reads.

 

 Materials

Book: Pat's Jam by: Sheila Cushman. Carson, CA. : Educational Insights, c1990. (one copy per student and one for teacher)

Chalkboard/Chalk

Stop watch (1 per student pair)

A track made out for students to see their progress (Draw or trace a racetrack on poster board and cut out. Have a start and finish line. The track should contain numbers such as 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, etc., in which the students will place their car on the track according to how many words they read. Place sticky tack on the back of the cut out race cars with student's name and have students place on the track after reading to show the number of words read and their progression.)

A cut out of a race car (One per student- Find or draw racecar  and cut out. Write the student's name on the car.)

Partner record sheet (1 per student):

 
  Name: ______________________    Date: ___________       Book:                         

                    After each reading my partner,                                              :

                                                                                             2nd  reading          3rd reading

                   1. Read more words correctly                    yes/no               yes/no

                   2. Read smoother                                             yes/no               yes/no                  

       3. Read faster                                                     yes/no              yes/no


One minute read (1 per student):

Name: _________________________   Date: ___________       Book:                     

After 1st read            _______

                        After 2nd read           _______

                         After 3rd read            _______

 

Procedures

Begin by explaining to students the importance of reading  fluently.  "WE ALL WANT TO BECOME BETTER READERS.  TODAY WE ARE GOING TO LEARN SOME WAYS TO BE MORE FLUENT SO THAT WE CAN READ FASTER THAN WE CAN RIGHT NOW.  IF WE READ FASTER AND DON'T HAVE TO CONCENTRATE ON INDIVIDUAL WORDS, , WE CAN  UNDERSTAND WHAT WE ARE READING AND THIS MAKES READING MORE FUN.”

 

Using crosschecking can be very useful when students get stuck on difficult words.  Explain to students how they may use crosschecking. "I am going to read a sentence from a book and show you how crosschecking can be helpful. The bate is black and can fly. Wait! That didn't make sense, let me go back and check.  Oh, it says  the bat is black and can fly.  I know this because bats can fly and they are black.  Now I want you all to try.  I'm going to read this sentence and I want you to use crosschecking to figure out what it should say.  Raise your hand when you know.  'The girl is made because her brother broke her doll.'  How can you tell what it should say?”

 

Model how to become a fluent reader.  “I AM GOING TO SHOW YOU THAT YOU CAN BECOME A FLUENT READER THE MORE YOU READ AND REREAD.  write the sentence on the board: I went to the park to swing.  “I-----WWWEEENNNT----TO-----THE----P---PAARRRK-----SSSOO.  WAIT THAT DOESN'T SAY SO.  LET ME TRY THAT AGAIN.  I-----WWEENT-- WENT--TO---THE---PAARRRK-----TO----SSSSWWWIIINNNG.  OH, SWING.  OKAY, LET ME TRY THAT AGAIN.   I-----WENT---TO---THE---PARK-----TO----SSSSWWWIIINNNG.  NOW I'VE GOT IT,  I WENT TO THE PARK TO SWING.”  Ask the students if they understood what you read the first few times.  ask them why they think it was easier to understand you the last time versus the other times.  Explain to students that the more fluent they become, the more  they will understand what they are reading.

 

Let the students practice reading fluently.  “YOU ALL ARE GOING TO READ A BOOK CALLED PAT'S JAM BY: SHEILA CUSHMAN.  PAT AND PAM ARE FRIENDS.  THE TWO DRIVE TO THE STORE AND GET A HAM AND SOME JAM.  WHEN THEY LEAVE THE STORE AND GET BACK IN THE VAN, THEY REALIZE THEY DON'T HAVE ANY GAS.  WHAT DO YOU THINK THEY ARE GOING TO DO?  WILL THEY HAVE TO WALK ALL THE WAY HOME?  WELL, YOU HAVE TO READ THE STORY TO FIND OUT.  I WANT YOU ALL TO READ THE BOOK TO YOURSELF AND THEN REREAD IT.”  Once all the students have had time to read the book, ask them some comprehension questions to check for students understanding of what they read.  “WHO WERE THE MAIN CHARACTERS?  DID THEY DRIVE A CAR?  WHAT DID THEY GET AT THE STORE?  WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM WHEN THEY LEFT THE STORE?  HOW DO YOU THINK THEY GOT HOME?”

 

Break students up into pairs. Each pair will be given a stopwatch and 2 partner Record sheet. The students will take turns reading as many words as fluently and accurately as possible in one minute. One student will read as the other one records, then they will switch. Tell them, "I WANT EACH OF YOU IN YOUR PAIRS TO READ THE STORY OUT LOUD. ONE OF YOU WILL START OFF AS THE TIMER AND RECORDER WHILE THE OTHER ONE TRIES TO READ AS FLUENTLY AND ACCURATELY AS POSSIBLE. THEN, YOU WILL SWITCH ROLES AND DO THE SAME THING. YOU WILL END UP READING THIS STORY THREE TIMES WITH YOUR PARTNER. MAKE SURE IF YOU ARE RECORDING AND TIMING THAT YOU ARE JUST PAYING ATTENTION TO HOW THEY ARE READING AND THE TIME. REMEMBER, WE DO NOT MAKE FUN OF EACH OTHER. I EXPECT YOU TO TAKE YOUR JOB SERIOUSLY DURING THIS ACTIVITY."

 

For assessment, have each individual student come up to the teacher's desk to take a one-minute read.  The students will reread the book they just read while the teacher is assessing the child's reading fluency. The teacher should have a stopwatch that beeps so that the students know when to start and stop without the teacher having to yell stop. The one minute read sheet will be used to mark their progress. There will also be a place at the bottom for comments to write in anything noticed during their one minute readings that they may need to work on. This could be things such as their breaks in between words and their voice pitch. The students will be moving their racecar as far as how many words they were able to read in the one minute on the track. I will explain to the students that their goal is to get all the way around the racetrack.

 

 

 References

Lauren Dooley, 3,2,1 READ!

http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/passages/dooleygf.html

 

Tabetha Rape, Let's Go Reading

http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/passages/rapegf.html

 

Pat's Jam by: Sheila Cushman. Carson, CA. : Educational Insights, c1990.



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