Section IV: Reading Fluency

1. Section IV: Reading Fluency Teaching Reading Sourcebook 2nd edition

2. Fluency: The Bridge Between Decoding and Comprehension • At one end, fluency connects to accuracy and automaticity (rapid word recognition) in decoding. • At the other end, it connects to comprehension through prosody or expressive interpretation. • Fluency consists of • accuracy • rate • prosody • Fluent readers are able to devote their attention to comprehension.

3. Fluency is • Accuracy: This is the ability to recognize or decode words correctly. • Rate: This is thespeed or ability to read words automatically, which frees cognitive resources for comprehension. • Prosody:Theyare the features that convey information beyond that provided by the actual words themselves: pitch (intonation, inflection), stress patterns, phrasing (chunking groups of phrases into meaningful units).

4. Influences on Reading Fluency • Comprehension: It facilitates fluent reading, especially for beginning or struggling readers. Students read words in meaningful context faster than out of context (word lists). • Proportion of the words recognized instantaneously or by “sight” (automaticity): This is the most important variable in reading fluency differences. • Speed and Accuracy of Decoding: Unfamiliar words must be identified analytically using sound/spelling correspondences or “chunks” of words.

5. Influences on Reading FluencyContinued • Metacognition and Purpose for Reading: Students must make decisions or self regulate in terms of rate and prosody, depending on type of text. • Vocabulary Size: Words that are part of a student’s oral vocabulary are more easily recognized and understood. How quickly a student accesses known meanings influences rate and prosody. • Motivation and Engagement: Fluency is likely to suffer if a student is not motivated to read or if the text is not engaging.