F.B.I. Fluency Building Investigations

1. F.B.I.Fluency Building Investigations

2. What is Fluency?

3. Defined: Fluency involves not only speed, accuracy, and automaticity but also the use of appropriate phrasing, intonation, and expression to convey an author’s intentions and to demonstrate understanding. (Prescott-Griffin, Witherell pg. ix, 2004) Fluency, in effect, pulls together all of the developing reader’s skills. Fluency lies in the heart of reading comprehension!Fluency, in effect, pulls together all of the developing reader’s skills. Fluency lies in the heart of reading comprehension!

4. Components of Fluency Accuracy Automaticity Expressiveness, Naturalness, Smoothness, and Flow Accuracy: Reading the words correctly Automaticity: Pace of Reading Expressiveness, Naturalness, Smoothness, and Flow: Student uses phrases, tone, and pitch so that oral reading sounds conversational “Prosody” Accuracy: Reading the words correctly Automaticity: Pace of Reading Expressiveness, Naturalness, Smoothness, and Flow: Student uses phrases, tone, and pitch so that oral reading sounds conversational “Prosody”

5. What does a child who lacks fluency sound like? A student who lacks fluency may sound choppy, robotic, or speedy. Meet: Nathan, John, & Carol The most important basis for fluency is accuracy in word recognition. Students need to have some basic reading ability before focusing on fluency. Fluency is the bridge between the ability to identify words and the ability to understand text. Students need to understand that the goal of reading is meaning. A key feature of fluency practice is multiple readings of text.The most important basis for fluency is accuracy in word recognition. Students need to have some basic reading ability before focusing on fluency. Fluency is the bridge between the ability to identify words and the ability to understand text. Students need to understand that the goal of reading is meaning. A key feature of fluency practice is multiple readings of text.

6. Case Studies Nathan John Carol Nathan: Strongest reader; poor comprehension on spring reading test. Reads quickly, but is unable to retell or answer a single literal or inferential question. Reads with little expression, but has 98% accuracy and uses appropriate phrasing and pacing. Both passages were nonfiction, and the teacher asks if he likes to read fiction. What is he thinking about when he reads? He replies the movie he saw last weekend! John: Reads in a halting manner, his voice rising at the beginning, middle and end of the sentence, with little regard to punctuation or phrasing. Is able tp complete the graphic organizer as long as the teacher reads the passage. She asks why he raises his voice as he reads, he states because it makes it fun. Carol: Points to the text as she reads slowly. Is serious and silent as she reads. Is reading with a partner Rachel who reads with expression and intonation. Rachel’s attention drifts romthe text when Carol reads. Help is on the way! Nick: A word caller run a muck! He has broken the visual code, but semantically he needs immediate help or he will faulter. John: Researching a topic should be engaging, engrossing, and satisfying, answering children’s questions and sparking further interest. John appears to be focused on the individual words. He is not anticipating the meaning but the next word. Saying the word, making the word more interesting and exciting are his most important goals. The word divorced from context defines reading for him. Carol: Frog and Toad are meant to be laughed at and giggled at and cried over. She can’t do that with her attention and energy spent concentrating on her fingers as it isolates the words as individual units. Nathan: Strongest reader; poor comprehension on spring reading test. Reads quickly, but is unable to retell or answer a single literal or inferential question. Reads with little expression, but has 98% accuracy and uses appropriate phrasing and pacing. Both passages were nonfiction, and the teacher asks if he likes to read fiction. What is he thinking about when he reads? He replies the movie he saw last weekend! John: Reads in a halting manner, his voice rising at the beginning, middle and end of the sentence, with little regard to punctuation or phrasing. Is able tp complete the graphic organizer as long as the teacher reads the passage. She asks why he raises his voice as he reads, he states because it makes it fun. Carol: Points to the text as she reads slowly. Is serious and silent as she reads. Is reading with a partner Rachel who reads with expression and intonation. Rachel’s attention drifts romthe text when Carol reads. Help is on the way! Nick: A word caller run a muck! He has broken the visual code, but semantically he needs immediate help or he will faulter. John: Researching a topic should be engaging, engrossing, and satisfying, answering children’s questions and sparking further interest. John appears to be focused on the individual words. He is not anticipating the meaning but the next word. Saying the word, making the word more interesting and exciting are his most important goals. The word divorced from context defines reading for him. Carol: Frog and Toad are meant to be laughed at and giggled at and cried over. She can’t do that with her attention and energy spent concentrating on her fingers as it isolates the words as individual units.

7. Stages of Fluency Development Stage 1: What you observe many miscues too much emphasis on meaning storytelling based on the pictures Sounds fluent but not reading what is written down playing “teacher” while reading Stage 2: tries to match what he or she says with what is written on the page one-to-one correspondence finger pointing and voice pointing staccato reading robotic reading Stage 3: focuses on the meaning of print may use bookmarks focuses more on print than pictures no longer voice points laughs, giggles, or comments while reading Stage 4: reads books with more print than pictures wants to talk about what he/she reads reads like talking with phrases reads punctuation with expression laughs, giggles, or comments while reading What to Teach” Stage 1: print carries meaning Stage 2: phrasing and fluency focus on meaning read like talking high frequency words purpose of punctuation Stage 3: phrasing and fluency focus on what makes sense and looks right purpose of punctuation proper expression and intonation Stage 4: Shades of meaning making connections Stage 1: What you observe many miscues too much emphasis on meaning storytelling based on the pictures Sounds fluent but not reading what is written down playing “teacher” while reading Stage 2: tries to match what he or she says with what is written on the page one-to-one correspondence finger pointing and voice pointing staccato reading robotic reading Stage 3: focuses on the meaning of print may use bookmarks focuses more on print than pictures no longer voice points laughs, giggles, or comments while reading Stage 4: reads books with more print than pictures wants to talk about what he/she reads reads like talking with phrases reads punctuation with expression laughs, giggles, or comments while reading What to Teach” Stage 1: print carries meaning Stage 2: phrasing and fluency focus on meaning read like talking high frequency words purpose of punctuation Stage 3: phrasing and fluency focus on what makes sense and looks right purpose of punctuation proper expression and intonation Stage 4: Shades of meaning making connections

8. Accuracy Purpose of reading is to comprehend what is read Accuracy means– “to do with care” Reading words correctly –does affect comprehension Reading the words correctly! Reading the words correctly!

9. Accuracy: Teaching Strategies Catch the Mistake Cooking Class Show and Tell Reporter Reading the words correctly! Reading the words correctly!

10. Slow & Unsteady What was the main idea of the story? What events took place in the story? Name the main character(s). Identify the problem. What was the resolution to the problem? What was the best part?

11. Automaticity Allows the reader to concentrate on the meaning of the text instead of on decoding the words Ability to recognize words quickly in order to keep the pace moving

12. Automaticity: Teaching Strategies Choral Reading Millions of Cats Automatic Cars Assembly Line My Friend, My Friend DemonstrateDemonstrate

13. Expressiveness Phrasing, Rate, and Intonation Tone changes to match characters and punctuation in the story When the phrase is read with the proper expression, the true meaning comes through Hey, Little Ant!Hey, Little Ant!

14. Excerpt from Hey, Little Antby Phillip and Hannah Hoose Kid: Hey, little ant down in the crack, Can you hear me? Can you talk back? See my shoe, can you see that? Well now it’s gonna squish you flat. Ant: Please, oh please, do not squish me, Change your mind and let me be, I’m on my way with a crumb of pie, Please, oh please, don’t make me die! Bully vs terrified Squish and please are bold read with emphasis Tip when reading a poem stress the rhyming words crack/back, that/flat, read with more oomph Look at the world through the eyes of an antBully vs terrified Squish and please are bold read with emphasis Tip when reading a poem stress the rhyming words crack/back, that/flat, read with more oomph Look at the world through the eyes of an ant

15. Expressiveness Reading Clues Intonation Expression Bingo Reading Clues: Quotation Marks mean someone is talking. The reader may need to change his voice to resemble that character. (Goldilocks and the Three Bears) Exclamation Point means anger, happiness, or other strong emotions. Read with more emphasis and volume. All Caps say a little louder and with more emphasis. Ellipsis tells the reader more information is coming or the speaker was interrupted may need to change tones or voice. Question marks tone is higher at the end of the sentence. Activity go on a scavenger hunt to find each type of punctuation! Reading Clues: Quotation Marks mean someone is talking. The reader may need to change his voice to resemble that character. (Goldilocks and the Three Bears) Exclamation Point means anger, happiness, or other strong emotions. Read with more emphasis and volume. All Caps say a little louder and with more emphasis. Ellipsis tells the reader more information is coming or the speaker was interrupted may need to change tones or voice. Question marks tone is higher at the end of the sentence. Activity go on a scavenger hunt to find each type of punctuation!

16. ? “ALL CAPS…”!

17. Intonation Recite as a conversation: ABC? DE. FGH! I? JKL. MN? OPQ! RST! UV? WX. YZ! 123. 4! 567? 89. 10!

18. Intonation Recite using different ending punctuation: Cows moo. Dogs bark? Cows moo? Dogs bark. Cows moo! Dogs bark!

19. Intonation Placing stress on different words: Matt loves spaghetti and meatballs. Matt loves spaghetti and meatballs. Matt loves spaghetti and meatballs.

20. Expression Bingo Write one of the four words below in each space on your game board. sad excited happy angry

22. Naturalness, Smoothness, & Flow Choppy Using phrases rather than word-by-word reading Avoiding “filler” words like uh, like, y’know

23. Naturalness, Smoothness, & Flow Telephone Tag Where in the World? “I have…” Synonym & Antonym & Suffixes

24. Telephone Tag Fluent readers read at a speed similar to talking The goal is not to read as quickly as possible, but to read in a natural speaking rate. (May need to be read slower or faster) Hurry! Everybody hide or we’ll ruin the surprise! Slowly, the snail slithered down, down, down the window.

25. Performance Readers’ Theatre Antiphonal Reading The Great Debate Oh, Say Can You Sing?

26. “Fluent Flo” Accurate Automatic Expressive Smooth

27. Coaching Readers A reader is not attending to “text signals” such as punctuation or print variations (boldface, capitals, italics). Reading is slow, halting, or choppy or inappropriately expressive. A reader has trouble understanding what he has read. A reader seems to be unaware of his disfluency. I. 1. What does your voice do when you see a period? Question Mark? Exclamation Point? Make your voice go down when you see a period, then stop. Make your voice go up when you see a question mark, then stop. Read with excitement when you see an exclamation point! Take a breath when you see a comma. Show me what your voice does when you see bold print. Show me what your voice does when you see words in all capital letters in the middle of a sentence Show me what your voice does when you see italicized text. 11. 1.Read that part (indicate a phrase or sentence) again quickly. Read this part (indicate a phrase or short sentence) without taking a breath. Listen to me read, then echo the way I did it. Read to me pointing to each word, then take away your finger and read again. Which sounds smoother? III. Read it to help me feel the story. Read it to help me learn. Let me hear the character talking. Read like the author intended. IV How does your reading sound? Is your reading rough or smooth? Does the way you are reading help tell the story? Does your reading sound interesting? Will your reading make someone want to listen to see what comes next? I. 1. What does your voice do when you see a period? Question Mark? Exclamation Point? Make your voice go down when you see a period, then stop. Make your voice go up when you see a question mark, then stop. Read with excitement when you see an exclamation point! Take a breath when you see a comma. Show me what your voice does when you see bold print. Show me what your voice does when you see words in all capital letters in the middle of a sentence Show me what your voice does when you see italicized text. 11. 1.Read that part (indicate a phrase or sentence) again quickly. Read this part (indicate a phrase or short sentence) without taking a breath. Listen to me read, then echo the way I did it. Read to me pointing to each word, then take away your finger and read again. Which sounds smoother? III. Read it to help me feel the story. Read it to help me learn. Let me hear the character talking. Read like the author intended. IV How does your reading sound? Is your reading rough or smooth? Does the way you are reading help tell the story? Does your reading sound interesting? Will your reading make someone want to listen to see what comes next?

28. Fluency Round-Up Practice! Practice! Practice!

29. Fluency Round-up Materials: Library Pockets, Index Cards, Display Board Rules: Divide students into teams. Students take turns selecting an amount and a category. The answer must be stated in question form. Example: “Went up the hill?” “Who is Jack & Jill!” Once all the categories have been selected, the team with the most points wins!

30. Fluency Round-up Categories: Nursery Rhyme Phrases Chunking Words Expression Word Sorts

31. Thank You for Participating! FBI: Fluency Building Investigations