By Nov. 7, post one thing you understand better about helping students read more fluently. Post one question you have about reading fluency instruction or assessment.
One thing I understand better about helping students read more fluently is the prosody component of fluency. Prosody is the reader's appropriate use of phrasing and expression to convey meaning and their solid understanding of the passage. The reader's ability to read expressively happens once they have established a certain degree of automaticity and expression is one way in which a reader constructs meaning while reading. Teaching methods for prosody are practice and assisted reading, which also develop automaticity, as well as modeling and coaching or formative feedback.
One question I have about reading fluency instruction assessment is: If oral interpretive reading is a key to developing a student's prosodic reading competencies then how will you assess this if a child cannot speak?
The thing that I understand better through the readings is that students who have trouble reading fluently have a hard time getting the understanding of what they are reading. When they have to stop and sound out the words and concentrate solely on what the words are they loose the concept of what is being read. I now understand why students who I work with have trouble taking AR tests after reading a book. They concentrate on how to say the words and the comprehension is gone. My question is; How can we test students who can't read fluently, yet have a great comprehension level?
From this article, I understand more about what reading fluency is-accurate and automatic decoding of words and reading with expression. I also now know that fluency is important because it affects how well a reader will understand what they are reading. It has helped me see why the kiddos I work with have such a hard time retelling a story or taking an AR test after reading a book. Most of my guys have trouble with reading fluency. I wish the article would have given more information on how to teach students to be more fluent. Anyway, it also made me think about another category of children and this is my question: how do children with A.D.D./A.D.H.D. score on reading fluency? The author states that readers have limited attentional resources to use while they're reading so what happens to those kiddos who already have trouble with attention due to their disability?
This is Mary Law. Although I learned a lot from the article, the one thing that tied everything together for me is the statement, “Fluency is more than reading fast.” I gained an understanding that as teachers we have to look at more than how fast a student can read to determine fluency. We have to determine decoding accuracy, automaticity, and prosody to determine fluency that leads to comprehension. I also found good advice in how we might remediate in those three areas (decoding accuracy, automaticity, and prosody). Time management is important in a classroom and we know various measures of reading fluency can be time consuming. The article offered some time effective suggestions to record and monitor fluency progress. My question would be is there ever a scenario where a student can read fluently with comprehension by just being efficient in decoding accuracy and automaticity? I asked because I think about those students who do not show emotion which is used to when teaching prosody.
The fluency assessments presented in this article have 3 important characteristics useful to teachers. They are quick and easy to administer, easy to understand, and reflect the 3 components of fluency (also clarified in the podcast.) These fluency assessments are ideal for initial screening of students. Also, these fluency assessments are good to share with parents because they reflect student performance on passages that students should be expected to read successfully (passages at their assigned grade level). Additionally, these assessments provide information on what teachers, parents, and the students themselves can do to improve the students' reading. Students who read at an excessively slow rate need to engage in repeated and assisted readings. Students whose decoding accuracy is poor may need to engage in repeated and assisted readings. Students whose decoding accuracy is poor may need additional word study and phonics instruction. Students who do poorly on the fluency rubric may need additonal coaching and support in reading with expression and meaning. Another advantage of these fluency assessments is that the brevity makes them ideal for repeated use throughout the school year resulting in improved student performance in reading. My question is: How effective are AR reading programs in increasing fluency?
This article helped me to realize that fluency does affect comprehension. Limited fluency affects performance because children expend more cognitive energy trying to identify words. As the material becomes more difficult and the volume of work expands, students who are not reading fluently have a hard time keeping up with schoolwork. There is a strong connection between fluency and comprehension. Fluency frees resources to process meaning. Fluent reading is expressive, accurate, and appropriately paced. Fluent reading does not cause comprehension, but it does suggest that children understand what they read. Fluent readers make connections with text while reading; they understand what they read and interpret text in light of their prior knowledge and purpose for reading. Generally speaking, high-fluency readers comprehend better, read faster, and read with greater accuracy than low-fluency readers. Children who read with expression have better comprehension, read faster, and read with greater accuracy than children who read word-by-word in a monotone. Fluent readers pay attention to punctuation and think about meaning. These readers decide where to pause and where to place emphasis and change voice tone and voice emphasis so as to make meaning clear. These readers decide where to pause and where to place emphasis and change voice tone and voice emphasis so as to make meaning clear. Expressive readers interpret meaning.
My question is: What are some of the best techniques to develop reading fluency and comprehension with older struggling readers?
The one thing I learned about fluency is that students can be trying so hard to decode the words that they do not have the ability to multitask and think about what the text is saying. I see this so often in the class that I am in, but have not thought of it that way. The student will be struggling so hard to get the words correct that they do not understand what it says, even when they read the words correctly. My question is what would be the first step if you figure out the student has a problem with fluency? Would you go back and teach more decoding and phonics to try to reach "automacity"? Ashley Hartsoe
The one thing I learned was how much the inability to decode effected their ability to comprehend. Thinking about it now though it makes sense. If they have spend so much energy in decoding cant focus their attention on comprehension.My question if a child is struggling with decoding what is the next step?
The one thing I learned from this reading is that fluency is defined in terms of three components and that it contributes to overall reading proficiency. I liked how they referred to reading fluency as multidimensional and how each dimension focused on different areas. Fluency is the ability to not only read fast, but to be able to read with good expression and a good solid comprehension of what is being read. If a child is determined to struggle with fluency what steps can be taken to help increase the level of fluency?
The one thing I learned from this reading is that fluency snow-balls from an early age on. Therefore, if a student has a good foundation in fluency they will progress at a steadily increasing rate, but if they do not have the fluency foundation it will take extensive amounts of time to go back and learn it. My only question is, how do we make sure that students aren't missing something if it is a snowball effect and we are just getting them for one year? I saw a lot of information in the article on how to assess it, but it didn't seem like there was a lot on how to teach it and how to go back and provide the information they've missed.
One of the main things that caught my attention when reading the article was prosody. I actually did not know the word to use when trying to talk about the expression a person uses when reading outloud. Prosody is the "component of reading fluency that stresses the apprpriate use of phrasing and expression"."When readers embed appropriate volume, tone, emphasis, phrasing, and other elements in oral expression, they are giving evidence of actively interpreting or constructing meaning from the passage." It makes a lot of sense if you think about it. If the ready is not using expression when reading it is a sign that they might not understand the words that they are saying. My step-daughter is in 2nd grade, and does a great job in changing her tone of voice, pausing at appropriate times, and changing the volume of her voice when needed. She has told me that her teacher has told her to pause at a comma, and to use other components of prosody when she reads out loud. It is obvious that her teacher has done a great job of teaching this skill, but I wonder is this a part of reading that is supported by testing. Are our children being tested at how they use expression when readin out loud? And is this even something that should be evaluated? Or is this a skill that is hinted at in the classroom, but is not seen as a big deal? I don't know if it is just a sign of a person that understands what they are reading, or if the curriculum of NC schools enforces teachers to teach this skill.
My own child struggles with reading comprehension. I can now see why taking the time to decode words can cause a lack of concentration on the plot of a story. Comprehension is lost when a student is consentrating only on decoding. The idea of being able to read fast is lost on me. Why must a student be able to get through text so fast?? Is comprehension not more important than how fast we can read? I just recently had this exact conversation with my daughter's 4th grade teacher. They push AR so fiercely in my county that it is insane!! I have expressed that I am not concerned how fast she reads or on what level, but the fact that she comprehends what she reads. I believe that fluency will come with practice... first a student needs to comprehend (even the smallest text).
The thing that stood out the most to me in the article and podcast was the prosody component of reading and the impact it has on comprehension. I had never read this before, but had often noticed a distinct lack of emotion or appropriate timing/phrasing when students with reading difficulties read aloud. The lack of expression and lack of pausing during sentence transitions is disturbing to hear, because it always seemed to indicate to me a lack of 'connection' with the text,. I know from my own reading style that when I read I am actively engaged with the text, which requires reading with expression and phrasing. In fact, after reading the article I tried to read a page in a book without it and had a very difficult time absorbing what I was reading.
Now that I know for certain there is a direct correlation between comprehension and prosody, I would like to know what the best method for teaching prosody would be.
One thing I understand better from the podcast and article by Dr. Rasinski is how important fluency and especially the prosody component are to reading comprehension. I know that when I have listened to struggling readers attempt reading passages on their grade level, it was hard even for me to keep up with the story because of their struggle. Therefore, I was sure that those second grade students were so focused on sounding out the words that they couldn’t comprehend the meaning of them. If students are still using phonics rules to decode fewer than 95% of the words they read, they do not comprehend the content. The podcast made it especially clear for me when Dr. Rasinski explained how we all discern different meanings to words based on the tone and inflection of our voice. He used the explanation of how we use the words “right” or “dude!” with different expression to convey different meanings and called it “making meaning with our voice, not just reading fast” and “oral punctuation”. The article suggests that teachers use 3 passages from a grade level trade book to assess reading fluency. My questions are: What are the best methods for teaching prosody? Also, Would the assessment be more accurate if the teacher chose different types of readings (from fiction and nonfiction) to assess fluency?... Does content affect fluency? Laura Jordan
Assessing reading fluency has three components. These components are accuracy or accuracy in decoding text material, decoding words with minimal use of additional resources, and the appropriate use of phrasing and expression to convey the meaning.
Co-founder and former director of the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill. Currently professor in Language, Reading, and Exceptionalities Dept. at Appalachian State University.
One thing I understand better about helping students read more fluently is the prosody component of fluency. Prosody is the reader's appropriate use of phrasing and expression to convey meaning and their solid understanding of the passage. The reader's ability to read expressively happens once they have established a certain degree of automaticity and expression is one way in which a reader constructs meaning while reading. Teaching methods for prosody are practice and assisted reading, which also develop automaticity, as well as modeling and coaching or formative feedback.
ReplyDeleteOne question I have about reading fluency instruction assessment is: If oral interpretive reading is a key to developing a student's prosodic reading competencies then how will you assess this if a child cannot speak?
The thing that I understand better through the readings is that students who have trouble reading fluently have a hard time getting the understanding of what they are reading. When they have to stop and sound out the words and concentrate solely on what the words are they loose the concept of what is being read. I now understand why students who I work with have trouble taking AR tests after reading a book. They concentrate on how to say the words and the comprehension is gone.
ReplyDeleteMy question is; How can we test students who can't read fluently, yet have a great comprehension level?
From this article, I understand more about what reading fluency is-accurate and automatic decoding of words and reading with expression. I also now know that fluency is important because it affects how well a reader will understand what they are reading. It has helped me see why the kiddos I work with have such a hard time retelling a story or taking an AR test after reading a book. Most of my guys have trouble with reading fluency. I wish the article would have given more information on how to teach students to be more fluent. Anyway, it also made me think about another category of children and this is my question: how do children with A.D.D./A.D.H.D. score on reading fluency? The author states that readers have limited attentional resources to use while they're reading so what happens to those kiddos who already have trouble with attention due to their disability?
ReplyDeleteThis is Mary Law. Although I learned a lot from the article, the one thing that tied everything together for me is the statement, “Fluency is more than reading fast.” I gained an understanding that as teachers we have to look at more than how fast a student can read to determine fluency. We have to determine decoding accuracy, automaticity, and prosody to determine fluency that leads to comprehension. I also found good advice in how we might remediate in those three areas (decoding accuracy, automaticity, and prosody). Time management is important in a classroom and we know various measures of reading fluency can be time consuming. The article offered some time effective suggestions to record and monitor fluency progress. My question would be is there ever a scenario where a student can read fluently with comprehension by just being efficient in decoding accuracy and automaticity? I asked because I think about those students who do not show emotion which is used to when teaching prosody.
ReplyDeleteThe fluency assessments presented in this article have 3 important characteristics useful to teachers. They are quick and easy to administer, easy to understand, and reflect the 3 components of fluency (also clarified in the podcast.) These fluency assessments are ideal for initial screening of students. Also, these fluency assessments are good to share with parents because they reflect student performance on passages that students should be expected to read successfully (passages at their assigned grade level). Additionally, these assessments provide information on what teachers, parents, and the students themselves can do to improve the students' reading. Students who read at an excessively slow rate need to engage in repeated and assisted readings. Students whose decoding accuracy is poor may need to engage in repeated and assisted readings. Students whose decoding accuracy is poor may need additional word study and phonics instruction. Students who do poorly on the fluency rubric may need additonal coaching and support in reading with expression and meaning. Another advantage of these fluency assessments is that the brevity makes them ideal for repeated use throughout the school year resulting in improved student performance in reading.
ReplyDeleteMy question is: How effective are AR reading programs in increasing fluency?
This article helped me to realize that fluency does affect comprehension. Limited fluency affects performance because children expend more cognitive energy trying to identify words. As the material becomes more difficult and the volume of work expands, students who are not reading fluently have a hard time keeping up with schoolwork. There is a strong connection between fluency and comprehension. Fluency frees resources to process meaning. Fluent reading is expressive, accurate, and appropriately paced. Fluent reading does not cause comprehension, but it does suggest that children understand what they read. Fluent readers make connections with text while reading; they understand what they read and interpret text in light of their prior knowledge and purpose for reading. Generally speaking, high-fluency readers comprehend better, read faster, and read with greater accuracy than low-fluency readers. Children who read with expression have better comprehension, read faster, and read with greater accuracy than children who read word-by-word in a monotone. Fluent readers pay attention to punctuation and think about meaning. These readers decide where to pause and where to place emphasis and change voice tone and voice emphasis so as to make meaning clear. These readers decide where to pause and where to place emphasis and change voice tone and voice emphasis so as to make meaning clear. Expressive readers interpret meaning.
ReplyDeleteMy question is: What are some of the best techniques to develop reading fluency and comprehension with older struggling readers?
The one thing I learned about fluency is that students can be trying so hard to decode the words that they do not have the ability to multitask and think about what the text is saying. I see this so often in the class that I am in, but have not thought of it that way. The student will be struggling so hard to get the words correct that they do not understand what it says, even when they read the words correctly.
ReplyDeleteMy question is what would be the first step if you figure out the student has a problem with fluency? Would you go back and teach more decoding and phonics to try to reach "automacity"?
Ashley Hartsoe
The one thing I learned was how much the inability to decode effected their ability to comprehend. Thinking about it now though it makes sense. If they have spend so much energy in decoding cant focus their attention on comprehension.My question if a child is struggling with decoding what is the next step?
ReplyDeleteAllen Sigmon
The one thing I learned from this reading is that fluency is defined in terms of three components and that it contributes to overall reading proficiency. I liked how they referred to reading fluency as multidimensional and how each dimension focused on different areas. Fluency is the ability to not only read fast, but to be able to read with good expression and a good solid comprehension of what is being read. If a child is determined to struggle with fluency what steps can be taken to help increase the level of fluency?
ReplyDeleteThe one thing I learned from this reading is that fluency snow-balls from an early age on. Therefore, if a student has a good foundation in fluency they will progress at a steadily increasing rate, but if they do not have the fluency foundation it will take extensive amounts of time to go back and learn it. My only question is, how do we make sure that students aren't missing something if it is a snowball effect and we are just getting them for one year? I saw a lot of information in the article on how to assess it, but it didn't seem like there was a lot on how to teach it and how to go back and provide the information they've missed.
ReplyDeleteOne of the main things that caught my attention when reading the article was prosody. I actually did not know the word to use when trying to talk about the expression a person uses when reading outloud. Prosody is the "component of reading fluency that stresses the apprpriate use of phrasing and expression"."When readers embed appropriate volume, tone, emphasis, phrasing, and other elements in oral expression, they are giving evidence of actively interpreting or constructing meaning from the passage." It makes a lot of sense if you think about it. If the ready is not using expression when reading it is a sign that they might not understand the words that they are saying. My step-daughter is in 2nd grade, and does a great job in changing her tone of voice, pausing at appropriate times, and changing the volume of her voice when needed. She has told me that her teacher has told her to pause at a comma, and to use other components of prosody when she reads out loud. It is obvious that her teacher has done a great job of teaching this skill, but I wonder is this a part of reading that is supported by testing. Are our children being tested at how they use expression when readin out loud? And is this even something that should be evaluated? Or is this a skill that is hinted at in the classroom, but is not seen as a big deal? I don't know if it is just a sign of a person that understands what they are reading, or if the curriculum of NC schools enforces teachers to teach this skill.
ReplyDelete"chriscolb" is Laura Chrisco ... I forgot to put my name at the bottom of my response.
ReplyDeleteMy own child struggles with reading comprehension. I can now see why taking the time to decode words can cause a lack of concentration on the plot of a story. Comprehension is lost when a student is consentrating only on decoding. The idea of being able to read fast is lost on me. Why must a student be able to get through text so fast?? Is comprehension not more important than how fast we can read? I just recently had this exact conversation with my daughter's 4th grade teacher. They push AR so fiercely in my county that it is insane!! I have expressed that I am not concerned how fast she reads or on what level, but the fact that she comprehends what she reads. I believe that fluency will come with practice... first a student needs to comprehend (even the smallest text).
ReplyDeleteThe thing that stood out the most to me in the article and podcast was the prosody component of reading and the impact it has on comprehension. I had never read this before, but had often noticed a distinct lack of emotion or appropriate timing/phrasing when students with reading difficulties read aloud. The lack of expression and lack of pausing during sentence transitions is disturbing to hear, because it always seemed to indicate to me a lack of 'connection' with the text,. I know from my own reading style that when I read I am actively engaged with the text, which requires reading with expression and phrasing. In fact, after reading the article I tried to read a page in a book without it and had a very difficult time absorbing what I was reading.
ReplyDeleteNow that I know for certain there is a direct correlation between comprehension and prosody, I would like to know what the best method for teaching prosody would be.
One thing I understand better from the podcast and article by Dr. Rasinski is how important fluency and especially the prosody component are to reading comprehension. I know that when I have listened to struggling readers attempt reading passages on their grade level, it was hard even for me to keep up with the story because of their struggle. Therefore, I was sure that those second grade students were so focused on sounding out the words that they couldn’t comprehend the meaning of them. If students are still using phonics rules to decode fewer than 95% of the words they read, they do not comprehend the content.
ReplyDeleteThe podcast made it especially clear for me when Dr. Rasinski explained how we all discern different meanings to words based on the tone and inflection of our voice. He used the explanation of how we use the words “right” or “dude!” with different expression to convey different meanings and called it “making meaning with our voice, not just reading fast” and “oral punctuation”.
The article suggests that teachers use 3 passages from a grade level trade book to assess reading fluency. My questions are: What are the best methods for teaching prosody? Also, Would the assessment be more accurate if the teacher chose different types of readings (from fiction and nonfiction) to assess fluency?... Does content affect fluency?
Laura Jordan
Assessing reading fluency has three components. These components are accuracy or accuracy in decoding text material, decoding words with minimal use of additional resources, and the appropriate use of phrasing and expression to convey the meaning.
ReplyDeleteThe question that I had is assessing reading fluency close to that of dibels?
ReplyDelete