Growing independence and fluency

Finding Fluency with Rainbow Fish!

Growing Independence and Fluency

Tindall Morring

Rationale: This lesson is designed to improve students reading fluency. Reading fluently means that a student has the ability to read fast and at even pace while still comprehending what they are reading. Fluency can actually make reading more enjoyable for a student because they are able to read to story through smoothly and use expression as they read. They must first be able to decode words in the text they are reading in order to have reading fluency. In this lesson, students will learn the strategies and skills that it takes to become a fluent reader through rereading the story The Rainbow Fish. If a student comes across a word they are unfamiliar with and unable to decode, they could begin to try and figure out the word by crosschecking.

Materials:

The Rainbow Fish picture book by Marcus Pfister
Stopwatch/ phone for keeping a timer
Pencil
Cover-up critter
Fluency checklist copies to give students
Chart to record words per minute while reading
Whiteboard
Dry erase markers

Procedures:

1. The lesson will begin with the teacher explaining the concept of fluency to the students. Begin the lesson with, “Good morning class! Today we are going to be working on fluency. What does it mean to be a fluent reader? Wait for student responses. Those are all awesome answers! Being a fluent reader can really make reading so much more enjoyable and smooth. When someone is a fluent reader they are able to read through a passage while understanding what the story is about and putting emotion/ expression in to the reading. Fluent readers can also read quickly without making errors or stopping. Today we are going to work on becoming fluent readers!

2. Say: “We have cover-up critters to help us decode, which means to read an unfamiliar word. Let’s try the word fish as an example (write the word on the whiteboard). I am going to use my cover-up critter to decode the word fish. I will first cover up all the letters except the first letter f. /f/…/f/…/f/. Next I will uncover i. /i/…/i/…/i/fi/. Then I will uncover the sh and blend the phonemes together. /f/…/i/…/sh/…/fish/. This is the word fish. Let’ use it in a sentence: “The fish swam in the big blue ocean.”

3. Next I will show students how the difference between reading fluently and not reading fluently. I will write the sentence, “I have a pet fish.” I will read it very slowly at first to show how a non-fluent reader would read the sentence. “I haaaavve a peeeet fiiiiish.” Next I will read it faster, with expression, and more smooth to show how a fluent reader would read the sentence. “I have a pet fish.” Then I will ask the students, “Did anyone notice any differences in the two reading of the sentence? Could you tell one was quicker and smoother than the other? The quick and smooth reading was the more fluent reading and that is how we want to be able to read. I want you to try and read quicker and with more expression!”

4. Say: “I want you to read the book The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister at your seat. This story is about a fish called the rainbow fish who was the most beautiful fish in the whole ocean. The rainbow fish think his beautiful scales are the most important thing in the world until one day another fish in the ocean tries asking rainbow fish to share some of his beauty and rainbow fish is faced with a big decision to make. I want you to read it silently in your head and find out if the rainbow fish makes the right decision!

5. After the students read silently, I will then pair them up with partners. Say: “You and your partner will now get a stopwatch and a copy of The Rainbow Fish, a reading rate chart, and a fluency checklist. You and your partner are each going to read three times. You will each take turns being the reader and being the timer. The timer will time the reading and record the times on their reading chart and the reader will focus on their reading. When you’re the one timing your partner, be sure that you hit start as soon as your partner starts to read and hit stop as soon as they are done reading. Record all three of the times on your chart. After your partner has finished reading once you should fil out the fluency reading checklist and the reading rate chart. Filling these charts out will help your partner evaluate if their fluency is improving or not. Before the students start reading, I will model how to fill in the chart and use a stopwatch or timer on a phone. I will then observe the students reading the book and will walk around the room as they read. I will answer any questions the students may have and make sure that they are filling in the correct time.

Checklist:

Did he/she read smoothly?

Did he/she show facial expression?

Did he/she have voices changes?

Does the student have an overall understanding of expression?

Fluency checklist will be filled out for each reading partner:

Title of Book:

Student’s Name:

Partner's Name:

Make a check if the following is true after the 2nd and 3rd Readings:

· Remembered more words:

· Read faster:

· Read smoother:

· Read with expressions:

Reading Tracker:

0 - - - - 10 - - - - 20 - - - - 30 - - - - 40 - - - - 50 - - - - 60 - - - - 70 - - - - 80 - - - - 90 - - - - 100

Correct Words Per Minute:

6. After the students are done reading, collect the data for yourself to analyze and assess how your students did and who still needs to work on. Use your observations of the class as well. Each student will read to you individually. Mark improvements needed and miscues, and ask comprehension questions.

Comprehension Quiz

1. Which other fish in the ocean did the rainbow fish give one his scales too?

2. Who did the rainbow fish go to for advice about sharing his scales?

3. How many shiny scales does the rainbow fish have left at the end of the story?