Learning how to spell a word helps us remember how to read it!  Combine your child's need to create with the writing/reading/spelling component by making simple two-toned paper accordions.  Write the word they need to learn and have them spell it out within the accordion.  Fun!

What is a fluent reader? 4th graders could tell you all about it! It’s not just about speed, but appropriate pausing, accuracy and expression. This week we practiced all of those things. We wrote down emotions and character names and read using those emotions or voices to practice the skill of expression. Always choose an easier text to work on this skill because it helps to focus less on the decoding and more on the other fun parts of reading- like expression! Some of our favorites were slow motion, robot (ironic,) a cat and a pigeon! ​

Grab a pad of sticky notes or note cards, write some high frequency words on them and have those kiddos work on getting some energy out and work on their HFW fluency!!  Call out a word and have kids take turns finding it as quickly as possible.  Hop over the top of the word or slap that word on the wall!

Every time a child slides through a CVC word, have them take a big step forward!  Students take turns reading a nonsense word of a board and keep moving forward.  The goal:  read your words with accuracy, confidence and get some movement in while practicing their fluency!  Set a timer for a few minutes.  The child or children who are "ahead" when the timer goes off wins, but they're all winning with this motivating practice. 
​P. S. It's also a great way to have children use strategies with reading Bs and Ds in a low pressure, quick way!

Have you ever heard of these fine books? Great for partner reading and practicing fluency from 2nd-4th grade. It's divided up into speaking parts with rhymes and sing song text scattered throughout. Every story ends with the same, "you read to me, I read to you." As you can see there are a wide variety of stories you can choose from. We have them in the reading room, and you can of course find them on the ole' Amazon. Come by and try before your buy :) 

Use this fluency rubric with your students or children at home! Simply print out a few copies and keep them in a fluency center. Set up a recording device and have students read a passage or designated text and then listen to their reading and record. Have them do it more than once and compare! Click on the image for a copy of your own!

One Minute Reader is a favorite in the AES reading room. Kids use this program to self monitor their fluency. Students can choose from a variety of passages, and then complete a "cold" and "hot" read cycle. A cold read is known as the first read a student completes of a passage. It's new, and they have never seen it before. A "hot" or "warm" read is the second or third time a passage is read. With One Minute Reader, kids begin with a cold read, then listen to the story read aloud through the Ipad, then finish with a warm read. Then a cute little temperature monitor shows their difference between the hot and cold read and then collects all the information in pretty little bar graphs to show progress across the week. One Minute Reader is available at all grade levels but it will cost you. Something this great is never free.  It's $19.99 per level, but it's a one time fee and you have it forever. Kids love it and it's a great way for them to set and reach their own fluency goals. Learn more about it here. 

Fluency is composed of many moving parts. Accuracy, speed and expression go hand in hand to make a fluent reader. When accuracy and expression are in place, often speed comes along just fine but sometimes it needs a little extra boost. Struggling readers or not, these fluency passages are a great way to boost and support fluency. Worth every penny. You can find them here from Lakeshore.