Fluency is the ability to read smoothly and with expression, at an adequate rate, without making errors in pronunciation. It's a crucial and foundational piece of the reading process. Fluency includes the ability to rapidly decode or read words, as well as the ability to read sentences in meaningful chunks. Fluent reading is done phrase by phrase, with appropriate pausing and intonation. When someone is a fluent reader, it sounds like they're speaking when they read aloud.

Fluency is perhaps the most frequently overlooked component of reading in terms of assessing and tutoring learners. This is unfortunate because of all of the components, it’s the one that can be the most straightforward to address. There are several quick and easy ways to assess your learner’s fluency and there is one simple, tried-and-true strategy that’s recommended for helping to improve all three aspects of fluency: speed, accuracy, and phrasing and expression or prosody.

 

Research recommends guided, repeated, oral reading as an effective fluency development strategy. There are several variations of guided, repeated, oral reading but basically the strategy involves reading the same text out loud, over and over again. Guided means a tutor monitors the learner’s oral reading to keep track of speed, accuracy and rhythm, to help out with difficult words, to decide how many times to read, and so on. This strategy uses a direct, explicit, systematic approach to teaching fluency.

Guided, repeated, oral reading is useful for all readers, including those with reading problems. Often, it can quickly lead to increases in reading rate, accuracy and prosody. This is important for adult learners because they can usually see demonstrable progress in their fluency right away. Because of this, fluency instruction can be an excellent way to encourage learners to stay in a literacy program long enough to improve their reading skills. DEMONSTRATION VIDEO

Watch a tutor introduce a student to the concept of Reading Fluency. They talk about how Fluency is the ability to read with appropriate speed, accuracy, phrasing and expression. They also talk about how fluent reading is necessary for reading comprehension.

 

When you're working with your learner on reading fluency, keep these important tips in mind:

• Make sure you or your program assess your learner’s reading speed, accuracy, phrasing and expression.


• Use guided, repeated oral reading techniques to build your learner’s reading fluency. Your learner can read aloud to, or in unison with, you while you model fluent reading and assist him when he needs support.


• Use audio recordings so your learner can practice guided, repeated, oral reading on his own as homework.


• Prepare for “performance reading” by practicing reading a story, poem, play or children's book to read aloud to an "audience". These activities are excellent ways to practice reading fluency and can give your learner a fun reason to re-read a text multiple times.

 

• Relatively easy materials are best for increasing your learner’s reading speed and phrasing and expression.


• It’s best to use more difficult texts to improve accurate word identification in context. When working on improving accuracy, there must some difficult words for your learner to decode.


• Choose a variety of texts that reflect your learner’s ability, interests and goals. These can be passages from workbooks, materials your learner brings from home or work or children’s and adults’ literature.


• You’ll only want to spend a small portion of your lesson on fluency practice so choose passages from 50-200 words that can be read aloud several times in a few minutes.

 

• How do you know how much guidance to give your learner, when to give it, and what kind to give? There is no simple answer to this question. Take your cue from your learner. It's important in guided, repeated, oral reading practice to give your learner a chance to figure out the text for himself and to self-correct. While using this technique, correct only the errors that affect the meaning of the text.


• Having your learner read a text silently before reading it orally is a good idea. It familiarizes him with the text and any potential trouble spots before you begin a guided, repeated, oral reading activity.

 

Reading speed is an important part of fluent reading that boosts reading comprehension. In order to understand what he's reading, your learner must read at approximately the same speed as he speaks. You can measure your learner's oral reading rate to see how quickly he can recognize words. This can help you know if he needs to increase his reading speed to become a more fluent reader.

Exactly why is speed important?

There are limits to the information we can hold in our short-term memory. If reading is too slow it's possible to get to the end of a sentence or paragraph and not remember how it started. Many slow readers are concentrating so much on decoding, or trying to figure out individual words, that their comprehension suffers. Readers who are sounding out words or reading word by word most likely need to improve their phonics skills so reading becomes more automatic and reading speed increases. With improved decoding, readers can focus on the meaning rather than the mechanics of words.

 

You can usually tell if your learner reads with appropriate speed just by listening to him read out loud. If he reads more slowly than he speaks, he could probably benefit from fluency practice. You can also use a formula to help you evaluate your learner's oral reading speed.

Click on the resource titled Oral Reading Rate Formula below to learn how to use this formula to identify whether or not your learner needs to increase his reading speed.

 

The strategy called guided, repeated, oral reading can help your learner read more quickly. With this approach, your learner reads a passage aloud, several times, with support from you or a recording, until his fluency improves. Then he continues practicing this skill with another passage at the same or a slightly higher level of difficulty. Your job is to monitor your learner's oral reading to keep track of his speed, accuracy, phrasing, expression and rhythm, to help him out with difficult words, to decide how many times to read, and so on.

When choosing material to practice increasing reading speed, choose texts that are at your learner's independent reading level. This is the level at which your learner can read a text on his own with ease, confidence, comprehension and 98-99 percent accuracy. This will allow him to focus on imitating the reading rate you model.

 

Two types of guided, repeated, oral reading strategies, dyad reading and echo reading, can be especially helpful in increasing your learner's reading speed so that he can become a more fluent reader. DEMONSTRATION VIDEOS

Watch a tutor and a student practice two Fluency strategies together: Duet Reading and Cross-generational Reading (Part 3 of 7 parts).



A tutor and student practice two Fluency strategies together: Echo Reading and Cross-generational Reading (Part 4 of 7 parts).



They review the strategies they have used to practice Fluency: Reading to the Tutor, Duet Reading, Echo Reading, and Cross-generational Reading. They compare which strategies help improve different aspects of fluency and which the student prefers (Part 5 of 7 parts).

 

Reading accuracy is an important part of fluent reading that boosts reading comprehension. In order to understand what he's reading, your learner must read the majority of words in each sentence correctly. You can measure your learner's reading accuracy to see how well he identifies the words he's reading. It's important to know whether word recognition is a problem area for your learner so you know if you need to spend time working on this aspect of fluency.

Exactly Why is Accuracy Important?

Accuracy in reading affects a learner's ability to read with efficient speed and to use correct phrasing and expression so that he can understand what he's reading. A fluent reader makes few errors and can focus his attention on a text's meaning. If your learner reads a large number of words in each sentence of a passage incorrectly, it's going to have a negative impact on his comprehension of that text.

 

Special assessments that measure reading accuracy evaluate only if the reader reads the correct words in a passage. Speed and comprehension are not measured in assessments of fluency accuracy. You can use passages written at different grade levels to assess your learner’s oral reading accuracy. You look for and record the number of errors your learner makes when reading these passages in order to gauge his reading accuracy. The purpose is to understand how well your learner can accurately identify the words he's reading so you know if you need to use teaching strategies like phonics and sight word practice that improve word recognition. Once his word recognition skills increase, your learner’s fluency and comprehension should increase as well.

Now, you'll practice assessing a reader's oral reading accuracy. You'll listen to a passage and assess how accurately the reader reads it. This activity will give you practice in identifying real and not real oral reading errors as your learner reads.

Real Errors
• Mispronunciations - count only the first time the error is made
• Substitutions - reading a different word
• Insertions - adding a word
• Omissions - leaving out a word
• Supplied words - providing words your learner can't decipher so he can continue reading the text

Not Real Errors
• Self-corrections
• Repetitions - reading the same word more than once in a row
• Errors in word endings - adding or dropping endings such as -ing, -ed, -s
• Pronunciation errors in proper nouns

 

A strategy called guided, repeated, oral reading can help your learner read more accurately. With this approach, your learner reads a passage aloud, several times, with support from you or a recording, until his fluency improves. Then, he continues practicing this skill with another passage at the same or a slightly higher level of difficulty. Your job is to monitor your learner's oral reading to keep track of his speed, accuracy, phrasing, expression and rhythm, to help him out with difficult words, to decide how many times to read, and so on.





When choosing material to practice increasing reading accuracy, choose texts that are at your learner's instructional reading level so there are some challenging words to work with. This is the level at which you introduce your learner to new vocabulary and where the greatest progress in reading occurs with your critical support. At this level, your learner can read a text, with your assistance, with 95-97 percent accuracy and 80 percent comprehension on simple recall questions about the story.

 

 

 

Grouping words into meaningful phrases and reading with expression are important parts of fluent reading that help boost reading comprehension. When readers can read with correct phrasing, pacing, pauses, intonation, and expression, it helps them understand the nuances of the writer's words.

Text that is read with appropriate phrasing and expression sounds like speech and is much easier to understand than text that is read word by word in a monotone. When readers group words appropriately, slow down to make an interesting point, or emphasize key words, it helps convey a writer's message. Most texts provide clues to phrasing, emphasis, and tone such as punctuation, bold print, signal words (e.g. finally, however, therefore, consequently, and on the other hand), and descriptive words. Fluent readers notice and use these clues to read in a way that communicates the writer's intended meaning.

A technical linguistic term for phrasing and expression in speech is prosody.

 

You can usually tell if your learner reads with appropriate phrasing and expression just by listening to him read out loud. If he reads less fluidly, word by word, and with less intonation than he speaks, he could probably benefit from fluency practice. You can also use a tool to help you evaluate your learner's oral reading prosody.

Click on the resource titled Prosody Pause Scale to read about a tool you can use to assess your learner's prosody, or phrasing and expression, in reading.

 

The strategy called guided, repeated, oral reading can help your learner read with appropriate phrasing and expression. With this approach, your learner reads a passage aloud, several times, with support from you or a recording, until his fluency improves. Then, he continues practicing this skill with another passage at the same or a slightly higher level of difficulty. Your job is to monitor your learner's oral reading to keep track of his speed, accuracy, phrasing, expression and rhythm, to help him out with difficult words, to decide how many times to read, and so on.

When choosing material to practice appropriate phrasing and expression, choose texts that are at your learner's independent reading level. This is the level at which your learner can read a text on his own with ease, confidence, comprehension, and 98-99 percent accuracy. This will allow him to focus on imitating the phrasing and expression you model.

 

Two types of guided, repeated, oral reading strategies, echo reading and dyad reading (called choral reading if you're working with a small group of learners or a class), can be especially helpful in increasing your learner's phrasing and expression so that he can become a more fluent reader. If you work with more than one learner, performance reading is another guided, repeated, oral reading strategy you can use to help your learners with phrasing and expression.


Click on the Resources below to learn more about each of these strategies.

DEMONSTRATION VIDEOS

Watch a tutor and student practice two Fluency strategies together: Duet Reading and Cross-generational Reading (Part 3 of 7 parts).



They practice two Fluency strategies together: Echo Reading and Cross-generational Reading (Part 4 of 7 parts).



They review the strategies they have used to practice Fluency: Reading to the Tutor, Duet Reading, Echo Reading, and Cross-generational Reading (Part 5 of 7 parts).

 

This Step describes three more guided, repeated, oral reading strategies:

• Recorded Reading
• Paired or Partner Reading
• Cross-generational Reading

 

Your learner can practice his fluency skills independently by reading along while listening to a recorded passage. In this case, the recorded reader is modeling reading with all three aspects of fluency, but this technique can be particularly helpful if your learner wants to improve his accuracy. You can ask him to listen to and read the passage a set number of times (usually at least three). Alternatively, you might ask him to re-read a passage until he feels able to read it accurately and comfortably with the same type of rate and expression as the recorded reader.



You might use commercial books on CD or download them from the Internet. You can also make recordings of texts or real-life materials using a digital device, computer, or smart phone. Free, open source, cross-platform software, such as Audacity, which records and edits sound, can be useful for this approach. Most libraries have commercial audio books for lending (some you play on their website on any computer with Internet access) and there are free public domain audio books that can be streamed or downloaded as Mp3 files. Using a free website, such as LibriVox, you can have your learner read a passage from a print copy of a library book and listen to the audio at the same time.

 

Watch a tutor and student practice a fluency strategy called Recorded Reading for Independent Practice so the student knows how to use technology at home to practice her fluency without her tutor nearby (Part 7 of 7 parts).

 

If you work with more than one learner, you can use this strategy. Pairs of learners take turns reading and re-reading the same passage to each other or they read aloud together.
Learners who have similar fluency skills can work together. Learners who have different skill levels can also be paired and, in this case, the better reader can model and provide assistance. In both cases, you’ll provide guidance when necessary on all three aspects of fluency: speed, accuracy, and phrasing and expression.

 

If your learner is a parent, grandparent or caregiver of young children, he might practice re-reading children’s books with your assistance or a recorded text. This activity is most suitable if your learner finds reading age-appropriate children's books challenging. If the children in his life are very young, stories that are appropriate for their ages may be too easy for him and re-reading such material may be less likely to increase his fluency skills.


This strategy can help your learner build his reading speed, accuracy, and phrasing and expression.

 

Watch a tutor and student practice two fluency strategies together: Reading to the tutor and Cross-generational Reading. The student improves her ability to read with appropriate speed, accuracy, phrasing and expression (Part 2 of 7 parts).



They practice two fluency strategies together: Duet Reading and Cross-generational Reading (Part 3 of 7 parts).



They practice two fluency strategies together: Echo Reading and Cross-generational Reading (Part 4 of 7 parts).

 

Measures of readability are usually expressed in the form of grade level equivalents. For example, a grade level measure of 5.5 would mean that an average fifth grader could read and understand the passage or text.

It’s important to choose the appropriate reading level of a text when you’re assessing your learner’s fluency and when you’re using guided, repeated, oral reading strategies.



Once you've established a text's readability level you can determine if the text is appropriate for your learner and the fluency practice you’re planning. You’ll want to use texts of different difficulty levels for different purposes such as assessment, particular guided, repeated, oral reading strategies and independent reading assignments.

 

Some publishers provide the readability level for their texts, but there are formulas you can use to estimate the readability of texts of which you don’t know the reading level.

All formulas use word and sentence length to measure the readability level of a text. The formulas are easily computed with paper and pencil but can also be calculated using a computer. Most word processing programs, including Microsoft Word, can compute the readability level of any text you’ve entered.



Click on the Resource below to learn more about readability formulas.

 

The Reading Accuracy Gauge can help you determine how readable a text is for your learner.


To use this tool, have your learner read a short passage orally and record his accuracy level. Then, use the accuracy gauge to see if the passage is at his independent, instructional or frustration level as described here.

• Independent level: Learner reads at least 97-98 percent of the words in a passage correctly or makes only 1 to 2 errors in a 100 word passage.
• Instructional level: Learner reads 95-97 percent of the words in a 100 word passage correctly or makes only 3-5 errors in a 100 word passage.
• Frustration level: Learner reads less than 95 percent of the words in a 100 word passage correctly or makes more than 5 errors in a 100 word passage.

 

To use the Reading Accuracy Gauge, select three 100-word passages from three texts to use with your learner to determine if he's reading at an independent, instructional, or frustration level.

Try to choose passages that you think will represent all three levels of your learner's reading ability. Decide if you think this is a useful concept and tool for your own tutoring.






Click on the Resource below to learn more about using the Reading Accuracy Gauge.

 

If word identification is part of your learner’s fluency problem, phonics instruction and sight word practice may lead to more efficient word recognition, which will also improve his fluency. Use one of the assessments described in the decoding Steps to identify your learner’s specific decoding problems. Then, use the strategies recommended to provide your learner with focused, direct and systematic instruction in phonics and/or sight word recognition. By helping your learner improve his word identification skills, you’ll also help him read more accurately with appropriate speed, phrasing and expression.

 

In order to read with appropriate phrasing and expression, a reader must gather meaning as he reads through each sentence. He must know the meaning of the individual words he’s reading in order to understand complete sentences and paragraphs and to indicate his understanding by pausing, emphasizing certain words, and grouping the words that need to be read together to form a specific idea.

Many learners’ fluency issues stem from not having sufficient vocabulary and background knowledge of a subject. Because of this, they might not be able to read a text with appropriate phrasing and expression. If you notice that your learner isn’t grouping words into meaningful chunks, isn’t pausing at appropriate times or emphasizing key words that should be stressed in order to convey meaning, check to make sure he knows the meaning of each word in the sentences he’s reading.


If it turns out that a lack of vocabulary and background knowledge are indeed affecting his ability to read with proper phrasing and expression, use the strategies recommended to provide your learner with focused, direct and systematic instruction in vocabulary development. By helping your learner increase his word bank, you’ll also help him read with improved phrasing and expression.

 

In order to read with appropriate phrasing and expression, a reader must understand what he’s reading. He indicates his understanding of a text by pausing, emphasizing certain words, and grouping the words that need to be read together to form a specific idea.

Many learners’ fluency issues are due to a lack of reading comprehension that limits their ability to read a text with appropriate phrasing and expression. If you notice that your learner isn’t grouping words into meaningful chunks, isn’t pausing at appropriate times or isn’t emphasizing key words that should be stressed in order to convey meaning, check to make sure he really understands what he’s reading.


If it turns out that he’s not reading with proper phrasing and expression because he’s struggling with comprehension challenges, use the strategies recommended to provide your learner with focused, direct and systematic comprehension strategy instruction. By helping your learner increase his ability to understand what he reads, you’ll also help him read with improved phrasing and expression.

 

It can be really difficult for your learner (and you!) to see that you're making progress improving his reading skills. But there are lots of great ways to do this while you're working on fluency. In many cases, all aspects of fluency (speed, accuracy, phrasing and expression) can be improved relatively quickly if you consistently and explicitly use the guided, repeated, oral reading techniques introduced throughout this Goal with your learner.

 

An excellent way to show very clearly that your learner is reading more quickly and smoothly, with fewer mistakes, appropriate phrasing, and more expression is to audio or video record him reading the same passage before and after practicing one or more of the guided, repeated, oral reading strategies for developing the three aspects of reading fluency described in other Steps of this Goal.

You can make recordings of your learner reading a passage using a digital device, computer, or smart phone. Free programs such as Audacity, which records and edits sound, can be useful for this approach.

Click on the Resources below for step-by-step instructions on how to make a recording that demonstrates your learner's improvement in a specific aspect of reading fluency.

DEMONSTRATION VIDEO

Watch a tutor and student practice a fluency strategy called Recorded Reading as a way to demonstrate how much progress the student has made in her fluency through explicit strategy instruction and practice (Part 6 of 7 videos).

 

• Read Applying Research in Reading Instruction for Adults: First Steps for Teachers by Susan McShane, available for free in PDF format by clicking here.


• Take LINCS' free, self-paced online course called Teaching Adults to Read: Fluency available from your My Home page here in the LINCS Learner Web site. If you're interested in taking this course, make sure you have answered yes to the question about Teaching Adults to Read in your [Profile].


• Participate in ongoing, topic-specific discussions with adult education practitioners and leaders by joining the LINCS Community of Practice
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