Fluency in Secondary Classrooms

Misconceptions:
Reading fluency is exclusively an oral-reading phenomenon
Reading fluency is essentially speed of reading with little
connection to reading for meaning
Reading fluency is chiefly an issue for the primary grades

Prosody-the patterns of stress and intonations in a language (expression)

The Multidimensional Fluency Scale
(Allows teachers to listen to and rate students readings
based on four prosodic dimensions)
1.
2.
3.
4.

Expression and volume

Phrasing
Smoothness
Pace

*Research supports that as students oral prosody increases, their silent-reading

comprehension improves therefore: appropriate prosody is reflective of the
meaning of a text and readers with good expression are enhancing their
understanding of the passage.

*Good

readers tend to hear themselves reading, even

when reading silently. Elements of prosody are
likely to be embedded in silent reading.
Readers Theater

The use of Readers Theatre can offer a different context in which students are exposed to texts
focusing on poetry, science, social studies, or other content-related topics.

Readers Theatre is another way to enhance comprehension of text, as well as to create interest in
and enthusiasm for learning.

The Readers Theatre format provides an opportunity for students to develop fluency through
multiple readings of the text by using expressiveness, intonation, and inflection when rehearsing the
text.

Kimbell-Lopez, K. (2003). Just think of the possibilities: Formats for reading instruction in the elementary
classroom.Reading Online, 6. Available: http://www.readingonline.org/articles/art_index.asp?HREF=kimbelllopez/index.html