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Rationale: While decoding is crucial to a child’s reading success, it can often be a grueling, slow process, especially at the beginning. Slow reading hinders reading comprehension, so it is important for teachers to implement fluency instruction in order to promote faster, more expressive and skillful reading. Reading fluency is known as being able to read with automatic word recognition, and therefore helps readers to turn new words into sight words. One way to improve fluency is through repeated readings. Repeated readings help students transition from the slow process of decoding to effortless and expressive reading.
Materials: class set of Henry and Mudge: The First Book, Henry and Mudge big book, stopwatches for each pair of students, fluency graphs for each child, fluency checklist, reader response form, smart board
Procedures: 1. Say: Today, we are going to work on our reading fluency! Reading fluently means that you automatically recognize words as you see them. You also read smoothly, in the same way that you talk. Reading fluently is important because it makes it easier for us to understand what is going on in the story while we are reading.
2. Say: I will read the first sentence of Henry and Mudge to you several times. At the end, you all tell me which time sounds the best. H-en-r-y had no b-r-o-th-er-s, oh brothers, or s-I-s-t-er-s. Oh not s(/I/)sters, that’s sisters. Let me try that one again! H-en-ry, oh yeah Henry, had no br-oth-ers or s-is, sisters. This sentence has some bigger words in it, but now that I’ve read it a few times, let’s see how I do on this third try! Henry had no brothers or sisters. That time, I knew the words so I didn’t have to sound them out. Now, let me try to read with my expression. Henry had no brothers or sisters.
Which time that I read the sentence did my reading sound the best? [The last time]. Why was my reading better the last time I read the sentence? Right, because I knew the words and could read in the same way that I talked and with expression.
3. Say: Now let’s talk about a strategy you can use to make sure that you are reading a word correctly. It’s called crosschecking! That means that I used my knowledge from the sentence to make sure the word that I had read was correct. The first time that I read the sentence, I said s(/I/)sters, but I used the words before that word to figure out that the word was actually sisters. When I read the word incorrectly the first time, I knew that it didn’t sound right/make sense so I knew that it had to be something different.
4. Say: Now let’s try reading another sentence. This one has some harder words too. Choral read: Henry had no friends on his street. I heard some people have trouble reading friend, but you used the end of the sentence to figure out the right word. Good job! Let’s read it together again to increase our fluency: Henry had no friends on his street.
5. Say: Before I let you have your own turns practicing fluency, let me tell you about the book that we all will read today. Henry and Mudge is about a little boy named Henry who is very lonely. Like we just read, he had no brothers and sisters, and no friends on his street. One day, he asks his parents if he can have a dog, and they say yes! Henry takes his time picking out a puppy, until he finally decides and names his new dog, Mudge. Henry and Mudge become very best friends, walking to school together, sleeping together, and playing together. One day, Mudge decided to take a walk all by himself. He goes down roads he does know until he comes to a road that he doesn’t know, but he just keeps walking, until he realizes- oh no! Mudge is lost. How will he get back to Henry? You’ll have to read to find out!
6. Say: The directions for what we are going to do next are displayed on the smart board. Everyone listen carefully and follow along as I explain what we are going to do.
a. Pair up with the reading buddy you were assigned to. One of you come up to my desk and get two copies of the Fluency Graph and two reader response forms. While one buddy is doing this, I want to other buddy to count all of the words in the book and put that number on the top of the Fluency Graph form.
b. Take three turns reading the book to each other. While one of you is reading, the other buddy will use the stopwatch to time your partner’s reading!
c. While timing, pay close attention to how many mistakes your buddy makes each time. To help keep track, make tallies like this (demonstrate on white board) for each mistake.
d. Then, the buddy who is timing will do a subtraction problem for the total number of words minus the number of tallies for each reading. That number goes on this line: ______ words in ______ seconds.
e. After filling out that portion of the Fluency Chart, answer the two questions at the bottom of the chart about which turn was the smoothest and which had the fewest errors.
f. Once you have finished timing each other, I want you to discuss the answers to the reader response questions with your buddy.
g. Then, each of you will go back to your desks and write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
h. After you turn in your papers and chart, I will figure out your three rates and place stickers on a reading rate chart to indicate your reading rate.
i. Finally, you will put your completed sticker chart on the fluency poster that is on the wall in the front of the classroom.
Assessment:
Grades will be determined using the following point system:
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Total points: ______/10
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Reading Rate Chart
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Fluency Graph
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Total words in chapter:
Reader:
Checker:
1. ______ words in ______ seconds
2. ______ words in ______ seconds
3. ______ words in ______ seconds
Turn number that sounded smoothest:
Turn number that had the fewest mistakes:
Reading Questions
Name:
Directions: On a separate sheet of paper, answer each question with at least one complete sentence.
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Why did Henry want to get a dog?
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How big did Mudge grow to be?
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How did Henry and Mudge feel after Mudge got lost?
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Have you ever gotten lost or lost something? How did you feel?
Resources:
Mitchell, Lauren
https://sites.google.com/site/mrsmitchellsreadinglessons/home/wild-about-fluency
Henry and Mudge
Rylant, Cynthia. (1987). Henry and Mudge : the first book of their adventures. New York :Bradbury Press,
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You MUDGE Read Fluently!
Growing Independence & Fluency Design
