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Incorporate Books with Repetition and Rhythm

Tags

ELA: Reading ELA: ^Other Elementary School Strategy

Skills

Auditory Processing Self-regulation Verbal Reasoning Verbal Memory Processing Speed

Incorporate Books with Repetition and Rhythm

If your student struggles with reading fluency

Teach It!

  1. Objective: Students with decreased reading fluency will practice with texts that include rhythm and repetition, helping them develop greater confidence in reading speed and accuracy.
  2. Teacher Takeaways: a) To keep the focus on practicing fluency only, you might have to offer reading options that are below the student's comprehension level. Find texts with predictable vocabulary and clear rhythmic patterns. (Simple poetry books, or children's picture books are good options.) b) For a delayed reader, these types of books might feel young. Consider having students read picture books or stories with repeating rhyme to a younger sibling or pet so it feels more appropriate. c) Let the student choose the book to read out loud and repeat several times. This helps overcome insecurities around accuracy while developing the pace and intonation of fluent reading. d) Pair student read-alouds with audio books where the speaker is clear and uses intonation that you want the student to model. The words should be familiar so the focus is not on decoding but on fluency.

Why It Works (the Science Of Learning)!

Students who are low in fluency, even with good comprehension skills, can have difficulty understanding what they read. While fluency, like comprehension, depends on decoding, vocabulary, and making connections, fluency also depends on rhythm and intonation. Additional focused practice on fluency enables students to develop rhythm and intonation apart from the load on decoding and comprehension. You can read more research on the importance of fluency as a distinct skill.