Ms. Armstrong

Rationale:  In enable for a student to become a fluent reader, they need to read fast, smoothly, and with expression, as well as, accurately and automatically.  With this lesson, students will improve fluency through repeated and timed readings. 

 

 

Materials: 

 1. Fuzz and the Buzz- a copy for each student

 2. Stopwatch for each pair of students

 3.  Pencil for each student

 4. Reading Progress Chart 

 

 

Procedure: 

   1. Begin the lesson by telling the students the importance of fluency in reading and also what it means to be a fluent reader.  “Today we are going to practice becoming fluent readers!  To be a fluent reader, we must be able to read words without stopping, pausing, or slowing down to sound out words.  In other words, fluent readers can read words automatically, which can help you better understand the story.  We are going to practice becoming fluent readers today by reading and then rereading Fuzz and the Buzz.  By reading this book, you will become familiar with the words and will therefore become a fluent reader.”

 

   2. “ I am first going to read a few sentences to you and I want you to tell me whether or not I am reading them fluently or not.  Wwwwweeeee aarrrreeee ggggooooiiinnnggg ttttooo ttthhheee zzzoooo. (not fluent)  I say a lion at the zoo{pausing between words}. (not fluent)  Tigers are my favorite animals. (fluent) Awesome Job! Next, lets see if we can practice reading some other sentences fluently just how I did the last sentence, smoothly and accurately.”

 

   3. We are now going to read the book Fuzz and the Buzz with partners to practice reading fluently.  “Fuzz is a cub. He runs outside and is enjoying the sun. Fuzz tugs on some nuts, but it upsets the bees. Fuzz starts to try and run away from the bees! Will he get away? We will have to read to find out!”   It is important to remind the students to cross check when they are reading the story. Also, if they do not recognize a word while they are reading, then they should cover up part of the word and sound it out in pieces. Make sure that the word makes sense in the sentence. If they can’t figure out the word, they need to work with their partner to figure it out.

 

   4. The students will spilt up into partners, each with a copy of Fuzz and the Buzz and a stopwatch.  One will be the timer and the other will be the reader. Have the students read the story and then have the time recorded. Have them keep doing it and keep recording the times. While they are doing this, walk around to room moderating.

 

 

Evaluation: After the reading is done, I will have the students come up to me individually and show me their progress.  Then we will engage in our own timed reading on Fuzz and the Buzz.  During our read, I will be checking for things such as:  skipping words, adding words, saying words incorrectly, and not reading smoothly.  Then I will assess the student’s comprehension of the story by asking them specific questions about what happened in the story.

 

 

References:

• Cushman, S., & Briles, P. (1990). Fuzz and the buzz. Dominguez Hills, CA: Educational Insights.

• Keel, Ashley, Read, Read, Red Dog!

http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/catalysts/keelgf.html

• Larson, Carlie, Lightning Speed Reading

http://www.auburn.edu/academic/education/reading_genie/odysseys/larsongf.html

 

 

Click here to return to Travel Index.