Fluency
Adjust and apply different reading rates to match text
Students read most material at their own consistent rate. They also know when and how to use different speeds based on the types of texts and their purpose for reading.
Our approach to effective classroom management, formerly Daily 5 and CAFE.
Ready-to-use lessons, tools and downloads to help teachers today.
Students read most material at their own consistent rate. They also know when and how to use different speeds based on the types of texts and their purpose for reading.
If you see readers who . . .
Some readers have yet to learn how to adjust their reading rate or are unaware that other readers adjust their rate to match their purpose for reading. Because these readers read everything at the same rate, they struggle to complete and comprehend lengthy text or may miss the nuances of meaning revealed through the appropriate cadence and prosody.
You have to think about the text you are reading and ask yourself, What is my knowledge of this type of text? What do I know about the subject of the text? Then, adjust your reading speed by slowing down for challenging content and speeding up for easier reading.
We typically begin teaching readers about rate by using Carver's (1990) analogy of reading. He compares reading rate to shifting the gears on a car. We explain that the low gears are slow and powerful, whereas higher gears are speedy but are less powerful. Just as we can move faster or more slowly in a car, our reading rate changes according to the purpose for our reading and what we are reading.
When we read, we use
Once readers are aware of reading rates and Carver's analogy, we establish this common class vocabulary to talk about the rate at which we read.
Suggested language:
Possible ways to differentiate instruction:
Reconsider materials, setting, instruction, and cognitive processes.
These strategies may provide support before, during, and after teaching this strategy:
Want to hear about this strategy from a student's perspective? Let Kid Teacher, Miss Hadley, tell you—in her own words—how this strategy helps her grow as a reader. We think it will help your students too!
Each book below has a coordinating lesson with an explicit example to teach this strategy. Select a book cover below, then download the lesson to see for yourself. At The Daily CAFE these were called Lit Lessons.
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