Finding Fluency with Fancy Nancy
Growing Independence and Fluency Design
Rationale: For a reader to be successful, they must be able to read fluently. Having fluency in reading means nearly all of the words are in our sight vocabulary. Speed and expression are also results of reading fluency. Readers can achieve fluency from reading and rereading, also known as "repeated reading. In repeated readings, the student decodes and is able to recognize words automatically. In this lesson, students will become fluent readers by testing their speed during their reading. The formula we will use to measure this speed is "words x 60 /seconds". While the students begin to read faster, the teacher will chart the student's reading time. Helping our students improve their reading fluency will also benefit their reading comprehension skills. Reading comprehension skills allow students to better understand what they read and become more successful in reading overall.In this lesson, students will learn strategies and skills they need to become fluent readers. We will be reading the story, Fancy Nancy Sees Stars, by Jane O’Connor. I will teach the students how to “crosscheck,” which is a strategy to use when trying to read an unfamiliar word that the student is unable to decode.
Materials: Class copies of Fancy Nancy Sees Stars, by Jane O’Connor (Cited in references below), stopwatch (one for each set of partners), pencils, cover up critters, fluency checklist (one per student), reading rate chart (one per student), fluency checklist (one per student), clipboard, and white board
Procedures:
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Lesson Objective:
Say: “Good morning class! Today we are going to work on fluency while we read. Fluency is when you read words quickly and automatically with expression.
Fluency allows for us to comprehend a passage and makes reading smoother & more enjoyable! It also helps us learn to read without errors. Sounds awesome, right!? We are going to read the same book three times with a partner. While your partner is reading, you will time them. Each time, you can get better by settings goals for improvement.”
2. Modeling Cover-Up Critters:
Say: “Cover-up critters are tools we use to help us decode, or read, an unfamiliar word. For example, let’s look at the word trip.*write trip on the board* First I am going to cover up all the letters except for the first letter, T. /T/…/t/…t. *Then I uncover r. /r/…./r/…/Tr/ *Next I uncover i. /i/…/tr/…/tri/…/tri/. *Last, I will uncover p. /p/…/tri/.../trip/…Trip! This word is trip. We blended all of our correspondences together to get the word trip. Let’s put this word in a sentence. ‘I took a trip to the beach’.”
3. Modeling Fluency:
Say: “I am now going to demonstrate the difference between reading fluently and not reading fluently. *Write sentence ‘Stars are so fascinating’ on the board*. Let’s read this sentence together slowly, Sssttarrrs arrrre soooo fasssccinatinggg. Was that sentence difficult? Yes? That is because there are some unfamiliar words in it. I bet if we read it a second time, it will be easier. Let’s try it. Sttarss are so fasscinatingg. I read it easier that time, but I still think it took a bit too long. I didn’t read it with any expression. Let me read again. *I will read the sentence with exaggerated expression*. Stars are so fascinating! Can you tell me which one I was reading more fluently? *Class responds* Yes! The third time I read the sentence, it was much faster and smoother than the other two because I read it with fluency and expression!”
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4. Booktalk:
Say: “For this next activity, you are going to read Fancy Nancy Sees Stars at your desk quietly. Fancy Nancy Sees Stars is about a girl named Nancy, who is quite fancy. She is so excited for her class trip to the planetarium. Oh no! It looks like a storm is coming Nancy’s way, will this ruin her day? What will she and her classmates do? We will have to keep reading to find out!
5. Reading Rate / Fluency Activity:
*Next, I will pair the students up with partners and give each with a partner pair a stopwatch, reading rate charts (2), fluency checklists (2), and a copy of Fancy Nancy Sees Stars.
Say: “You and your partner are going to read Fancy Nancy Sees Stars three times each to build on your fluency. You will take turns being the reader and the timer. The timer will time your partner reading the book and will record their time on the reading rate chart. When you’re the one timing your partner, be sure that you hit start as soon as your partner starts to read and hit stop as soon as they are done reading. Record all three of the times on your chart. After your partner has read the book once, make sure you fill out the fluency checklist along with the reading rate chart. This will help your partner and see if you’re improving. Make sure to tell your partner one thing they did well! The best way to improve is to give honest scores and helpful feedback.”
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6. Data:
*I will walk around the room and answer any questions the students may have, make sure they are recording time and notes correctly, and observe reading. *
Once the students are done with this activity, I will collect the data they recorded. This will allow me to assess each student’s fluency and reading rate in addition to how is improved. I will also be able to work with students who may be struggling. My own observation notes will also be beneficial when looking at student data. Finally, I will have each student come to my desk to read the story. I will mark their miscues and take observation notes. I will ask them comprehension questions to assess their reading fluency (attached below).
Assessment / Data Collection:
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Comprehension quiz:
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1. What are Fancy Nancy and Robert so excited for?
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2. What are they going to see at the planetarium?
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3. What is the star closest to us?
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4. Why does the class miss the trip to the museum?
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5. How do Nancy’s Mom and Dad save the day?
References:
“Finding Fluency with Cat in the Hat” by Anna Reid Dove https://annareiddove.wixsite.com/mysite/growing-independency-and-fluency
“Fluency is Fantastic!” by Katy More https://sites.google.com/site/katymooreresearchbasedreading/growing-independence-and-fluency
“Reading is not unbearable!” by Taylor Hoff https://taylordhoff.wixsite.com/lesson-designs/growing-independence-and-fluency-gf
O'Connor, J., Preiss-Glasser, R., & Enik, T. (2017). Fancy Nancy Sees Stars.
