Reading Fluency 4: Lesson 10

Reading Fluency 4: Lesson 10

Lesson 2

Note: Words in white are said aloud by the teacher.

Lesson 1

Distribute “Embrace the Strange” (Student Copy).

Redistribute or have students take out “Embrace the Strange” (Student Copy).

Follow along with me as I read this passage. The title is “Embrace the Strange.”

We will practice reading “Embrace the Strange” fluently. Reading fluently means reading the words correctly, at an appropriate rate, and with correct phrasing and intonation. Reading fluently is not about reading fast but about reading at an appropriate rate. Fluent reading should sound like you are talking. The way we read a text affects our comprehension.

Each lesson will focus on one or two aspects of fluency.

Today, we will practice phrasing.

Now, I want you to get with your partner and read “Embrace the Strange” together.

Using a pencil, lightly underline 3 words you find interesting or do not know as you

read. Partner A will read the first paragraph and stop. Then partner B will read the

same paragraph. Discuss what you read and any words you found interesting or did not

understand. Then follow the same procedure with the following paragraphs until you

reach the end of the passage.

Write down the unfamiliar words that the students have on the whiteboard and try to get the students to work out what the definition means.

Listen as I read the second paragraph. Notice how I pause when I come across a comma, a dash, or an end punctuation mark.

A comma signals to the reader to pause briefly while reading. Commas separate listed items, characteristics, or events.

Phrasing involves grouping certain words together when speaking. As we talk, we

automatically chunk words into groups. This is also important when reading. There are

some words that sound better chunked together, and when this is done, the ideas are

easier to understand.

Periods, question marks, and exclamation marks end sentences. When you see a period, a question mark, or an exclamation mark, you need to stop a moment to show that you have just finished reading a sentence. This pause is longer than a pause for a comma or a dash.

• What is this passage about?

• Why did the author title this passage “Embrace the Strange”?

• Why did the author write this passage?

Let’s practice with the second paragraph. Try to make your voice stay with mine.

Phrasing involves grouping certain words together when speaking. As we talk, we

automatically chunk words into groups. This is also important when reading. There are

some words that sound better chunked together, and when this is done, the ideas are

easier to understand.

A dash inserted in the text usually signals additional information or an example. When you come to a dash in the text, you pause longer than you would for a comma.

.

Now, with your partner, practice using proper phrasing as you read the passage. Pause accordingly at each comma, each dash, and each end punctuation mark. They will help you chunk words together.

Lesson 3

Note: Words in white are said aloud by the teacher

Lesson 4

Redistribute or have students take out “Embrace the Strange” (Student Copy).

Redistribute or have students take out “Embrace the Strange” (Student Copy).

Let’s continue to practice reading fluently. This time we will focus on rate.

In the previous lesson, we practiced reading with appropriate phrasing. We will continue to practice phrasing by learning about prepositional phrases.

Rate is the speed at which you read the passage. Most of the time, reading is done at a normal pace. But sometimes, to add interest, you might read a sentence more quickly or slowly than the rest of the passage. The message that the author is conveying lets you know how to read the words.

Let’s look at the first paragraph in the passage and circle each preposition that appears

before a noun.

Here is a list of some prepositions.

Grammar is important in chunking text. Knowing about prepositions helps to chunk text appropriately. A preposition is a word or word group that usually comes before a noun or before a phrase that acts like a noun. It shows the connection, or relationship, between the noun and another word or phrase.

In the sentence “John went to the game,” “to the game” is a prepositional phrase. Prepositional phrases are usually chunked together. Although these phrases are not the only words you chunk while reading, recognizing them can help with fluency.

Guide students in circling the prepositions, as shown below.

Have the following list of prepositions written on the board, and read them with the students:

Have you ever seen a mole with tentacles around its nose? Or a bat with a face like

a wrinkly brain? Or a turtle with a snorkel as a nose? Believe it or not, these animals are real.Their strange-looking features help them stay alive in the wild.

This passage is read at a normal rate. Reading the passage at a rate that sounds like talking will help you better understand the message that the author is conveying.

about, above, across, after, against, along, among, around, as, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, besides, between, beyond, but, by, concerning, despite, down, during, except, excepting, for, from, in, inside, into, like, near, of, off, on, onto, out, outside, over, past, regarding, round, since, than, through, throughout, till, to, toward, under, underneath, unlike, until, up, upon, with, within, and without

For example, John went to the game. The word to is a preposition. It shows the connection between “John went” and “the game.” Without the preposition, the sentence would be confusing. It would read, “John went the game.”

Lesson 5

Now, let’s underline each preposition with the noun or noun phrase that goes with

the preposition. This is called a prepositional phrase. These words are read chunked

together.

Follow along with me as I read the text.

Let’s practice with the first two paragraphs. First, listen to me read.

Now, it is time to practice with your partner.

Read the first two paragraphs aloud fluently.

Guide students in underlining the prepositional phrases, as shown on the next

page.

Now, read with me. Try to make your voice stay with mine.

Now it is your time to practice with your partner.

Now read the passage with your partners. After you finish reading with your partner, I will call each of you over and you will read to me one at a time. You will read to me for one minute. Remember, it's not how fast you read, rather I want you to try to read how you talk.

Have you ever seen a mole with tentacles around its nose? Or a bat with a face like a wrinkly brain? Or a turtle with a snorkel as a nose? Believe it or not, these animals are real. Their strange-looking features help them stay alive in the wild.

Now, let’s practice reading together

Model reading the prepositional phrases in chunks,

and have students repeat after you. Then read the entire paragraph together.