Reading fluency is one of the most important things we teach our students in the progression of reading skills! Being fluent frees up a child’s brain to be able to comprehend the text they are reading. And without comprehension, what is reading even for?
Today, I am sharing how I set up Fluency Toolkits with you all, so you can promote reading fluency all year long in your classrooms! Keep reading to see how you can snag these printables for FREE, and to grab your spot at my free workshop!
Fluency toolkits
You can create toolkits for your students by simply adding a label to the front of a folder or a small box. The folders can be used to hold passages, tracking sheets to graph words read per minute, task cards, etc.
Or, use plastic boxes (like the ones pictured above) to store fluency tools (pointer fingers, timers, highlighter, etc.), along with short paragraphs on task cards for students to practice fluency with!
The labels remind students what a fluent reader should sound like, as well as the purpose of fluency. They are prompted to read naturally, smoothly, accurately, and with expression. But, most importantly, they are doing all of that to make meaning from what they read! I recommend having students begin any task by reading that reminder on the front of their toolkits.
Fluency Centers
In conjunction with the toolkits, I recommend setting up a fluency center in your classroom this year! Building a routine around fluency practice helps students to grow as fluent readers more quickly.
To create a center, allow students to choose texts on their level, or provide pre-leveled passages. Students read the text to themselves 2-3 times to work through any decoding work that may arise. When they feel confident, they can read the passage a final time, and time themselves reading it. Students record the time. They should return to that text on a later date and re-time their reading to measure how they improve.
In addition, students should do a brief comprehension check. This can be oral: students share with a partner what their text was about. Or, it can be written: students briefly journal a summary of the text they read. Always bring the focus back to comprehension, so students are reminded that they are reading for meaning!
Teacher Toolkits
Outside of the fluency center, you need to practice in small group instruction with your students! You can snag a set of printables with ideas on how to approach fluency instruction with your students. These ideas will give you new ways to practice fluent reading while modeling, in groups, and during independent reading practice.
Looking to learn more?
All printables featured in this post can be grabbed for FREE by signing up for my Fluency Workshop. This 5 day email series workshop will provide you with ideas for incorporating fluency work into your daily literacy instruction. If this is an area you’re looking to improve for your students this year, you don’t want to miss it! Sign up for the workshop HERE.
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