Beyond "Reading Fast": Unlocking the Power of Fluency

Picture this: A student hunches over a passage, their eyes darting across the page, tripping over words in a frantic race against a stop watch. They've met their oral reading fluency goal, but they still don't sound like a confident reader.

This scene plays out in classrooms across Wisconsin and beyond, where the pressure to meet oral reading fluency targets often overshadows the true goal: creating proficient, confident readers. We've become so fixated on speed that we may have lost sight of what makes reading truly "fluent". What if there is a better way?

Dr. Jan Hasbrouck, an expert and researcher on fluency, argues that we are missing the mark. Instead, she challenges that the focus should be on the three essential components of fluency: accuracy, rate, and expression.

The Three Components of Fluency

Fluency is not just one skill; it's an outcome of three distinct skills working together. When we only focus on one- rate- we're missing the full picture.

Accuracy: This is the foundation. Can a student read the words correctly? Without accuracy, a reader can't build automaticity or expression. It's like trying to run a marathon on a broken leg—you won't get far.

Automaticity: This is about reading words effortlessly and automatically. When a reader recognizes words quickly, their brain's cognitive load is freed up to focus on what really matters: the meaning of the text. It's the difference between sounding out every single word and gliding through a text effortlessly.

Prosody: This is the art of reading. It's the ability to use phrasing, intonation, and punctuation to make the reading sound like natural speech. Reading with prosody shows that the student truly understands the text, not just the individual words.

These pillars of fluency, together, form the bridge from simply recognizing words to truly comprehending them. It's a critical concept for anyone involved in education—from principals and instructional leaders to the teachers in the classroom every day.

Practical Takeaways for Leaders and Teachers

It is essential that instructional leaders and teachers are equipped with practical strategies to accurately identify the root cause of why a student struggles with fluency and then intervene with precise and targeted instructional routines.

Diagnose The Problem: The first step is to figure out why a student is struggling with fluency. Is it an issue of accuracy? Are they stumbling over words they should know? Or is it a matter of speed and expression? Use phonics and phonological awareness surveys to pinpoint if word recognition is the real problem.

Align Your Support: Once you've identified the issue, you can provide targeted support.

• For accuracy issues: Focus on building a strong foundation in phonics.
• For automaticity concerns: Work on expanding their bank of sight words and help them retrieve those phonics skills quickly.
• For prosody challenges: Model expressive reading, teach them how to use phrasing based on sentence structure, and use repeated reading strategies.

Intentional Small Group Planning: Use screening and diagnostic data to cluster students by identified fluency need, so instruction can be focused and efficient.

Daily Embedded Fluency Routines: Support teachers in using simple, flexible routines that can be woven into whole-group, small-group, and one-on-one instruction. Fluency isn't a separate subject; it's a routine that should be a part of every reading lesson.

Let's shift the message from "reading as fast as you can" to "reading well." By focusing on accuracy, automaticity, and prosody, we can empower students to become not just fast readers, but confident, skilled readers for life.

At the CESA 6 Literacy Center, we know that improving fluency isn't just about encouraging kids to read faster. It's about understanding the root cause of a student's challenge before responding with a targeted high-leverage instructional routine. This message is the foundation of the Boosting Oral Reading Fluency: Next Steps for Success two-day workshop. Partnering with the Literacy Center, Dr. Jan Hasbrouck will bring her expertise and guidance to Oshkosh as she presents, Fluent Readers, Confident Learners- Fluency Fuels Comprehension and Motivation.

Don't miss these opportunities to strengthen your knowledge of fluency and the strategies used to improve literacy outcomes in your school. Ready to start the work now? Use this simple reflection tool to begin pinpointing the root cause of students' fluency challenges.