Module 3: Mock Memo from a Reading Specialist

Instructional Challenge:

Erica, a fifth grader, reads grade level passages at a rate of 177 words correct per minute, or 30% faster than grade level norms. When asked to retell what she has read, Erica struggles and is able to give little to no information from about the text. Many other children in Erica's class also read well above grade level expectations for fluency rate (or automaticity), but the teacher laments that they struggle with comprehension and using appropriate expression and intonation while they read. What is going on here? What advice can you offer the teacher? Write a memo to the teacher from the viewpoint of the school's Reading Specialist. Give the teacher an explanation for the phenomenon and offer her advice on dealing with the situation. 

Dear teacher,

I always stress to my parents that a child’s fluency rate doesn’t make them a “good or bad” reader.  Fluency is only a piece of being a proficient reader.  I often give the example of one of my previous second grade students who made it into Venture (the gifted program), but always had a lower fluency rate causing her grade to be “progressing towards the standard.”  She never met the fluency standard in second grade, but she could always answer questions and have discussions about the text she read.  She is currently going into fifth grade and still excelling in school and is still in the Venture program.  I would share this information with my students who are reading at an above average rate.   Then, praise them for exceeding with fluency, but explain to them that it is now time to slow down and focus on meaning and make sure we comprehend what we read.  Students need to understand reading quickly usually provides a greater margin for error, and speed without comprehension is useless.  

I would start out by modeling good reading strategies with the students.  Also, point out how punctuation marks help us determine our expression while reading.  Then, I would form literature circles where the students would have time for discussion and learning from one another.  In the literature circles students could use graphic organizers to participate in activities such as; making predictions, making connections, creating summaries, determining the main idea and details, and defining challenging words.  I would provide examples for how each activity should look and take several sessions to guide them through this process.  Also, have them write questions about a book before, during, and after reading.  Then, they can stop throughout the story to ask their questions and listen to each other’s responses.  After students have participated in these activities, follow up with comprehension questions to see what information they retained and understood.  Most importantly, emphasize that we are no longer trying to get through our reading quickly.  We want to take the time to “dig” into the story and discover why the author wrote the story and understand the main idea. 

I hope these suggestions are able to help you develop reading with meaning in your classroom!