Improving reading fluency and stamina Alison Bailey Consultant

Improving reading fluency and stamina Alison Bailey, Consultant Trainer 24 October 2019 www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

National curriculum 2013 The national curriculum for English aims to ensure that all pupils: • read easily, fluently and with good understanding • develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information • acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language • appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage • write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences • use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas • are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

National curriculum 2013 The national curriculum for English aims to ensure that all pupils: • read easily, fluently and with good understanding • develop the habit of reading widely and often, for both pleasure and information • acquire a wide vocabulary, an understanding of grammar and knowledge of linguistic conventions for reading, writing and spoken language • appreciate our rich and varied literary heritage • write clearly, accurately and coherently, adapting their language and style in and for a range of contexts, purposes and audiences • use discussion in order to learn; they should be able to elaborate and explain clearly their understanding and ideas • are competent in the arts of speaking and listening, making formal presentations, demonstrating to others and participating in debate. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Fluent reading www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

National curriculum - aims Ensure pupils can… read easily, fluently and with good understanding Teachers should develop pupils’ reading and writing in all subjects to support their acquisition of knowledge. Pupils should be taught to read fluently, understand extended prose (both fiction and non-fiction) and be encouraged to read for pleasure. It is essential that, by the end of their primary education, all pupils are able to read fluently, and with confidence, in any subject in their forthcoming secondary education. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

National curriculum - aims Ensure pupils can… read easily, fluently and with good understanding Teachers should develop pupils’ reading and writing in all subjects to support their acquisition of knowledge. Pupils should be taught to read fluently, understand extended prose (both fiction and non-fiction) and be encouraged to read for pleasure. It is essential that, by the end of their primary education, all pupils are able to read fluently, and with confidence, in any subject in their forthcoming secondary education. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

National curriculum – Po. S Fluency Y 1: re-read these books to build up their fluency and confidence in word reading. Y 2: continue to apply phonic knowledge and skills as the route to decode words until automatic decoding has become embedded and reading is fluent. Y 6: By the end of year 6, pupils’ reading and writing should be sufficiently fluent and effortless for them to manage the general demands of the curriculum in year 7, across all subjects and not just in English… www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

What is reading fluency? A reader is fluent when he or she can read with accuracy, speed, and understanding Bridget Dalton, University of Colorado Fluency is the ability to read a text accurately, quickly, and with expression. Fluency is important because it provides a bridge between word recognition and comprehension. When fluent readers read silently, they recognize words automatically. Reading Rockets http: //www. readingrockets. org/teaching/reading-basics/fluency www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Reading fluency www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Simple view of reading • Decoding and comprehension – two processes • Teach separately and together ‘It is essential that teaching focuses on developing pupils’ competence in both dimensions; different kinds of teaching are needed for each’. National Curriculum • Plan sessions with a clear focus • Main early reading comprehension teaching is from reading to and with children www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Phonics vs. Comprehension “The goal of helping children learn to recognize words quickly and easily is to ensure that word recognition will feed rather than compete with comprehension. The goal of explicitly and systematically teaching children to understand use phonics is to bring them to that point faster. ” (Adams, 2001, p. 78) https: //books. google. co. uk/books? hl=en&lr=&id=afiqt. Id. RQGw. C&oi=fnd&pg=PA 66&dq=adams+2001+phonics&ots=5 y. R 3 QIWGXz&sig=LAy 0 d 4 WIyow 1 ke. Diy. Yljj. Sat 0 u. A#v=onepage&q&f=false www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Scarborough ‘Rope of Reading’ Primary national curriculum - aims Ensure students can… read easily, fluently and with good understanding Teachers should develop students’ reading and writing in all subjects to support their acquisition of knowledge. students should be taught to read fluently, understand extended prose (both fiction and non-fiction) and be Increasing fluency encouraged to read for pleasure. It is essential that, by the end of their primary education, all students are able to read fluently, and with confidence, in any subject in their forthcoming secondary education. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Dis-fluency Teachers know that students who struggle with fluency can experience a variety of difficulties. They may, for example, ignore punctuation and read slowly in a monotone voice, or they may read in choppy start-and-stop rhythms. Often, such readers also have difficulty monitoring understanding and self-correcting. Reading Rockets http: //www. readingrockets. org/article/building-fluency-fundamentalfoundational-skill www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Working at the expected standard Y 2 The pupil can: • read accurately most words of two or more syllables • read most words containing common suffixes* • read most common exception words*. In age-appropriate books, the pupil can: • read words accurately and fluently without overt sounding and blending, e. g. at over 90 words per minute • sound out most unfamiliar words accurately, without undue hesitation. In a familiar book that they can already read accurately and fluently, the pupil can: • check it makes sense to them • answer questions and make some inferences on the basis of what is being said and done. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Working at the expected standard Y 2 The pupil can: • read accurately most words of two or more syllables • read most words containing common suffixes* • read most common exception words*. Fluency In age-appropriate books, the pupil can: • read words accurately and fluently without overt sounding and blending, e. g. at over 90 words per minute • sound out most unfamiliar words accurately, without undue hesitation. In a familiar book that they can already read accurately and fluently, the pupil can: • check it makes sense to them • answer questions and make some inferences on the basis of what is being said and done. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

RESEARCH STUDY RECOMMENDATIONS WORDS PER MINUTE (WPM) https: //www. readingaz. com/learninga-zlevels/assessing-a-students -level/ READING A-Z RECOMMENDATIONS WORDS PER MINUTE (WPM) GRADE RASINSKI HASBROUCK & TINDAL MANZO HARRIS & SIPAY EARLY RATE END RATE 1 80 23 -53 (1. 8) 30 -54 60 -90 50 70 2 90 51 -89 (2. 8) 66 -104 85 -120 70 100 3 110 71 -107 (3. 8) 86 -124 115 -140 100 130 4 140 94 -123 (4. 8) 95 -130 140 -170 130 140 5 150 110 -139 (5. 8) 108 -140 170 -195 140 160 (6. 8) 112 -145 195 -220 160 170 6 180 127 -150 www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Multidimensional fluency scale www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Improving fluency over time https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=7 Y_prk 0 vj. IQ American 6 year-olds reading the same text at different stages of fluency. Listen for evidence of decoding, automaticity of word recognition, reading rate, attention to punctuation, expression… www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Teaching reading fluency www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

‘Phonics first’ • Intensive phonics teaching in EYFS and Y 1 (and then ongoing as required) • Phonemes and graphemes, blending (and segmenting) • Phonics screening check in June of Y 1 • Structured, progressive, decodable texts • Building automaticity in grapheme recognition, common word recognition, and accuracy in decoding www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Decoding – what works • • • Explicit phonics teaching Recognising graphemes (not letters) - the biggest ‘chunks’ - in words Recognising increasing numbers of words on sight • Exclusively phonically regular texts at the start • Adults being pernickety about accuracy • Daily practice in reading aloud • Building reading mileage – each student reading LOTS and LOTS of words, books and text! www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Teaching fluent blending • Oral blending • Sound out then blend • Sound buttons • ‘Smooth’ blending • Magnetic letters shunting left to right • Blending ‘on the run’ https: //www. phonicshero. com/blending/ www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Improving decoding • • Ask child to focus on the word (finger point, or isolate it, if that helps) Support ‘sounding out’: • ‘soft’ phonemes, • identifying graphemes (NOT LETTERS) in order through the word, and what they ‘say’ • working in syllables • blending to make a word • checking if it sounds right and makes sense • • Re-running the sentence so far for fluency and comprehension Rereading texts to build confidence and fluency www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Sight Vocabulary www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Y 2 Standards: Decoding and fluency Teacher assessment: • Read accurately most words of two or more syllables • Read most words containing common suffixes* • Read most common exception words* In age-appropriate books, the pupil can: • Read words accurately and fluently without overt sounding and blending eg. at over 90 words per minute • Sound out most unfamiliar words accurately, without undue hesitation www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Building a Sight Vocabulary • • • (Names) Start with common exception words (CEWs) Teach through phonics, then recognise on sight Different fonts, capitalised, different contexts… Practise matching and speed of response Find them in texts – scanning for them • Increasing number of words recognised on sight www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Teaching Vocabulary www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Vocabulary A wide vocabulary is also key to developing: • accurate decoding • fluency • comprehension Do all teachers and TAs make sure children know what the words they are reading mean? • ‘Clarify’ • Pre-teaching vocabulary (especially for EAL) www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Teaching vocabulary • • In context Identify Pre-teach or point out Discuss Use context Suggest synonyms – substitute Repeat in context Use and re-use, identify, praise… www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Using Books to Develop Vocabulary We consider the best sources for new vocabulary to be… books that teachers read aloud to children. Beck, Isabel and Mc. Keown, Margaret (2001) New vocabulary after 7 years essentially comes from reading: Some children are doubly disadvantaged. Marilyn Joyce (2009) www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Explicitly Teaching Reading Fluency www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Start with modelling and joining in www. pathfinder-education. co. uk Children who are familiar with how written language sounds are more likely to develop fluency as they come to read themselves. Choose books with repeated refrains and predictable language to encourage joining in with the adult’s pace and intonation.

Building reading fluency It all starts with decoding… Phonics, phonics…. • • Automaticity in grapheme recognition Correct pronunciation of phonemes Learning ‘smooth blending’ or ‘on the run’ blending Rereading appropriate texts to improve fluency – increasing number of words recognised on sight www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Appropriate texts to build reading fluency • Child can decode the text – albeit with the need to sound-out some words • Use regular assessment to match the book to the decoding ability – exclusively phonically regular texts at the start. • For a child struggling to develop fluency, take a step back on the text difficulty just to practise reading more fluently. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Fluency – what works 1 • • • Modelling fluent, phrased reading to children Children joining in with repeated phrases Shared, choral reading – NB. Everyone must take part! Echo reading – phrases first, then sentences Paired reading – expert reader and learner read aloud together with intonation and expression • Being explicit about what fluent reading is and why it is important (metacognition) www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Fluency – what works 2 • Supported and independent practice using ‘just right’ texts • Rereading a sentence, once decoded. Repeating if not fluent. • Rereading familiar texts aloud with expression – practice makes perfect! (‘show off’ books) • 60 second reads • (‘Whisper phones’) • Repeat, repeat! www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

One minute / sixty second reads https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=B 3 lx. Gfb 6 -j. I Twinkl 60 second read www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Reading mileage and fluency ‘Maximising ‘reading mileage’ through increasing reading opportunities and audiences for pupils’ • Parents, TAs, volunteers, students, Dof. E, older pupils, reading buddies… • Build fluency: Choral reading, echo reading, paired reading, 1 minute reads, re-reading texts ‘ show-off’ books, ‘Read it like you mean it’ www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Playscripts and poetry • Give a reason for expressive reading • Give a reason for rereading, practising and improving. http: //www. juliadonaldson. co. uk/plays. htm http: //www. pearsonschoolsandfecolleges. co. uk/Primary/Global. Pages/Bug Club. Plays/Bug-Club-Plays-To-Read. aspx www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Silent fluency Use what the pupils know about reading aloud fluently. Show to read silently: • Work down through quiet, to ‘under your breath’, to silent mouthing, to single sentence ‘in your head’ reading; • Practise; • Check and test; • Discuss. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Specific fluency difficulties • If pupils read slowly and in a monotone voice, ask them to increase their rate and add dramatic expression – model, repeat, • If pupils read too fast without pausing for punctuation, ask them to slow down and pause appropriately to reflect punctuation – model, repeat… • If pupils read accurately and at the right speed but without expression, have them vary their voice to communicate the character, plot, and tone of the text – model, repeat, practise, repeat (NB. Playscript) • If pupils read without stopping to self-correct miscues, teach them selfmonitoring and word recognition strategies to self-correct. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Reading Stamina www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

What is reading stamina? Reading stamina is the ability to read for an extended period of time without requiring adult supervision to maintain attention. Reading stamina builds the reader’s capacity to focus attention on the text without trying to concentrate, or feeling they are making a significant effort. The ability to re-engage with the text following an interruption or distraction and to get lost in the ideas without thinking about time should result. Angela Ehmer (Aus) www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Reading stamina today 'Reading stamina is the energy needed to fuel your reading habits'. Lack of reading stamina is becoming a major problem. According to a recent report by the Times Online in the United Kingdom, school students are increasingly losing their ability to read for prolonged periods. Especially when we are inundated with an increasing amount of information in the age of the Internet, low reading stamina can stand in the way of achieving success in the workplace and at school. Those with poor reading stamina usually do not enjoy reading and read out of necessity. They can miss out on a world of increased knowledge, academic and career success, and the joys of reading for pleasure. http: //www. rocketreader. com/newsletter 11. html www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Factors supporting improved stamina 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Value independent reading Use classroom and school libraries Let pupils choose their own books Diminish distractions Provide comfortable reading spaces Advertise great reads Set goals Take brain breaks Hold small group discussions Have children reflect on their own reading www. pathfinder-education. co. uk http: //edublog. scholastic. com/po st/ten-surefire-tips-maximizingstudent-reading-stamina#

Text range and ambition So far this year… How many books have you read in class? How many other books have you introduced to your class? How many books have your most enthusiastic / average / least enthusiastic pupils read? What non-novel texts have you / your pupils read? How many books do you plan to read to your class this year? How many books should each child read? What is your challenge? www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Challenging On quantity, breadth, complexity… How? Do you know what book to recommend next? www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Year 6 Reading Challenge Key Authors Malorie Blackman Judy Blume Roald Dahl Anne Fine Nigel Hinton Anthony Horowitz Michael Morpurgo Robert Swindells Robert Westall Jacqueline Wilson If you are reading another well-known author and are unsure if they are a key author or not, just ask your literacy teacher! www. pathfinder-education. co. uk Classic Books Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland By Lewis Caroll A Christmas Carol By Charles Dickens The Hobbit By J. R. R. Tokien I Capture the Castle By Dodie Smith Just William By Richmal Crompton Mary Poppins By Pamela L. Travers Peter Pan By J. M. Barrie Treasure Island By Robert Louis Stevenson If you are reading another well-known book and are unsure if it is a classic or not, just ask your literacy teacher! http: //fouroaksprimary. net/2018/09/year-6 -reading-challenge-keyauthors-and-classic-books-lists/

Book recommendations Read children’s books Talk to people who read children’s books Go into bookshops and ask Follow book prizes Look at Amazon ‘People who bought this also bought’ Check twitter eg. @Mr. Booth. Y 6 or @smithsmm Ask your keen readers Have a regular slot in your timetable for recommendations www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Building reading stamina www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

The American way… “Friends, I love running. My goal is to run a marathon this spring. A marathon is 26 miles. (ooooooo) If I went out and tried to run 26 miles, could I? No! Of course not. I have not built my running stamina. But if I start practicing now and run more and more, will I be ready? Yes! The same is true for reading. If I asked you to sit down and read for 20 minutes without stopping, could you? No! You haven’t built your reading stamina. Is that okay? Absolutely! Just like I need to build my running stamina, we need to build our reading stamina. It is going to be AWESOME!” www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

National curriculum - stamina Y 2: • They should also make sure that pupils listen to and discuss a wide range of stories, poems, plays and information books; this should include whole books. • listening to, discussing and expressing views about a wide range of contemporary and classic poetry, stories and non-fiction at a level beyond that at which they can read independently www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Stamina in listening too… www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Building reading stamina One minute at a time… www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Building stamina • Tell the children what stamina is and why it is useful for them as readers. • Talk about training for a long-distance run. • Ask them to collect the correct equipment and warm-up appropriately (‘just right’ book, sitting comfortably, no distractions…) www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Reading stamina – where? www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Building stamina 1 • • • Start them reading. Stop the minute one child stops. Mark the time. Discuss the content. Discuss what worked well, what made it hard. • Repeat daily, keeping a record of the time reached. Celebrate! www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Keep a record day by day of how long the class/group was able to sustain reading www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

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Reading stamina – book boxes www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Stamina building in action 2 nd Grade, St. Clair County, Michigan USA: https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=TFN-p_b. O 9 Gc www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Fiction vs non-fiction • Generally fiction requires more stamina than non-fiction, narrative more than non-narrative; • Easier to pick up the threads of nonnarrative texts after an interruption; • Reading fiction is associated with greater academic success. www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Are all types of reading equal? Reading fiction is associated with greater academic success FFT research report Are all types of reading equal, or are some more equal than others? www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Further reading on fluency Practical ideas: http: //www. scholastic. com/teachers/article/5 -surefire-strategies-developingreading-fluency http: //www. teachingwithamountainview. com/2013/04/top-10 -tips-for-buildingfluent-readers. html http: //www. readingrockets. org/article/building-fluency-fundamentalfoundational-skill Research: http: //rse. sagepub. com/content/25/4/252. short http: //psycnet. apa. org/psycinfo/2006 -07332 -002 www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

Further reading on stamina Practical ideas: http: //brownbagteacher. com/daily-5 -launching-read-to-selfbuilding/ http: //www. rocketreader. com/newsletter 11. html http: //lightsailed. com/literacy-strategies/five-ways-to-create-aclass-of-stamina-superstars/ http: //blog. kipp. org/teachingstrategies/how-to-get-better-at-pushups-and-reading/ Research: http: //textproject. org/library/research-articles/reading-volumestamina-and-silent-reading-research-articles/the-forgottenreading-proficiency/ www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

abailey@archbishopholgates. org www. pathfinder-education. co. uk

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