All Info About Reading

 Reading fluency is a measure of how quickly, smoothly, and easily text is read.  Fluency means that words are read quickly and accurately, with little or no stumbling.  It allows complete comprehension because less effort is needed for decoding.  More thought power is available for understanding the author’s message.  Fluent readers read with expression and follow the punctuation cues.  They read in sensible phrases, with pauses in natural places.  Fluent readers are able to read aloud without attracting attention to the reading process, and listeners get the sense that the reader has a good grasp of the author’s intent.

Many reading students fall short of fluency.  They read well enough to get by, but not well enough to enjoy what they are doing.  Struggling readers often have a very large gap between the level at which they read fluently and their grade placement level or the demands of their day-to-day life.  Most find this very frustrating, and they will try to avoid reading tasks.  This in turn makes the problem worse, since the main cure for fluency issues is practice!
Research shows that it’s not enough to simply read the words correctly.  In order for a reader to be competent, he or she must read fluently and smoothly.  Therefore, it is important to give attention to each developing reader’s fluency levels.  Fluency includes the ability to read words correctly AND quickly, and also includes phrasing and expression.  If a student has to stop to “sound words out,” reading fluency (and hence, comprehension) is disrupted. 
So what standard should be used for comparison?  Researchers agree that students in mid-first grade should be starting out between 10 and 30 correct words per minute when reading.  By the end of grade one, they should have reached approximately 60 words per minute.  By the end of grade 2, readers should be able to read approximately 100 words correctly per minute and 110 by the end of grade 3.  By grade 4, reading skills are beginning to mature, and readers should hit 140 words per minute, then add ten words per minute for each grade level beyond that up until the beginning of high school.  A fluent adult reader should be able to read at approximately 180 correct words per minute.
If you are interested in learning more about reading fluency, you can read a wonderful and easily-understood article on the internet, Assessing Reading Fluency by Dr. Timothy V. Rasinski.

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