Learning short vowel sounds is a critical part of the early reading process. Usually, short vowels are some of the very first sounds children learn. Some students will catch on quickly, while others will need more instruction and review. Here are some fun ways to practice short vowels in a whole group and small group setting so that you will keep your students engaged in purposeful learning! Short Vowel Chants – After introducing a vowel, teach your students a chant. Place the words of the chant under a document camera or on a Smart Board so that your students can read while you chant. Practice it many times, add motions to the words, and practice saying words that have that specific vowel sound. Throughout the day, use this chant as a brain break or transition helper. Students LOVE these chants! You’ll even hear them singing the chants throughout the day. Watch our short O chant here. 2. Identifying Vowels in Readers – Find easy printable emergent readers or sight word readers online. These texts are perfect because they are normally very repetitive. Even readers that support your thematic units, which are generally less repetitive, are great for this activity. As you read with students, have them identify consonants Continue Reading
Fluency Overview In the past, fluency was defined as the ability to read smoothly and effortlessly, at a quick, automatic rate (Harris & Hodges, 1995; Logan, 1997). A student’s reading rate and accuracy are very important because less time spent on decoding leaves more time for the brain to focus on comprehension. However, after recent research, fluency has come to encompass much more. It now includes prosodic elements such as expression, volume, phrasing, pacing, and smoothness. When students read with prosody, they are able to capture the meaning of the story or script. Current research supports phrasing, pacing, and smoothness as elements that help develop fluency in students. (Clark, Morrison, & Wilcox, 2009) Students who do not read fluently segment the text and read it word by word. However, students who read smoothly with appropriate expression, pacing, and phrasing make reading sound like natural language (Zutell & Rasinski, 1991). Fluent reading develops when students are able to make their reading sound like individuals speaking as they do in daily life. Although fluency is a large part of reading curricula, it is often neglected in reading instruction (Reutzel & Hollingsworth, 1993; Zutell & Rasinski, 1991). Many teachers refer to traditional methods of measuring fluency. This is usually comprised of giving students an unfamiliar passage and timing their reading while keeping Continue Reading