What Is Reading Fluency, Anyway?

by Donna Wine

In educational circles these days there is a lot of talk about reading fluency. What, exactly, does "reading fluency" mean? Why is it an important part of a child's education?

Fluency is the ability to read and comprehend a text accurately, smoothly, quickly, and with expression. A student who reads fluently has developed automaticity so he understands how to group words together quickly in a text to gain meaning. He doesn't have to struggle with decoding every word but can concentrate on the meaning of the text instead.

Teachers work to increase fluency because it is so important to comprehension. One strategy used here at Chebanse is called guided reading. Young children work in small groups with a teacher who models fluent and thoughtful reading. Then they reread the passage on their own, practicing independently.The teacher gives immediate and appropriate feedback to help the students improve. With older students, teachers may ask that they read a passage several times to focus specifically on reading more smoothly and quickly. Readers' theater, choral reading and plays are also strategies used to improve fluency. In addition, our Accelerated Reader Program addresses fluency. Research shows that fluency develops as children read frequently at their independent reading level which is exactly what AR requires kids to do. Of course, the real goal of fluency practice is improved reading comprehension.

So, you can see why educators are so concerned about reading fluency. It helps students make meaning from text.