Fluency in Action
Max Speer
May 10, 2012
Reading fluency is the ability to read accurately, effortlessly, and with appropriate expression and meaning. (Rasinkski, 2003) This is very important in education and throughout life. Reading fluently lets the reader focus on the content of the material. This improves reading comprehension, the ability to understand what is being read. Reading fluency and reading comprehension are two of the five Big Ideas in reading. The other parts include phonemic awareness, phonics, and vocabulary skills. For information on all five Big Ideas in reading, you can visit the Florida Center for Reading Research (www.fcrr.org) website. The website has information for parents and teachers. It also has a variety of printable activities that cover all areas of reading.
In my classroom, we have found many iPad apps to help our reading fluency scores. The apps work on quick word recall, timed reading, phonics, and comprehension skills. Many of the apps are in a game type setting, but still cover the reading skills. Here are several iPad apps we use:
- K12 Timed Reading By K12 Inc.
- Reading Comprehension ( K – 3rd grade) By Basic Skills Interactive
- Phonics Genius By Innovative Mobile Apps
- Spelling Zap By Tap To Zap
- Gumdrop! By Chilingo Ltd.
- Aaah! Word Zombies By Brain Counts
- Apple ibooks – Download books, read them on the iPad
