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Over the past two decades, reading fluency has been increasingly recognized as an important instructional variable for success in reading. Yet, this has not always been the case. This article presents a historical review of the nature and role of fluency instruction in the United States. The roots of oral reading fluency began in an age when texts and other forms of entertainment and information were limited. Historically, in America, oral reading was the predominant means for conveying ideas and passing the time at home with the family. In the 1800s, American education's primary method of instruction emphasized the need for being able to read aloud with expression and fluency, in order to hold the listeners' attention and convey information. As texts and other forms of information became more available, oral reading became deemphasized, and silent reading was viewed as a better approach to developing readers' comprehension at the cost of fluency development. With continued research and national reports that indicate the significant contributions of oral reading fluency to reading comprehension and academic proficiency, it is clear that the roots of oral reading run deep, and that fluent reading development is important to learners' academic achievement and reading comprehension.

The present exploratory study examined the effect of the implementation of a reading fluency instruction protocol on the reading performance of early first grade students in an urban school. Previous research has tended to examine the effects of fluency instruction after students have achieved some degree of competency in word recognition, usually toward the end of first grade and beyond. The fluency instruction provided in this study included repeated and assisted reading and was delivered daily over a ten-week period in the first semester of the school year by classroom teachers. The reading performance of students in the fluency instruction group (n = 51) was compared with a comparable group of first grade students (n = 27) who did not receive the fluency instruction, though the total number of minutes devoted to daily reading instruction and home reading was equal between groups. Descriptive analyses of pre- and post-testing data suggest that the first grade students receiving the fluency instruction made substantive, but not statistically significant, gains in reading achievement over the comparison group of students not receiving fluency instruction. The results suggest that dedicated and systematic fluency instruction may be appropriate for students before high levels of word decoding are achieved and that fluency instruction may be an effective instructional protocol as early as the beginning of first grade. Given the acknowledged limitations, including small sample size, further research into fluency instruction in early first grade is recommended.

The role of the teacher, specifically teacher craft, is central to engaging students in effective reading instruction. However, the science of reading has revealed that the content taught is also important to reading acquisition. Although the science of reading was aggregated some two decades ago to result in what became known as the five big pillars, it has not been fully incorporated into instructional practice. Subsequent research has continued to inform and strengthen what we understand about reading, and new energy has now emerged to bring the science of reading fully into practice. However, the science of reading and teacher craft are each insufficient without the other. In this article, we discuss the art of teaching and advocate that it must be given serious consideration if the science of reading is to be adopted en masse by teachers. We also discuss several reading strategies and their role in effective reading instruction and the art of teaching.

This article offers instructional suggestions and strategies based on research and theoretical literature for developing reading fluency through the use of rhyming poetry and other texts beyond the narrative and informational texts that have been traditionally used for reading instruction. Readers' lack of fluency in reading can be a monumental impediment to proficiency in good comprehension and overall reading competency. For all readers it is well established that as they progress in reading competence their reading ability grows (Stanovich, 1993/1994). This continued reading success begets continued reading growth; however, many struggling readers have difficulty in moving to a level of automaticity and fluency in their reading that enables them to engage in a successful practice. Lack of practice inhibits their reading comprehension. Readers' abilities to effectively comprehend texts are significantly affected by their proficiency in accurate and automatic word recognition and prosody (May, 1998; Stanovich, 1993/1994; LaBerge & Samuels, 1974; Schreiber, 1991). Repeated reading practice has been shown to be a powerful way to improve these important fluency competencies. Certain texts are particularly well suited for repeated reading that improves both aspects of fluency.

Pavio's Dual-Coding Theory (1991) and Mayer's Multimedia Principal (2000) form the foundation for proposing a multi-coding theory centered around Multi-Touch Tablets and the newest generation of e-textbooks to scaffold struggling readers in reading and learning from science textbooks. Using E. O. Wilson's "Life on Earth: An Introduction" (2012) as a simulation for our essay, we theorize that text, graphics, interactive elements, and audio represent four distinct encoding schemes. Each of these encoding schemes can be used as separate but mutually supportive scaffolds to assist struggling students in reading and learning with science textbooks.

This study investigated the efficacy of the Fluency Development Lesson (FDL) in improving reading achievement in primary grade struggling readers. 30 readers, enrolled in a summer reading clinic, participated in daily 40-min mini-reading lessons across 5 weeks. During the fluency lessons, readers practiced and developed their literacy skills through participation in repeated readings, word work, rehearsal, and performance. Assessments measured comprehension, reading fluency, including word recognition accuracy, reading speed, and prosody. Control students also took the pre- and post-intervention tests; their performance did not change with repeated testing. The Fluency Development Lesson students showed significant gains on all measures.

Poetry can help develop in students a love for reading, writing, and playing with language, yet it is often a neglected literary form in many reading curricula. Those who see the value of poetry recognize it as the perfect genre for teaching phonics, fluency, and a love of language. The rhyming, rhythmical language of poetry provides the perfect backdrop for teaching word families (rimes/phonograms). Poetry also helps young readers develop fluency through the use of beautiful, melodic language that begs to be read repeatedly, which helps develop prosody and a lifelong love for literacy. The thoughtful selection of words also provides the right context for vocabulary development and critical thinking. However, for teachers who love poetry, the most important reason to use this text type may simply be that it works!

Current professional development efforts in writing at the secondary level have not resulted in student improvement on large-scale writing assessments. To maximize funding resources and instructional time, school leaders need a way to determine professional development content for writing teachers that aligns with specific student outcomes. The present study addressed this need by triangulating data from 3 sources to identify student-centered professional development needs for writing teachers and discrepancies between teachers' stated beliefs and actual classroom practices in writing instruction. Results revealed inconsistencies between teachers' stated beliefs and practices in terms of teaching grammar and conventions in the context of writing and providing formative feedback to students during writing instruction. Although the results of this study are specific to the focal school, experts can apply the process of collecting and analyzing multiple forms of data to determine the quality and needs of secondary writing programs in other schools.

Research has indicated that a large percentage of primary-grade students who struggle in reading have not achieved full competency in the foundational reading competencies (word recognition and fluency). In this article, the author argues that more intensive instruction of the foundational competencies is needed and proposes a simple lesson approach that may help improve the reading outcomes of students who struggle.

The Common Core State Standards suggest that an appropriate goal for secondary education is college and career readiness. Previous research has identified reading fluency as a critical component for proficient reading. One component of fluency is word recognition accuracy and automaticity. The present study attempted to determine the word recognition accuracy and automaticity indicators for incoming college students and to examine the relationship between oral reading rate and ACT scores. Knowledge of such performance may provide secondary literacy educators with another tool for assessing reading proficiency and college readiness. Eighty-one students were asked to read a college-level narrative passage. Mean student accuracy and automacity scores were determined, as well as correlations between accuracy, automacity, and students' ACT scores. Results suggest a moderate and significant relationship between measures of automaticity and both the ACT reading subtest and ACT composite scores.

This article examines the efficacy of the implementation of a program titled Consensus Initiative [pseudonym] in an urban school district that served 20,000 linguistically, economically, and racially diverse students situated in the northeast region of the United States. Using a research derived ecological framework from the school reform literature, the present study explored how inefficiencies within and across schooling ecologies culminated in what we term as "reform stall." This article concludes with a discussion of recommendations that reformers, and districts should consider to increase the prospect of effective implementation of urban school reforms and minimize the likelihood of a reform stall.

In this article the authors integrate literacy with classroom-based technologies to create a student produced movie. The authors explain the steps to classroom movie production that deepens students' comprehension, engages students' in purposeful writing, and utilizes new technologies. (Contains 6 figures.)

Although reading fluency has been identified as a critical element in successful literacy curricula for elementary students, fluency has been relatively neglected beyond the elementary grades. Prior research has shown that word recognition automaticity (one component of fluency) is strongly associated with overall reading proficiency among secondary students. Prosody (expressive oral reading; the other component of fluency) has not been previously studied with secondary students. The present study examines the relationship between oral prosody and silent reading comprehension among secondary students. Findings indicate a strong association between prosody and silent reading comprehension. Moreover, a significant number of students have not achieved even a minimally acceptable level of prosody in their reading. Based on these and previous studies into fluency and secondary students' reading, we argue that fluency be made an integral part of reading instruction for secondary students struggling in reading. (Contains 2 tables, 1 figure, and 3 resources.)

This article explores problems that have surfaced in the teaching of reading fluency and how teachers and reading coaches can resolve those problems. Specific issues addressed include reading fluency being defined as reading fast and instruction that is focused on having students read fast, reading fluency viewed as solely and oral reading activity, reading fluency seen as an issue only for the primary grades, and reading fluency instruction viewed as a distinct form of reading instruction not integral to authentic reading that focuses on meaning. The author makes the case for an authentic, meaning-based, and comprehensive approach to fluency instruction that is integral part of the core reading program.

Using primary sources with students has untapped potential for expanding and deepening the reading experiences of elementary and middle grade students. Primary sources expands teachers' palette of reading materials, allows students to connect more closely to topics for learning, and deepens their understanding of the past. This article argues for the inclusion of more primary sources as a way to expand students' world knowledge and develop their critical thinking skills. In addition, using primary sources is one way to support teachers in meeting the new common core state standards. Benefits of using primary sources and how to analyze primary documents are highlighted. Ideas for primary source collections and working with students are shared.

In this article, the authors make a case for teaching vocabulary in the elementary grades through a focus on the morphological structure of words, in particular English words that are derived through Latin and Greek roots and affixes. The authors present a set of engaging instructional ideas for the use of Latin and Greek derivations to teach vocabulary and provide classroom-based examples of how a morphological-based vocabulary program can be implemented and its impact on students and teachers.

The authors suggest using scripting as a strategy to mentor and enhance author's voice in writing. Through gradual release, students use authentic literature as a model for writing with voice. The authors also propose possible extensions for independent practice, integration across content areas, and tips for evaluation.

In this article, the authors offer small changes in home-school relationships that can make a big difference in family involvement in schools. The ideas they offer in this article are neither time-consuming nor terribly complex. Some ideas can easily be implemented by a single teacher, whereas others may be more efficiently completed by committees or even entire school faculties. However, each idea can make a big difference in how welcome parents and other family members feel when they visit their children's classroom or school and when they communicate with school personnel. This feeling of being welcomed can set the stage for authentic family-school partnerships to flourish. (Contains 1 table.)

Summer reading loss is a documented reality for many students. It is often of greatest concern for those who are already at risk, who typically have limited access to reading materials at home and whose parents or caregivers may be reluctant or unsure of how to help. By raising parents' awareness of the importance of supporting their children's reading development during vacation periods and by providing concrete guidelines on how to do so, teachers and students may be better able to pick up instead of starting from scratch when the next school year begins. (Contains 1 table.)

With the publication of the report of the National Reading Panel (National Institute for Child Health and Human Development [NICHD], 2000), reading fluency has become more recognized as a key element in successful reading programs in the primary grades. This article describes a study that assessed the decoding accuracy and fluency levels of a large group of ninth-grade students from a moderate-sized urban district in the U.S. Midwest. In this study, fluency was defined as students' reading rate. The findings suggest that lack of reading fluency, an instructional goal of the reading curriculum that has not traditionally been given importance in secondary schools, may be one important cause for reading comprehension difficulties among secondary school students. Some attention to fluency for those students who are not fluent readers offers promise of significant improvements in reading comprehension and overall academic performance across the content areas.

Reading fluency has been identified as a key goal for the elementary school reading curriculum. Despite its theoretical importance in reading development and research that has demonstrated its effectiveness in improving reading performance, many teachers are not familiar with effective methods of instruction for reading fluency and ways for integrating reading fluency with the overall classroom reading curriculum. This article details the three-year journey of one fourth-grade teacher to make reading fluency an integral part of her reading curriculum. Using Readers Theatre, partner reading, writer's craft passages, and a limited focus on timed readings helped her develop a fluency curriculum that students found engaging and productive. Data from three years of implementation of the fluency curriculum indicate that students have made substantial gains in various aspects of reading development. Moreover, those gains have been greater than those found in years prior to the implementation and integration of fluency instruction with the reading curriculum.