Fluency in reading refers to the ability to read a text accurately and quickly. It bridges decoding and comprehension. A student may “read” or decode quickly but have low comprehension. On the other hand, he or she may decode too slowly to comprehend the phrase. Fluency instruction should support a child’s understanding of how punctuation and intonation affect comprehension.
Stephanie Downey Toledo is a bilingual speech language pathologist in New York City as well as a professor at Teachers College, Columbia University. She has collaborated with the LEADERS project on this module series and others.
Find the playlist for the full set of videos in this module series here:
Find each of the modules from this playlist here:
Reading Development Module 1: What does it mean to know a language?
Reading Development Module 2: Role of the SLP in Literacy
Reading Development Module 3: Phonemic Awareness
Reading Development Module 4: Phonics
Reading Development Module 5a: Myths About Vocabulary Instruction
Reading Development Module 5b: Role of the SLP in Vocabulary Instruction
Reading Development Module 6: Reading Fluency
Reading Development Module 7: Reading Comprehension
Reading Development Module 8: Bilingual Considerations
Please find links to research mentioned in this module here:
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. (2000). Report of the National Reading Panel: Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction. (NIH Publication No. 00-4769). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
