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ELA G2:S2:C11:L54

Fluency

In this Lesson

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Daily Learning Targets

  • Opening A: I can find regularly spelled high-frequency words in a list of words. (RF.2.3a, RF.2.3f)
    • I can read second-grade words that "don't play fair" in isolation.
  • Work Time A: I can read a text fluently (smoothly, with expression and meaning, rereading and self-correcting when necessary). (RF.2.4)
    • I can apply generalizations for decoding words with common vowel teams.
    • I can use knowledge of vowel sounds to help me decode words with different spelling patterns.
    • I can read with appropriate phrasing while paying attention to punctuation.
    • I can read with expression and meaning.
    • I can reread when something doesn't make sense or sound right.

Ongoing Assessment

  • Observe students during Opening A. Determine whether they can identify regularly spelled high-frequency words and explain what makes them "regularly spelled."
  • Exit ticket (see Differentiated Small Groups: Work with Teacher).

Agenda

Agenda

1. Opening (3-5 minutes)

A. Snap or Trap Review: "around," "guess," "through," "good," "they'll," "we'll," "anything," "know")

2. Work Time (10 minutes)

A. Fluency

3. Closing and Assessment (2 minutes)

A. Reflecting on Learning

4. Differentiated Small Group Instruction and Rotations (40-45 minutes)

In Advance

  • Prepare:
    • Snap or Trap Word List (write the following words on index cards: "around," "guess," "through," "good," "they'll," "we'll," "anything," "know")
    • Snap or Trap T-chart
    • Interactive Word Wall
  • Enlarge the selected excerpt from the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo" (in supporting materials).
  • Write the following Rules of Fluency index cards: "smoothly," "with expression," "with meaning," "just the right speed."
  • Gather materials for differentiated small group instruction (see Differentiated Small Groups: Work with Teacher).

Vocabulary

Key: Lesson-Specific Vocabulary (L); Text-Specific Vocabulary (T)

  • contraction, elements, excerpt, expression, fluency, frequently, grapple, phrase (L)

Materials

  • Snap or Trap Word List (see Teaching Notes, "In Advance" above; one of each)
  • Snap or Trap T-chart (one for teacher use; from Lesson 27)
  • Interactive Word Wall (one to display)
  • Enlarged selected excerpt from the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo" (one for display)
  • Rules of Fluency index cards (see Teaching Notes, "In Advance" above)
  • Individual copies of excerpt from the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo" (one per student)

Opening

OpeningMeeting Students' Needs

A. Snap or Trap Review: "around," "guess," "through," "good," "they'll," "we'll," "anything," "know"

  • Begin the Snap or Trap instructional practice:

1. Teacher displays the Snap or Trap Word List: "around," "guess," "through," "good," "they'll," "we'll," "anything," "know" (mix of regularly spelled high-frequency words and irregularly spelled high-frequency words) and a Snap or Trap T-chart.

2. Teacher says: "Some words on this list are snap words and some are trap words. Today, we are going to identify the high-frequency words on this list that are snap words."

3. Teacher asks:

"What does it mean to be a snap word?" (Snap words are regularly spelled, easy to decode, they play fair, they follow the rules.)

4. Teacher says: "Yes! Your job is to find the words that are high-frequency and follow the rules. We call them snap words because we should know them 'in a snap'!"

5. Teacher reads all words listed.

6. Teacher reads "around."

7. Teacher asks:

"Would we say this is a snap or trap word?" (snap)

"Right, and why do we think this is a snap word?" (It is spelled just as it sounds.)

8. Teacher puts the "around" card in the Snap column of the Snap or Trap T-chart.

9. Teacher asks:

"Can anyone find another snap word? Even if you're not sure, grapple with it until you come up with a possible answer." (example: 'they'll' is a snap word.)

"Great! Why do you think it's a snap word?" (because the letters match the sounds we hear)

10. Teacher says: "Yes! 'they'll' is a snap word because it is a contraction for two words we know, 'they' and will.' So 'they'll' belongs in the Snap column."

11. Teacher adds second snap word to the T-chart.

12. Repeat steps 7-9 with remaining snap words. When finished, words will be placed on the Interactive Word Wall.
  • Encourage students to grapple (think deeply) with their knowledge of letter sounds to decide if a high-frequency word is a snap or trap word.
  • Encourage students to read high-frequency words as a whole word. Analyze the word after reading it.
  • Consider color-coding snap words and trap words to visually remind students of their difference.

Work Time

Work TimeMeeting Students' Needs

A. Fluency

  • (Suggested transition song, sung to the tune of "The Muffin Man"):

Teacher: "Can you read this fluently? Smoothly, with expression, please. Can you read it smoothly with expression and with meaning?"

Students: "Yes, we'll read it fluently. Not too fast and not too slow. Yes, we'll read it fluently at just the right speed."

All together: "So now we'll read this fluently. Think about how smooth it will be. Now we'll read this fluently at just the right speed."

  • Begin the Fluency instructional practice:

1. Teacher displays enlarged selected excerpt from the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo."

2. Teacher explains that this is an "excerpt," or selected part, from the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo."

3. Teacher displays Rules of Fluency index cards ("smoothly," "with expression," "with meaning," and "just the right speed") on the board and reads them aloud.

4. Teacher reminds students that these are four important rules of fluency that were mentioned in the song and invites them to think about these elements as they listen to him or her read the excerpt.

5. Teacher reads the excerpt word by word in a monotone, skipping over punctuation, with little to no expression.

6. Teacher invites students to turn to an elbow partner to share what they noticed about how he or she read the excerpt.

7. Teacher invites two or three student volunteers to share what they notice (example: sounded word by word, sounded too slow or too fast, sounded "boring"), prompting them to name specific examples in the text (i.e., naming a place where it was word by word or where punctuation was skipped).

8. Teacher asks:

"Does anyone have any suggestions for how I could make this more fluent?" (Responses will vary. Examples: stop at the periods, pause at the comma, make it sound like talking, say groups of words together.)

9. Teacher reads the excerpt again, incorporating suggestions made by the student(s).

10. Teacher asks:

"When I read it the second time, did it help you to hear the different characters talking to each other?"

11. Teacher points to the card labeled "with expression" and says: "Reading this fluently means that we read with the expression indicated by the punctuation. The author uses an exclamation point and a question mark to communicate how Nell and Sam are speaking to each other. These punctuation marks help us understand how Nell and Sam are speaking, and the expression that they are using when they speak. This helps us understand how they are feeling and what they are thinking."

12. Teacher invites one or two student volunteers to come up and read the excerpt with expression.

13. Teacher reviews rules of fluency: smoothly, with expression, with meaning, just the right speed.

14. Teacher distributes individual copies of excerpt from the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo."

15. Teacher pairs students up and invites them to take turns reading the excerpt fluently and giving each other one star (positive comment naming a rule of fluency that was evident) and one step (a rule of fluency that wasn't evident or could be worked on).

16. Students practice reading fluently with partner.

17. If time allows, consider inviting one or two students to come up and read the excerpt to the group. When they are done, the teacher can invite students to name one star and one step.
  • The word "excerpt" may be unfamiliar to many students. Consider modeling this vocabulary by extending one hand, palm up, and explaining that this represents the whole text in the Decodable Reader. With the other hand, model pulling out a "piece" of the text. This "piece" is the "excerpt."
  • Consider providing individual copies of the excerpt for students to follow along.
  • If students are successfully reading the dialogue with expression, consider revising or extending this Work Time to focus on phrasing. Invite students to read the first sentence aloud and determine what group of words should be read together. Underline those words and invite the students to read the sentence again, reading each group of words together to make it sound "smooth" (i.e., phrased).

Closing & Assessments

ClosingMeeting Students' Needs

A. Reflecting on Learning

  • Emphasize that successful learners take responsibility for their own learning. Invite students to reflect on ways they took responsibility for their learning during whole group instruction or how they plan to take responsibility during differentiated small group instruction. This might be based on their assessment goal-setting conferences, on feedback during differentiated small group work, or on their own self-identified needs. Example:
    • "My goal is to read smoothly with expression. I am going to work toward that goal in small group time."
  • For students who need additional support organizing their ideas: Provide sentence frames. Examples:
    • "My goal is to _____."
    • "When I work toward my goal during small group time, I will _____."

Differentiated Small Groups: Work with Teacher

Suggested Plan: Teacher works with students in the Partial Alphabetic and Full Alphabetic groups. If possible, teacher should also meet with the Consolidated Alphabetic group at least once per week.

Note: Groups not working with the teacher at a given time should be engaged in purposeful independent rotation work. Refer to the Independent and Small Group Work guidance document for more details (see K-2 Skills Resource Manual).

Partial Alphabetic:

  • Students complete exit ticket:
    • Students work with an excerpt from a decodable text using patterns they are working on. (Consider using the Assessment Conversion chart to identify an appropriate Grade 1 cycle and use the Decodable Reader from that cycle).
    • Students use a highlighter to find and highlight punctuation in the text (examples: periods, question marks, exclamation points, quotation marks).
    • Teacher guides students to understand what the identified punctuation communicates to us as readers. (Examples: a period tells us to stop for a moment, quotation marks tell us to make it sound like someone is talking.)
    • Teacher follows the process outlined in the whole group lesson work time to practice fluency with this text.
  • Use the Assessment Conversion chart to determine appropriate Grade 1 lessons and Activity Bank ideas to use in daily small group instruction.
  • Check in with Accountable Independent Reading.
  • Additional Supporting Materials:
    • Highlighters (one per student)
    • Copies of a previous or the current Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo."

Full Alphabetic:

  • Students complete exit ticket:
    • Consider beginning with the silly sentences produced by students in the Consolidated Alphabetic group during Lesson 53. Guide students to review the spelling pattern and then guide them to practice reading them fluently.
    • Students work with another selected page(s) in the Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo."
    • Students use a highlighter to find and highlight punctuation in the text (examples: periods, question marks, exclamation points, quotation marks, commas).
    • Teacher guides students to understand what the identified punctuation communicates to us as readers. (Example: a period tells us to stop for a moment, quotation marks tell us to make it sound like someone is talking.)
    • Teacher follows the process outlined in the whole group lesson work time to practice fluency with this text.
  • Check in with Accountable Independent Reading.
  • See Activity Bank Fluency activities (F) for Readers Theater options.
  • Additional Supporting Materials:
    • Silly sentences produced during differentiated small group instruction from Lesson 53 (optional)
    • Highlighters (one per student)
    • Copies of Decodable Reader: "Baby Cougars at the Zoo" from Lesson 52

Consolidated Alphabetic:

  • Students complete exit ticket:
    • Students reread the Engagement Text: "Baby Cougars Born at City Zoo," focusing on fluency.
    • Students pretend to be television reporters and write a script for what they would say.
    • Students then practice reading the script and conduct a Readers Theater.
    • This can be done individually or with a partner.
  • Look over the scripts with student(s). Analyze parts that are fluent and provide feedback for fluency as needed. Listen to Readers Theater performances and provide feedback.
  • Use leveled readers for fluency practice. (Refer to Independent and Small Group Work guidance document for guidance; see K-2 Skills Resource Manual.)
  • Check in with Accountable Independent Reading.
  • See Activity Bank Fluency activities (F) for Readers Theater options.
  • Additional Supporting Materials:
    • Individual copies of the Engagement Text: "Baby Cougars Born at City Zoo" (from Lesson 52)
    • Paper and writing utensils

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