Fluency Instruction: Research-Based Best Practices

This accessible guide brings together well-known authorities to examine what reading fluency is and how it can best be taught. Teachers get a clear, practical roadmap for navigating the often confusing terrain of this crucial aspect of balanced literacy instruction. Innovative approaches to instruction and assessment are described and illustrated with vivid examples from K–12 classrooms. The book debunks common misconceptions about fluency and clarifies its key role in comprehension. Effective practices are presented for developing fluency in specific populations, including English language learners, adolescents, and struggling readers.

 

New to This Edition

*Reflects advances in fluency research and the ongoing development of exemplary instructional approaches.

*Three new chapters on English language learners.

*Chapters on adolescent fluency, reading expressiveness, oral reading instruction, and text selection.

Timothy Rasinski, PhD, is Professor of Literacy Education at Kent State University. His scholarly interests include reading fluency and word study, reading in the elementary and middle grades, and readers who struggle. Dr. Rasinski has received the A. B. Herr and Laureate Awards from the College Reading Association and is an elected member of the International Reading Hall of Fame.

Camille Blachowicz, PhD, is Research Professor at National Louis University, where she has directed the Reading Specialist Program and the Reading Center. Her research and publications focus on vocabulary and comprehension instruction and on working with at-risk readers. Dr. Blachowicz was a Fulbright Scholar in Italy and is Co-Principal Investigator of the federally funded Multiphase Comprehensive Vocabulary Instruction Project.

Kristin Lems, EdD, is Professor of English as a Second Language/Bilingual Education at National Louis University, where she teaches graduate courses for practicing teachers. She has published a number of books, chapters, and articles in both the ESL and reading fields. Dr. Lems was a Fulbright Scholar in Algeria for 2 years and is an English Language Specialist with the Office of English Language Programs at the U.S. State Department.