Curated OER
Irregular Word Fluency, Draw Two
Explore vocabulary by participating in a word fluency game! Utilize a deck of flash cards with irregular words printed on them to play a game. As they show each other the cards, they collect points for each word they sound out correctly.
Curated OER
Magic Tree House: Midnight on the Moon
Take your class to the moon with Midnight on the Moon! Then provide them with this short packet to develop vocabulary and practice reading comprehension. The first page has readers match vocabulary terms to their correct definitions. The...
Curated OER
What Do You See at the Pond?
With What Do You See at the Pond?, young readers explore pond life and practice reading strategies. Learners first make predictions and then read the simple story independently. After a second read-through with a partner, kids come...
Curated OER
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman
Do your young readers know that poems can be performed as a team? They listen to a few examples from Paul Fleischman's book Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices, paying attention to how the how readers work together. They examine the...
Curated OER
Pretending with Prefixes
The book Fortunately provides an excellent opportunity to discuss prefixes and suffixes as they appear in context. The class goes over a list of prefixes and suffixes with the teacher. They then write two sentences; the first including a...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Fluency: Words, Word Sprint
Using a set of high-frequency word flashcards, partners time each other to see how many words they can read in one minute. They place correctly read words in a yes pile and incorrectly in a no pile. Once a minute is up, partners count...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Fluency: Connected Text, Rereading Decodable Text
Using a familiar decodable text, pairs take turns reading sentences. The partner who isn't reading follows along silently, helping if needed. They alternate sentences until the entire book is finished and then reverse to read the other...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Fluency: Connected Text, Express It!
Partners practice reading fluency by reciting sentence strips to each other with proper expression and intonation. Partner A chooses a strip at random and reads it silently, then aloud with expression. Partner B reads the same sentence...
Curated OER
What Kind of Ladybug Are You?
As a class, read different sentences prepared by the teacher, identifying the punctuation that is needed for the appropriate expression. In small groups, have each child assume the role of one or more character in The Grouchy Ladybug by...
Florida Center for Reading Research
Fluency: Connected Text, Readers' Theater
Readers' theater is a fun way to get kids reading with expression and improve their fluency! There is a full script here for The Three Bears with five characters to assign.
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: A Day at the Apple Orchard (Faulkner and Krawsky)
If your class is reading A Day at the Apple Orchard by Megan Faulkner, be sure to use this guide for vocabulary in context. Go over the orchard-related terms (cycle, harvest, orchard, pollen, and ripen) before reading the story aloud....
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: A Pocket for Corduroy (Freeman)
Who doesn't love this book? A Pocket for Corduroy provides excellent vocabulary practice in context for budding readers (although this strategy could be used with any text). Before reading it aloud, go over the new terms: affectionate,...
Curated OER
Introduce vocabulary: Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse (Lionni)
Provide access to new vocabulary words (envy and mysteriously) in context as emerging readers listen to Leo Lionni's Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse. Explain these terms before reading the story aloud and help kids utilize context clues...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Black Bear Cub (Lind)
Kids love reading stories! There are many opportunities to learn new words in context as budding readers listen to Alan Lind's story Black Bear Cub. They focus on seven nature-related vocabulary terms: cub, den, forage, lure, scarce,...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Clifford's Family (Bridwell)
Do you know Clifford, the big, red dog? Clifford takes an adventure to see his family, and young readers join him to learn some new vocabulary in context! Before reading, introduce the four new words: city, county,...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Everybody Cooks Rice (Dooley)
Use Norah Dooley's culturally inspiring book Everybody Cooks Rice to explore delicious new vocabulary in context with beginning readers. The recommended words here are: delicious, grumbling, and gulp; pre-teach them before reading the...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Giggle, Giggle, Quack (Cronin)
Farmer Brown has his hands full with a tricky duck in Norah Cronin's book Giggle, Giggle, Quack, the context of this vocabulary study. This text is available on YouTube if you can't find it. Before reading, introduce the high level...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride (Priceman)
What a fun way to explore new vocabulary words! Marjorie Priceman's book Hot Air: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Hot-Air Balloon Ride offers plenty of new words for scholars to learn in context: amateur, assembled, demonstration,...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Jonathan and His Mommy (Smalls)
Go on a walking adventure through Irene Smalls' touching book Jonathan and His Mommy, an excellent resource to practice vocabulary in context. Go over the walking-themed terms (humongous, pace, leap, and zigzag) learners will hear before...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Swimmy (Lionni)
Learn the importance of leadership as you explore vocabulary in context through Leo Lionni's book Swimmy, which can be found on YouTube in case you don't have it. This text includes some excellent vocabulary words for young readers,...
Curated OER
A Speeding Rocket, a Shooting Star... It's a Racing Reader!
Prepare a gameboard and die-cut race cars to play a fun fluency game. Also create several flash cards to review the long /i/ sound. Then, model reading smoothly and with expression, emphasizing the importance of re-reading texts to...
Curated OER
We love to Express Ourselves: Growing Toward Independence and Fluency
Reading with expression is an important component in developing fluency. Emerging readers learn different strategies for accomplishing this skill through the teacher's model reading of Earrings!. Partner practice is combined with...
Curated OER
Express Yourself
Reading with expression excites listeners of any age. They will discuss different ways to change their reading expression as they listen to the teacher read Froggy Goes to the Doctor. Then in small groups, they'll practice reading with...
Curated OER
Speed Racers
A review of decoding words is incorporated in a discussion on reading with expression in order to increase fluency. The teacher gives several book options for readers to practice smooth and inflected reading, giving a short book talk on...