Fluency Strategies with Flocabulary

I remember sitting in class, terrified she would call on me next. Although I could read, I struggled to make the words come out “smooth and steady.” No matter how far I sunk into my seat, imagining myself miles away, she always seemed to find me. “Amanda, it is your turn to read the next paragraph. Remember to read smooth and steady.” Before I even began to read, I felt the heat cover my face.

Thanks to Flocabulary, my students do not sink into their seats out of fear of being “called on” next. They are now excited to practice fluency through chorally reading our Flocabulary lyrics. Choral reading is when everyone reads aloud together with appropriate rate and expression. At the beginning of each vocabulary unit, before ever watching the video, we dive into our lyrics. We spend a lot of time reading the lyrics, discussing new words, and chorally reading the lyrics as a class.

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Flocabulary is the perfect platform to use when developing fluency strategies for your students! As a class we read Flocabulary lyrics aloud to improve their vocabulary and reading confidence.

Day one:

A new vocabulary unit begins. Students receive a printed copy of the Flocabulary lyrics. They keep the lyrics in a sheet protector in their daily take-home binder. They read the lyrics silently and highlight any unknown words.

Day two:

Read the lyrics aloud while modeling appropriate rate and dramatizing expression (to make the children giggle of course). Remember to stop to discuss each vocabulary word. During this lesson, project the Vocab Cards from the Flocabulary website.

Day three:

Students partner up to read the lyrics and discuss context clues that help to determine the meaning of unknown words. If time permits, we all read the lyrics chorally. During this time, I observe as a formative assessment to determine my next steps. If needed, I model appropriate fluency once again.

Day four:

Finally, we begin to choral read. At times I have the girls read one line, and the boys read the next line, alternating to the end of the lyrics. Other ways we choral read include each group of students reading a line. For example, group one reads line one, and group two reads line two, etc.

Day five:

After we practiced choral reading, we are ready to watch the unit vocabulary video and read/rap along. I never cease to be amazed at how many of my students continue to read their lyrics while listening to the video. We study each vocabulary unit for two weeks before taking the summative unit test.

Over time, my students become confident readers, eager to volunteer to read aloud. 

No matter how you group your students or what type of lesson you are teaching, students are more confident and excited to read when they are choral reading Flocabulary lyrics. 

How are you using Flocabulary to improve fluency and comprehension?