Practical Tips for Big Improvements in Student Fluency With Aylin Claahsen

Sara
Hey there I am so glad you are joining us today. This is our third episode in our Big Five series. We are taking five weeks to dig deep into each of the five pillars of reading. So we have been covering topics like phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

Sara
And today we are going to talk all about fluency. I’m so excited because I am joined by my good friend Aylin Claahsen, who is the creator behind Literacy with Aylin Claahsen. And if you’ve been a longtime listener of the podcast, then you’ve actually heard from Aylin before, she’s been on a couple other times, which means that you know, she is super knowledgeable with all things literacy, and she always has really easy to implement strategies that you can start using right away.

Sara
Now Aylin is a fluency fanatic. She is like my one friend that if I have a fluency question, she is always who I go to first. And she really loves empowering teachers with practical ways that they can help their students become more fluent readers. So let’s go ahead and jump into today’s episode.

Sara
Hi, Aylin, welcome back to the show. I am so excited to have you on today.

Aylin
Hi Sara. I’m so happy to be here.

Sara
So Aylin was my very first guest on the podcast. I think it was back in 2021. You came on and then she came on again last fall. So you are technically my first guest that has been on three times. You’re my first three peat guest.

Aylin
Well, I am honored. I love coming out here to chat with you.

Sara
Well, I was gonna say we’re so Aylin and I also are in real life friends. And we message on Voxer quite often almost daily. And we usually talk a lot about literacy. We’re both just like avid literacy fans, we’re reading things and learning things and asking questions about things.

Sara
So I feel like so often the conversations that we have on Voxer it’s like, oh, this would be a good podcast episode or hey, let’s talk about on the podcast. So this is going to seem like a normal conversation for you and I to have in my audience just gets to listen in on it.

Aylin
Yes, absolutely. We always have good things to share with each other.

Sara
So Aylin is my friend who I consider to be a fluency expert. Anytime I have a fluency question, I send Aylin a message. I’m like, Hey, tell me about this. Is this accurate? What resources can I go to? So she knows a lot about fluency.

Sara
In fact, the first time that she came on the podcast was a year ago. And she talked a lot about fluency. And we’re going to kind of continue that conversation. Before we really dig into sort of the main focus, can we just talk a little bit about like, what fluency is and why it is so important for students? I think, especially in upper elementary.

Aylin
Yeah, so I feel like fluency is kind of making like a having a little moment, which I feel like I’ve been talking about it talking about talking about for years. And I’m like, Oh, I hear other people talking about that, too.

Aylin
So fluency really is made up of a few major components when it comes to reading. So it’s the ability to read accurately to read at like a good pace, use expression and to have smooth reading. And the reason it’s so important, especially for upper elementary is because it’s making that connection between students being word decoders, and then actually being able to comprehend so it’s really like this bridge that takes them from like, I can read these words. And I’m crossing the bridge. And I’m going to understand when I’m reading too.

Aylin
Because when students are able to put all those things together, you can see that they’re actually understanding the text that they’re reading, which we know is the ultimate goal. It doesn’t matter what they’re picking up, whether it’s nonfiction, fiction, one of your social studies text, whatever it’s like, you just want them to actually understand what they’re reading, because otherwise, it’s just fluff that they’re going through, and it has no actual purpose. So fluency connects everything together, and makes students really shine as readers.

Sara
I love that. And I so this is obviously part of our series that we’re doing on the big five and one of the things that has been so fun kind of in all of the conversations is it keeps on coming up how we don’t want to teach reading in isolation, right? It’s like we don’t want to teach like just phonics and then just vocabulary and then just comprehension because everything is interconnected.

Sara
And I think fluency is one of those really good examples though that fluency like you said, it is the bridge. So it really is that opportunity for everything to like connect together and I think it helps both teachers and students really just like understand, we learn phonics, so that way we can fluently read so we can understand the text So I love that.

Sara
Now fluency when I was in the classroom when I was a second grade teacher, we had to do an oral reading fluency assessment, which I know a lot of teachers do. And I think that there’s necessarily nothing wrong with that. But I think a lot of times, speed gets a lot of attention when it comes to fluency.

Sara
It’s like we want to focus in on like, how quickly are our students reading? The whole like speed? Are they reading fast enough? Are they reading quick enough? But I know that accuracy is a really important part of fluency. And that’s kind of what we’re going to dig into today. So can we talk about what accuracy is as it relates really to fluency?

Aylin
Yes, and I’m just gonna piggyback real quick on what you said, with the oral reading fluency. So like, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with progress monitoring, the number of words students can read in a minute, and there’s nothing wrong with benchmarking on that.

Aylin
But it’s like you have to do that much more with that knowledge that you get from it to actually have students, you know, showing what they have learned and what they’re doing with their accurate word reading. So I’m still like, it’s fine for you to do those assessments. I know, schools still push them and they do have a place, it’s just a matter of there are more things to fluency than just saying, like, oh, I read the story really fast, or I got nowhere near anywhere grade level goal, and I still have no idea what it is about either.

Aylin
So we’ll dive into accuracy. So accuracy is the concept that readers should be able to see a word and recognize it automatically, or they’re actually decoding the word correctly. So accuracy in fluency means that students are decoding words with a little error.

Aylin
So that means they’re taking a sentence. And if there’s seven words in the text, they’re either reading them all straight through no problem, or they’re stopping at a word, breaking it down to its individual parts, and then they’re moving on. So accurately reading words, is truly what accuracy is.

Sara
Which obviously, it’s very important, because it’s like, you know, if we’re miss-reading words, we’re gonna miss the meaning of the text.

Sara
I did a session for our members inside the Stellar Literacy Collective. And it had to do with making inferences, but we brought in the vocabulary aspect. And it really had a lot to do with like, understanding words. And I sort of made the point that, you know, even if you are able to read the text, or you have the strong skill of being able to make inferences, if you are missing 5% of the words in the text, or, you know, even three to five key words, you’re going to significantly miss out on the meaning of the text. And so accuracy obviously has that big importance because of that.

Aylin
Yeah, so really, students can improve all of their overall reading abilities and skills with regard to like the grade level appropriate text that you’re giving them in all other subjects, if they’re better word readers. So if they’re accurately reading things that really affects everything that they’re doing from the morning, and then all the way through the rest of the day.

Aylin
And the more immediate and more natural, they become word readers, they actually can then begin focusing on those other aspects of fluency and the other aspects of reading and writing and everything it really just all like goes together. So we want students who are really paying attention to the each word and decoding them correctly. Those are the ones that are working on accuracy, without even really realizing that.

Aylin
It’s like, you don’t say to a student, like, oh, you actually read seven of those words, but you really want to emphasize like you are reading those words correctly, because you’re taking the time to make sure that you’re reading each part of the word. And we know big buzzwords today, like students who have a solid foundation in phonemic awareness and phonics are the ones who are having an easier time being accurate word readers, it just is like, there’s a reason there’s a big push for that now. And it all lends itself again to like being better readers in the end.

Sara
I love that I feel like this is again, just a reminder where it’s like it’s not just about teaching fluency in isolation, it’s really like making sure our students have that foundation of phonemic awareness and phonics, because that’s really setting them up to be successful with fluency.

Sara
We talked about at the beginning, and how fluency is multifaceted, and how it’s really, you know, speed, accuracy, smoothness, appropriate rate, all of that. But in order for students to read at an appropriate speed, or to be, you know, expressive and smooth readers, they have to have that accuracy first. So really, if teachers are wanting to improve students fluency, it all begins with like making sure their students are accurate readers.

Aylin
Absolute. And that’s kind of like what I always say is like, you have to start with accuracy as your first focus of fluency. And then you can get all those other things to fall into place. So like you might have your students who come in and they are great word decoders, and you’re like, Okay, so these ones, like, we can move to the other steps and have them actually sound more natural rhythm that reading or have them add an expression and all those other things, where other ones you really just want to heavily concentrate on like, let’s improve your word accuracy first.

Sara
I love that. So of course, you know, I love sharing really practical tips with my listeners. That’s really what they tune in here for so what are some really practical things that teachers can do to help their students improve their accuracy?

Aylin
Okay, so we’re gonna start with actually focusing on words in isolation. So you need to start here again, in order to build those skills to get kids to be doing it while they’re reading a whole passage or a text.

Aylin
So you’re gonna have them breaking down words. And this can look different depending on the ability level of the students. So a lot of elementary upper elementary students you might have focusing on breaking down words by syllable types. Where other ones, you might have like your intervention, students who aren’t even ready for like breaking down in syllables. And instead, they’re literally focusing on you know, one syllable words, with long vowel teams, maybe they’re working on, maybe they’re working on our control files, whatever it is, that’s very specific to them.

Aylin
You’re going to want to do some sort of quick check in quick assessment that gives you an idea of like, these are the words they’re capable of decoding. And these are the ones that they need more assistance with. Because again, if they can’t do it individually in a word than handing them a text, that’s, you know, for your grade level is going to completely throw them off. And again, they’re gonna get through one or two words and have absolutely no understanding of the text because they can’t actually read most of the words.

Aylin
So you want to have them practicing these words individually first, and then you’re going to have them practice it kind of as like a stepping stone where they’re building up to that and seeing those same types of words. So whether it is a syllable types, or it is the specific phonics patterns, you’re then going to have them practicing it in sentences and phrases and texts.

Aylin
And you can really have it centered on words in isolation for quite a while until you feel like one they can decode the word and two, they actually understand the words. So it’s like a combination of you’re working on fluency with the accurate word reading, but at the same time, you still want them to also understand the words when it’s individual.

Sara
Yeah, I’m sort of thinking about here. What does this practically look like? So is this like writing a string of words on the board, like having flashcards having a page with just you know, 12 words listed in like rows and grids? Like, what does this look like for teachers? If they’re like, Okay, I’m gonna start with words, but in their classroom, what can they do specifically?

Aylin
Yeah, so this would be again, where I say like your good foundation is where you’re starting with phonics. So having students orthographic mapping, as we know, is a big term these days, where you’re having the students really see the words.

Aylin
So let’s say you write a word on the board, this can be small group, whatever whole group, I mean, it totally depends on what your setup is. But again, the easiest way for you to differentiate is if you have a small group in front of you that you know, all of them need help with our control vowels.

Aylin
The term orthographic mapping really is just the process of the student breaking it down in their brain. So you want them to be making all those connections. So like, let’s take the word birthday. Like they hear the word birthday, they know the word birthday, but if they see the word birthday, written in front of them, are they able to break down the word to the individual sounds where they’re saying BA, irth day, and they’re hearing our control about they’re hearing the long vowel sounds, they’re hearing the digraph.

Aylin
And they’re able to then see the different parts of the word and make that connection to like, okay, they know b is the first letter, they know I RS together making the next sound. So it’s literally taking the word and breaking it fully down. So like I said, it would totally depend on what the students working on, like, what you saw that they’re doing.

Aylin
But yeah, this could be you’re starting with two minutes of word work in your small group, and you’re focusing on specific words, you’re gonna say a word out loud, and have the students tried to break it down, write it down, and all those things so that their brains making all those connections. And then you do like the reverse to write it write the word down, you don’t say I saying, Have the students break it down, tell you what it is, cover the word, have them write it, because it’s pictured in their brain. And so it’s like the back and forth of they see it, they hear it, they say it, they break it down.

Sara
I love that. And I also love that it’s like reminding teachers, this could be like something that they do during two minutes, like at the start of their small group. So it’s like this fluency work also is connected to their phonics work. And it doesn’t necessarily need to be an entire huge lesson. It’s a small part of what they’re doing with students at their small group table.

Sara
And also that writing is an aspect of it, right? It’s like when students are practicing that reading, writing connection like that is helping them build their fluency. Again, I always love when it’s like, we can really be reminded that, like, everything we’re doing in literacy is interconnected. And like, serves a purpose for benefiting both writing and reading.

Aylin
Yes, and I’m a huge believer in that, because I feel like I’ve seen so many students who are good at one of those skills, but not all three of them. Like, they can decode the words, but they don’t know what that means. Or they can decode it, but they have no clue like if they had to write it down. So it’s like trying to get them to always be making those three connections around around around is the best way to go.

Sara
Okay, what other suggestions you have for teachers?

Aylin
Okay, so like I said, we’re starting at the word level. And next, we’re going to move into actually applying those decoding skills at a at the next level. So this is going to be an actual text that can be your text that you already have in your classroom like that you have to use it can be passages, it can be poems, whatever it is.

Aylin
But you can do this in a fluency center in your literacy center, whatever you do for like rotations, small groups, partners independently, whatever it is, it’s just the concept that you are proactively having students actually apply their decoding skills in context now so like, they’ve successfully done it in isolation. So now let’s move to like actually applying it to reading.

Aylin
So Repeated Reading is the thing you’ll hear me say like over and over again. It’s like one of the best things you can do for fluency. It’s also the one of the easiest because all the student has to have is something in front of them that they can read. So this is literally the process of them taking a text reading at one time going through reading, and again, reading again.

Aylin
And the reason you’re doing that is because you’re building their fluency. So they’re applying those decoding skills and the accuracy that they were able to do on its own and actually doing it in the text.

Aylin
One variation of this is you can have students do recordings where they are, you know, practicing on their own multiple times, and then they sit down and they just record themselves saying it. And there’s like programs like Vocaroo, and Screencastify. I mean, you can literally, if you have some sort of device that literally just has a record button, that’s all you need. And then students can play it back. And they hear themselves and like, Oh, I thought I said that word, I don’t think I said that word correctly.

Aylin
So they’re making those connections, that’s basically like a self assessment. And they can then go back and correct and they try it again. So like, they’re constantly trying to improve their reading. Now, again, this can also be used for like the oral reading fluency, where you’re like, Okay, you’re going so you know, at a snail’s pace, we need you to pick it up, or Wow, did you just hear yourself read that you read that so fast, you think like someone listening to you could really understand you.

Aylin
So it’s like, those are the times where you can pull in those other aspects of fluency also, but it kind of is like something that students could do every single day, in some capacity, where they’re really just working on applying those decoding skills.

Sara
My students always loved it when they got to record themselves. You know, it’s like a performance type thing. I mean, the technology is so much better now than when I first started teaching. I think when I first started teaching, it was like, we had a microphone and a tape recorder. So, so much easier to do that.

Sara
With the repeated readings is that like one of those things, where it’s like the first time a student reads it, do you want to, like, is it something that the entire class should read? They’ve read it in small group, like, is there any sort of like, the teacher needs to actually listen to the student the first time? Or is this like, we’re really trusting the students like, okay, you know, if they can read it one time, like they can read it again? Or is this where like, the recording comes down? Like how do teachers select the text for the students for the repeated readings.

Aylin
So I like to keep things simple, whenever I can. So things that you have, the students reading in small groups can be used, then in their repeated reading activity. So it’s like, they can definitely be exposed to it before, there’s nothing bad about it being a warm read. So it’s like, if they have already been exposed to it, that’s probably going to make them that much better at reading it. Again, you can definitely use something you’ve never used before. But again, it’s just like, you just want it to be something that that isn’t going to be so challenging for them that they are, again, not getting through anything.

Aylin
So my big thing is to pick something that like they know they can read. So most likely something that was in your small group, it should be something that they are capable of getting through. And then like for the what I like to recommend them is the teacher should always check in with a student on some sort of regular basis, right?

Aylin
So like, No, you’re not going to be listening to every student read every single week. But if you can say like, oh, yeah, I checked in with Sarah last week. So I’ll check in with her again, in two to three weeks, whatever it is, and you can have them do that same text for an entire week. And then say, like, we’re gonna have you read it again in three weeks to me however it is that makes sense to you.

Aylin
And totally dependent on like, what resources you have in your room, if you only have 10 Tech’s available for the entire year, well, then you’re going to have them circled through them go back and do it again, there’s nothing wrong with it just means that they’re going to get better at reading those words. Because again, now it’s more automatic for them. And then they’re going to improve reading it with expression, all those other things.

Aylin
So if you can do a timed quick, one minute assessment on one of those repeated readings throughout the month, then you’re going to have a good understanding of like, okay, let’s set a new goal for next month, I think you should probably work on this XYZ fluency skill.

Sara
Yeah, and I think also too, for teachers, especially in upper elementary, we’re getting those longer passages, it’s like sometimes a passage might be two to three pages, but like a student doesn’t necessarily need to do the repeated reading on the entire passage. So it’s like, you could have them do just a paragraph or like you said, for like, an amount of time.

Sara
So, you know, when we say like, passages, don’t think it’s like, oh, my gosh, my students have to read this entire passage, like three or four. It’s like, no, no, no, and whatever, whatever you have time for whatever makes sense with your specific literacy block.

Aylin
Right, and we don’t want them to shut down and be like, Oh, my goodness, you can make it like choose two parts of this passage that you’re gonna read today. And then you’re gonna read it again, you know, two times in a row and see if you can improve whatever so like, the more specific you can get with the repeated reading, the better it’s going to be for the student.

Sara
Well, in the repeated reading to, I think, can be such a good opportunity for students to build their confidence, you know, even if they’re reading with accuracy, it’s that opportunity to work on their expression and the smoothness and those other aspects of fluency. So it’s like they can see that they’re improving as a reader every time they read it. Yeah. All right, what’s your next tip?

Aylin
Okay my next plan is improving accuracy. So this would be in your daily routine. So I gave you an example like with the repeated readings, but fluency like I have said before, it’s literally it’s part of your day already. And you just might not realize it so like recognizing what are you already doing in your classroom that you can then say like, oh, yeah, this is a focus on fluency, but actually being very intentional about it.

Aylin
So this is like in your read aloud time, whether it’s just like those three minutes that you have somewhere in the day, we’re like reading part of a chapter book to students or if it’s a mentor texts, whatever it is, like really emphasizing, and making that connection back to like, remember when we said the start of your small group, you took the word birthday and you broke it down.

Aylin
So like, oh, wait a second, I remember this word has an arc control vowel set in it, I’m going to end have like taking a second write it down on the whiteboard, tell them what you did to like, break down that word, identify different syllable types, whatever it is to like, you’re making that connection, you can say like, Did you see how accurately I read that word, because I broke it down.

Aylin
So it’s making students aware of the process that you’re going through while you’re reading to them. Because again, during the day, the opportunity to hear a fluent reader doesn’t come up that often, right? So if you can squeeze in just one little blurb throughout the day that makes them feel like oh, yeah, I heard Mrs. Claahsen focusing on fluency when she did this, it’s just kind of gonna get in their head. So then when they’re reading on their own, they can do those same kind of things. And it makes them understand like, this is how I break down a more challenging word if I’m in the middle of reading.

Aylin
So we already said this one, but like the word work and your small groups, you can also then take that same word work concept and have it in literacy centers, or stations, whatever you call them rotations, whatever it is that you have students do like if you’re having them do word sorts, like making sure you’re making those connections so that students are breaking down the same types of words that they’ve been focusing on. So that again, they can become more accurate work decoders.

Aylin
And then we were talking a little bit about the entertainment piece or performance piece. Reader’s Theater is a great thing to use with upper elementary students, it’s great for all ages, really, but this is such like an enjoyable way for students to show off their fluent reading skills.

Aylin
So giving them a chance to first read their portion accurately. So this is like where they’re practicing their parts. So it’s not just like all sudden, they’re put on the spot. But then having them actually like perform a fluent reading with a small group or with a partner, whatever it is, that can be just like a really fun thing for them to do.

Aylin
And then the last thing I have is just like having them pair up with partners, so where they’re listening to someone else read and like, it totally depends on the ability levels of your class. But if you have someone who’s a very good reader, and they’re like, you know, very kind and helpful and that kind of thing, you can have them pair up with someone who needs more of that, like modeling of fluency.

Aylin
And have them basically be the teacher and kind of explaining what they’re doing and do a self assessment of their own reading. And like saying, like, this is how I got better at this. And then the the peer can then kind of learn from someone else other than you.

Sara
I love the suggestions. And I think the point that you made a little bit earlier is how like, you know, thinking about how many opportunities do our students have to hear fluent reading throughout the day and recognizing that anytime that you know, whether you’re reading or if there is another student in your classes, it’s a fluent reader that, like, we highlight that.

Sara
You know, it’s like, look at this word, we broke it down. We’re using all of our like phonics knowledge to help read that word accurately. And reading that word accurately is helping us read the entire text fluency. Like I think so often teachers are doing, maybe probably more than they realize it’s just bringing awareness, I think both to teachers and that same awareness to students, just to our students are a little bit more in tune with that. So I love all of these suggestions.

Sara
It’s like okay, wait a minute, fluency, it is important. But all of these things that you shared are like easy things that teachers can start doing this week, probably.

Sara
I always love to ask, especially I think in upper elementary, when teachers have students that are struggling with phonics, or you know, need a lot of help with accuracy, I feel like a lot of times upper elementary teachers don’t have the resources or the support that they need to properly support those students. And so what encouragement or advice would you give to teachers, especially in upper elementary who really want to focus on fluency, specifically, the accuracy side of it, but they’re feeling maybe just a little bit stuck? Or even not sure where to start?

Aylin
Yeah, so this is, again, what I always go back to like, you’re already probably focusing on fluency in different ways. So just really taken a look at what you’re already doing. And figuring out how can you be that much more intentional with really hitting accuracy hard. So making tiny little shifts will make like the biggest difference, and it’s going to have a huge impact.

Aylin
And the nice thing about fluency is like your students, it doesn’t matter if they’re good readers already. Or if they’re the best readers you have, they all can work on fluency in different ways. So recognizing like, it’s not that it requires a ton of effort from you, but it does require you looking at what you’re already doing, and then making sure that all your students are able to actually improve their fluency in some way.

Aylin
And you might have some students who that that just means like, oh my goodness, now they can read three syllable words like it took all your friends to get here, but now they’re really good at those word decoding skills. And then you might have another student here like when they started the year it was like pulling teeth listening to them get through one sentence like and now you’re like, oh my goodness, now they’re reading so well. It sounds so so natural, and all those other things.

Aylin
So like, it takes a little bit of like focused attention to what you’re doing and that kind of thing, but it’s already built into what you’re doing. I guarantee it like guarantee you’re already focusing on fluency without even realizing it. But now you can be that much more intentional with it.

Sara
I love that where it’s like, okay, just look for what you’re doing and make some very small shifts or small adjustments and those small adjustments can have a really big impact. I love it. So of course, where can my audience connect with you after this interview, especially if they want to learn more about fluency or really anything related to literacy? What’s the best way for them to connect with you?

Aylin
Yeah, well, you can find me pretty much anywhere like my blog, Facebook, Instagram is all Literacy with Aylin Claahsen. But again, spelt totally differently. And then my store is also Aylin Claahsen, and I have a ton of fluency resources. I mean, it’s my thing. So I’ve got lots of fluency resources, lots of fluency blog posts, I’ve got video series, I’ve got all sorts of things.

Aylin
So yeah, if you are, you know, wanting to learn more about the different aspects of fluency and all that you can definitely come my way and find it. I do even have a little mini course on the fluency. It’s called A Fluency File. So on all the different fluency aspects, yeah, so you can find me there, I have lots of freebies to share with you all sorts of things.

Sara
Awesome. I also say well link to all of those and I know islands course on fluency is fantastic. So if that is an area that you want to learn more about, definitely go check that out.

Sara
But of course, Aylin, I love having you on the podcast. So thank you for thank you for being my first guest. And thank you for being my first three peat guests. It’s always fun when you come on because it like I said, it feels like we’re having a conversation back and forth about you know, some literacy topic that we’ve probably chatted about before. So thank you for coming on. I will look forward to having you on again for a fourth time probably sometime, you know, this year yet. So thank you so much for coming.

Aylin
Yes, thank you. I’m always so honored to be here. I know you are sharing all the good literacy tips with our friends, I feel so special to be part of it.