Fluency Phones and Readers' Theater

Works4Me presents weekly practical classroom tips from real experts -- your colleagues!

1. Fluency Phones

From Shauna Hawes, a sixth grade teacher at Valley View Middle School in Pleasant Hill, California:

"My big fluency trick is my class set of fluency phones which are PVC pipes with corners glued on, made by a parent volunteer for a minimal cost. Students read out loud to themselves and can hear themselves clearly, but the room is relatively quiet. This year my sixth graders are spending 5-10 minutes a day reading with the fluency phones. They work on specific goals. For example, for two weeks I had them taking deep, gasping breaths at each period, and smaller breaths at commas. We continue to work on building vocabulary and word attack skills, but the biggest improvement in student reading has been from the students being able to hear themselves read aloud."
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2. Graphic Organizers and Readers' Theater

From Clare Delano, a fourth grade teacher:

"I find that graphic organizers work best when reading for understanding in content areas. After reading a paragraph, I ask the students if there were any important points in that paragraph. If so, we put them in the appropriate boxes on the organizer. Without them realizing it, we are not only teaching them how to comprehend text, we are also teaching them how to take notes. One tip for fluency is readers' theatre. By choosing a play for text, slow readers can take part in choral reading parts. I have found that students love plays and will read with expression. Students who prefer listening instead of following along, are also more inclined to keep their eyes to the text because they don't want to miss their part."
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3. Question of the Week: Team Work

From the Works4Me Worker Bees:

"Lessons often require that students work with a partner or a team. What are creative ways that you group your students? How do you make it fun to pick/find a partner?"
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4. Copyright Confusion

Heard Last Week in the Works4Me Lounge from Lilly Jenkins:

"What is your understanding of fair use of copyrighted material in the classroom? How do you use these materials, and how do they help increase media literacy among your students?"
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