You know that student in your class – the one who can sound out every word but reads as… slowly… as… molasses? Their decoding skills are solid, but getting through a paragraph feels like running a marathon. When teachers ask me how to increase reading fluency for these students, I completely understand their frustration. It’s tough to watch a capable student struggle, especially when you know they understand so much more than they can smoothly read.
Let me share something that transformed how I approach helping these readers. Jan Hasbrouck says, “We don’t want to help them read fast… we want them to help them read well.” That stopped me in my tracks. Because yes – while we want to increase reading fluency, pushing for speed alone misses the point entirely.
Think about how to increase reading fluency like learning to play piano. You don’t start with a complicated piece at full tempo. You practice slowly, get the notes right, and gradually build up speed. Reading fluency works the same way. We’re aiming for that sweet spot where the words flow naturally, and your student can focus on understanding the story instead of wrestling with each word.
The Truth About Fluency (That Might Surprise You)
Here’s something I wish I’d known earlier in my teaching career: fluency work isn’t just for our little ones. I used to think once students hit fourth grade, we could move on from fluency practice. But as Tim Rasinski (who’s basically the rockstar of reading fluency) points out, how students read out loud directly connects to how they read in their heads.
This makes so much sense when you think about it. As texts get harder – with bigger words and more complex sentences – students need that automatic reading more than ever. Learning how to increase reading fluency becomes even more critical as texts become more complex. It’s like trying to juggle while riding a bike. If you’re still thinking about pedaling, those balls are definitely going to drop!
Let’s Break This Down Into Doable Steps
I’m going to share my favorite approach for how to increase reading fluency. I’ve used this with hundreds of students, and while it’s based on solid research, I’ve tweaked it to work in real classrooms with real time constraints.
1. Start Small (Like, Really Small)
Begin with individual words your students will actually use. I was working with a class studying ecosystems, so we practiced words like:
- rainforest
- tropical
- canopy
- temperate
- habitat
But here’s the key that makes this work: Don’t just drill these words. Make them real. After a student reads “tropical,” I might say, “Have you ever been somewhere tropical? No? What do you think it would feel like there?” Now we’re connecting reading to meaning, and that’s where the magic happens when figuring out how to increase reading fluency.
2. Build Those Bridges
Once your students are comfortable with the words, string them together into phrases. It’s like moving from practicing individual dance steps to putting them together in a sequence. Try phrases like:
- rainforests are warm
- wet habitats
- canopy of the tropical rainforest
- temperate rainforests are cooler
I love this step because you can actually see the moment when students stop sounding out each word and start reading chunks smoothly. It’s like watching puzzle pieces click into place. This middle step is often overlooked when discussing how to increase reading fluency, but it’s absolutely crucial for bridging the gap between word reading and passage reading.
3. Put It All Together
Now comes the fun part – reading full passages that use these practiced words and phrases. This is where you’ll start hearing expression creep into their reading, and let me tell you, there’s nothing better than when a previously struggling reader starts making a passage sound like natural speech.
The gradual release approach is really what makes this method of how to increase reading fluency so effective. Students build confidence at each level before moving to the next challenge.
Making This Work in Your Already-Full Day
I know what you’re thinking – “This sounds great, but when am I supposed to do all this?” I hear you! Let’s talk about how to weave these fluency-building practices into what you’re already doing:
- Morning work? Perfect time for quick word practice
- Transition times? Grab those phrase lists
- Partner reading? Built-in fluency practice
- Content area lessons? Use those subject-specific words
- Center rotations? Create a fluency station
One of my favorite teachers puts her word lists on rings, and students practice while lining up. Another tucks phrase cards into topic-based bins of books. It’s not about adding more to your plate – it’s about sprinkling these practices into your existing routine. Finding creative ways to increase reading fluency without adding more instructional time is the key to sustainable practice.
Consistency is Key
When it comes to how to increase reading fluency, consistency trumps duration every time. Five minutes of daily practice will yield better results than thirty minutes once a week. I’ve seen the biggest gains in students who had brief but regular practice sessions.
A second-grade teacher I worked with set a timer for just three minutes at the beginning of each guided reading session. Her students would practice their word lists and phrase cards, and then move into their book. The consistency of this approach led to remarkable fluency gains by mid-year – much more than she saw when doing longer, but less frequent fluency work.
Celebrating Every Step Forward
Let’s talk about progress, because this is important: fluency growth isn’t always a straight line. Sometimes you’ll see huge jumps forward, and other times it might feel like you’re stuck. That’s totally normal when working on how to increase reading fluency.
I keep a simple audio recording of students reading the same passage at different points in the year. Not only does this help me track progress, but there’s nothing quite like letting a student hear how far they’ve come. The pride on their faces? Absolutely priceless.
One third grader I worked with listened to his September reading compared to his December reading and exclaimed, “Wow! I sound like a real reader now!” That moment of self-recognition is powerful – it fuels motivation in a way our praise alone never could.
Different Students, Different Approaches
While the basic framework for how to increase reading fluency remains consistent, remember that different students may need different emphasis. Some students need more work with multisyllabic words, while others struggle more with phrasing and expression.
For instance, Jamal could read words quickly but sounded like a robot – no expression whatsoever. For him, we focused on marking phrase boundaries in texts and practicing reading with appropriate expression. Meanwhile, Sophia read with beautiful expression but stumbled over longer words, breaking her fluency. Her practice focused more on multisyllabic word work before moving to passages.
Here’s What I Want You to Remember
Every single time your students practice reading – whether it’s single words, phrases, or full passages – they’re building those neural pathways that lead to fluent reading. It’s like they’re paving a road in their brain, and each practice session makes that road a little smoother.
We’re not trying to create speed readers here. The real goal when working on how to increase reading fluency is helping students become confident readers who can lose themselves in a good book without getting tripped up by the words. Because that’s really what this is all about – opening up the whole world of reading to every student in your class.
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Additional Resources
Here are a few trusted books from my personal teaching shelf that have guided my practice and might support yours too.
- The Megabook of Fluency, 2nd Edition: Strategies and Texts to Engage All Readers by Timothy V. Rasinski and Melissa Cheesman Smith
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