Reading fluency is the ability to read quickly (rate), without mistakes (accuracy) and with appropriate expression (prosody).

Accuracy is the ability to recognize and decode words correctly and automatically. Reading accuracy begins with an understanding of the alphabetic principle and the ability to quickly and accurately identify letter names and sounds. Accuracy is further developed as students develop the ability to blend and sound out words, apply other word reading strategies, and read high frequency words. Reading accuracy occurs when readers apply word reading strategies to independent reading level texts.

Rate is how quickly and accurately a reader reads connected text (meaning a story not a list of words). Fluent readers read both quickly and accurately. As fluency increases, comprehension increases because readers can focus on understanding what is being read rather than spending mental exertion on decoding words. The opposite is also true; a lack of fluency is associated with decreased reading comprehension.

Prosody is the rhythmic and tonal aspects of speech; the “music” of spoken language. Consider how a beginning reader reads in a monotone, halting manner. This is sometimes considered “robot reading.” Prosodic reading is the final aspect of reading fluency that identifies a reader as “fluent.”

An ORF CBM is a one-minute timed reading test that is used to assess oral reading fluency. While an ORF CBM can be created by the teacher or found on the internet, other measures of oral reading fluency are formal, published assessment

“Curriculum Based Measurement (CBM) is an informal assessment of a student's performance on class curriculum. They are timed tests that compare a student’s performance to a time criterion. For example, a teacher might design a CBM to track progress on decoding rate as part of a reading fluency goal. This CBM might track the number of words a student accurately decodes aloud from a passage in one minute. The teacher or student records the results on a graph. CBMs are typically designed by the educator, but they may be found for download on education web sites, or purchased from a publisher. There are CBMs for many aspects of reading as well as for other educational domains, such as math”

95% Accuracy or higher = Independent reading level: Text is easy for a student to read with few word-identification problems and high comprehension

90-94% = Instructional reading level: Text is challenging, but not frustrating for the student to read successfully with normal classroom instruction and support

Below 90% = Frustration reading level: Text is too difficult to be read successfully by a student, even with normal classroom instruction and support

Running records capture what the reader knows and understands about reading, the reader’s thinking & mental processing and provides evidence of what the reader is able to do

The reader substitutes words that make sense; woods for forest. If the reader substitutes nouns for nouns, verbs for verbs, etc. the miscues inform us that the reading is searching for meaning as s/he reads.

The reader uses incorrect grammar or adds suffixes to words that affect the structure of the sentence; I wents to the store. If a reader substitutes words that do not follow the rules of grammar, she/he is most likely not reading for meaning. The reader could be reading too quickly or may be struggling to decode words.

The reader substitutes words that look similar to the actual word in the text; poor for pool, better for belt. If the reader substitutes words that look similar, she/he is most likely not reading for meaning. The reader could be reading too fast, struggling to decode words, or just reading to complete a task.
With each type of miscue, if the reader does not re-read the text and self-correct errors, she/he is most likely not reading for meaning or is not fully comprehending the text

Does the reader’s word substitution make sense?
If yes, the miscue is semantically acceptable = SEMANTIC (Meaning) CUE

Does the reader’s word substitution fit within the structure of the sentence and is it grammatically correct?
If yes, the miscue is syntactically acceptable = SYNTACTIC (Syntax) CUE

Does the reader’s attempt visually resemble in any way the word in the text (e.g., begins and/or ends with the same letter as the word in the text)?
If yes, the miscue is graphphonically acceptable = GRAPHOPHONIC (Visual) CUE

With choral reading a group of students read a passage together, with or without a teacher. The teacher directs students to read together; fingers are following a long and eyes are looking at the text.

Echo reading requires students to follow along with the text and listen as the teacher reads a sentence or short paragraph. Teachers model fluent, accurate and expressive reading that the student then echoes back. Teachers guide students to follow the text with their eyes and fingers to ensure the child is reading rather than simply copying what the teacher says.

Shared reading is an interactive reading experience where students join in or share the reading of a text. Students are guided and supported by a teacher as the teacher explicitly models proficient reading and prosody. The teacher and students do the work of reading together. This is different than choral or echo reading in that shared reading is an interactive experience. The teacher stops during reading to provide intentional instruction within the text. All students have access to the text which can be above the students’ reading level because of the support the teacher provides in sharing the work of reading.

Repeated oral reading is just that – reading the same text over and over again. This type of fluency instruction provides students with targeted, focused practice. Repeated reading improves accuracy, rate, prosody because reading practice builds reading fluency. The most benefits are achieved from reading text 3 to 4 times. Reading fluency does not tend to improve by reading text more than 3 to 4 times.

Consists of student passages and teacher record forms for grades 1-6. The passages are administered at one time for each grade level.

Assessment of reading fluency is a good overall estimate of students' reading proficiency and a strong predictor of success in reading comprehension.

ORF assessment data can be used to place students in appropriate instructional groupings, identify students who are not making adequate progress, and monitor the progress of students who are reading below grade level and the effectiveness of their current instruction.

Start with the words "please begin," and end with "thank you," so that they don't get the feeling that it's a race.

ORF is expressed as "words correct per minute" (WCPM). To calculate the ORF score for each passage, first count the total number of words the student read in one minute and the number of errors the student made. Then subtract the errors from the total number. 84 words and 2 errors is 82 WCPM.

After calculating the ORF score for each of the three (A, B, and C), grade level student passages, identify the highest, lowest, and the median score. The median is the score that is between the other two.

To determine the percentage of accuracy, divide the number of words read correctly by the number of total words read and then multiply that number times 100. I.e. if a student reads 70 words correctly out of a total of 80 words, the student's accuracy score would be 87.5%. (70/80 = .875 x 100 = 87.5%)

After calculating the accuracy score for all three grade level student passages, identify the highest, lowest, and median scores and enter the student's median accuracy score.

To be at grade level, the student's median ORF score should be within plus or minus 10 WCPM of the 50th percentile on the oral reading fluency norms table. If a student's median accuracy score is at least 95%, the student is considered to be reading at grade level.

A student who scores significantly below the 50th percentile should be further assessed using diagnostic tests that measure decoding skills and phonemic awareness before concluding that fluency alone is the problem. Once the specific reading skill weakness is identifies, the student will need systematic instruction to improve underlying skills and increase reading fluency.