Fluency Timed Reading Assessments
Assess oral reading fluency with a one-minute timed reading to measure the number and accuracy of words read.
Instructional Tips
- Determine the desired reading rate: Use the Fluency Standards Table to review recommendations for reading rates.
- Assess with the appropriate passages: Choose from passages with a range of complexity to match students' needs.
Timed Reading Procedures and Scoring
Materials:
- Two copies of the passage, one for the student and one for the teacher
- Stopwatch or other timer
Procedure:
- Administer a one-minute timed reading assessment.
- Begin timing when the student reads the first word.
- Say the word if the student is struggling to read it after 3-5 seconds, and have the student continue to the next word.
- Follow along and record errors as the student reads, making a slash through words that the student misses or cannot read and writing a dash above skipped words.
Errors include:
- Skipped words
- Mispronounced words
- Word substitutions
- Words in the wrong order (both or all words counted as errors)
- Struggling that lasts 3-5 seconds
Errors do not include:
- Added words
- Varying pronunciations resulting from accent, dialect, or difficulty with speech
- Repetitions
- Self-correcting a mistake
- Stop the timer after one minute.
Instructional Tips
- Write the student's goal rate in the box provided.
- Use the words-per-line totals in the margin to count the number of words read to find the words-per-minute (WPM) rate. Write this number and the date in the chart at the bottom.
- In the "Errors" line, record the number of mistakes (slashes) under Read 1 if this is the first reading, Read 2 if it is the second reading, and so on.
- Subtract the mistakes from the total number of words read to find the words correct per minute (WCPM).
- Divide the words correct per minute (WCPM) by the words per minute (WPM) and multiply this result by 100. This is the student's Accuracy/Reading Rate percentage.
- Record this number in the box.
After about four to six readings, students should reach the target WPM standard for their grade level with an accuracy rate of 90 to 95 percent.
Example:
Words Per Minute (WPM): 80
Errors: 6
Words Correct Per Minute (WCPM):
80 - 6 = 74
Accuracy/Reading Rate percentage:
74/80 = 0.9
0.9 x 100 = 90%
Fluency Assessment Passages
Grade 1
-
Bees
Nonfiction, Lexile 340L -
Bye, Buddy
Fiction, Lexile 310L -
Crunch
Fiction, Lexile 330L -
Farm Animals
Nonfiction, Lexile 460L -
Kickball
Nonfiction, Lexile 570L -
Kim's Flowers
Fiction, Lexile 220L -
Larry's Big Feet
Fiction, Lexile 320L -
Mountains
Nonfiction, Lexile 280L -
The Perfect Puppy
Fiction, Lexile 290L -
Rivers
Nonfiction, Lexile 410L -
Grade 2
-
Beetles and Bugs
Nonfiction, Lexile 580L -
Chipmunks
Nonfiction, Lexile 500L -
The Clumsy Bees
Fiction, Lexile 680L -
The Great Candy Caper
Fiction, Lexile 490L -
The Haunted House
Fiction, Lexile 570L -
Jumping In
Fiction, Lexile 530L -
Malcolm the Salamander
Fiction, Lexile 610L -
The Old Jungle Gym
Fiction, Lexile 650L -
Pet Rats
Nonfiction, Lexile 550L -
Skateboarding
Nonfiction, Lexile 680L -
Steam Engines
Nonfiction, Lexile 700L -
The Sun
Nonfiction, Lexile 590L
Grade 3
-
Crazy Horse
Nonfiction, Lexile 920L -
The First Airplane
Nonfiction, Lexile 940L -
The Shopping Cart Mystery
Fiction, Lexile 850L -
Silkworms
Nonfiction, Lexile 620L -
Surfing
Fiction, Lexile 890L -
The Switch
Fiction, Lexile 890L -
Three-Point Shot
Fiction, Lexile 780L -
The Titanic
Nonfiction, Lexile 800L
Grade 4
-
Emma's Tree
Fiction, Lexile 640L -
Letitia and the Best Bike
Fiction, Lexile 620L -
Polar Bears
Nonfiction, Lexile 950L -
Popcorn and Cotton Candy
Fiction, Lexile 930L -
Space Junk
Nonfiction, Lexile 1060L -
Vikings
Nonfiction, Lexile 1020L
Grade 5
-
Antarctica
Nonfiction, Lexile 920L -
Every Little Part
Fiction, Lexile 860L -
Exoplanets
Nonfiction, Lexile 1000L -
Masterpieces from Mirrors
Nonfiction, Lexile 920L -
The Record-Breaker
Fiction, Lexile 560L -
The Statue
Fiction, Lexile 870L