Which WordsWhich Wordsto Teach:to Teach:FoundationsFoundationsof Fluency &of Fluency &VocabularyVocabulary

Elfrieda Elfrieda H. H. HiebertHiebertUniversity of California,University of California,BerkeleyBerkeley

While both fluency and a rich vocabularyWhile both fluency and a rich vocabularyinvolve attention to and knowledge of words,involve attention to and knowledge of words,the words on which initial fluency is basedthe words on which initial fluency is basedand the words of a rich vocabulary differ.and the words of a rich vocabulary differ.

1. The fluency curriculum •With what words are proficient readers fluent? •How do texts support fluency especially for beginning

and struggling readers?

2. The vocabulary curriculum •What is common across words? What is unique? •How does instruction of what’s common among words

support vocabulary learning?

NAEP (Gr.4)

Proficient & Above Basic Below Basic

Fluency and ComprehensionFluency and Comprehension

<80-104

130+

105-129

HUNGRY SPIDERAND THE TURTLE

Spider was a hungry one,he always wanted to eat.Everybody in Ashantiknew about his appetite.He was greedy, too, andalways wanted more thanhis share of things. Sopeople steered clear ofSpider. But one day astranger came to Spider'shabitation out in the backcountry.

Fluency & AccuracyFluency & Accuracy

90

92

94

96

98

Accuracy

1 (low) 2 3 4 (High)

More Evidence on FluencyMore Evidence on Fluencyand Comprehensionand Comprehension

•Buck & Torgesen (2004; www.fcrr.org)

Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) & FCAT:r = .70

• Good, Simmons, & Kame’enui(Scientific Studies of Reading, 2001)ORF & Oregon Statewide Assessment:r = .67

34

5

0-2

WordZonesTM

Zeno et al., 1995

FLUENCY: With What are ProficientReaders Fluent?

Fluency:Fluency: The WHAT of Fluency The WHAT of Fluency[Based on the Gray Oral Reading Test][Based on the Gray Oral Reading Test]

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Grades 1& 2

Grades 3& 4

Grades 5& 6

Grades 7& 8

Grades 9-12

Zone 6Zone 5Zones 3-4Zones 0-2

Hiebert & Fisher, 2005

020406080

100120140160180200

Gr. 1 Gr. 2 Gr. 3 Gr. 4 Gr. 5 Gr. 6 Gr. 7 Gr. 8

Natl. Norms:25P Natl Norms: 50P Natl Norms 75P

Hasbrouck & Tindal, 2005

xx

Typical Oral Typical Oral FluencyFluency Growth Growth

Jan Hasbrouck’s guideline: +/- 10 words

Silent Reading Silent Reading Fluency*Fluency*

050

100150200250300350400450500

Gr 2 Gr 4 Gr 6 Gr 8 Gr 10 Gr 12

Typical: SilentAdequate: Silent50thP: Oral

•With 70+% comprehensionTypical/Adequate Silent Reading Norms: Taylor, Frackenpohl, & Pettee, 1960

A (re)definition of A (re)definition of fluencyfluency

• “Fluency is the ability to read (the vastmajority of the words in) a text quickly,accurately, and with proper expression (sothat meaning is retained). Ultimatelyautomatic and accurate silent readingis what matters.”

(National Reading Panel, 2000 with bolded phrasesinserted)

Fluency Fluency & Texts& Texts

“the evidence is that such training [i.e.,isolated word recognition practice] isinsufficient as it may fail to transfer whenthe practiced words are presented in ameaningful context”

(National Reading Panel, p.3-11)

1962cGo, go,go.Go,Dick,go.Help,help!

1983cCan You Find It?Can the girl find thedog? Can the girl findthe cat? Is the dog inthe doghouse? Thedog is not in thedoghouse. Is the dogin the barrel? Look atthe barrel. Is the dogin it? Can the girl findthe dog? Can the girland the dog find thecat? The cat is not inthe hay. The cat is inthe tractor. The girlcan find it. Can thegirl find the cow? Canthe dog and cat findthe cow? Can you?

2000cThe NapI am on my mat.I will have a nap.Away I go. Lookat that! Wag,wag, wag. I likemy cap. Can Ihave the bat?Will it go up? Willit come down?No, not on thedad! No, not onthe cat! Look atthat! What a nap!

1993cSo Can II can brush myteeth.So can I! I canwrite my name.So can I! I canread a book.So can I! I cancarry thegroceries.So can I! I canbrush my teethand write myname and read abook and carrythe groceries. Socan I!

Instructional Texts for BeginningInstructional Texts for BeginningReaders: Singletons & RepetitionReaders: Singletons & Repetition

0

10

20

30

40

50

Gr1Begin Gr1End Gr2End

62 83 93 0

From “State Reform Policies & the Task for 1st Grade Readers” (Hiebert, Elementary School Journal, 2005)

Features of Unique Words per 100:Features of Unique Words per 100:First 10, 1stFirst 10, 1st Gr Gr. Texts Over 4 Decades. Texts Over 4 Decades

0

10

20

30

1962 1983 1993 2000

Zones 0-2 Zone 3 Zone 4 Zones 5-6 Hiebert, Elementary School Journal, 2005

The kinds of texts that accounted forThe kinds of texts that accounted forsignificant differences in the NRP samplesignificant differences in the NRP sample

Texts with controlled vocabulary were used in 74%of the studies used in the meta-analysis. Of thefour studies that used literature, only one reporteda fluency outcome and, in that study, treatmentand comparison groups did not differ significantly.That is: the effect size for fluency came fromstudies that used texts with controlled vocabulary.

(Hiebert & Fisher, Elementary School Journal, May 2005)

.

Exemplars of Prominent Texts in NRPExemplars of Prominent Texts in NRPFluency StudiesFluency Studies

Tim’s Woods

It had snowed in the night.Tim Baker could tell thatit had without looking outof his bedroom window.

There was always abright whiteness aboutthe daylight when theworld was deep in snow.Tim lay in bed andthought about what hewould do.

The Wicked MonkeyLast Saturday, JanetLord's father drove herand Sally Ann, hercousin, to the zoo. Thefirst place they wentwas to the monkeyhouse. The girls hadheard about andespecially wanted tosee the old monkey,Slick Nick, who playedtricks on people.

Texts for Texts for FluencyFluency

5,000 most frequent wordsLevel F

2,500 most frequent wordsLevel E

1000 most frequent words; twosyllable words

Level D

1000 most frequent words; allmonosyllabic words

Level C

500 most frequent words;short, long and r controlledvowels

Level B

300 most frequent words;short and long vowels

Level A

Level B Texts (i.e., Level B Texts (i.e., GrGr. 2 curriculum). 2 curriculum)

How Animals Communicate

Animals don't talk, but they do communicate. Whenyou communicate, you give information to others. Animalshave ways of communicating that are different from theways that people use. When your friend talks to you, yourfriend uses language to communicate information. In alanguage, each word means something.

Animals do not use words. They use sounds andsignals. Birds sing and move their wings. Some animalsmove their tails. Other animals communicate by moving theirbodies in other ways. Different sounds and signals helpanimals communicate with each other.

This slide (and next 4) are from: E. Hiebert (2003). QuickReads (Level B). Parsippany, NY: PearsonLearning Group. Used with permission of publisher.

Text 2 of a Topic (Level B/Text 2 of a Topic (Level B/GrGr. 2). 2)

The Honeybee Dance

One way honeybees communicate with each other isby dancing. Honeybees do a special dance after they findnectar in flowers. Honeybees need nectar to live. Whenhoneybees find nectar, they fly home to tell the other beeswhere to find the nectar.

A bee that finds nectar moves its wings very fast whenit dances. The bee moves in a shape that looks like thenumber 8. The bee does the dance many times. After thedance, the other bees know where to find the flowers withnectar.

Text 3 of a Topic

Text 4 of a Topic

Text 5 of a Topic

Program of ResearchProgram of Researchon Texts & Fluencyon Texts & Fluency

0

1

2

3

4

WCPM Gain per weekStudy 1 Study 2 Study 3

ContentText

Litera-ture

Statusquo

ContentText

Misc.Texts

Statusquo

Litera-ture

ContentText

Study 4: 24-Week Intervention:Study 4: 24-Week Intervention:Number of Words ReadNumber of Words Read

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Begin End

ScienceNarrative

Hiebert, submitted August 1, 2005

Why is a Why is a ““deepdeep”” and and ““broadbroad””vocabulary important?vocabulary important?

--Vocabulary correlates tocomprehension .66 to .75 (Just &Carpenter, 1975)

--Comprehension comprises two“skills”: Word knowledge or vocabularyand reasoning (Davis, 1942, NationalReading Panel, 2000).

CA: Of 3 reading standards:CA: Of 3 reading standards:1.0 Word Analysis, Fluency, and Systematic Vocabulary

Development

Word Recognition

1.2 Apply knowledge of word origins, derivations, synonyms,antonyms, and idioms to determine the meaning of wordsand phrases.

Vocabulary and Concept Development

1.3 Use knowledge of root words to determine the meaning ofunknown words within a passage.

1.4 Know common roots and affixes derived from Greek andLatin and use this knowledge to analyze the meaning ofcomplex words (e.g., international).

1.5 Use a thesaurus to determine related words and concepts.

1.6 Distinguish and interpret words with multiple meanings.

TX: Of 9 reading standardsTX: Of 9 reading standards• (6) Reading/word identification.

The student uses a variety ofword recognition strategies. Thestudent is expected to:

(A) apply knowledge of letter-sound correspondences,language structure, and contextto recognize words (4-8);

(B) use structural analysis toidentify root words with prefixessuch as dis-, non-, in-; andsuffixes such as -ness, -tion, -able (4-6); and

(C) locate the meanings,pronunciations, and derivationsof unfamiliar words usingdictionaries, glossaries, andother sources (4-8).

(9) Reading/vocabulary development. Thestudent acquires an extensivevocabulary through reading andsystematic word study. The student isexpected to:

(A) develop vocabulary by listening toselections read aloud (4-8);

(B) draw on experiences to bring meaningsto words in context such as interpretingfigurative language and multiple-meaning words (4-5);

(C) use multiple reference aids, including athesaurus, a synonym finder, adictionary, and software, to clarifymeanings and usage (4-8);

(D) determine meanings of derivatives byapplying knowledge of the meanings ofroot words such as like, pay, or happyand affixes such as dis-, pre-, un- (4-8);and

(E) study word meanings systematicallysuch as across curricular content areasand through current events (4-8).

attentiondiscovered

acceptaccidentadvantageargumentaudiencecoloniescommandselectricalenormousexpressionguardednearbyofficersafetystaredtending

dimexpertsherdhorizonimaginationlogobeysstifftropicaltunnelsweaver

antennaeapplaudedbannercarpentercocoonsfasteningfunguslarvaemunchingpenaltypitypuddlequarrelsawduststalksaphidsjeeredparasolswivelteamworknews team

The The VOCABULARY VOCABULARY Curriculum:Curriculum:Words Words ““TaughtTaught”” in HM Gr2/Unit 4 in HM Gr2/Unit 4

The vocabulary curriculum: WhatThe vocabulary curriculum: What’’sscommon? Whatcommon? What’’s unique?s unique?

1. Sufficient frequency to be useful--butsufficiently “unknown” to merit instruction

2. Morphological families--Spanish cognates3. Complex meanings4. Multiple meanings5. Semantic connections• 7,230 “elementary school words” fit into 61

instructional clusters (Marzano & Marzano, 1988)

6. Thematic connections

discover (2ndgrade)

discover

discovererdiscoverable (adjective)discovery

dicovered, discovers,

discoveringcover,

recover

Morphological

discover (2ndgrade)

discover

discovererdiscoverable (adjective)discovery

dicovered, discovers,

discoveringcover,

recover

find (for the first time)find out

learn

realize detect

analyze

trick confuse

knowunderstand

Morphological PlusSemantic Connections

(from Calfee & Drum, 1981)

Greek(and others)

Specialized wordsused mostly in

science

RomanceTechnical, sophisticated wordsused primarily in more formalsettings such as literature and

textbooks

Anglo-SaxonCommon, everyday, down-to-earth words andfrequently in ordinary trade books and found

in school primers.

Spanish cognates

10 Common English Words & Their Latin and Spanish EquivalentsEnglish common word Examples of English

literary/academic wordsLatin root Spanish common word

brave valiant, valorous, valor valere (to be strong) valiente

bug insect, insecticide,insectivore

insectum insecto

dig cavern(ous), cave,cavity, excavate

cavus (hollow) excavar

empty vacant, vacate, vacancy vacare (to be empty) vacía

enough sufficient, suffice,sufficiency

sufficiere (to provide) suficiente

first prime, primate, primal,primacy, primary,primer, primitive

primus (first) primero

mean significance, significant significans (meaning) significarmoon lunar, lunacy, lunatic,

lunationluna (moon) luna

sell vendor, vend, venal venus (sale) venderwash lather, lavatory lavare (to wash) lavarAdapted from Kamil & Hiebert (2005).

Shoreline

beach erosion

ocean habitat

organism composition

survive

decomposition,

decomposing

survivalerode

compose

Thematic VocabularyThematic Vocabulary

© Seeds of Science/Roots of Reading

Picture Vocabulary ResultsPicture Vocabulary Results

Significant differences in favor of the S&R interventionfor both, but marginal on Terrarium items

NMeanPre

MeanPost

EffectSizePost

GainEffectSizeGain

Shoreline Seeds-Roots 342 4.71 5.60 .40 .88 .18

GEMS 148 4.53 5.07 .56

Terrarium Seeds-Roots 342 3.12 3.53 .22 .40 .15

GEMS 148 3.10 3.33 .23

from Pearson, Cervetti, Hiebert, Arya, & Bravo, May 2005

Vocabulary (Semantic Associations):Vocabulary (Semantic Associations):ResultsResults

Significant effects on both taught (shoreline) andnot taught (terrarium) vocabulary, but the effectsize is nearly double for the taught vocabulary.

NMeanPre

MeanPost

EffectSizePost

GainEffectSizeGain

Shoreline Seeds-Roots 342 8.62 12.98 .57 4.35 .77

GEMS 147 8.64 10.49 1.88

Terrarium Seeds-Roots 342 2.80 3.81 .30 1.00 .39

GEMS 147 2.88 3.35 .48

from Pearson, Cervetti, Hiebert, Arya, & Bravo, May 2005

attention*discovered*formedgroupsnoticedreplied

accept*advantage*allowedargument*commands*departmentexpression*guarded*officer/official*tending*

creatureexperts*horizon*

Words THAT SHOULD BE Taught DEEPLYWords THAT SHOULD BE Taught DEEPLYin HM Gr2/Unit 4in HM Gr2/Unit 4

accept* accepted acceptable acceptanceadvantage* advantagesallowed allow allows allowingargument* arguments argued argueattention* attend attendedcommands* commander commandcreature creaturesdepartment departmentsdiscovered* discover discovery discoveriesexperts* expertexpression* expressed expressions expressformed form forms forming formationgroups group groupedguarded* guard guardshorizon* horizontalnoticed noticeofficer/official* officers offices officials office

replied replytending* tends tended tendency tend

Morphological Connections: HM Gr 2/Unit 4

While both fluency and a rich vocabularyWhile both fluency and a rich vocabularyinvolve attention to and knowledge of words,involve attention to and knowledge of words,the words on which initial fluency is basedthe words on which initial fluency is basedand the words of a rich vocabulary differ.and the words of a rich vocabulary differ.

1. The fluency curriculum •With what words are proficient readers fluent? •How do texts support fluency especially for beginning and

struggling readers?

2. The vocabulary curriculum •What is common across words? What is unique? •How does instruction of what’s common among words support

vocabulary learning?

For moreFor moreinformation:information:www.www.textprojecttextproject.org.org