Fourth Grade Reading Fluency and SeeSaw

Students will:

• Be able to read an assigned piece and record their reading to measure fluency on SeeSaw.

Vocabulary Words:

1. Fluency: Fluency is the ability to read with speed, accuracy, and correct expression.

To prepare for this lesson:

Before the lesson, teachers must set up SeeSaw accounts for their classes and invite parents to join.

• Please view the TEACHER video on using SeeSaw in the classroom. 

• Students should also know the basic features of SeeSaw.

  • Please view the following videos to decide how your students will access SeeSaw.  Students can access it with email, a class code, or a QR code. 

    •  Student sign-in using email

    • Get Students Started on Seesaw: Sign in with a code

• Here is a student video on how to use SeeSaw. 

• The SeeSaw app needs to be downloaded on student devices or bookmarked on computers. 
  
• Teachers will choose a reading passage for students and upload it to the SeeSaw activities section.
   

• For sample reading passages for fourth grade create a free account at ReadWorks.org. 

• Here is an example of a 4th-grade reading passage from ReadWorks:

           Inside and Outside Carlsbad Caverns

Imagine watching hundreds of thousands of bats swirl around you, swarming to form a large, black mass that flies off into the horizon. At Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico, this scene is a regular occurrence.  The caverns, located in a United States National Park, are home to around 400,000 Mexican free-tailed bats that fly out into the night sky each evening at dusk to feed on nearby moths and insects, returning at dawn to their caves. The spectacle draws crowds from around the world into the Chihuahuan Desert, where the park is located. One such visitor was Laurel Mathews, who once visited the caves with her family on a road trip.

Note: SeeSaw has many other tutorials on their website and Help Center.

See the Accommodations Page and Charts on the 21things4students website in the Teacher Resources. 

Directions for this activity:

1. The teacher begins by asking students “What is Fluency?” Students answer with what they have learned from previous lessons or years.

2. Next, the teacher asks why fluency is important. Students responses may include:

   • So you know who is talking in a story.

   • So people can understand your reading.

   • So you understand your reading.

   • So you don’t sound like a robot.

3. The teacher then tells students that today they will be going to SeeSaw and opening a piece of reading that was uploaded in the activities section.

4. The students will then record themselves reading that passage. When they are finished, they can press the green check mark.

5. The teacher should remind students to try their best when reading and if they are having trouble, to try and sound out words and continue reading trying their best.

6. In SeeSaw students tap the Activities tab.

7. Then, they tap Waiting for Response, then tap the green add button.

8. Students tap record and then read the piece aloud and stop the recording when finished.

Different options for assessing the students:

• Observations
• Check for understanding
• Teachers can see what students have posted to their journal from the Teacher side of SeeSaw. They are able to leave feedback for students and intervene with any student who did not read the passage, or assess their reading level and needs.
• Teachers can also use this as a starting point in the year and have them read the same piece at the end of the year.