We began this study questioning the
effectiveness of using song and lyrics as repeated
readings to increase fluency and
whether this could be another viable method
for building oral reading fluency. Our results
show that according to CWPM gains and
transfer measures, the three students did increase
their fluency overall following both
interventions, thus encouraging the usage of
songs and lyrics as part of an overall program
for building fluency. In addition, the increase
in motivation when singing was remarkable
in that the three students seemed to enjoy the
task when songs were used, and to have a
larger appreciation for fluency, not only isolated
to accurate and fast reading, but for
prosody as well. Given the importance of addressing
fluency, this technique seems to be
not only an effective way to address it but
also motivating which is critical when working
with adolescents.