Rapid Reading Practices: Developing Word Automaticity in Reading

Of all the language skills, reading proficiency varies more from learner to learner. All students can improve their reading proficiency, including reading rate; to do so, consistent and plentiful practice is essential.  Readers benefit from word recognition practice with even the most basic words because the goal is to increase readers’ automaticity. Reading speed is dependent on how rapidly, or automatically, readers are able to recognize words, and learners are rarely given opportunities to practice word automaticity.  Lack of vocabulary knowledge is a problem across all skill areas but is especially apparent in ESL reading.

Rapid Reading Practices consists of 100 timed word practices.  These practices cover words at four levels:  basic, beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. The practices begin with words from the Dolch Word list, includes words from the General Service List, and build up to words from the Academic Word List.

This textbook includes material for charting student progress on these exercises. Tracking progress is exciting for students, and teacher will notice how consistent and plentiful practice will reveal reading rate improvement.