How much should fluency be weighed in the earliest levels?
There is nothing better than good professional judgment. Teachers should consider that when students are just beginning to decode there is less fluency as the student makes sense of the printed word. As the student progresses through the early levels more fluency should be evident. It is, however, a problem if students are reading at a “painful” rate. When a student reads so slowly that it is difficult to gain enough momentum to yield comprehension, that is problematic and that level should not be considered the students’ independent level even if he meets the two criteria described above. Allington, as well as Pinnel and Fountas, sight sources that suggest by the end of first grade students should be reading at least 60 words per minute.
