How does building fluency through oral reading impact overall literacy?

Building fluency through oral reading significantly enhances both comprehension and confidence in reading skills. When readers engage in oral reading, they practice decoding words accurately and at an appropriate pace. This repeated exposure helps solidify their understanding of text structures, vocabulary, and sentence patterns, which in turn aids in better comprehension.

Moreover, as readers become more fluent, they can focus less on the mechanics of reading – such as struggling with individual words – and more on the meaning of the text. This shift allows for deeper engagement with the material, facilitating understanding and retention of information. Furthermore, increased fluency tends to boost a reader’s confidence; as they experience success in reading smoothly and with expression, they are more likely to enjoy reading and participate in discussions about texts, fostering a positive attitude towards reading as a whole.

In contrast, the other responses fail to capture the full benefits of fluency. They suggest that fluency does not contribute to comprehension or confidence, only relates to eye coordination, or exclusively focuses on speed without regard to understanding – all of which overlook the integral role that oral reading fluency plays in developing comprehensive literacy skills.