Increasing Reading Fluency through the Use of Physical Movement and Affirming Parallel Concepts

Abstract

Sixteen 6 grade middle school students, who were all classified as struggling readers, volunteered to participate in a study examining the impact of daily physical movement and singing (Affirming Parallel Concepts) on reading fluency, as measured by words read per minute. Half of the participants received instruction on learning new songs to sing in class while simultaneously learning new sight words over a six-week period. The other eight students served as a control group and received standard reading instruction on learning new sight words. The experimental group incorporated movement into their singing by clapping their hands and thighs, stomping their feet, and moving around the classroom while singing. Students in the experimental group significantly improved their reading fluency (14% improvement) versus those students in the control group (5% improvement) over the six-week instruction period as measured by Fountas and Pinnell reading assessments.