During which stage do children consolidate their decoding skills and start to read for fluency?

In the context of literacy development, the stage during which children consolidate their decoding skills and start to read for fluency is commonly referred to as Stage 2. At this stage, children typically have already mastered the basic phonetic principles and are moving beyond the initial stages of learning to read. They begin to read more complex texts with increased automaticity, which leads to improved fluency.

During Stage 2, children’s vocabulary expands as they encounter various texts, allowing them to grasp not only the words but also the meaning behind those words. This fluency in reading plays a critical role in their overall comprehension skills, as they can focus less on decoding and more on understanding what they read. This developmental milestone is significant because it sets the foundation for more advanced reading skills and the ability to engage with increasingly complex materials.

The other stages, while important in their own right, do not specifically focus on the consolidation of decoding skills and the shift towards reading with fluency. Understanding this progression in stages is crucial for educators and researchers studying literacy development in children.