Read Naturally

Product or Programme · All products and programmes
Evidence · 9 claims (4 for, 2 mixed, 3 against) · 2 studies (1 causal, 1 quant-synthesis), q3 · 2 of 2 report an effect size · 9 claims rest on one study

Description

Read Naturally® is a branded supplemental reading-fluency programme developed and provided by Read Naturally, Inc. for learners who need support with oral reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension.

Components

• Read Naturally® supplemental fluency program: modeled reading, repeated timed reading, and progress monitoring: Read Naturally® is a supplemental reading program using texts, audio CDs, and computer software to improve "reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension" of students in elementary, middle, or high school or adults. Its common strategy includes "modeling of story reading, repeated reading of text for developing oral reading fluency, and systematic monitoring of student progress by teachers and the students themselves." Students work at their reading level, progress at their own rate, and pass a story only after meeting four teacher-judged criteria including goal rate, three or fewer errors, appropriate phrasing, and correct comprehension answers. (Read Naturally® Updated July 2013 — WWC Intervention Report (2013))
• Read Naturally® supplemental reading fluency program (four product editions): Read Naturally® is a supplemental reading program using "a combination of texts, audio CDs, and computer software" to improve reading fluency, accuracy, and comprehension of elementary, middle, high school, or adult students. It is delivered through four products sharing a common fluency-building strategy — Masters Edition, Encore, Software Edition, and Live — differing in delivery mode, sequenced texts, and whether phonics instruction is included. Students "work at their own reading level, progress through the program at their own rate, and work (for the most part) on an independent basis." (Read Naturally® (2010))

Claims

• Christ and Davie (2009) found positive, statistically significant effects of Read Naturally® Software Edition on three reading fluency measures [+W]
• Heistad (2008) found a statistically significant positive effect of Read Naturally® on the NALT Reading measure in a matched quasi-experiment [+W]
• Read Naturally® shows mixed effects on reading fluency for beginning readers (average improvement index +7 percentile points) [~W]
• Read Naturally® shows no discernible effects on alphabetics for beginning readers [-W]
• Read Naturally® shows no discernible effects on comprehension for beginning readers [-W]
• Read Naturally® shows potentially positive effects on general reading achievement for beginning readers (average improvement index +10 percentile points) [+W]
• Read Naturally® shows no discernible effects on reading fluency for students with learning disabilities, with small negative effect sizes on GORT-III accuracy and rate [-W]
• Read Naturally® shows potentially positive effects on writing for students with learning disabilities, with a substantively important but non-significant effect size on the WIAT Written Expression subtest [+W]
• The evidence base for Read Naturally® with students with learning disabilities is small: one qualifying RCT of 20 students, with 42 of 43 reviewed studies excluded [~W]

Related Products and Programmes

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Key Sources

• Read Naturally® Updated July 2013 — WWC Intervention Report. (2013). What Works Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/InterventionReport/407
• Read Naturally®. (2010). WWC Intervention Report: Read Naturally®. What Works Clearinghouse, U.S. Department of Education. https://www.readnaturally.com

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	product
id	read-naturally
title	Read Naturally
description	Read Naturally® is a branded supplemental reading-fluency programme developed and provided by Read Naturally, Inc.
status	review
moved_from	element/read-naturally-fluency-program, element/read-naturally-program-element
product_kind	programme
generated	by process:sweep-kinds on 2026-10-10
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
sources	2 — read-naturally-updated-july-2013-wwc-intervention-report-2013, read-naturally-2010

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