The importance of prosodic elements is recognised in most definitions of fluency. Although speed and accuracy have been typically considered the constituents of reading fluency, prosody is emerging as an additional component. The relevance of prosody in comprehension is increasingly recognised in the latest studies. The purpose of this research is to examine the contribution of prosodic reading to comprehension beyond automaticity in word reading, taking into account children's grade level. One hundred and twenty-two Spanish children (74 second and 48 fourth graders) were tested in prosodic reading, automaticity in word reading (nonword reading and reading rate) and comprehension abilities. Results show that the contribution of automaticity in word reading is relevant in both grades; however, it is more significant in Grade 2. The prosodic components of reading seem to be related differently to comprehension across grades, intonation being the highest predictor of comprehension in Grade 4. Implications for educational practice are discussed.

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Background: Detecting reading comprehension difficulties is challenging because many factors are involved in comprehension ability. Various reading comprehension tests can be used to detect difficulties but often do not yield the same results. Method: Our aim was to analyse the agreement between three commonly used standardised reading comprehension tests (ECOMPLEC, ACL and PROLEC-R) in the detection of reading comprehension difficulties in Spanish. A total of 139 children (72 fifth graders and 67 sixth graders) at the same public-sector school participated in this study. The three reading comprehension tests were administered, together with word and nonword reading, vocabulary and nonverbal intelligence measures. Results: Modest intercorrelations among the tests were found. The consistency of classification for each reading profile across the three reading comprehension tests was low. The results show different reading comprehension profiles depending on the test used. Conclusions: It is important to use more than one instrument to diagnose reading comprehension difficulties, due to the complexity involved. Furthermore, knowledge of the characteristics of each reading comprehension test is essential to the choice of test. The educational implications of children being wrongly diagnosed are discussed.

Scale of reading fluency in Spanish: measuring the components of fluency / Escala de fluidez lectora en español: midiendo los componentes de la fluidez Abstract:The main purpose of this study was to design and validate a rating scale to measure reading fluency. As well as speed and accuracy, different dimensions of prosody were taken into account (volume, intonation, pauses and phrasing), aspects hardly considered in reading assessment. In addition, a measure of reading quality was included. 122 Spanish primary-school children (74 in Year 2 and 48 in Year 4) read aloud a narrative text. Using interrater criteria, children's reading was assessed with this new rating scale (Scale of Reading Fluency in Spanish, SRFS) (Escala de Fluidez Lectora en Español, EFLE) and with the Multidimensional Fluency Scale (Rasinski, 2004). Standardized reading comprehension and prosodic reading tests were used as criterion measures. Results show acceptable reliability and validity coefficients. We conclude that SRFS appears to be a useful instrument for using in education and research contexts.

Resumen: En la última década diversos estudios han demostrado que las habilidades fonológicas suprasegmentales o prosódicas (conocimiento de los rasgos prosódicos del lenguaje tales como el acento, las pausas y la entonación) influyen en el desarrollo de la lectoescritura. Sin embargo, la mayoría de los estudios se han realizado en inglés y se han centrado fundamentalmente en el análisis de las habilidades suprasegmentales a nivel léxi-co. Este estudio analiza las relaciones entre las habilidades suprasegmentales y el desarrollo lector en 92 niños españoles de 5º de Educación Primaria. Se tomaron medidas de vocabulario, conciencia fonológica y habilidades suprasegmentales (conciencia del acento en palabras y pseudopalabras, nombres compuestos y ritmo no lingüístico) así como de lectura de palabras y comprensión lectora. Los resultados muestran que las habilidades suprasegmentales predicen un porcentaje significativo de la varianza en las habilidades lectoras, una vez controlada la influencia de la conciencia fonológica y del vocabulario. Además, las diferentes habilidades prosódicas (conciencia prosódica a nivel léxico, métrico y ritmo no lingüístico) presentan distintos patrones de relación con las habilidades lectoras. Palabras claves: habilidades suprasegmentales; prosodia; habilidades lectoras; conciencia fonológica.Title: Phonological suprasegmental skills and reading development in primary school children. Abstract: Recent literature research has shown the influence of suprasegmental phonology (the awareness of prosodic features such as stress, timing, and intonation) on literacy acquisition. However, the majority of these studies have been carried out in English. Moreover, the lexical level has been the most explored component. The current study analyzes the relationship between suprasegmental phonology skills and reading development in 92 Spanish primary-school children of 5th grade. Vocabulary, phonological awareness, suprasegmental skills (lexical-and metrical-stress sensitivity, and non-linguistic rhythm) along with reading aloud and reading comprehension were assessed. Results suggest that suprasegmental phonology predicts a significative amount of variance in reading once phonological awareness and vocabulary were controlled. Furthermore, the components of suprasegmental skills (lexical-and metrical-stress sensitivity, and non-linguistic rhythm) have different relationships with reading skills. Key words: Suprasegmental skills; prosody; reading skills; phonological awareness. IntroducciónLa lectura es una habilidad transversal en el currículum escolar que se constituye como una herramienta para adquirir, producir y asimilar nuevos conocimientos. De ahí, que el dominio del lenguaje escrito sea un objetivo fundamental de aprendizaje en los sistemas educativos. Por otra parte, desde un punto de vista psicoeducativo, por razones teóricas y prácticas se hace necesario estudiar los factores implicados en la adquisición lectora. Además de ayudar a comprender su desarrollo típico en los niños, es importante...

This study reviews some of the most relevant cognitive skills related to literacy acquisition in Spanish. Beyond the well-known influence of phonological segmental skills, it highlights the growing importance of other cognitive skills needed for acquisition, whether explicit or implicit in nature, to which too little attention has been devoted, including suprasegmental or prosodic skills, morphological skills and the implicit learning of linguistic regularities. It appears that all these skills constitute relevant factors that should be taken into account in order to understand typical as well as atypical literacy development.

Apart from speed and accuracy, prosody has recently been included as another component of skilled reading, as its role in reading comprehension is being increasingly recognized. Prosodic reading refers to the use of prosodic features of language during reading, including suitable pauses, stress and intonation and appropriate phrasing. The aim of this research was to examine the impact of a prosodic reading intervention on the reading comprehension of a fourth-grade primary child with specific reading comprehension difficulties. An AB single-case design was used with baseline (A) and treatment (B) phases. The intervention, in 17 sessions, was based on repeated reading with a focus on expressiveness. Results pointed to improved reading fluency and reading comprehension scores over baseline scores. Nevertheless, more studies are needed to show conclusive evidence for improved comprehension as a result of prosody intervention. The implications of prosodic reading interventions for literacy development are discussed.