A Difficult Compromise

Take Turns Reading (Fluency)

The teacher reads one sentence and pauses. The student reads the next sentence. Keep taking turns to the end of the passage.

1. Model. Read each Teacher sentence with clear expression and phrasing, then pause so the student knows it is their turn.
2. Track. The student points under each word with a finger or pointer, left to right and top to bottom, while you read and while they read.
3. Praise. Name what went well in the student's reading, such as expression, smooth phrasing, or a tricky word said with accuracy. Reread any tricky word together.

Feedback on rate, accuracy, and prosody: Fluency Feedback Guide, Grade 5

1. 1.■Teacher readsIn the summer of 1787, leaders met in Philadelphia to fix the country’s government.
2. 2.●Student readsAt the Constitutional Convention, they argued about many things, but one issue caused serious disagreement, how to count enslaved people when deciding representation in Congress.
3. 3.■Teacher readsSouthern states wanted enslaved people counted as part of their population.
4. 4.●Student readsIf they were counted, those states would have more representatives and more power.
5. 5.■Teacher readsNorthern states pushed back.
6. 6.●Student readsThey argued that it wasn’t fair to count people who were not free and could not vote.
7. 7.■Teacher readsThe debate went on for days.
8. 8.●Student readsVoices were raised, and some delegates worried the meeting might fall apart.
9. 9.■Teacher readsFinally, a compromise was suggested.
10. 10.●Student readsInstead of fully counting enslaved people or not counting them at all, each enslaved person would count as three-fifths of a person.
11. 11.■Teacher readsThis became known as the Three-Fifths Compromise.
12. 12.●Student readsSome delegates agreed because they wanted the convention to succeed.
13. 13.■Teacher readsOthers were uncomfortable with the decision but felt there was no easy answer.
14. 14.●Student readsThe compromise helped the group move forward, but it didn’t solve the deeper problem.
15. 15.■Teacher readsEven after the meeting ended, people continued to question the decision.
16. 16.●Student readsWas it fair?
17. 17.■Teacher readsShould representation be based on total population, or only on those who had rights?
18. 18.●Student readsDifferent groups had different opinions, and those disagreements did not go away.