RF.1.4: Reading with Accuracy and Fluency
Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.4 · Cluster: Fluency.
The Official Wording
Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Common Core State Standards, Grade 1, Reading: Foundational Skills · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026
What RF.1.4 Means in Plain English
First graders read 1st-grade text aloud for a reason, get the words right, read at a talking pace with expression, and get smoother on each reread. When a word doesn’t make sense, like quilts where a porcupine needs quills, they stop, reread and fix it.
Speed is not the goal; understanding is, so every read starts with a purpose and ends with it answered. Kindergartners read simple beginner books (RF.K.4). In 2nd grade the same three skills carry over to 2nd-grade books (RF.2.4).
RF.1.4 I Can Statements
- I can read to find out something.
- I can read the words right and sound like talking.
- I can go back and fix a word that doesn’t make sense.
RF.1.4 Worked Example
A five-sentence story read three times, with one slip caught and fixed, covering RF.1.4a, b and c.
Read this story to find out if Posy makes a friend: Posy the porcupine wanted a friend. She waddled up to a skunk. “Will you play with me?” she asked. The skunk smiled. “Yes! Just keep your quills to yourself!”
- Before reading, set the purpose: we are reading to find out if Posy makes a friend.Does Posy make a friend?
- First read: get every word right. Slow is fine. Point under each word.Posy · the · porcupine · wanted · a · friend.
- The child reads “keep your quilts to yourself” and stops. Does that make sense? A porcupine has quills, not quilts. Reread the line and check the letters.quilts? → quills
- Read the talking parts like the characters: voice up at the question mark, excited at the exclamation point.“Will you play with me?” ↑ · “Yes!”
- Read it twice more. Each time, read in phrases instead of one word at a time.Read 1: word by word → Read 3: Will you play / with me?
- Answer the purpose question in your own words.Yes. The skunk will play, if Posy keeps her quills to herself.
Check it: Ask why the skunk wants the quills kept away. “So they don’t poke him” means the reading carried meaning, not just speed.
Common Mistakes with RF.1.4
Racing instead of reading
Reads all five sentences fast and flat, then can’t say if Posy made a friend
Try this: Skip the timer at first: ask for a read that sounds like the skunk is talking, then ask the purpose question.
Reading on past a word that doesn’t fit
“Just keep your quilts to yourself,” and on to the end
Try this: Stop at the end of the sentence and ask “Did that make sense?” If not, the child rereads and checks every letter.
Robot reading on every reread
“Will. You. Play. With. Me.” on the third read
Try this: Scoop phrases with a finger under the words, read each scoop first, and have the child echo it back in one breath.
Where RF.1.4 Fits
Practice RF.1.4
Quick Check
- What are we reading to find out?
- Which word doesn’t make sense in “keep your quilts to yourself,” and what should it be?
- How should “Will you play with me?” sound?