Assessing a child's fluency is something that a teacher does continuously through the grade levels. Fluency is essentially a child's reading speed, ability to comprehend text and accuracy when reading. There is a reading speed and accuracy level for every grade (for example, 1st graders should be able to read 60 words per minute accurately) that shows a child is at the average level for reading in her grade. There are fluency standards for each grade that tell whether a child has a high fluency or low fluency as well.
While it may seem like a ploy to ensure your child pays attention to the text, reading aloud is an important tool the teacher uses when assessing your child's fluency. A teacher can gauge a child's reading abilities by asking him to read aloud in class and paying attention. The teacher will note things such as pronunciation as well as reading speed. Children in younger age will read at a slower pace than older children, so the teacher needs to take the grade level and age of the child into consideration when reviewing his fluency.
As a child, you may remember your teacher assigning you a short article you had to read. Afterwards, she would hand out a test with specific questions about the text you just finished reading. These tests determined how well you absorbed the information you read previously. In the primary grades, the tests will ask you for specific facts from the article or ask you what certain words mean. As you progress through school, though, these tests require you to answer more analytical questions about the article.
When a teacher asks a child to write a story, he will grade the story on things such as grammar and composition. This also gives the teacher a chance to determine how versed the child is in the language she writes. A child with a high level of fluency should be able to write a story with very few misspelled words, proper use of each word and no missing words. The teacher will also search out words that seem above or below the writing level of the student based on her current grade level.