When I did reading group, I noted that one student in our group was forming the words on her lips as she read silently. A suggested Rx for that is to do “phrase-slashing” drills now and then. Copy a couple pages of an upcoming chapter, and have the kids divide the reading by phrases, /putting a slash/ between the groups / of words / that go together./ This speeds up every child’s reading, as they begin to abandon the word. by. word. reading. and take up reading in thought-units.
Another student couldn’t focus when there was background noise. Meeting in a nearby alcove, using a Whisperphone, noise-cancelling headphones, and discussing homework environment with parents at conference, etc. would be a good idea.