Linda Bohland Ginger Mason Missy Moxley Beth Scott

Linda Bohland Ginger Mason Missy Moxley Beth Scott Melissa Swaim

• have each had a variety of experiences working with children who are considered at-risk. • have a desire to ensure that the needs of all students are met • wanted to learn effective early intervention strategies in order to prevent students from becoming at-risk.

Early Intervention… • targets young children who show signs of becoming at-risk in reading. • operates with small group instruction • focuses on closing the achievement gap while it is at it’s smallest; early in education • requires intense, focused, consistent instruction

• small teacher/student ratio – one to three students per group • intense instruction that takes place for 30 to 45 minutes, three to five days a week • re-reading familiar texts for fluency • introduction of a new book each session • word study/phonics instruction • sentence writing

Developed by Marie Clay An early instructional intervention • • • Attempts to prevent possible failure in learning to read Highly intensive instructional program for at-risk students (daily basis through one-on one tutoring) Teachers trained to tutor under close supervision over yr. -long practicum through graduate course Students tutored with emphasis on contextual reading & writing Does Not teach letter or word recognition skills in isolation Very costly Emphasis on intervening starting in first grade Results from studies show students make dramatic gains & continue to maintain gains with the help of R. R. However, at second grade drop off in gains when no more intervention is given Lowest gains found in letter identification & concepts of print

Paul Van Den Brock Panayiota Kendeou Sandra Lousberg Gootje Visser Purpose: • To determine if early interventions could be developed for young children to start them on their way to becoming good readers. • The ability to connect pieces of info develops well before reading age. • Interventions developed for 3 rd graders and preschoolers in a listening context using casual questions like those used with older elementary and high school students. • Results-very positive- questioning during reading more effective- “read to” format. • Full scale investigations of effectiveness of early intervention and long term results needed.

Created by: Dr. Darrell Morris of Appalachian State University • Targets first grade students that are at risk for reading failure • Similar to Reading Recovery in philosophy and design • Different from Reading Recovery in two ways 2. 1. Systematic word-study Teacher training (team of teachers not limited to reading teachers) • Lesson plan components include: 1. Rereading familiar books (10 min. ) 2. Word Study (7 min. ) 3. Sentence Writing ( 7 min. ) 4. Introduction of a new book (6 min. ) • Research Results Early Steps led to accelerated growth for children most at risk • Areas of improvement Spelling, sight word abilities, and passage reading

Susan Neuman Tanya Wright Serene Koh Fran Lehr • Purpose: A vocabulary intervention program designed to teach preschoolers the properties and concepts associated with seven taxonomic categories and the vocabulary that paired with these concepts. • Targeted students in a district’s Head Start Classrooms • The intervention took place over one school year. • Students were introduced to new vocabulary through a short video, a rhyme or song, a read aloud, sorting activities, and writing. • Results: Preschoolers gained the ability to categorize and conceptualize words. These students out-performed the control group students on assessments that required them to apply knowledge to new concepts.

• Early intervention is effective • The earlier, the better when it comes to intervention. • The achievement gap grows larger with each passing year • Ideally should begin in kindergarten, no later than first grade • Student-teacher ratio should be kept as low as possible • One-on-one or groups of no more than three • Teachers must be properly trained in the implementation of the intervention being used. • More studies are needed to determine long-term effects of intervention • Intervention often needs to be continued with at-risk students in second grade and beyond in order to maintain growth. • The intervention lesson must contain several components: • Contextual reading and re-reading on the child’s instructional level • Contextual writing • Systematic study of orthographic patterns (letter/sound or spelling patterns)

• Our research findings indicate that Early Steps is an effective intervention for the following reasons… 1. Intervention is driven by pre- and post- assessments 2. Inclusion of each crucial component, including systematic word study 3. More cost-effective than Reading Recovery • More time spent with students (practicum) • Variety of instructors can be trained (teachers, paraprofessionals, volunteers) • Natural progression of a dynamic lesson plan 4. Targets specific areas of need 5. Longitudinal studies show that students made and maintained growth (many caught up to averageachieving peers) 6. Because Dr. Morris said so

“The cost of waiting until midelementary school to identify children in need of special instruction in reading is simply too great”. -Torgenson, 2008

Bibliography Beebe-Frankenberger, M. , Bocian, K. , Linklater, D. , & O’Connor, R. (2010). Responsiveness of Students with Language Difficulties to Early Intervention in Reading. The Journal of Special Education. Vol. 43, 220 -235. Bufalino J, Chuang W, Gómez-Bellengé F, Zalud G. What’s Possible for First-Grade At-Risk Literacy Learners Receiving Early Intervention Services. Literacy Teaching & Learning: An International Journal Of Early Reading & Writing [serial online]. October 2010; 15(1/2): 1 -15. Available from: Education Research Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 1, 2012 Caserta-Henry C. Reading buddies: A first-grade intervention program. Reading Teacher [serial online]. March 1996; 49(6): 500. Available from: Education Research Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed February 23, 2012. Cooke N, Kretlow A, Helf S. Supplemental Reading Help for Kindergarten Students: How Early Should You Start? Preventing School Failure [serial online]. March 2010; 54(3): 137 -144. Available from: Education Research Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed February 23, 2012. Coyne, M. D. , Harn, B. , Kame’enui, E. , & Simmons, D. , (2004). Beginning Reading Intervention as Inoculation or Insulin: First-Grade Reading Performance of Strong Responders to Kindergarten Intervention. Journal of Learning Disabilities. Vol. 32, 90 -104. Foorman B, Breier J, Fletcher J. Interventions Aimed at Improving Reading Success: An Evidence-Based Approach. Developmental Neuropsychology [serial online]. October 2003; 24(2/3): 613. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 7, 2012. Haager, D. , & Windmueller, M. , (2001). Early Reading Intervention for English Language Learners At-Risk for Learning Disabilities: Student and Teacher Outcomes in an Urban School. Learning Disability Quarterly. Vol. 24, 235 -250. Harn, B. , Linan-Thompson, S. , & Roberts, G. (2008). Intensifying Instruction: Does additional instructional time make a difference for the most at-risk first graders? Journal of Learning Disabilities. Vol. 41, No. 2, 115 -125. Helf, S. , Cooke, N. L. , & Flowers, C. P. (2009). Effects of Two Grouping Conditions on Students Who Are at Risk for Reading Failure. Preventing School Failure, 53(2), 113 -128. Lennon, Slesinski J. Early intervention in reading: Results of a screening and intervention program for kindergarten… School Psychology Review [serial online]. September 1999; 28(3): 353. Available from: Education Research Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed February 23, 2012.

Bibliography Continued Morris, Darrell. First Steps: An Early Intervention Program: Reading Journal Publication. 1995. Available from Eric. Morris, D. (2007). One-to-One intervention in the primary grades: An idea that must evolve to survive. In B. Taylor & J. Ysseldyke (Eds. ), Educational Interventions for struggling readers, K-6 (pp. 19 -36). New York: Teachers College Press. Morris, D. , Perney, J. , & Tyner, B. (2000). Early Steps: Replicating the effects of a first-grade reading intervention program. Journal of Educational Psychology. Vol. 92, No. 4, 681 -693. Neuman S, Newman E, Dwyer J. Educational effects of a vocabulary intervention on preschoolers’ word knowledge and conceptual development: A clusterrandomized trial. Reading Research Quarterly [serial online]. July 2011; 46(3): 249 -272. Available from: Psyc. INFO, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 21, 2012. Santa C, Hoien T. An assessment of Early Steps: A program for early intervention of reading problems. Reading Research Quarterly [serial online]. January 1999; 34(1): 54. Available from: Education Research Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 10, 2012. Shanahan, T. , & Barr, R. (1995). Reading Recovery: An independent evaluation of the effects of an early instructional intervention for at-risk learners. Reading Research Quarterly. Vol. 30, No. 4, 958 -996. Van Den Broek, P. , Kendeou, P. , Lousberg, S. , & Visser, G. (2011). Preparing for reading comprehension: Fostering text comprehension skills in preschool and early elementary school children. International Electronic Journal Of Elementary Education, 4(1), 259 -268. Vellutino, F. , Scanlon, D. , Small, S. , & Fanuele, D. (2006). Response to Intervention as a Vehicle for Distinguishing Between Children With and Without Reading Disabilities: Evidence for the role of kindergarten and first-grade interventions. Journal of Learning Disabilities. Vol. 39, No. 2, 157 -169. Wasik, B. A. (1998). Using volunteers as reading tutors: Guidelines for successful practices. Reading Teacher, 51(7), 562. Wasik, B. A. , & Slavin, R. E. (1993). Preventing early reading failure with one-to-one tutoring: A review of five programs. Reading Research Quarterly, 28(2), 179 -200.