There is growing evidence of cross-language transfer in metalinguistic processes related to reading acquisition and development. In particular, phonological awareness is a requisite process that shares similarities across Spanish and English. Through explicit instruction and instructional design analyses, we propose principles to facilitate…

A randomized experimental design with three levels of intervention was used to compare the effects of beginning reading interventions on early phonemic, decoding, and spelling outcomes of 96 kindergartners identified as at risk for reading difficulty. The three instructional interventions varied systematically along two dimensions--time and design…

In this article, we describe the development and evaluation of a beginning spelling intervention for young children at risk of reading disability. We first summarize the literature that supports beginning spelling as an ideal method for strategically integrating the beginning reading big ideas of phonemic awareness and alphabetic understanding. We…

Offers a framework for improving instructional tools in beginning reading with emphasis on their importance for children with diverse learning needs. Bases rationale on current practices and challenges of increasing diversity in classrooms. Identifies critical dimension or big ideas of beginning reading and relates it to curriculum design…

Syntheses of reading research conducted by the National Research Council (1998) and more recently by the Congressionally-Commissioned National Reading Panel (2000) provide ample evidence of the skills, experience, and knowledge children need to become successful readers in an alphabetic writing system. This research makes clear that children must…

Assessment of student performance is critical for developing effective instructional policy and designing programs responsive to individual students' needs. To gauge the adequacy of available assessment tools for achieving these ends, the Reading First Assessment Committee (RFAC) developed criteria for evaluating the adequacy of reading measures…

Suggesting that a missing link between effective practices and their sustained implementation is the "host environment" into which practices, programs, procedures, and pedagogy are translated, this bulletin describes the need for prevention and intervention models in beginning reading that are anchored to the school as the host environment. The…

This article outlines the Schoolwide Reading Improvement Model (SRIM), a model characterized by the strategic integration of research-based practices in assessment, instructional design, and beginning reading instruction. A description of each major stage of the SRIM is provided, along with an example of its application in an Oregon school…

This article addresses two sets of organizing principles to guide prevention and intervention in beginning reading: (1) the complexity in our alphabetic writing system, and (2) the complexity in our schools. The first set is related to instructional design, while the second set is related to a schoolwide model. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

Curriculum design principles developed by the National Center to Improve the Tools of Educators (NCITE) are recommended to evaluate and enhance basal reading programs for learning-disabled students. These principles provide a framework for fortifying instruction in ways that mediate difficulties that students encounter in phonological awareness,…

This book offers guidelines for designing the cognitive supports to instructional materials for students with disabilities in general education classrooms. Chapter 1, an introduction, describes the contexts of change, including the changing demography of learners, which has increased the curricular and instructional complexity that teachers face…