Explore · I4I

Multisyllabic Word Reading Intervention

2019

The Multisyllabic Word Reading (MWR) intervention is a reading program designed for fourth- and fifth-grade struggling readers who score at or below the 25th percentile on word reading fluency measures. The intervention teaches students to read multisyllabic words through seven instructional components: warm-up (prerequisite vowel pattern skills), affix bank (high-frequency prefixes and suffixes), word play (assembling/blending word parts), beat the clock (timed word list reading with segmentation practice), write word (encoding multisyllabic words), speedy read (timed word-list reading for accuracy and rate), and text reading (connected text with multisyllabic words). Students receive instruction in small groups of 3-4 students for 40 minutes, four times per week, for 40 lessons (total of 26.67 instructional hours). One version includes embedded motivational beliefs training using positive self-talk, cognitive reframing of negative thoughts, and goal-setting strategies. Tutors require 8 hours of training and must demonstrate 90% adherence to protocols before implementation.

4th Grade, 5th Grade

SPARK Early Literacy

2018

SPARK Early Literacy is a family-school-community partnership literacy intervention developed by Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee for low-income and minority elementary students in Milwaukee Public Schools. The program serves kindergarten through second grade students who are pulled out of non-core classes for one-on-one tutoring three times per week for 30 minutes per session over two school years (approximately 155 sessions total). Each tutoring session follows a standardized lesson plan with five research-based literacy activities: Familiar activity, Word Play (phonics and phonemic awareness using Word Sorts and Making Words), Reading at the instructional level with leveled books, Running Records assessments, and Writing using Elkonin boxes. Tutoring is delivered by college students and community members supervised by a certified teacher who serves as program manager. The program also includes a family engagement component with parent partners who conduct home visits, monthly family events, newsletters, and phone/email contacts to help families support literacy development at home. An afterschool component leverages Boys & Girls Clubs programming for academic enrichment and social-emotional learning. Before implementation, tutors receive all-program training on lesson implementation, lesson planning, and literacy assessments, plus ongoing individualized training, informal support, and formal monthly observations with feedback.

Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade

Early Vocabulary Intervention (EVI)

2019

Early Vocabulary Intervention (EVI) is a Tier-2 supplemental vocabulary intervention for kindergarten students at risk for language and learning difficulties (PPVT score below 92/30th percentile). EVI is delivered in small groups of 3-4 students outside the classroom for 30 minutes per day, 4 days per week, over approximately 22 weeks. The intervention reteaches and reinforces vocabulary taught in Tier-1 classroom instruction through highly engaging activities designed to promote depth of understanding and extended language use. Activities include discriminating between examples and nonexamples of pictures representing target words, using target words to describe pictures and personal experiences, discussing connections between target vocabulary and other words/concepts, and participating in meaningful conversations about target words. Interventionists provide explicit instruction with extensive teacher modeling, multiple opportunities for student practice, scaffolding for sentence elaboration, and specific feedback targeted to individual student learning needs. Interventionists (paraprofessionals, certified teachers, reading teachers, and other professionals) receive a full day of professional development focused on implementing EVI and are provided with additional coaching during the intervention.

Kindergarten

Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) Tier 1

2020

CW-FIT Tier 1 is a classroom management intervention designed for middle school art classrooms that uses positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) principles. The intervention targets seventh-grade students and focuses on teaching classroom expectations, using an interdependent group contingency with teams of 3-6 students, providing behavior-specific praise, and awarding points redeemable for rewards. Teachers set timers at 5-minute intervals to scan groups and award points when all team members are on task. Daily point goals are set at 75-85% of possible points, and teams meeting goals receive rewards (tangible items or early dismissal). The intervention includes a 45-minute teacher training session, 2 days of familiarization, and ongoing brief consultations. Teachers teach two classroom expectations over the first 2 days using scripted lessons with student participation, and provide 2-3 minute pre-corrections before each subsequent class.

7th Grade

Reading Mastery and Corrective Reading Supplemental Instruction

2005

This 2-year supplemental reading program served kindergarten through third grade students at risk for reading difficulties. The intervention provided 30 minutes of daily small-group instruction (groups of 2-3 students) focused on developing decoding skills and reading fluency through explicit phonemic awareness and phonics instruction, with practice reading decodable text. Students in kindergarten through second grade used Reading Mastery, while third and fourth graders used Corrective Reading. Nine instructional assistants delivered the intervention as a pullout program during the school day. The assistants received 10 hours of initial training and ongoing weekly supervision. During the summer between intervention years, some students (n=76) attended a 5-week summer school receiving 30 minutes of reading instruction 3 days per week using the same methods.

Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade

Customized FAFSA Nudging Intervention

2020

Customized FAFSA Nudging is a text message intervention that provides high school seniors with personalized, data-informed updates on their FAFSA submission and completion status. The intervention delivers weekly automated text messages from January through late April during students' senior year. Messages are customized based on students' actual FAFSA filing status (not yet started, submitted but incomplete, complete, or complete with income verification required). The outreach encourages students to use school and community supports for FAFSA filing, provides links to informational videos and resources, and enables students to text back for one-on-one assistance with their school counselor. The intervention also includes information about TASFA (Texas Application for State Financial Aid) for undocumented students. Messages remind students about FAFSA importance, deadlines, priority filing dates, and verification requirements. School counselors respond to incoming student questions via the text platform.

12th Grade

Early Literacy Skills Builder (ELSB)

2020

Early Literacy Skills Builder (ELSB) is a comprehensive early literacy intervention designed for students with severe disabilities (intellectual disabilities or autism), ages 5-10 years, who are verbal or nonverbal and reading below first-grade level. The curriculum has two components: Building With Sounds and Symbols (seven levels with five lessons each, focusing on phonemic awareness, phonics, and word study using stories from 'All About Moe' with a Moe puppet) and Building With Stories (shared story-reading using grade-level literature adapted for accessibility). ELSB uses systematic, direct instruction based on applied behavior analysis principles and incorporates receptive response formats (pointing, selecting pictures, eye gaze) to accommodate nonverbal students. Lessons are delivered daily for 30-40 minutes in small groups (typically two focal students and two general education reading buddies) by special education teachers alternating with paraprofessionals. The intervention addresses phonological/phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and reading conventions through explicit instruction with systematic prompting procedures and repeated practice opportunities.

Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade

Inference Instruction Intervention

2020

Inference Instruction Intervention is a small-group reading comprehension program for sixth- and seventh-grade students with below-average reading comprehension, particularly English learners. Students meet in groups of 3-6 for 40-minute sessions, 2-3 times per week over 14 weeks (24 total sessions). The intervention uses the novel Wonder (Lexile 790L) and teaches students to generate text-connecting and gap-filling inferences through explicit instruction, teacher modeling via think-aloud, guided practice, and inference-eliciting questions during reading. Simple graphic organizers scaffold inference generation by making visible the integration of text information with background knowledge. Students learn to notice gaps in text, identify clue words, integrate information within text, activate background knowledge, and use context clues to infer word meanings. For the first 10 sessions, students read aloud and answer multiple-choice inference questions with immediate feedback via scratch-off answer sheets. In the remaining 14 sessions, students read silently (at least every other page) and answer open-ended inference questions. Tutors receive 4 hours of training before implementation.

6th Grade, 7th Grade

Lexia and iStation

2022

This study evaluated two integrated learning systems (ILSs)—Lexia and iStation—as Tier 2 reading interventions for elementary students at-risk for reading deficits in rural schools. Both programs deliver adaptive, computer-based literacy instruction via 1:1 tablet-to-student pairing, aligned with the five pillars of reading and Common Core standards. Each program uses a blended model combining computer-based activities with supplemental teacher-led lessons for non-responsive students. iStation students engaged in up to 90 minutes per week of computer-based instruction plus supplemental small-group lessons (25-30 minutes per group, approximately 10-12 students daily). Lexia students received 60-80 minutes per week of computer-based instruction with supplemental lessons completed within the designated intervention block. Both programs required vendor-provided professional development for implementing staff. The interventions were delivered over an academic year (September 2018 to April 2019) in two rural elementary schools serving grades 1-5 (one school) and 1-4 (the other), with high rates of students receiving free/reduced lunch (69% and 61%) and significant American Indian populations (54% and 25%).

1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade

Balanced, Strategic Reading Instruction for Upper-Elementary and Middle School Students with Reading Disabilities

2005

This intervention provides supplemental, intensive one-to-one reading tutoring for upper-elementary and middle school students with reading disabilities. The program combines phonemic awareness/analysis training using multisensory methods, strategic decoding instruction with five specific strategies, reading fluency practice through passage rereading, and reading comprehension strategy instruction. Students receive 20 hours of tutoring (one hour per day, four days per week, for five weeks) during summer break. The intervention uses high-interest/low-readability expository texts at students' instructional reading levels and includes daily curriculum-based measurement probes to monitor fluency progress. Two variations were tested that differed in the explicitness of comprehension strategy instruction.

4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade