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Graduate Research Symposium

Call for Proposals

READ 650 Evaluation of Reading Research

Presentation Format: 10-15 minute recorded oral presentation with round-table discussion on

Symposium Day, Saturday, April 29th.

Presenter 1 Name (First & Last): Julie Steele

Presenter 1 Email: jisteele10.27@gmail.com

Presenter 2 Name (First & Last): n/a

Presenter 2 Email: n/a

Additional presenter names: n/a

General Topic: Response to Intervention model for at-risk readers

Specific Topic: Implementing RtI in early kindergarten

Audience: Classroom teachers, specialists, administrators

Grade Level(s): Kindergarten

Presentation Title: Kindergarten Implementation of the Response to Intervention Model

Abstract: If you have seen positive results from the Response to Intervention (RtI) model in

older elementary grades, you may be wondering if it could be even better to catch and remediate

reading difficulties earlier, rather than waiting until the problems grow. Research has shown that

YES, it is possible to implement the RtI model in early kindergarten, and there are

evidence-based ways to do so effectively. Join us to find out what successful implementation of

RtI in kindergarten looks like!

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Session Objectives The participants will:

● Participants will identify which assessments can serve as successful screeners for early

kindergartners.

● Participants will learn the components of successful reading intervention instruction in

kindergarten.

● Participants will discover how to incorporate kindergarten school readiness skills into

reading intervention instruction.

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Kindergarten Implementation of the Response to Intervention Model

Julie Steele

Department of Education & Counseling, Longwood University

READ 650 Evaluation of Literacy Research

Dr. Angelica D. Blanchette

March 12, 2023

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Kindergarten Implementation of the Response to Intervention Model

Few would disagree that teaching literacy is one of the most critical jobs of schools and

teachers. Unfortunately, the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) consistently

reports that about 34% of US fourth graders score “below basic” on assessments of their reading

skills (Moats, 2020, p.7), revealing that we have much work to do in our reading instruction.

Research has shown that first graders with poor reading skills have a 90% chance of continuing

to be poor readers as they grow (Greenwood, et al., 2015). Fortunately, research has also shown

that a vast majority of children can achieve basic reading skills (Kilpatrick, 2015, p.3), especially

with early instruction in code-related reading skills forming the necessary connection between

early oral language ability and elementary reading ability (Storch and Whitehurst, 2002). Many

children, especially those from low-income backgrounds, enter preschool and kindergarten

inexperienced in the literacy precursors necessary for becoming successful readers. These

discrepancies only grow over the elementary years due to the phenomenon of the Matthew effect,

where good readers read more thus helping them become even better readers. To combat these

growing reading discrepancies, schools should implement the Response to Intervention (RtI)

model in early kindergarten to identify struggling readers, intervene immediately, and reduce the

risk for long-term reading difficulties.

The RtI model was created to identify, predict, and prevent reading disabilities. In the

model, schools assess all students using universal screeners, and those who perform poorly on

these assessments receive targeted, small group Tier 2 instruction in addition to the universal Tier

1 classroom instruction. Instructors monitor the progress of students receiving Tier 2

intervention, and if they do not make adequate progress, they are moved to more intensive Tier 3
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intervention. Finally, students can be considered for special education based on their lack of

response to Tier 3 instruction.

Schools have been successfully implementing the RtI model in first grade and higher

with much success; however, many still question the accuracy and benefits of implementing the

model in early kindergarten. Fortunately, emerging research has shown that not only can early

implementation of the RtI model accurately predict future reading difficulties, but it can also aid

in preventing and remediating those difficulties (Kilpatrick, 2015).

The first step in implementing the RtI model is to assess all students using basic literacy

screeners to identify those at-risk for reading difficulties. Catts et al. (2015) discovered that a

relatively small screening battery given in early kindergarten successfully predicted first grade

reading difficulties with adequate accuracy, and Vellutino and colleagues (2007) achieved similar

results using comparable measures. The assessment battery included letter naming fluency and

initial sound fluency tasks, sound matching and rapid automatized naming assessments, a

nonword repetition task, a sentence imitation assessment, and a screening of phonological

awareness. Results from these screening measures allowed researchers to successfully identify

students in need of intervention, with the letter naming fluency task providing the highest

predictive value (Catts et al., 2015; Vellutino et al., 2007). In their research, Catts et al. also

discovered that using letter naming fluency, initial sound fluency, and sound matching tasks to

monitor the progress of the students and their response to intervention added to the predictive

value of the RtI model (2015).

Once schools have analyzed universal screening data to identify which students are

at-risk for reading difficulties, they must provide research-based instruction to remediate those

difficulties. In a study done by Lennon and Slesinski (1999), kindergartners who received
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targeted small-group intervention that included direct instruction in the alphabetic principle,

phonemic awareness, word analysis, learning sight words, and reading connected text improved

their reading abilities at a faster rate than those students not receiving such targeted instruction.

Similarly, Vellutino et al. (2007) saw accelerated growth in kindergartners receiving small-group

supplementary instruction in phonological awareness, print concepts, letter identification and

sounds, decoding, and sight words. The success of these two studies provides a blueprint for

what successful reading intervention instruction will look like in kindergarten.

Although multiple studies have shown the success of the RtI model in early kindergarten,

many schools still hesitate to adopt the practice because of the perceived lack of readiness skills

in kindergartners. To the contrary, however, research done by Buckingham, Wheldall, and

Beaman-Wheldell (2014) showed that kindergartners receiving intervention later in the

kindergarten year were increasingly unable to perform as well on reading assessments as students

who began receiving intervention in the first term of kindergarten. Combining readiness skills

with early reading intervention may be the best method of combating kindergarten readiness and

reading difficulties, according to Cook, Kretlow, and Heff (2010). They suggest that instructors

should add supports to their intervention program that could be useful for kindergarteners still

learning basic school skills, including explicit instruction, modeling and scaffolding, gradual and

step-by-step progression of skill introduction, simple and direct language, and consistent

wording. The research of Cook, Kretlow, and Heff (2010) supports their suggestion, as

kindergartners receiving instruction for the entire school year consistently outperformed those

who began intervention during the second semester.

Implementing the RtI model, when done according to evidence-based practices, can

greatly reduce the number of students facing reading difficulties in later elementary grades.
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Strikingly, a study done by O’Connor et al. (2014) showed that 45% of students who had access

to RtI in kindergarten exited Tier 2 intervention by the end of second grade compared to only

26% of students who had access to RtI in first grade or later. Without appropriate identification

and instructional methods, our schools will never be able to close existing reading gaps;

however, research suggests that we no longer need to wait for students to struggle before we

intervene! While research on implementing the RtI model in kindergarten consistently shows

positive results and routinely supports specific types of assessment and instruction, very little

research has been done to replicate similar studies in preschool settings. As we wait for that

research to emerge, let us move forward in identifying kindergartners who may have reading

difficulties and do all that we can to support their literacy growth.

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References

Buckingham, J., Wheldall, K., Beaman-Wheldall, R. (2014). Evaluation of a two-phase implementation

of a tier-2 (small group) reading intervention for low-progress readers. Australasian Journal of

Special Education, 38(2), 169-185. https://doi.org/10.1017/jse.2014.13

Catts, H.W., Nielson, D.C., Bridges, M.S., Liu, Y.S., Bontempo, D.E. (2015). Early identification of

reading disabilities within an RTI framework. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 48(3), 281-297.

https://doi-org./10.1177/0022219413498115

Cooke, N.L., Kretlow, A.G., Helf. (2010). Supplemental reading help for kindergarten students: How

early should you start? Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth,

54(3), 137-144. https://doi.org/10.1080/10459880903492924

Greenwood, C.R., Carta, J.J., Goldstein, H., Kaminski, R.A., McConnell, S.R., Atwater, J. (2015). The

center for response to intervention in early childhood: Developing evidence-based tools for a

multi-tier approach to preschool language and early literacy instruction. Journal of Early

Intervention, 36(4), 246-262. https://doi.org/10.1177/1053815115581209

Kilpatrick, D. (2015). Essentials of assessing, preventing, and overcoming reading difficulties. New

Jersey: Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Lennon, J., Slesinski, C. (1999). Early intervention in reading: Results of a screening and intervention

program for kindergarten students. School Psychology Review, 28(3), 353-364.

https://doi.org/10.1080/02796015.1999.12085970

Moats, L. (2020). Speech to print: language essentials for teachers. Maryland: Paul H. Brookes

Publishing Co.
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O’Connor, R.E., Kathleen, M.B., Sanchez, V., Beach, K.D. (2014). Access to a responsiveness to

intervention model: Does beginning intervention in kindergarten matter?. Journal of Learning

Disabilities, 47(4), 307-328. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219412459354

Storch, S.A., Whitehurst, G.J. (November, 2002). Oral language and code-related precursors to reading:

evidence from a longitudinal structural model. Developmental Psychology, 38(6), 934-947.

Vellutino, F.R., Scanlon, D.M., Zhang, H., Schatschneider, C. (2007). Using response to kindergarten

and first grade intervention to identify children at-risk for long-term reading difficulties. 21(4),

437-480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11145-007-9098-2