• Reading Language Arts Program
• The Dyslexic Student
• Reading Recovery
• Literacy Collaborative
   

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Reading/Language Arts Program K-5

Mission Statement

By making reading an instructional priority, TISD will produce confident, engaged, proficient readers who comprehend, read fluently, and love reading so that they will be successful in school, in the workplace, and in everyday life.

• reading is a life-long process
• children should be exposed to a variety of literature
• independent reading time should be provided every day
• reading should be encouraged and should occur in the home
• reading instruction should build on each student's prior knowledge
• resources should be provided to implement quality reading instruction
• reading should be fun
• all teachers must be reading teachers
• students should experience success in reading from the first day of school
• reading should be taught in a literature-rich environment
• children should be exposed to oral reading daily
• students should be provided choices in what they read based on their interests and reading levels
• reading instruction is accomplished through high expectations and incremental levels of success
• all children can learn to read, but they learn differently; therefore, teachers should be educated in various instructional strategies and trained to diagnose and teach to their children's needs
• writing, vocabulary, and oral language development are critical and should be an integral part of reading instruction
• reading instruction must foster a love for reading
• efficient readers use a variety of reading strategies including: context, structure, letters, and sounds--to make sense of what they read

The Dyslexic Student

Characteristics of Dyslexia
The characteristics of this disorder vary from person to person. Any of the following may be present in a given individual.

• Problems in learning the alphabet
• Difficulty in learning to read
• Difficulty with reading comprehension
• Difficulty with sequencing
• Reversals of letters and/or numbers after 8-9
• Strong listening skills
• Strong oral expression
• Weakness in written expression
• "Gets by" in elementary school, then "falls apart in middle school
• "Grade level" reading ability is not commensurate with intelligence

Additional Indicators

• Delay in spoken language
• Late in establishing handedness
• difficulties in learning "right" and "left"
• Problems with concepts of time
• Family history of similar problems

How does Tyler ISD serve the needs of Dyslexic students?

A decision will be made by the educators involved with the child in cooperation with parents to provide the most suitable situation for each child.  Some dyslexic students may simply require modifications within the regular education classroom. Others, who require intense reading instruction, will be instructed by a teacher trained in Multisensory Reading which meets all Texas guidelines for dyslexia remediation. An occasional student with dyslexia may require service from the Special Education Department.

If you believe that your child may be dyslexic, please contact your child's campus. Ask for the Dyslexia Designee.

Reading Recovery

A safety net for first graders having extreme difficulty learning to read and write. 

WHAT:  Reading Recovery is a highly effective short-term intervention of one-to-one teaching for first graders having extreme difficulty learning to read and write.  It is most effective when it is available to all students who need it and and is a supplemental to good classroom teaching.

GOAL: To dramatically reduce the number of first-grade students who have extreme difficulty learning to read and write and to reduce the cost of these learners to educational systems.

WHO:  Reading Recovery serves the lowest-achieving first graders--the students who are not catching on to the complex set of concepts that make reading and writing possible.

HOW: Individual students receive a half-hour lesson each school day for 12-20 weeks with a specially trained Reading Recovery teacher.  As soon as students can read within the average range of first grade students and demonstrate that they can continue to achieve, their lessons are discontinued, and new students begin individual instruction. 

Reading Recovery is offered on fifteen campuses in TISD. Descubriendo La Lectura is offered on three campuses in the district.  Most students discontinuing from the program continue to have successful educational experiences.   

If you have questions concerning Reading Recovery or DLL contact the Reading Recovery teacher on your campus or Viki Munn--Reading Recovery teacher leader.

Literacy Collaborative

Literacy Collaborative is a comprehensive school reform project designed to improve the reading, writing, and language skills of elementary children grades K-2 and/or grades 3-6.  The cornerstone of this project is dynamic, long-term professional development.  School-based literacy facilitators are trained in research-based methods; provided with ongoing professional development as they continually implement research-based approaches in their own classroom; and supported as they provide on-site training for the teachers in their schools.  The curriculum is based on a comprehensive language and literacy framework that includes a wide range of individual, small-group, and large-group reading and writing activities guided by ongoing assessment. The goal of this comprehensive effort is to significantly raise the level of achievement for all students.

Literacy Collaborative is a Reading/Writing training initiative out of Ohio State University and is currently implemented in the following Tyler Elementary Schools
• Austin
• Birdwell
• Bonner
• Clarkston
• Dixie
• Douglas
• Griffin
• Orr
• Owens
• Peete