Intervention - Reading Pt. 1
Knowledge-Building for Teachers Series
Some of you may have wondered: “I am following the science of reading, but I still have students who struggle. How do I support them better?”
I have experienced the same dilemma. Thankfully, I have found many amazing resources that have helped even my most struggling readers. This post is inspired by Elana Gordon, a reading interventionist who has experienced amazing success using some of the resources highlighted in this post. I also share the interventions I have used in my classroom and resources that others have found success with. In an upcoming post, Elana will share additional resources to support reading interventionists in their work.
Infographic
Instructional Hierarchy infographic from MTSS Center
This practical reference of the instructional hierarchy is the perfect start to understanding where students are in their learning and the next steps in their instruction.
Podcasts
Literacy Labs and Other Practical Strategies with Faith Howard with Gene Tavernetti Better Teaching: Only Stuff That Works - Podcast
Faith Howard is an important voice in the secondary level literacy space. Here she discusses her creation of the Literacy Lab at her school to support adolescent readers.
Ep. 154: Science of Reading Beyond Phonics Series: Fluency Instructional Routines with Nathaniel Swain with Melissa & Lori Love Literacy
One of the fluency routines Nathaniel shares in this episode is a powerful but quick paired fluency reading. He shares all the details about how to implement it here: How To: Paired fluency reading
Blog Posts
Accelerating Student Progress with EBLI: Student Data Profiles by Science of Reading Classroom and Voices from the Field
Elana shares the incredible success she has experienced using Evidence Based Literacy Instruction (EBLI) in her reading intervention lessons.
Reading Growth Report: Fifth Grade, 2025–2026 School Year by Science of Reading Classroom and Joe Finch
Read about Joe’s students’ middle of year fluency growth! Joe has implemented several resources, including FASE reading (The Teach Like a Champion Guide to the Science of Reading) and Sean Morrisey’s The Word Mapping Project.
A Period in the Life of a HS interventionist: FASE Reading, Retrieval Practice, and Gist Statements by Science of Reading Classroom and Faith Howard
Creator of Literacy Lab, Faith shares what reading intervention looks like at the secondary level.
Webinar
Matt Burns - Using Data to Intensify Interventions with Matt Burns and ORTIi 2024 Virtual Literacy Symposium
Matt Burns introduces the Data-Based Individualization for intensive interventions and instructional practices that support students at the acquisition and fluency stages of the instructional hierarchy. Also, watch this video on incremental rehearsal to teach letter sounds.
Curricula
high-quality instructional materials
Direct Instruction Reading Programs: These programs follow the Direct Instruction method. Lessons are scripted and designed for mastery of skill. I would highly recommend their training either through their online training programs or at the annual National Direct Instruction Conference. All programs have placement tests to determine which book or lesson to start your students. It is an amazing program, and I had remarkable success with it for several of my students.
Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons: Revised and Updated Second Edition by Siegfried Engelmann, Phyllis Haddox, and Elaine Bruner
Written for parents to teach their child to read as young as 3 or 4 years old, this is also an excellent text use for intervention with students who are struggling at the decoding level. It is also a very accessible program for parents and teachers who are new to Direct Instruction.
Reading Mastery Signature Edition is a reading program that can also be used for elementary reading interventions. You can watch a model lesson here: Reading Mastery Grade 2 with Laura Stam and Science of Reading Classroom - YouTube
Corrective Reading is a foundational reading skills intervention for older students.
EBLI Evidence Based Literacy Instruction developed by Nora Chahbazi
This speech-to-print literacy program combines seamlessly all parts of a quality literacy lesson. Benefits I have seen are my students’ ability to overcome poor reading habits and to successfully access grade-level text and vocabulary. Multisyllabic words especially are becoming easier to decode because of the Multi Syllable Spelling and Multi Syllable Split Word Reading routines. I also really appreciate how clean and uncluttered the instruction is. Read about Elana Gordon’s success with EBLI in the blog posts section above.
Books
go-to guide
Direct Instruction Reading (5th Edition) by Douglas W. Carnine, Jerry Silbert, Edward J. Kame’enui, and Sara G. Tarver
One of my new favorites! This is the literacy version of Direct Instruction Mathematics. I love how this book is organized by specific components of reading. This is an excellent resource with scripts and interventions for each part of literacy instruction.
MTSS for Reading Improvement: A Leader’s Tool Kit for Schoolwide Success by Sarah Brown and Stephanie Stollar
This is an expert guide on implementing an effective MTSS structure for reading at the school level. Stephanie Stollar also offers a course for educators on her website: MTSS Course from Reading Science Academy.
Thank you! Your post means a lot to me.
Really solid curation here. The Swain paired fluency routine is underrated imo because it addresses the social anxiety piece that kills progress for alot of struggling readers. I've seen kids who refuse one-on-one drills suddenly engage when paired with a peer at similar level. The reciprocal structure removes that performance pressure thats often invisible to adults.