Phonics First is steeped in sound and proven education design. Phonics First follows the recommended approaches by the National Reading Panel, National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, Reading First and leading experts. Students learn reading skills in sequence, logically building an understanding, while gaining mastery and preparing for the next concept or skill. Phonics First diagnostics are built into the program at every step allowing for continuous progress monitoring. Phonics First aligns to state standards, DIBELS, Aimsweb and is a complementary program for publisher’s core reading series.

Students in these categories are often confused about the principles of the English language and overwhelmed by the complexities within the basic skills components. Phonics First provides the organization, structure and practice that ELL, struggling, at-risk and learning disabled students require to master the English language by addressing the sound-symbol correspondence. Phonics First teaches correct pronunciation for English sounds; provides instruction in the eight syllable types to help students understand how vowel sounds are organized in English; and provides a system that is cumulative and expects sufficient mastery before new concepts are introduced.

Phonics First meets the needs specified in Individual Education Plans when students require targeted and intensive levels of instruction for acquisition of basic reading skills such as phonemic awareness, decoding, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Phonics First’s emphasis on explicit, systematic and structured skills development is ideally suited for students with diagnosed learning disabilities. Phonics First’s integration of assessment and remediation within each aspect of the lessons, assures students are receiving the instruction that specifically meets their needs.

Phonics First is designed according to the latest scientific findings in education and has a proven track record for accelerating student learning and both preventing and decertifying students from special education. Its methodological tenets are directly associated with the best practices for closing achievement gaps. Lessons are scripted and multisensory. During review, multiple learning modalities are accessed, facilitating long-term retention of learned information. During introduction of a new skill or concept, multiple modalities are accessed to help students understand and begin to master the new skill/concept. Phonics First’s accredited status ensures that the instructional strategies utilized are viable throughout all tiers of instruction. At the universal tier, Phonics First is used for differentiation of instruction, allowing teachers to quickly provide appropriate teaching or feedback to struggling students within the context of the daily lessons.

Research clearly indicates that teacher knowledge is central to student achievement. Phonics First professional learning provides teachers with the science of teaching reading and an accredited curriculum with which to apply those principles. Phonics First accreditation assures schools and local educational agencies that, if applied with fidelity, academic achievement will be reached. Phonics First also offers on-site tutoring, further ensuring that students receive high-quality instruction. Phonics First offers two programs: PF Foundations which reaches k-3 children and at-risk and special education children k-5; and PF Structures, specifically designed for the 6th grade+ student who is still struggling with language application in reading and spelling.

All teachers must be highly qualified and Phonics First provides the foundation of knowledge about the science of teaching reading and an accredited curriculum to facilitate best practices. Where need is greatest, coaches and mentors can be installed to ensure even greater focus.

Phonics First instruction is data driven and designed to remediate student learning in real time. Continual assessment is imbedded into the program and allows teachers to differentiate instruction in real time and plan future lessons according to student response for optimal student learning. DIBELS and Aimsweb offers on-going progress monitoring to aid in grouping of children for optimal instruction.

Phonics First allows teachers to continually and quickly assess progress in real time and prescribe the pace of teaching based on student responses within the context of each lesson and future lessons. Phonics First provides coach/mentor and train-the-trainer models to further strengthen a school-wide commitment. This model uses best practices for implementation and support, observations, fidelity in delivery, and creation of a seamlessness of understanding of appropriate instruction between administrators, departments, all teachers and parents.

Phonics First requires schools to participate in a needs analysis prior to implementation to ensure that key elements are in place prior to immersion in this program. Three- to five-year plans are designed to ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of the program. Phonics First content is designed based on National Reading Panel recommendations, follows Reading First guidelines and is research based (Davison, University of Maine, 2006).

PPhonics First provides multiple opportunities and layers of learning for teachers to broaden their expertise in the science of teaching reading and delivery of lessons with fidelity.

• Phonics First Level 1 teaches teachers the stages of reading development to gain an understanding of chronologically expected development and how to intervene to ensure student progress. Teachers also learn how to deliver multisensory lessons that are explicit, systematic, sequential and cumulative so students become competent with basic reading skills including phonemic awareness, decoding, encoding, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.
• Phonics First Level 2 provides teachers with review of Level 1 and delves deeper into miscue analysis and instructional responses.
• Phonics First Structures uses the same sound principles as Phonics First Foundations Levels 1 and 2 but is designed for the middle and high school students. Teachers use Greek and Latin roots to teach the phonetics of English
• Phonics First certifies coaches and trainers to become school-based experts that can mentor and provide on-going professional learning within the classroom, building or district.
• Phonics First Master Trainers visit schools to offer individual observation of teachers, facilitate group and leadership meetings and create learning communities.

Phonics First offers parent workshops that focus on best practices in reading and how they can help their children at home. Materials for home are provided, including readers, workbooks, games and software for reading skills practice.

Phonics First offers instructional classes to parents that helps parents improve their own reading skills. Classes focus on structure of the English language, application of that knowledge to reading and writing and book club activities.

Professional learning that encompasses the science of teaching reading and provides an accredited curriculum drives the success of RtI at all tiers when all teachers in a school or LEA have sufficient knowledge. Phonics First provides all teachers (general education, special education, reading specialists and paraprofessionals) with the core knowledge of how to teach reading. This offers LEA’s a seamless solution between grades and departments.

Rti/Phonics First – Tier 1 (universal instruction)

• Phonics First Foundations is used as a primary or supplemental program within the regular education classroom, depending upon student needs, k-3 (differentiation of instruction and targeted prevention).
• Phonics First Structures is used as a supplemental language arts program in grades 4-8 as additional enrichment.

Rti/Phonics First – Tier 2 (at-risk instruction)

• Phonics First Foundations is used as a push-in program or pull-out for targeted groups and targeted skill intervention (k-5.)
• Phonics First Structures is used as intervention for students in grade 6-12 who are still struggling with basic reading skills. Phonics First Foundations may be used simultaneously for students needing additional lower level support.

RTI/Phonics First –Tier 3 (intensive instruction)

• Phonics First Foundations is used in small group or individually, rigorously following the format for optimal effectiveness (k-5).
• Phonics First Structures is used in small groups for intensive intervention in grades 6-12. It may be combined with Phonics First Foundations for those students who need additional support.