I have learned in my experience as a teacher that "reading" is the pivotal point for all learning. It is imperative that students have every opportunity to strengthen their reading skills as early as possible. I have taught students with a variety of learning styles and needs, students whose home lives were not conducive to quality learning, and some that "got it" the first time around and were off toward success. There is nothing like the feeling of knowing you have helped a student find ways to become more successful in reading and learning in general. My daily desire and focus in teaching has been, and will always be, to treat my students with love, integrity, and compassion, realizing that each life is precious and not to be taken for granted. I know that I am well equipped to be a very effective and very good intervention teacher for students who need more than what the normal classroom offers them. What qualifies me to teach an intervention class: I began teaching reading intervention nine years ago for 3rd graders. At that time, I taught an intervention class using Tier 2 instruction materials that were part of the textbook resources. This class was for students who were at risk for not meeting the standard for TAKS. I also met with individual students throughout the day for 30 to 45 minutes to work one-on-one with reading and/or math. Some of the small groups worked on a fluency program recommended by the Grayson County Special Education Co-op, Read Naturally. Furthermore, I used math manipulatives, with hands on activities and word problems to help struggling students to understand math concepts. At the intermediate level I taught reading for a similar group - lower to mid-level learners. I implemented ARI in the classroom using practice test passages and strategies for taking standardized tests. In addition, after administering one-minute diagnostic reading tests to determine the student's reading fluency grade level, I used a fluency program with those who were below their grade level. This small group met 4 times a week for 30 minutes. I used the program mentioned above, Read Naturally. While on the intermediate campus I also worked one on one with students and also in small groups to prepare 4th graders for writing on TAKS/STAAR. Because several of my students at the intermediate school were also dyslexic, I my education and training to better equip myself to help these special learners. Some of the training workshops I attended included: Dyslexia: Syllabication & Advanced Decoding for Students Identified as Dyslexic; Focus on Dyslexia: Tiers of Support Within Progress Monitoring; Dyslexia Decoded: Phonological Memory & Orthographic Processes; and Cursive Writing for Dyslexic Students. The information and helpful tools I received in these workshops was also applicable to all struggling readers, who may not have been identified as dyslexic. The insight gained at a 3-day training session called TALA, or Texas Adolescent Literacy Academy, proved to be very beneficial in working with students at the middle school level, 5th and 6th graders. Many of the resources and ideas presented there are very effective and still used in my reading classes for all learners. Learning how to use a strategy called "Get the Gist, " which helps students process what they read, was one helpful teaching technique that helped many of the dyslexia students I taught. With these struggling readers, trying to read and understand large segments of material is very frustrating and may hinder the struggling reader from achieving success. Learning how to process what they read in small "chunks" is significant to a student's comprehension. This same strategy, paired with other useful reading tools, has proven to be beneficial in helping all my struggling readers to understand what they read. I am always researching new ideas in reading and writing, and will continue to investigate teaching methods that will help my students achieve success, hopefully learn to love reading and stories, and be motivated to continue learning. I would love the opportunity to work with reading or math intervention and put into practice some of the teaching techniques and strategies that I have found to be effective.
