Implement Reading Recovery in your district
The Reading Recovery Teacher Training Site at Illinois State University offers initial teacher training, implementation support, ongoing professional development, and unlimited guidance to any school district which implements Reading Recovery. Learn about all of the services offered at the ISU training site.
Each year, the Illinois State University Reading Recovery site supports the implementation of Reading Recovery in 30-40 Central Illinois school districts. Since 1990, when the Reading Recovery Teacher Training Site was established at the University, more than 7,000 first grade children have received Reading Recovery services. View the Illinois schools using Reading Recovery.
These guidelines are helpful when exploring Reading Recovery implementation in your school:
- A school should plan to provide enough Reading Recovery services to support the most at-risk children in the first grade cohort. Typically, around 20 percent of a school's first grade population will need Reading Recovery services. In schools where risk factors are greater, the percentage is higher and thus more Reading Recovery services would need to be provided.
- Schools that have one or two first grade classrooms typically need one Reading Recovery teacher (.5 FTE).
- Schools that have three or four first grade classrooms typically need two Reading Recovery teachers (two at .5 FTE).
- Reading Recovery teachers are optimally trained in pairs, two per school or two from a district.
- Reading Recovery teaching positions are usually half-time.
- In the morning, a Reading Recovery teacher works with four first-grade children, individually. Over the course of the year, that Reading Recovery teacher would reach 8-12 first grade children.
- In the afternoon, that same teacher would be assigned responsibilities as determined by the district.
Implementation models
School districts implement Reading Recovery in many ways. Below are three options that only scratch the surface of possibilities. A school can be as creative and innovative as they like when implementing Reading Recovery.
- Train two teachers in Reading Recovery, who would share a first-grade classroom (or kindergarten classroom):
- Teacher A would teach first grade in the morning and Reading Recovery in the afternoon.
- Teacher B would teach Reading Recovery in the morning and first grade in the afternoon.
- Train two teachers, who would both provide Reading Recovery services in the morning and Title I reading services in the afternoon.
- Teacher A would teach Reading Recovery in the morning and work with K-1 classrooms in the afternoon.
- Teacher B would teach Reading Recovery in the morning and work with other grade levels in the afternoon.
- Train two teachers, with unique responsibilities in the afternoon:
- Teacher A would provide Reading Recovery services in the morning and Title I reading services in the afternoon.
- Teacher B would provide Reading Recovery services in the morning and Special Education services in the afternoon. (The idea of training Special Education teachers in Reading Recovery is new and innovative. It can improve the instruction of Special Education students and improve the transition between early intervention services and long-term support.)
Identifying the teacher(s) to be trained
The school district selects a teacher to be trained in Reading Recovery. Selected individuals should:
- have at least three years teaching experience with primary-age children
- demonstrate evidence of adaptability and problem solving
- be willing to learn, acquire, and apply new skills and knowledge
- have the potential of being a literacy leader in his or her school
- show evidence of good interpersonal skills with colleagues
- make application for training voluntarily
