REFERRALS TO READING U
REFERRAL CRITERIA 2024
UPDATED March 13, 2024
HOW IS A CHILD REFERRED TO ATTEND READING UNIVERSITY?
By the time the second reporting period has passed, it is generally accepted that most teachers have a pretty good idea of which students will probably not be reading at grade level by the end of the school year. With that in mind, we have developed the following criteria for referral to Reading University 2024. You will notice that we are no longer using Fountas and Pinnell as benchmarks. A more accurate picture of the child’s reading was needed. So, we chose to use the standardized data that teachers will have at hand.Students who are referred to Reading University should meet all of the following criteria:
- not reading at Grade 3 level by the end of May 2024
- presents in the AT RISK CATEGORY in the provincial Castles & Coletheart (testing CC3} during year-end testing: Regular Word score (20-30) Irregular Word score (10-30) Nonwords score (15-20)
- has the potential to achieve grade-level reading status with three weeks of focused intervention and has the motivation to continue practicing
- is possibly a reluctant reader but shows the potential to develop a positive attitude about reading
- may struggle with writing due to poor word-building skills
- needs to learn more reading strategies to support understanding of what is read
- has caregivers who will commit to the child attending the full three-week program
- Given the intensity of the intervention, all students must attend all days. Students who are unable to attend all 3 weeks will not be considered.
The following indicates that a student is NOT a potential RU candidate:
The following would indicate that a student is NOT a potential RU candidate:
- is showing little to no growth in reading despite focused interventions at school
- is significantly below grade level in reading and is FAR below peers (and has been all year),
- is a non-reader
- is an ESL student with VERY limited ability in English
- has severe emotional or behavioral needs, or is a non-compliant learner
- needs a scribe for written work
- Has a classroom at EA school
- will be away for any of the days during the three weeks the program is in session.
The Process
- Teachers will identify students in Grade 3 who fit the criteria as outlined. These students will probably have entered Grade 3 scoring in the AT RISK category at the end of Grade 2. They will have shown some but not enough progress to take them out of the AT RISK category.
- Teachers are asked to speak with parents in advance about the program using the child’s progress on the CC3 scores as data points and encourage them to support their child’s attendance
- Send home a referral note. Be sure to follow up with parents in case the note gets “lost”. Send along the QR code so the form can be accessed by cell phone.
- The note will remind the parents that their child is eligible to attend this summer’s RU session. To guarantee acceptance they must go to the website, fill in and submit the form. Once the registration is received the teacher will be contacted to input the CC3 scores.
- Once completed the referral will be reviewed and then both parents and teacher will receive an electronic communication about the status of the referral.