We use materials and programs that provide a systematic approach to overcoming learning difficulties. The program is tailored to fit each student’s individual needs through regular review and testing. The following are the primary national teaching methods that are used in the program.

REWARDS™—A reading and writing program for children from 4th grade up through adults. It's very successful with students who have trouble learning to read and are feeling frustrated as a consequence. (back...)

REWARDS™ is another approach to reading and writing remediation that is for students in 4^th grade up through adults. This approach is based on Direct Instruction principles—it is structured so that students are always working at their ability level while they work toward remediation of an academic skill. The program uses word parts to teach word recognition and meaning; it also incorporates content area learning skills to help students be successful learners in all subjects. The best part about this program is that it’s very successful with students who have had trouble learning to read in earlier grades(1-3) and are feeling frustrated as a consequence. Students can make steady progress and feel successful when using this method to read and write.

REWARDS is a specialized reading program designed to teach intermediate and secondary students a flexible strategy for decoding long words and to increase their oral and silent reading fluency. The letters in the acronym stand for:

R - Reading
E - Excellence
W - Word
A - Attack and
R - Rate
D - Development
S - Stratagies

A typical lesson in the REWARDS program will include each of the following activites.

Preskill Lesson Activites are tested and taught to insure that each student can master the lesson.

1. Oral Activity - blending word parts into words
2. Vowel Combinations: vowel digraphs such as ai, ay, ee, ea, oa o-e i-e and dipthongs such as oi, oy, au, oo, ow etc...
3. Reading Word Parts
4. Underlining Vowel Sound in Words
5. Oral Activity - Correcting Words with Approximations Using passage context
6. Word Parts at the Beginning and Ends of Words
7. Focus on Meaning of Words
8. Spelling Dictation
9. Sentence Reading
10. Passage Reading with Accuracy checks
11. Passage Reading Fluency

• Information on the REWARDS reading program can be found at the Sopris West web site (http://www.rewardsreading.com/)