A Guide to Literacy Success

A structured, evidence-based, multisensory intervention program to support struggling readers

“To provide an inclusive learning environment we must provide instruction that enables all students to be successful... Explicit instruction in phonological awareness, alphabetic knowledge and blending leads to improved early reading skills for all children.” (Main et al., 2017, 191)

Can we boost literacy success with the help of a step-by-step, explicit literacy lesson plan and corresponding resources?

I think we can. So many times teachers are feeling stuck on what to do and how to find resources that truly support a students growth in reading. When language is taught like a code, one that involves symbols and sounds, students are able to use this new knowledge to read a variety of texts and feel confident, among their peers, during reading and writing activities. With this idea in mind, and with my help of dear friends and passion for organization, I created a resource hub and simple lesson plan that can support all teachers in delivering a structured, evidence-based, multisensory intervention intervention program for students that are struggling to keep up to their peers in the classroom.

Begin by finding out where your students place on the Steps to Success. You can use various assessments, and your professional judgement, to see where the gaps are in your students learning. Assessment IS a learning opportunity for you, for the teacher, to gage how and where to begin support for your students. Assessments are a time to discuss with your student. Have a conversation about where you see them struggling. See if they can pin point specific examples of areas that they need to nurture.

Once confirmed, follow the Lesson Breakdown with the help of the resources linked.

  1. "Share Around"

  2. Phonemic Awareness

  3. Check Up & Check Out (review and introduction of new sounds & symbols)

  4. Word Play (synthetic phonics activities)

  5. Heart & High Frequency Word Instruction (as needed)

  6. Text Reading (decoding & fluency)

  7. Exit Ticket (encoding)

Lesson Breakdown Highlights

Share Around

Building community is key! Students need to know they are valued and loved. This will lead to trust which then allows students to feel safe to take risks in their learning in front of their peers.

Phonemic Awareness

"Bridge the Gap is a series of systematic phonemic awareness intervention lessons for students in 2nd grade and above. The lessons can be used in small groups or with individual students who struggle to decode words automatically. "

Check Up & Check Out

Review is key for success. Students need to consistently build upon their prior knowledge to be successful in next steps. Flash cards are a great way to review what sounds connect with the symbols that have been reviewed. ONLY review the symbols and sounds that have been taught. @CambellCreatesReaders has created a FREE slide deck to review. Once review has been completed introduce the new sound and symbol. You many need to also use this time to teach a larger skill (eg. FLOSS Rule).

Word Play

A friend highlighted the importance of introducing words to students as "PLAY" vs "work". Allocated time to focus on how different sounds and parts of words work will boost students' success. Let's empower and guide our students before we provide them texts to read.

Heart & High Frequency Word Review

Some words don't follow the symbol to sound relationship. In this case, take the time to learn words that we need to stamp on our hearts. Really Great Reading provides wonderful videos to help with Heart Word instruction - Heart Word Magic.

Text Reading

Providing all students with a variety of texts, at the step they are working on, will enable all students to practice the strategies they are learning. Understanding how to decode will make our students feel more comfortable with their new to them heart/high frequency words and letter sounds (blends, vowel teams, diphthongs...).

Exit Ticket

This is a time to review the symbols and sounds that were reviewed and introduced. Have the students write a sentence in a notebook before they leave for the day. Decodable sentence ideas are available in the resources.


Please keep in mind that it is important to follow a routine and structured lesson. This lesson/program is designed to be administered at least three times a week in a small group setting. A structured, evidence-based, multisensory intervention program will help build familiarity and mastery with students. My research concluded that these 7 steps, administered in a Tier 2 format will strengthen the skills needed for students to feel and be successful in reading the English language.

Examples of instructional practices aligned with findings from the scientific evidence base:

  • Phonemic awareness and letter instruction: Instruction in the identification of phonemes in spoken words and how they link to letters

  • Explicit and systematic instruction in how to decode (read) and encode (spell) words, including word part analysis (e.g., syllables, morphemes)

  • Connected text reading to build reading accuracy automaticity, fluency, and comprehension

(Defining Moment, 2021)

Please note - most of the resources must be purchased. None of the resources are work of my own. The lesson plan, steps and opinions were create through personal experience and professional research.