LADDERS TO LITERACY - THE EFFECTS OF TEACHER-LED PHONOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES FOR KINDERGARTEN-CHILDREN WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES

This study was designed to test the effects of activity-based phonolog ical instruction delivered by five classroom teachers on the phonologi cal skill development and reading and writing outcomes of kindergarten children with (n = 31) and without (n = 57) disabilities, and childre n repeating kindergarten (n = 19) placed in general and self-contained classes. Teachers in the treatment received 10 inservice training ses sions spaced over the school year and implemented from 100 to 281 acti vities during the 6-month intervention. Outcomes for treated children were compared with children matched for type (general or repeating kin dergartners, or children with mild disabilities) in classrooms using t he same background prereading curriculum. Results suggest that interve ntion delivered by nonresearch personnel can be an effective way to im prove the literacy outcomes of children with a broad range of ability.