A handful of first-graders sit cross-legged on a rainbow-colored rug with their eyes fixed on Katherine Craig, the reading specialist at Oak Ridge Elementary in Sacramento.
She’s in charge of a special program for struggling readers called Systematic Instruction in Phonological Awareness, Phonics and Sight Words (SIPPS).
At the beginning of every class, Craig shuffles through a stack of flashcards and asks students to sound out letters and blend those sounds together.
“It’s very scientific,” Craig says. “I almost feel like a doctor who gives a test, and you see what the prescription is. There’s a lot of repetition. I’ve been teaching this program for five years, and I always see students make a ton of growth.”
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