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Reading Intervention Pilot
Unit 1: Short Vowels (CVC). An 8-session Science-of-Reading intervention unit for Tier 2/3 readers — eight scripted 35-minute lessons that take students from their first short-a blend to mixed-vowel fluency, with a placement probe up front and a mastery check at the end.
Tightly controlled scope
CVC words only. One short vowel at a time. No blends, no digraphs, no surprises. Eight heart words, taught explicitly and reviewed every session. Nothing is taught once and dropped — each lesson reviews everything before it, and students advance only when they hit the mastery bar.
The 8-session arc
Start with the placement probe, move session to session, and finish at the mastery bar. Students who score below 18/25 on letter sounds start in On-Ramp first.
Why it works
Explicit and systematic
One short vowel at a time, taught in a fixed order with cumulative review. Nothing is taught once and dropped — each lesson reviews everything before it.
Tightly controlled text
Every word in every sheet and passage is inside the Unit 1 scope: CVC words and taught heart words, nothing else. If a student can read it, it's because they were taught it.
Mastery-based pacing
Students advance only when they hit the bar: 18/25 letter sounds to start, 30 WCPM at 95% accuracy to finish. Struggling students get On-Ramp — not left behind.
Scripted for real classrooms
35-minute sessions with word-for-word teacher language, daily review drills, and pre-built word strips. No prep beyond printing.
We're piloting Unit 1 free with real teachers — your classroom feedback writes Unit 2. That's the whole point of a pilot.
The 8 sessions
Short A: Read and Write
Meet short a. Blend first CVC words, heart words the/is, x says /ks/.
Short A Fluency
Build speed and accuracy on short-a words. Heart word has.
Short I: Hear the Vowel
New vowel short i. Contrast a/i so the vowel — not the consonants — drives the read.
Short O: Three Vowels
New vowel short o. Three-way sort across a/i/o; closed-syllable marking.
Short U + Short E
Two vowels, one session — with a built-in split-session option if the group is shaky.
Mixed-Vowel Fluency: Sharks
Vowel-check routine on mixed lists, then the decodable Sharks passage.
Fluency: Volcano
Timed mixed-vowel reading, then the decodable Volcano passage.
Mastery Check
20-word decoding, spelling dictation, 1-minute fluency. Bar: 95% accuracy + 30 WCPM.
Decodable passages
Real nonfiction topics, every word inside the Unit 1 scope. No cartoon framing.
Sharks
Decodable nonfiction: what sharks eat, how they swim. Every word in the Unit 1 scope.
Volcano
Decodable nonfiction: what a volcano is and what comes out. Every word in the Unit 1 scope.
Assessments & materials
Placement Probe
47 points: letter sounds /25, CVC word reading, spelling. Below 18/25 on letter sounds → On-Ramp bootcamp first.
Mastery Check
End-of-unit instrument: 20-word decoding, 10-word spelling, 1-minute fluency with WCPM + accuracy scoring.
Sound Cards
26 print-and-cut letter-sound cards (large) + word-strip templates for the daily review drill.
Free during the pilot. Download anything, use it with your students, and tell us how it went — your feedback shapes Unit 2.
Teachers may print and copy these materials for their own students. On-Ramp bootcamp materials (for students who place below the probe bar) are in development.
Teaching a full class instead?
Browse the weekly lesson plans, or mix and match your own week in the Pack Builder.