Ashley Withers 
LSC Reading Specialist
[email protected]

Lafayette School Corporation

Dyslexia Information 

Dyslexia Services:

Lafayette School Corporation has developed procedures and services to identify and address the needs of students displaying characteristics of dyslexia or may struggle with early reading skills.

Screening Report Data for 2022-2023   

Dyslexia interventions used during the previous year:

Lafayette School Corporation Title 1 teachers, Special Education teachers and staff are trained in two reading programs to support struggling readers: Lindamood-Bell and Reading Horizons.

Lindamood-Bell reading intervention programs focus on sensory-cognitive processing necessary for reading and comprehension. Students that flag for dyslexia can be placed into small groups using Lindamood-Bell’s Reading Intervention. This intervention uses Symbol Imagery for Phonological and Orthographic Processing in reading and spelling. The automaticity of symbol imagery allows for rapid processing and quick self-correction. Because the process is not laborious and time-consuming, a student’s reading fluency is maintained and guessing is reduced.

Students that flag for dyslexia can also be placed into Reading Horizons small groups. This intervention is a comprehensive, interactive reading system based on the principles of Orton-Gillingham. This explicit approach to reading teaches sounds in a specific order and trains the brain to recognize them. Using multisensory delivery methods, this program helps activate several areas of the brain by including visual, auditory, and kinesthetic cues that allow students to make the connections needed for meaningful interactions with text. Because of this, Reading Horizons instruction is effective for every type of student: K-3 students, struggling readers, as well as English Language Learners.

Instructional Approaches:

If the Universal and Level 1 screeners indicate a need for intervention services, the intervention may include:

• explicit, direct instruction that is systematic, sequential and cumulative and follows a logical plan of presenting the alphabetic principle that targets the specific needs of the student without presuming prior skills or knowledge of the student;
• individualized instruction to meet the specific needs of the student in a setting that uses intensive, highly concentrated instruction methods and materials that maximize student engagement;
• meaning-based instruction directed at purposeful reading and writing with an emphasis on comprehension and composition;
• instruction that incorporates the simultaneous use of two or more sensory

Universal Screening Procedures

Lafayette School Corp. administers developmentally appropriate screening assessments to students in grades K-2 in the first 90 days of the school year as part of our process to identify students who struggle with early reading skills and/or who may exhibit the characteristics of dyslexia. The screening assessments include six reading components as outlined in the table below. A school is not required to administer the universal screener if the parent chooses to opt out of screening or if that student is already receiving intervention services for dyslexia. If the universal screener indicates that a student is displaying characteristics of dyslexia, the school will use the RTI (Response to Intervention) process to address the needs of the student.

Level 1 Diagnostic Assessment Procedures

If students are determined to be at-risk for learning characteristics related to dyslexia, and parental consent is obtained, Lafayette School Corporation’s reading specialist will administer a Level 1 diagnostic assessment for learning characteristics related to dyslexia. This diagnostic assessment is used to gather specific information about the student’s needs and confirm if learning characteristics related to dyslexia are present. The results of this diagnostic assessment will drive intervention instruction, as well as RTI goals to target student need.

Level 1 Screener

Notification and Services

If the student’s performance on the screeners indicates a need for dyslexia intervention services, the school shall:

• Notify the parent/guardian of the results of the screening(s)
• Invite the parent/guardian to scheduled RTI meeting with the school’s RTI committee
• Provide the student’s parents/guardians with information and resource material that includes characteristics of dyslexia, appropriate classroom interventions and accommodations for students with dyslexia  
• Notify the parent/guardian that the parent/guardian may elect to have an educational evaluation by the school at any point in the RTI process.