Getting Started

LCNA interventions are implemented by education districts and consortia that are affiliated with University Training Centers (UTCs) in the United States and with Regional Institutes (RI) in Canada. Typically one or more school systems decide to implement the interventions and employ one or more Teacher Leaders to train Teachers. In cases where a school district is too small to establish a teacher training site, administrators can contact a UTC or nearby teacher training sites about the possibility of affiliation.

The decision to implement the interventions with fidelity is a collaborative partnership among teachers, administrators, parents, and university personnel. Strong coordination and communication among groups contribute to the success of any implementation.

For additional information, please see Establishing a Site.

Establishing a teacher training site requires a strong, long-term commitment from the sponsoring district or consortium. All stakeholders need information about the purposes, rationales, and processes involved in one-to-one intervention. Key understandings include the need to serve the lowest-achieving children first, to be economical with time in selecting and teaching children, and to work towards full implementation—which means allocating sufficient staffing and teaching time to serve the most at-risk children in the first-grade cohort.

1. Send a representative team on a fact-finding visit to a University Training Center (UTC). If possible, visit established sites in your local area. Build understanding and support for implementation at all levels within your district.
2. Select one or more experienced and highly qualified (master’s degree required) individuals to participate in the teacher leader training program for one academic year. After the training year, this person will train teachers for your site. In some areas, it is possible to employ an active, trained teacher leader.
3. Establish a “behind-the-glass” area with one-way glass for teaching sessions and adequate space for follow-up class discussions.
4. Plan for the teacher leader to train 8 to 12 intervention teachers a year. Determine a procedure to select highly qualified and successful teachers for training and support the teacher leader in establishing a training class.
5. Arrange weekly training sessions for teachers-in-training across an academic year. Work with your affiliated UTC to determine possibilities for graduate credit for teachers-in-training. All Reading Recovery-trained teachers received graduate-level training, sometimes through their affiliated UTC, and sometimes through a local college.
6. Make necessary staff arrangements to enable intervention teachers to teach four students in daily 30-minute lessons. Active intervention teachers fulfill other job responsibilities for the remainder of the day (e.g., Title I or small-group teacher, kindergarten teacher, shared classroom teacher, special education teacher, English as a second language (ESL) teacher, staff developer/literacy coach).
7. Make the necessary staff arrangements to enable the Teacher Leader to teach children, support teachers, and manage the implementation at the district or site level.
8. Purchase books and supplies. The startup cost for non-consumable materials is approximately $2,500 per teacher.
9. Comply with the U.S. or Canadian standards and guidelines for training, data collection, and implementation. These standards protect your investment and must be followed to maintain active status.