Brief Description: Mayerson Academy is the only official LETRS affiliate training site in the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana tri-state area. LETRS, developed by Dr. Louisa Moats, is a specialized, comprehensive professional development program that provides all teachers with the knowledge of how students learn to read, spell, and write and with the skills to improve and systematize their classroom teaching of reading.

Mayerson Academy offers the following types of LETRS training: LETRS Modules with Learning Labs for extended learning; LETRS for Early Childhood Educators, LETRS Foundations, and LETRS for Paraprofessionals and Tutors.

LETRS Modules
The twelve LETRS modules developed by Dr. Moats address every component of effective reading, spelling, and writing instruction and the fundamental concepts of language that link all the components. In this training, teachers also learn to recognize specific reading problems and how to address those problems.
The following is a list of the LETRS Modules:

1. The Challenge of Learning to Read (all grades)
2. Speech Sounds of English Phonetics, Phonology, and Phoneme Awareness (for all grades)
3. Spellography for Teachers: How English Spelling Works (all grades)
4. The Mighty Word: Building Vocabulary and Oral Language (all grades)
5. Getting Up to Speed: Developing Fluency (all grades)
6. Digging for Meaning: Teaching Text Comprehension (all grades)
7. Teaching Phonics, Word Study, and the Alphabetic Principle (grades K-2 and Intervention)
8. Assessment for Prevention and Early Intervention (grades K-3)
9. Teaching Beginning Spelling and Writing (grades K-2 and Intervention)
10. Reading Big Words: Syllabication and Advanced Decoding (Grade 3-adult)
11. Writing: A Road to Reading Comprehension (grade 3- adult)
12. Using Assessment to Guide Instruction (grade 3-adult)

Participant Outcomes:

• Explain the structure of language
• Use teaching practices that are consistent with language structure
• Develop explicit, systematic lessons which address phoneme awareness; phonics, decoding, spelling, and word study; oral language development; vocabulary; reading fluency; comprehension; and writing
• Address phoneme awareness; phonics, decoding, spelling, and word study; oral language development; vocabulary; reading fluency; comprehension; and writing
• Implement a high-quality core reading program which provides the foundation for students to meet the expectations of the commone core state standards

Expected Student Achievement Outcomes:

• Increased achievement in reading through participation in a high-quality core reading program

LETRS Foundations: An Introduction to Language and Literacy

Brief Description:
LETRS Foundations is a teacher’s first step in gaining essential knowledge about effective teaching of reading. LETRS Foundations introduces educators to the concepts and practices supported by reading science and prepares teachers for the more rigorous, in- depth modules of the LETRS professional development program. Foundations addresses the differences between good and poor readers; aspects of language that are important for literacy; the components of effective instruction; principles of systematic, explicit instruction in each component; and instructional activities that can support the implementation of any comprehensive core program.

Audience: PreK-Grade 12 Teachers and Intervention Specialists, especially those new to teaching English Language Arts. HQT

Evidence Base for Training: See above

Participant Outcomes:

• Examine new information about how children learn to read
• Recognize the importance of oral language
• Identify the five essential components of reading
• phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and fluency
• Identify strategies for teaching the five components of reading systematically and explicitly

Expected Student Achievement Outcomes:

• Increased achievement in reading through participation in a high-quality core reading program