Mrs.

Garcia,

As a school, our focus for the past year has been bringing Dorsa students to and above grade level

reading standards. When we discussed the many ways to improve our students overall reading growth, guided

reading was one strategy that won a unanimous vote. There were many questions surrounding guided reading.

How do we start? What does it look like? Where are the resources? As you read through this proposal, you will

learn more about Reading A-Z, it’s benefits for our school along with the financial implications.

Guided reading is a research-backed way to differentiate for students. The National Reading Panel

(2000) created a review of scientific research-based reading practices and found that balanced approaches that

are instructed by teachers, are better for teaching children to read (Iaquinta, 2006). However, creating a state of

the art library with guided reading books for all can be costly. Reading A-Z provides a guided reading library

for every classroom. This online website has been ranked #1 in reading instruction resources by more than

18,000 K-5 teachers (​Desotelle, A. 2019). With our wide demographic of English language learners, students

with special needs and students who continuously need to be challenged, differentiation in reading is more

important than ever. ​With this resource, we will be able to reach all students, with more than 2,000 printable

books at 29 levels of reading. Along with the books, Reading A-Z also provides corresponding downloadable,

projectable and printable resources such as guided reading lesson plans, worksheets, discussion cards and

assessments. This program is extremely useful for our population of English language learners as it provides

hundreds of world language and translated books that can be sent home to families.

The retail pricing for Reading A-Z is $109.95 per subscription. A subscription provides 1-9 classroom

teachers with access to their substantial library where books can be printed for guided reading lessons. This

subscription would also provide companion lesson plans and enrichment activities for each book. If we had

more than 10 classrooms interested, they also offer volume pricing upon inquiry.
 With this program, classroom teachers, resource specialists, reading specialists, and other support staff

would be able to provide instruction at all levels for their students. The guided reading books compliment our

Benchmark Leveled Screener and could fall seamlessly into daily lessons. Since we are currently using

Learning A-Z as a form of leveled reading through technology, students have been exposed to the format and

style of books Reading A-Z would provide. As an RSP teacher, it is important that I not only meet the student’s

needs during our time but also provide resources for their general education teachers. With Reading A-Z,

collaboration and alignment on the same story could be done easily throughout the day, even when we are not in

the same setting. I have been able to utilize Reading A-Z resources through the Special Education department

last year and saw a tremendous growth in reading engagement throughout guided reading time. Through

Reading A-Z, students were able to read books on their instructional level that were still engaging and

informative. For a third grader reading at a first grade level, it was impressive to see the amount of mature

information that could be packed into a Level D book. Students felt more confident when reading a book they

could understand without feeling undermined by “baby” words, book size or drawings that are usually found

within that level or reading. Students were also motivated by the “read and color” option that Reading A-Z

provides. Since all books are printable, the stories were accompanied with images made for coloring providing

an easy and engaging extension to a guided reading lesson.

As a school, we have identified a great need for reading support for English language learners. With this

program, qualified teachers would be able to instruct using Spanish books or send home a story students had

been reading in their home language for parent and guardian involvement. Lesson plans are attached no matter

the language and the printing options are the same. Sending home Spanish and Vietnamese copies of the story

that students have been working with was a wonderful way for me to encourage parent involvement and

participation during our after school reading intervention program (Soaring Scholars). With stories translated

into hundreds of languages, we would be able to differentiate for our diverse population and encourage all

parents to participate in their child’s reading.

 We chose to focus on guided reading as a way to improve our reading scores on SBAC. This tool

addresses our reading instruction standards K - 5 and could bolster and align our guided reading instruction

throughout each classroom. When thinking about how to implement guided reading this upcoming year, please

consider starting with Reading A-Z as it has a multitude of resources and can accommodate all students no

matter reading level, first language, or disability.

Sincerely,

Audrey Sigmon
Resources

Desotelle, A. (2019, June 01). Leveled Reading Library for Kids K-5: Reading A. Retrieved July 27, 2019, from

https://www.learninga-z.com/site/products/readinga-z/overview

Fountas, I. C., & Pinnell, G. S. (2013). ​Guided Reading The Romance and the Reality​(4th ed., Vol. 66, Reading

Teacher). Retrieved from

https://debbiedraper-educationalconsultant.vpweb.com.au/FP_GR_Article_Guided-Reading-The-Romance-and-

the-Reality-for-IRA-attendees_v2014-07.pdf

Iaquinta, A. (2006). Guided Reading: A Research-Based Response to the Challenges of Early Reading