How Does It Work?

          At Level Up Reading, students are initially placed in 12-week programs designed exclusively for them, and with the goal of meeting their unique reading instructional needs.  Throughout these programs, students participate in weekly 1-hour lessons with myself, Brandon Zurvalec, on a one-on-one basis. These lessons are conducted online via Zoom and you are not required to have a Zoom account on your end.  But in addition to participating in lessons, students complete weekly homework assignments that reinforce lesson content and otherwise address student needs.  Completion of these assignments is mandatory if students are to maximize weekly gains and ultimately read on grade level as expeditiously as possible.

          In terms of how lessons are structured, each of their learning activities falls under one of three main areas: word work, guided reading and re-reading for fluency.  During word work, students build and strengthen phonics knowledge and related skills such as decoding, writing and spelling.  During guided reading, students apply what they learn in word work to authentic reading experiences (e.g. passage readings, readings of fiction/non-fiction texts, etc.) as I provide guidance and support to ensure continuous growth and development in the key areas outlined in “What’s the Solution?”  During re-reading for fluency, likewise, students re-read what they read for guided reading during the previous lesson (after practicing it at home throughout the week) in a manner that is fluent or characterized by automatic recognition of words and “prosody” or appropriate tone, pitch, emphasis, rhythm and volume…in short, we want this re-reading to sound smooth and natural.

          At the end of twelve weeks, students are assessed for their ability to (1) recognize grade-level words, (2) read grade-level text fluently and (3) comprehend grade-level text.  If a student achieves a success rate of at least 80 percent in the first area and demonstrates proficiency in the other two, we can conclude that they are reading “on grade level.”  But if a student falls short in one or more of these areas, then they’re not quite there yet and on my end, I would continue working with the student, specifically targeting their remaining needs until they are, in fact, reading on grade level. 

          While I always strive to have students reading on grade level by the end of twelve weeks, every student is different and there is no single answer to the question of “how long it takes.”  If, for example, a student is considerably behind and/or has a condition (e.g. dyslexia, etc.) that presents obstacles to reading, that could extend the time needed to reach grade level.  And sometimes things just happen (e.g. a lesson must be repeated because certain content wasn’t sinking in, etc.) and this is perfectly normal.  But again, I always strive for twelve weeks and please keep in mind that should you decide to let me work with your child, you will receive regular updates regarding their progress and will otherwise never be left in the dark on anything.