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Multi-tiered Systems of Support

Group of five children all holding books

Intervention and Enrichment

Orono Schools provides four levels of support for elementary learners: Tiers 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Tier 1: The first level of support is embedded in regular classroom core instruction. All students receive 90-180 minutes of core literacy instruction. Additionally, materials and instructional practices have been developed to assist classroom teachers in providing targeted interventions and enrichments for learners within small groups.

Tiers 1-4 Instructional Systems of Support from Classroom Core to Special Education

Tier 2 intervention is an additional 20-30 minutes of aligned reading support 3-4 times per week taught by trained classroom teachers. Data across multiple measures is used for instructional grouping. Parent permission and involvement is coordinated through classroom teachers. Materials and instructional methodology are aligned with core instruction. Approximately 15-20% of our elementary students receive Tier 2 support.

Tier 2 enrichment is provided within the classroom. Data is used to group students and to determine teaching points that align with needs. Teachers work with students in small groups to facilitate differentiated learning. Materials and methodology are aligned with core instruction.

Tier 3 support is an additional pull-out support with a licensed reading specialist 5 times per week for 30 minutes. Data across multiple measures is used for qualification for this program. Parent permission and involvement is coordinated through classroom teachers and reading specialists. Parent meetings to describe the program are also held. Instruction in this tier is tailored to the area(s) of need (i.e. phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension) for the students in the group. Approximately 10% of students receive this additional support within Orono Schools.

Tier 3 enrichment is an additional pull-out program with an Orono Challenge teacher two times a week for 45 minutes. Data across multiple measures is used for qualification for this program. Parent involvement is coordinated through classroom teachers and challenge teachers. Enrichment strategies are aligned to National Association for Gifted Children program guidelines. Approximately 8-12% of our elementary students are involved in this program. 

Tier 4 Special education services are also tailored to individual needs, but based on IEP goals and objectives. Special education reading services are provided by licensed special education teachers in addition to Tier 1-2 services for students. These services are additional and aligned support. Materials and practices are specifically tailored to disability. Entrance is based on Minnesota law and rules regarding eligibility.

Grade-level Guidelines for Qualification (Fall)

*Assessment history is also utilized in making qualification determinations.

Grade Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4
K All students

CP <7
OS <11
LN <14
LS <3

CP <5
OS <5
LN <5
LS 0

MN state criteria for special education
1 All students

WS <28
NW <10
SW <16
SR <12

WS <22
NW <4
SW <5
SR <4

MN state criteria for special education
2 All students

aR <469
CBM <56
MAP = 170-176

aR <445
CBM <22
MAP <170

MN state criteria for special education
3 All students

aR <490
CBM <87
MAP = 184-190

aR <468
CBM <51
MAP = <184

MN state criteria for special education
4 All students

aR <502
AUTOr <502
MAP = 195-200

aR <484
AUTOr <484
MAP = <195

MN state criteria for special education
5 All students

aR <513
AUTOr <513
MAP =  203-207

aR <496
AUTOr <496
MAP = <203

MN state criteria for special education

Support

Structures for Tiered Levels of Support

Tier 1

  • Frequency & Duration: Daily

  • Service Provider: Classroom Teacher

  • Structures: Literacy blocks include whole group, small group, and independent work in order to meet the needs of all learners.

  • Materials: N/A

  • Progress Reported to Parents/Guardians: Conferences and Reporting Periods

Tier 2

  • Frequency & Duration: 3-5 times a week until grade level proficiency is reached
  • Service Provider: Classroom Teacher
  • Structures: Sessions include phonics, rereading to build fluency, reading new texts to work on decoding and understanding, summarizing, and writing
  • Materials: Sonday System, Decodable Texts, FastBridge Interventions
  • Progress Reported to Parents/Guardians: Conferences, Reporting Periods, Ongoing

Tier 3

  • Frequency & Duration: 5 times a week until grade level proficiency is reached
  • Service Provider: Reading Specialist
  • Structures: Based on student need. May include phonemic awareness and phonics, rereading to build fluency, reading new texts to focus on vocabulary acquisition and comprehension, writing.
  • Materials: Heggerty, Sonday System, Decodable Texts, IMSE (Orton Gillingham), FastBridge Interventions
  • Progress Reported to Parents/Guardians: Conferences, Progress Reports, Ongoing 

Tier 4

  • Frequency & Duration: 5 times a week
  • Service Provider: Special Education Teacher
  • Structures: Based on student need, IEP goals
  • Materials: Sonday System, IMSE (OG), Wilson Reading System, Lindamood Bell, Edmark, Reading Mastery
  • Progress Reported to Parents/Guardians: Conferences, IEP Meetings, Progress Notes, Ongoing

Targeted Services

The Orono Schools provides additional intervention support for learners struggling with literacy after school hours. Targeted services are provided at Schumann Elementary, Orono Intermediate School and Orono Middle School. Guidelines are provided through MDE, with building administrators and reading specialists using data across multiple measures for identification. Ten to fifteen percent of children in the buildings access these before- or after-school services. Parent permission and involvement is coordinated through each building office. Services are offered at no cost to families once or twice per week for 60 minutes each session. Materials and instructional practices are aligned with intervention experiences occurring within the school day.

English Learners

The Orono Schools support students with diverse needs in cross-cultural settings and serve the oral language and linguistic needs of ELL students. There are approximately 40 students K-12 served in the Orono Schools. Students receive 30-45 minutes of ELL service every day through push-in or pull-out instruction.  Both the WAPT and ACCESS are used to test English language acquisition. Scores are given on a scale of 1-6 indicating their proficiency level. Materials are selected by the two ELL teachers in the district. The following are critical literacy strategies classroom teachers utilize with English language learners:

  • Selecting texts with content related to students’ background knowledge. 
  • Activating and building background knowledge before reading. 
  • Pre-teaching both content-specific and academic vocabulary. 
  • Using a series of books based on similar themes. 
  • Teaching strategies for solving unknown words. 
  • Selecting texts that will build vocabulary and background knowledge in content areas.