Title: Building a Foundation for Reading Success: Enhancing Reading Skills in Grade 1

Introduction:
Developing strong reading skills is crucial for academic success and lifelong learning. Grade 1 serves as
a critical foundation for literacy development. This initiative focuses on enhancing reading skills in
Grade 1 students through a comprehensive approach that fosters phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and
comprehension. By providing targeted instruction and engaging activities, this program aims to equip
Grade 1 students with the essential tools to become confident and proficient readers.

Rationale:
Research indicates that early intervention and focused instruction in reading during Grade 1
significantly impact future reading achievement. By addressing reading skills at an early stage, this
initiative aims to prevent reading difficulties, build a strong literacy foundation, and create a positive
attitude towards reading. By nurturing a love for reading, Grade 1 students will gain the necessary
skills to thrive academically and develop a lifelong passion for learning.

Philosophical Foundation:
This initiative is grounded in a balanced literacy approach, which combines explicit instruction, guided
practice, independent reading, and authentic application. It recognizes that reading development
involves the integration of various components, such as phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and
fluency. The program emphasizes a supportive and interactive learning environment that engages
students actively in reading and promotes meaningful connections to their lives and experiences.

Objectives:
1. Develop phonemic awareness and phonics skills to establish a strong foundation in decoding and
word recognition.
2. Expand vocabulary knowledge to enhance comprehension and facilitate meaning-making in
reading.
3. Improve reading fluency through guided practice and repeated reading of familiar texts.
4. Enhance reading comprehension strategies, including understanding main ideas, making
connections, and inferring.
5. Foster a love for reading and cultivate positive attitudes towards literacy.

Expected Outcomes:
By the end of the program, Grade 1 students are expected to:
1. Demonstrate improved phonemic awareness and decoding skills, accurately identifying and
decoding words.
2. Expand their vocabulary repertoire and apply context clues to comprehend unfamiliar words.
3. Read with increased fluency, demonstrating accuracy, appropriate pace, and expression.
4. Employ reading comprehension strategies to comprehend and analyze texts effectively.
5. Develop a love for reading, demonstrating enthusiasm, engagement, and a desire to explore
various texts.

Detailed Workplan and Timelines:

Phase 1: Preparatory Phase (2 weeks)

- Identify and gather appropriate reading materials, including leveled books, phonics resources, and
vocabulary resources.
- Provide professional development to Grade 1 teachers, focusing on effective reading instruction
strategies and methods.
- Administer pre-assessments to gauge students' reading skills and identify areas of focus.

Phase 2: Implementation Phase (12 weeks)

- Week 1-2: Phonemic Awareness and Phonics Instruction (2 weeks)
- Topics to cover: Letter-sound correspondence, blending, segmenting, rhyming.
- Teaching Strategies: Phonemic awareness games, explicit phonics instruction, multisensory
activities.
 - Materials needed: Letter cards, word-building manipulatives, rhyming word lists.

- Week 3-4: Vocabulary Development (2 weeks)

- Topics to cover: Word meanings, context clues, word relationships.
- Teaching Strategies: Word exploration activities, vocabulary games, vocabulary journals.
- Materials needed: Picture books, vocabulary word cards, graphic organizers.

- Week 5-8: Fluency Building (4 weeks)

- Topics to cover: Sight word recognition, phrased reading, expression.
- Teaching Strategies: Modeled reading, choral reading, partner reading, repeated readings.
- Materials needed: Leveled readers, sight word cards, fluency passages.

- Week 9-12: Reading Comprehension Strategies (4 weeks)

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Topics to cover: Making predictions, identifying main ideas, making connections, inferencing.
- Teaching Strategies: Think-alouds, graphic organizers, guided reading discussions.
- Materials needed: Comprehension passages, graphic organizers, sticky notes.

Phase 3: Assessment and Evaluation (1 week)

- Administer post-assessments to measure students' reading progress and growth.
- Analyze assessment data to evaluate the effectiveness of the program and identify areas for further
support.
- Provide feedback to teachers and students, highlighting individual achievements and growth.

Person Responsible and Tasks:

- Program Coordinator: Overall program coordination, resource acquisition, and assessment design.
- Grade 1 Teachers: Lesson planning, implementation, and formative assessment of student progress.
- Professional Development Facilitators: Conducting professional development sessions for teachers.
- Assessment Team: Analyzing assessment data and providing feedback and recommendations.

Risk Management:
- Differentiated Instruction: Adjusting instruction and activities to meet the diverse needs and abilities
of Grade 1 students.
- Ongoing Support: Providing regular support and guidance to teachers through coaching and
collaborative planning sessions.
- Parent Engagement: Involving parents in supporting their child's reading development through
informational sessions and home reading activities.
- Monitoring Progress: Continuously monitoring students' progress and adjusting instruction
accordingly to ensure targeted skill development.

Conclusion:
By implementing a comprehensive approach to reading instruction in Grade 1, this program aims to
equip students with the foundational skills needed for reading success. Through focused instruction,
engaging activities, and a supportive learning environment, Grade 1 students will develop phonics,
vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension skills. By fostering a love for reading and nurturing confident
readers, this program sets a strong foundation for lifelong learning and academic achievement.