Efficacy of a Direct Instruction Program on Code-Related Skills for Children With Developmental Delays

Purpose: Research on teaching young chil- dren with disabilities using an intervention involving direct instruction and picture book facilitation of code- related emergent literacy skills is limited. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effects of a structured intervention package on sound-to-letter match- ing and single-word decoding skills in elementary-level students with developmental delays. Method: This study employed a multiple baseline across letter sets design replicated across 10 early elementary school-age students with various disabilities. Results: Data analysis indicated a functional, albeit moderately predictive, relationship between the interven- tion and students' sound-to-letter matching and decoding skills. All children made gains in at least 1 sound-letter set from the preintervention to the postintervention as- sessment. More than ½ of the participants also exhibited gains from the preintervention to postintervention assess- ment of single-word decoding. Conclusion: Results indicated a functional relationship between the intervention and select emerging literacy skills. Recommendations for future research are provided.

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