Rhyming to Reading
A Phonological Awareness and Early Literacy Program
According to the International Dyslexia Association, 15-20 percent of the population has a language-based learning disability. Of the children with specific learning disabilities receiving special education services, 70-80 percent have deficits in reading. Dyslexia is the most common cause of reading, writing and spelling difficulties.
Children’s Mercy pediatric speech-pathologists developed Rhyming to Reading, a phonological awareness and early literacy program. This research and evidence-based program helps young children struggling to learn early literacy concepts, as well as children who are typically developing, establish a strong foundation for future reading success.
Rhyming to Reading uses a multisensory structured teaching approach and includes activities to teach phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Activities include games, songs and books to engage children in the learning process.
More than 2000 children have participated in this program and have shown significant progress.
Evidence-based program effectiveness
An IRB approved retrospective research study of 342 subjects was conducted. Results indicated statistically significant outcomes that Rhyming to Reading is effective in teaching phonological awareness and phonics skills to:
- Young children, yielding an average 30% gain in improvement in pre and post test scores.
- Children with and without history of speech, language, learning difficulties.
- Children 4-6 years old.
Rhyming and Reading is effective in teaching all targeted phonological awareness skills as identified by the National Reading Panel and the International Dyslexia Association through the five key components of reading including phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.
For families and educators
Rhyming to Reading is a unique early literacy curriculum presented in an interactive format containing 15 detailed lesson plans; more than 80 instructional video clips; material lists; parent handouts and printable materials for each lesson. Each session is presented in an interactive format using slides, video clips and movement activities. It includes a program overview, research results and take-home ideas to enhance literacy teaching. It is suggested for use by early childhood educators, teachers, speech-language pathologists and parents.
The Rhyming to Reading curriculum is for purchase
The program is for children:
- 4-6 years old.
- Who may or may not have speech/language/learning difficulties.
- Who are through kindergarten age.
Children learn through:
- Play-based multisensory learning activities.
- Teaching of early literacy skills that encourage development.
- Research-based teaching methods.
- A curriculum that was developed by pediatric speech-language pathologists.
- Parent involvement and education.
The curriculum is available on DVD or in digital format via a web link and includes:
- Two levels of programming, including 15 easy to follow lesson plans.
- Over 80 instructional videos, which demonstrate multisensory teaching techniques to enhance literacy learning.
- Full color printable materials including rule cards, letter cards, game materials, lesson plans and parent education newsletters.
- Pre- and post-tests to determine the child's baseline skills and to track progress.
System requirements for the DVD:
- PC: DVD player and Windows XP or higher.
- Mac: DVD player and OSX or higher.
System requirements for the web-based curriculum:
- Chrome, Edge or Safari. The course will not load in Internet Explorer.
To order the Rhyming to Reading™ DVD please email :
Aswini Betha, PhD, CLP
Senior Director, Technology Transfer & Commercialization
akbetha@cmh.edu
To order the web-based Rhyming to Reading program, follow the instructions below.
Note: The web-based version of the curriculum will reference the DVD. Please disregard any reference to the DVD and proceed to access the program via the dedicated website
- Click on the link to purchase and access the program via Cornerstone, our online education portal: Rhyming to Reading web-based curriculum.
- New users: Click on the Rhyming to Reading button. The item will appear in your Shopping Cart and you can click "Proceed to Checkout" to purchase the curriculum.
- Returning users: Sign-in to your account to access the curriculum.