Instructional Support Services

     Title I is the nation’s largest federally funded program for schools. Title I provides extra support for students in the reading/writing and math areas.  Presently, the Dakota Elementary School Title I program provides extra support for students through the RtI (Right to Intervention) initiative.  Students who show weaknesses in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension or vocabulary, receive additional instruction, practice, and support.  In addition, the Title I teacher and aide work with the classroom teachers to provide extra help for students within the classroom setting to strengthen reading skills.

       Reading Recovery is an early intervention program that serves the lowest 20% of the first grade students. This program helps students develop effective strategies so they read at average classroom levels. The lowest achieving students in first grade are provided with intensive one-to-one instruction. When a child has accelerated to an independent reader this instruction is “discontinued” and another child is entered in the program. The average length of time spent in the program ranges from 12-18 weeks.

     Remedial Assistance Program (RAP) has replaced the Title I program in grades 4-6. The goal for the RAP Program is to provide the students with more individualized instruction and additional attention that is needed to meet benchmarks and reach grade level performance. Students in the RAP Program benefit from smaller class sizes as well as team teaching by the RAP teacher and a grade level teacher or classroom aide. The areas of focus in this program are math and language arts/writing.  In addition, through the RtI initiative, students with weaknesses in reading areas receive extra instruction, practice, and support from the RAP program.