A woman sitting at a white desk with a laptop, a smartphone, a mug, and a plant. The woman has brown, wavy hair and is wearing a watch and a striped shirt.

Grounded in Research. Proven in Practice.

The Delivering SMARTER Intervention (DSI) program is built on the Science of Reading and supported by independent research validating its effectiveness in improving literacy outcomes for students across K–12.

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Cognitive Neuroscience of Reading

The Science Behind DSI

The Five Core Components of Reading

DSI provides systematic instruction in all five core components identified by the National Reading Panel (2000):
Phonological Awareness, Phonics, Vocabulary, Fluency, and Comprehension designed to support the cognitive process of reading and writing.

Diagram explaining the connection between symbols, sounds, and meaning in language. Shows the words 'bat', 'cat', and 'tank' with their corresponding phonetic sounds /b/, /a/, /t/ and /t/, /a/, /t/. Arrows link symbol to sound, sound to meaning, and symbol to meaning. Contains images of a bat, a bat, a bat, a bat, a bat, a bat, a bat, and a bat.

The Literacy Processing Triangle

Reading and writing rely on the interaction of phonology (sound), orthography (print), and semantics (meaning). DSI explicitly targets these neural pathways to develop efficient literacy processing.

Active View of Literacy

From the Simple View to the Active View of Reading

DSI instruction builds both word recognition and language comprehension while integrating executive function and self-regulation, consistent with the “Active View of Reading” (Duke & Cartwright, 2021).

Independent Efficacy Study by the University of Denver

Sample: 81 students (ages 6–18), 78% diagnosed with dyslexia

  1. Duration: 6–12 months of Delivering SMARTER Reading & Writing intervention

  2. Outcome Measures:

    • Word Identification & Spelling Test (WIST) – Fundamental Literacy Index

    • Gray Oral Reading Test, Fifth Edition (GORT-5) – Oral Reading Index

  3. Results:

    • WIST: +8 SS points (large effect size, d = 1.01) after 6 months

    • GORT-5: +4 SS points (moderate effect size, d = 0.42) after 9 months

  4. Conclusion:

    Students made statistically significant gains in literacy and fluency within the first six months of intervention, with continued growth observed over time.

Bar graph titled 'Fundamental Literacy Index' showing three yellow bars representing scores at three different time points, with error bars and significant p-values between the points.
A bar graph titled 'Oral Reading Index' showing scores across three time points. The y-axis ranges from 70 to 90, labeled 'Standard Score', and the x-axis labeled 'Time Point' with points 1, 2, and 3. The bars are orange with error bars, indicating increases in scores over time. The first bar shows a score around 78, the second around 83, and the third around 83. Statistical significance is indicated between time points with p-values: 0.009 between points 1 and 2, 0.004 between points 1 and 3, and 0.447 between points 2 and 3.
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Flowchart titled 'Structured Literacy in Practice' explaining the 'Delivering SMARTER Intervention Framework' with stages: Purpose, Pathway, Placement, Plan, Progress, each accompanied by descriptive text.

Key Research & Research Base

Phonological Awareness & Word Recognition

  • Kilpatrick (2016). Equipped for Reading Success.

  • Ehri (2020). The Science of Learning to Read Words.

Fluency & Comprehension

  • Wolf (2007). Proust and the Squid.

  • Hudson et al. (2009). The Complex Nature of Reading Fluency.

Vocabulary & Language Development

  • Beach et al. (2015). Teaching Academic Vocabulary to Adolescents with Learning Disabilities.

  • Duke & Cartwright (2021). The Active View of Reading.