The National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI) has launched a new division of the company to support schools and districts as they use Direct Instruction (DI) programs to tutor students who perform below grade-level expectations. All of the DI programs listed under The Programs tab can be used effectively in one-on-one or small-group tutoring settings. Click on the links below to learn more about some of the most popular programs used for tutoring each program:
NIFDI provides a comprehensive set of services to schools and districts to ensure that tutoring with the DI programs is effective for all students:
- training a testing team who administer in-program assessments (placement tests) to determine the optimal starting points in the programs that match the students’ current skill repertoire;
- initial training for tutors that lasts 12 hours (which can be distributed over several days) and provides participants with the skills they need to teach students one-on-one effectively using a specific DI program;
- follow-up training sessions on essential delivery skills that match the development of the programs used for tutoring children;
- onsite or virtual coaching of tutors;
- coaches’ training for supervisors of tutors;
- data analysis of student performance in the DI programs;
- weekly management review calls with the supervisor of the tutoring program.
For more information on NIFDI training and support for a tutoring program, including pricing, call 1-877-485-1973 toll-free or email info@nifdi.org. Help ensure that every child in your school or district achieves success this year through an effective Direct Instruction tutoring program with NIFDI support!
English Language Learners
DISE teaches spoken English to non-English-speaking students who have the equivalent of at least a 3rd-grade level understanding of their native language. The program assumes no prior knowledge of English as it builds students’ English language proficiency step-by-step through carefully crafted lessons that are accompanied by PowerPoint instructional display slides that are downloadable from the publisher’s website.
Español to English teaches the skills Spanish-speaking students need to gradually transition fully into Reading Mastery Language Grade K or Language for Learning, a Direct Instruction early language program. The program provides the building blocks of listening and reading comprehension by teaching word knowledge, common information, concepts, sentence forms, classification, and problem-solving. All skills and concepts taught are continuously integrated into more sophisticated review and application exercises. As students master the lessons, their ability to function successfully in classrooms where English is the language of instruction steadily increases.
Mathematics
Corrective Mathematics is a remedial math program focused on teaching the basic math skills needed for higher-level math. The program comes in seven modules that address specific mathematics deficits:
-
- Addition
- Subtraction
- Multiplication
- Division
- Basic Fractions
- Fractions, Decimals, and Percents
- Ratios and Equations
Essentials for Algebra teaches pre-algebra and prepares students for a traditional Algebra 1 course.
Reading
Decoding is an accelerated program, and when taught to mastery, students can gain two years or more of reading skills in one school year. Levels A, B1, B2, and C are generally used for older students (grade 4 and above) who have not attained grade level in reading but for whom Reading Mastery would not be age-appropriate. The program is used occasionally for students in grade 3.
Comprehension Levels A, B1, and B2 are used for older students (grade 4 and above) who have not attained grade level in reading comprehension but for whom the lower levels of Reading Mastery Language might not be appropriate. Level C is primarily used for students in grades 6-12 who have developed some comprehension skills but have a deficit in advanced vocabulary, lack the facility to extract information from sources, have not mastered reasoning skills, and/or have trouble learning a new concept from written instructions. Level C is also for grade 4 through grade 6 students who have completed Reading Mastery Grade 5.
This popular and highly effective literacy instructional program for parents and tutors has been used with a wide range of early literacy learners to help them become successful, independent readers when the provisions of the book are followed carefully. Over a million copies of the book, which has recently been revised and updated, have been sold since it was first published a half-century ago.
Spelling
Spelling Through Morphographs teaches older students spelling rules while utilizing a systematic review of every morphograph (prefix, root, or suffix).
Writing
Essentials for Writing is designed for students in middle school and high school who are at risk of failing to meet high school graduation requirements in English Language Arts. The program consists of 95 lessons designed to teach students to compose narrative passages, stories with a specific theme, descriptive essays, autobiographical sketches, responses to literature, and persuasive arguments and position papers. The program is appropriate for middle and high school students who have completed Expressive Writing, described below.
Expressive Writing systematically teaches fundamental writing skills to students in third grade and higher. At the end of Expressive Writing 1, students can write a paragraph that describes a sequence of related actions using simple declarative sentences, punctuate sentences correctly, write consistently in the simple past tense, and write paragraphs that include sufficient detail and stay on topic. By the end of Expressive Writing 2, students can write a multi-paragraph narrative that is written clearly (using clear pronoun referents and including details necessary for clarity), incorporates a variety of sentence types, and includes correctly punctuated direct quotes.
