Early Literacy Skills Builder


ELSB is a research-based and language-rich literacy curriculum for children ages 5 to 10 with moderate to severe developmental disabilties. It incorporates systematic instruction to teach both print and phonemic awareness. ELSB is a multi-year program with seven distinct levels and ongoing assessments so students progress at their own pace. Each level includes a scripted Teacher’s Manual and full-color Student Materials and Student Assessments. Click here to see sample materials (PDF).	Click the image to watch a short video
MOE-TIVATION Moe the frog puppet and his corresponding stories make ELSB student friendly. The step-by-step instructor’s guide, staff training DVD, and CD with printable PDFs of teaching materials make ELSB teacher friendly too.

FOUNDATIONS
ELSB is based on exhaustive analyses of published research on reading acquisition. The National Reading Panel Report (NRP, 2000) provided strong evidence that phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary development, and comprehension are among the essential components of a successful reading program. In addition, Dr. Diane Browder (2006) directed an analysis of 128 studies on teaching reading to students with cognitive disabilities, which indicated the effectiveness of using systematic instruction techniques to teach sight words. ELSB Accommodates the research from both analyses by including the NRP components and systematic instruction techniques.

Click here to view the ELSB Foundation White Paper (PDF).

NRPs Critical Components		ELSB's Research Analysis
	Phonemic awareness		Review of 128 studies on reading and disabilties
	Alphabetic understanding		Strongly supports systematic instruction
	Vocabulary		Ample evidence of sight word success
	Comprehension		Additional components required for actual reading
	Accuracy / fluency of connected text

ELSB RESEARCH — Five year ongoing research project—two years completed

ELSB research is through Project RAISE and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Sixty
students from the Charlotte Mecklenburg School System with moderate to severe disabilities receive daily instruction in the ELSB curricula. These students are being compared with a control group using a sight-word only approach. ELSB students have earned significantly higher scores on the pre/post test for the ELSB curriculum as well as the Nonverbal Literacy Assessment and receptive language measures.

Click here to view the Project RAISE Research White Paper:

First Year NEW Second Year (PDFs)

Click the image to watch a
video clip of co-author Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell explain group-designed research.

ALIGNMENT WITH STATE STANDARDS NEW!

ELSB aligns with state standards in language arts and reading.

As an example, we provide the State of Florida Reading and Language Arts Standards for Grade 1 (PDF).

If you would like to see how your state standards align with ELSB, contact us.


The goal of ELSB is to develop the skills and behaviors children need to succeed in a standard reading program. ELSB is a multi-year program for children ages 5 to 10 with:	Click the image to watch a video clip of teachers and parents discussing the value of ELSB.
• Autism • Severe cognitive disabilties • Moderate cognitive disabilities • Multiple disabilities • Mild disabilities who are English learners

ELSB has seven distinct levels, each with five structured lessons.

All students begin at Level One. If a student struggles with Level One, administer Level A.

Set up small groups or teach ELSB one-on-one. Teach the lessons daily in two 30-minute sessions. Modify the teaching to accommodate alternative response modes such as AAC devices or eye gaze boards. Reinforce skills by integrating Building with Stories activities.

Students are assessed at the completion of each level. When mastery is domonstrated, move to the next level. Students can be promoted to the school's standard reading program when they successfully complete Level Seven.

To illustrate how ELSB works, click here for a summary of the Scope & Sequence of Level 3.

Click here for Sample pages from the Teacher's Manual, Student Materials, All About Moe and Student Assessments from Level 1 and Level 6.

Click the images to watch
video clips of
ELSB teaching in action.

Components:

Implementation Guide

Teacher’s Manuals–
Levels A and 1-7 (6 books total)

Student Materials–
Levels A and 1-7 (6 books total)

Student Assessments–
Levels A and 1-7 (6 books total)

Moe the Frog Puppet

All About Moe Stories

DVD for staff training

CDs with printable PDFs and
other reproducible resources

Sight Word Flashcards

Magnetic Board with Stars

2 Storage Boxes

10 Step Guide for Story-Building
Lesson

Click chart to view larger (PDF)

Staff Training

Getting Started DVD
A comprehensive DVD covering the essentials of ELSB is provided with each curriculum purchase. The DVD covers research foundations, getting started, objective sequence and includes student/ teacher interactions and teacher interviews.

Reproducible Resources
PDF files are included for all reproducible pages. Purchasing the ELSB program gives you license for print from PDFs or photocopy materials. The PDF files on Disk 1 include Assessment Forms, flashcards, communication cues, All About Moe templates and Building with Stories Lesson Plans. Disk 2 contains PDF files of All About Moe and Oh My, Apple Pie stories, plus JPG files of illustrations from these stories.

REPRODUCTION —There's no need to worry about damaged pages or the right to create extra pages. Simply print out any reproducible page as a replacement or as extra copy. All Assessment Forms are included so there's no need to purchase scoring booklets.
MODIFICATION — Original ELSB art is provided in JPEG format for creating teacher-made materials to supplement and adapt the ELSB curriculum. Import the art into BoardMaker, Microsoft Word or PowerPoint, and create bulletin board decorations, add them to letters for families, make mini "Moe" books, coloring pages, or scrapbooks about Moe.


Comprehensive, multi-year program		A great long-term investment.
A fun, age- appropriate activity		Motivates students to participate in reading activities, just like their friends without disabilities.
Based on scientific research		Demonstrated effectiveness with intended student population.
Scripted lessons		Helps both experienced and inexperienced teachers. Makes it easier for paraprofessionals and classroom volunteers to use ELSB.
Ongoing data collection		Allows students to progress at their own pace. Great for writing measurable IEPs.
DVD training		A quick and effective method to learn how and why ELSB works. Helps new staff learn how to implement the program.
Linked to general education standards		Encourages inclusive activities. Provides access to general curriculum.
For children ages 5–10		Focuses on literacy at the appropriate age.
For all children with moderate to severe disabilities		Gives all children an opportunity to learn literacy skills. Accommodates children who communicate nonverbally or are on the autism spectrum.
Ideal for individual or small group instruction		Group size can be tailored to best fit the classroom.

ELSB is based on the principles of direct and systematic instruction. Direct instruction is a proven technique for teaching reading to students with learning disabilities. Systematic instruction, based on applied behavior analysis, is the most widely used approach for developing a wide range of skills in students with severe or moderate cognitive disabilities. Systematic instruction uses task analysis and data collection procedures to develop structured lesson plans.

Direct Instruction
	Teacher Driven
	Small steps
	Guided practice
	Constant feedback
	Small groups or one-on-one

Systematic Instruction
	Set goals
	Design procedure to attain goals
	Implement procedure
	Assess effectiveness
	Move on or modify

ELSB INCORPORATES BOTH INTO:
	Scripted lessons
	Least-prompt strategies
	Teachable objectives
	Built-in lesson repetition
	Ongoing assessments


Attainment Company is proud to work with the authors and researchers of ELSB: (left to right) Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell, PhD Angel Lee, MEd (standing) Susan Gibbs, PhD (seated) Ginevra Courtade, PhD and Diane Browder, PhD, Principal Investigator