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    • WRS Steps 7-12 Practicum

    In the Wilson Reading System® (WRS) Steps 7-12 Practicum, participants focus on advanced word study and application of reading and writing skills with progressively more challenging levels of text. The practicum requires successful delivery of a minimum of 50 full WRS lessons with an approved student, and submission of at least three videoed lessons for review and feedback.
    WRS Teacher instructing student with sound cards

    Learn more about:

    Registration Process

    Interested in registering? All Wilson Reading System Level I and Level II Practicum lessons must be delivered using 4th edition materials.

    Individuals interested in this professional learning offering can register online. We recommend that you review the course information below and contact us if you have any questions.

    Schools and districts interested in exploring the option of including WRS Level II Certification for their teachers as part of a COMPASS Plan, are encouraged to contact us to start the discussion.

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    Prerequisites

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    Duration

    • Must be completed within 15 months from start date
    • At least 50 full WRS practicum lessons with an approved practicum student 

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    Requirements

    • Submit a pretesting report on the practicum student, including educational history and current test results.
    • Deliver 50 practicum lessons (at minimum), typically completed in one school year, starting at WRS Substep 7.1 in accordance with the WRS Steps 7-12 Practicum Study Guide. The student must receive instruction in three 60-minute or two 90-minute lessons per week (at minimum).
    • Practicum student must reach WRS Substep 10.3 of the program.
    • Provide documentation of written lesson plans.
    • Submit a minimum of three videoed lessons for review and feedback.
    • Demonstrate proficiency in implementing all WRS procedures.
    • Develop teacher and student notebooks and compile student’s written work in accordance with WLT program standards.
    • Demonstrate mastery of lesson plan procedures with an emphasis on both accuracy and fluency for the Upper Steps of the program (documented and approved by assigned Wilson® Credentialed Trainer).
    • Demonstrate an understanding of advanced language concepts through accurate teaching with multisensory procedures.
    • Demonstrate student success and mastery of decoding, encoding, and comprehension skills.
    • Conduct posttest assessment and submit WRS Steps 7-12 Practicum Student Final Report and related documents after a minimum of 50 full WRS lessons and achievement of WRS Substep 10.3.
    • Complete required reading. 

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    Practicum Student Selection Criteria

    Select a student for the Steps 7-12 Practicum, then pretest using the WADE and an approved, norm-referenced test. The Practicum Student Pretesting Form must be submitted to the assigned Wilson® Credentialed Trainer for review and approval. Once the trainer approves the student, practicum lessons may begin.
    The student must:

    • Have already completed Steps 1-6 of the Wilson Reading System
    • Have demonstrated mastery of Steps 1-6 for both decoding and encoding on the WADE
    • Be available to receive three 60-minute or two 90-minute lessons per week (at minimum)

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    Materials

    Required 4th Edition Materials 

    • WRS Instructor Manual Steps 7-12 (digital access provided with practicum course)
    • WADE (Wilson Assessment of Decoding and Encoding)
    • WRS Rules Notebook Steps 1-12
    • WRS Dictation Book Steps 7-12 (digital access provided with practicum course)
    • WRS Letter-Sound Cards
    • WRS Word Element and Syllable Cards Steps 7-12 (coming soon)
    • WRS Student Readers Steps 7-12 (Steps 7-9 currently available)
    • WRS Magnetic Journal with Phoneme Tiles
    • Spell Checking Technology or Dictionary (not provided by WLT)

    To order materials, visit our online store or view our catalog.

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    Upon Completion

    Individuals who successfully meet all requirements of this practicum are able to:

    • Identify the characteristics of dyslexia and related language-based learning disabilities.
    • Use assessments to identify students with word-level deficits who are appropriate for an intensive intervention.
    • Appropriately pace a student through the Upper Steps of the WRS curriculum, developing mastery of material taught, designing lessons that focus on accuracy, automatic, and fluent word and text reading.
    • Develop lessons to support the progression of comprehension skills, moving a student from foundational and initial phases to secondary and proficient phases.
    • Accurately teach the structure of the English language (presented in WRS Steps 7-12): consonant & vowel phonemes, syllable structure, common orthographic rules and advanced spelling patterns including spelling option procedures, and word elements such as common Latin and Greek bases, prefixes, and suffixes, etc.
    • Further deepen the skills developed in Level I Certification.

    Participants who have successfully completed this course are specialized in implementing all Steps of the WRS program, but are not considered WRS Level II Certified unless they have completed all four advanced courses.

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    Graduate Credit

    Three graduate credits (optional) are available through Fitchburg State University, Fitchburg, MA, upon completion of course requirements. Please see Process for Graduate Credit for details.

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