Message from the Author -
Dr. Ricki Birnbaum, Ed.D.

Focus on Kindergarten
To all of you who have been working so hard to improve literacy in our schools my message is: Focus on kindergarten.

By exposing kindergarten children to well-designed instruction teaching the foundational skills and knowledge that underlie literacy we can improve literacy outcomes. My research over the past ten years has repeatedly shown this to be the case.

Kindergarten children from diverse backgrounds and ability levels have been highly responsive to the NewPhonics-Kindergarten program. What makes NewPhonics-Kindergarten so effective? The program accelerates the development of phonemic awareness and in so doing begins the process of literacy development earlier.

NewPhonics-Kindergarten teaches the prerequisites necessary for success in the early stages of literacy acquisition, and incorporates effective instructional features every step of the way.

The results of the NewPhonics-Kindergarten program are truly exciting. Not only can we help all children acquire the necessary skills, knowledge, and insights to move into literacy, but we can get tomany children before they fall behind, and thus head off the many negative consequences, both cognitive and affective, that accompany reading failure.

Furthermore we can reduce the tremendous amount of time, energy and money now being spent to remediate these children.

At this time it is with great pleasure that I offer the early literacy community NewPhonics-Kindergarten.

Ricki Korey Birnbaum, Ed.D.

About the Author

Ricki Korey Birnbaum, Ed.D., is director and founder of Effective Literacy Methods, devoted to the development and testing of research-based literacy programs and materials. Dr. Birnbaum's goal is to develop high quality instruction that has been rigorously tested in controlled classroom field studies and empirically shown to enhance literacy outcomes. NewPhonics is the product of a seven year development process.

Dr. Birnbaum is a learning specialist and educational researcher with diverse experience in clinical, research, classroom and remedial settings. From 1986 to 1995, Dr. Birnbaum was the Director of the Center for Learning and Program Planning where she conducted psychoeducational testing and worked closely with parents and schools in the development of Individual Education Plans.

Dr. Birnbaum is affiliated with the Margaret Warner School of Education and Human Development at the University of Rochester. She has taught courses in reading and reading disorders and has ongoing involvement in professional development workshops and inservice training. In addition to research into the processes of early literacy acquisition, Dr. Birnbaum has studied children with Attention Deficit Disorder and was the co-developer of an objective instrument used in the clinical diagnosis of ADD at Strong Memorial Hospital. Dr. Birnbaum received her Ed.D. at the University of Rochester and earned her Masters of Science at Nazareth College in Rochester, NY, with specialties in reading and learning disorders. As an undergraduate, Dr. Birnbaum attended the University of Illinois where she majored in elementary education.

Dr. Birnbaum taught for several years in the Chicago Public Schools, teaching first grade where her interests in the early stages of literacy development began.

 

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