Designed for teachers and administrators grappling with the development and implementation of Response to Instruction and Intervention, more commonly referred to as RTI. No matter where you are in the process of developing your RTI system, we are certain that this common sense approach will provide valuable insights and practical steps.

The great promise of RTI is the potential to reach and teach all students. That promise becomes a reality when the heart of an RTI system is a well-designed, TIER 1 program taught by well-prepared teachers who recognize the power of data to inform instruction. When all students receive good first instruction in such a system, the number of referrals for intervention goes down, proficient students maximize their learning, and gifted students grow intellectually.

Drawing on their experience with thousands of educators, the authors offer a step-by-step process for constructing a strong TIER 1 curriculum, identifying the essentials of data-driven instruction, and analyzing instructional strategies that lead to good first instruction for all students.

In our effort to translate the intent of RtI into practice, our observations and experiences with hundreds of educators have led us to focus on TIER 1. Even though what to use, when to use it, and how to access intervention in TIERS 2 and 3 are essential questions in an RTI model, we focus on the TIER 1 classroom as the foundation of a successful RTI implementation.

Our purpose is to provide a blueprint for the kind of instructional planning and decision-making that maximizes learning for all students--those who are proficient and advanced, as well as those who require intervention services. Making an investment in effective instruction for TIER 1 classrooms reduces expenditures by minimizing referrals for more intensive and expensive instructional support. A strong TIER 1 is cost effective for everyone--administrators, teachers, and students.

Each chapter in the book guides you through a process designed to zero in on critical aspects of TIER 1 instruction--those aspects that when addressed contribute to teacher success and student achievement.

• Section 1 focuses on several critical instructional variables--what to teach, how to teach, and how to determine what students have learned.
• Section 2 takes the next step and demonstrates how these variables play out in effective TIER 1 instruction. Using data to guide instructional decisions and assess student progress are at the heart of building a strong foundational program.
• Section 3 examines decisions that exist beyond the TIER 1 classroom. These decisions pertain to infrastructure, policies, and overarching instructional goals that typically lie within the purview of school or district-wide leadership. This section also summarizes the process, presented as a checklist, designed to help you determine the state of TIER 1 in your classroom, school, or district. We invite you to take a look at the checklist in Chapter 9 as a pre-organizer for where you are in this process.

We hope these chapters will foster conversation about the importance and effectiveness of first instruction. No matter where you are in the process of developing your RTI system, we are certain that this common sense approach will provide valuable insights and practical steps. When educators actively address these issues, the critical role of TEIR 1 will not be forgotten; it will rise to the forefront.

RTI + CCSS (Common Core State Standards)
RTI: The Forgotten Tier is THE resource--focusing on TIER 1 as the foundation of a successful RTI model--to effectively implement both of these critical initiatives.

In this beautifully illustrated story a boy follows his dream, using nothing but imagination and a marvelous morphing mat to brave the ocean, see the savannah, and make friends with an African elephant. The message? Read to awaken your dreams. Imagine, and make it happen. Excerpt: As he hides from the hail in his marvelous dome an elephant suddenly enters his home He's only a baby, not even one year. Feeling lost and alone, he's quaking with fear.

Henrietta never liked history. But on a late summer day in 1932, she and her sometimes annoying little sister Irma Jean, hear an exciting true story from their artist friend, Maude Mitchell-a story that takes them back in time 75 years. In 1856, Maude's father, William Mitchell, came from Connecticut to support the Free State cause in Kansas. William and his sister Agnes hid runaway slaves in their cabin, including Jesse and Abby, two slave children who'd been cruelly separated from their mother. Henrietta had learned about the Underground Railroad at school, but she never realized how dangerous it was for everyone involved. But what has slavery got to do with the family secret and Aunt Jo being mad at her parents? As the pieces of the puzzle begin to come together, Henrietta discovers a surprise from the past that nobody dreamed was possible.

Part of the proceeds from Dawn of Day are going to Mt. Mitchell Heritage Prairie. You can read all about this wonderful local history preservation project at their website.

Abilene is just another small town, Little Ike told himself, no different from all the others that dot the plains. But it had not always been that way. This beautifully illustrated book about Eisenhower's youth is more than a children's picture book. It is filled with the rich biography of one of America's most remembered presidents. Included is a section for older readers taking a deeper look into his entire career plus helpful references and Internet links for further research. We are certain that Little Ike will become a highly regarded piece of presidential heritage about Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States.

In this beautifully illustrated story a boy follows his dream, using nothing but imagination and a marvelous morphing mat to brave the ocean, see the savannah, and make friends with an African elephant. The message? Read to awaken your dreams. Imagine, and make it happen. Excerpt: As he hides from the hail in his marvelous dome an elephant suddenly enters his home He's only a baby, not even one year. Feeling lost and alone, he's quaking with fear.

Jamie's Journey Series:

• Jamie's Journey: The Savannah (Book 1)
• Jamie's Journey: The Mountain (Book 2)

Susan M. Ebbers former teacher, principal, and summer-camp program director, is an educational consultant and author focusing on linguistic awareness and vocabulary growth. As a curriculum author, she created Power Readers and Supercharged Readers, as well as Vocabulary through Morphemes, published by Cambium Learning.

Cory Godbey has illustrated picture books, covers, and other projects for clients such as Harper Collins, Random House, Marvel, and The Jim Henson Co. He has worked on animated shorts and commercials with clients including Microsoft Zune and the documentary film The Last Flight of Petr Ginz. Cory seeks to tell stories with his work.

Echoes of Kansas Past: More Than Just History in the Making Grandpa Andrews says to know how another person feels, you have to walk a mile in his moccasins, Jack said. And the time machine will let people do that, Mollie said. ***** Travel back in time with fourth grade twins, Jack and Mollie, in this illustrated chapter book and meet those who are now part of Kansas history. Go with the twins as they travel through time and find themselves walking in the moccasins of others. Among their experiences: living as Kanza Indians in 1620, riding an orphan train where new parents await the children, hiding with other scared runaway slaves in a dark cellar and meeting Abraham Lincoln, witnessing discrimination as first grade classmates of Langston Hughes in a non-integrated school, arriving at Fort Riley where they meet Comanche, the famous horse of the Battle of the Little Big Horn, again becoming Indian children in the harsh early days of the Haskell University, and attending a dance where they hear the first ever rendition of the state song, Home on the Range.

Trouble precedes Ardis Cole to the site of a Han Dynasty tomb in China. Dr. Yong Po, who has asked for her assistance, is being stalked by a person wearing a crimson opera mask. Ardis is concerned when her co-worker, Grant Merlin, fails to arrive at the project, and his ex-wife, Sheri, takes his place. More problems arise when Sheri is attacked on the cliffs by the same masked intruder. Ardis' search for the tomb of emperor Sun Yan leads to ancient intrigue surrounding a captive princess, referred to in his poetry as the Lady of White Jade. As Ardis delves deeper into the tomb's secret, a centuries old crime of passion is eerily replayed in the present.

Ardis Cole travels to Scotland to do a facial reconstruction on a skull her friend Bruce McBrier has discovered in the woods outside his ancestral castle. Because of an ancient ax buried in the skull, Bruce presumes the skull to be a historical relic, possibly the remains of a medieval ancestor murdered in battle. When Ardis makes the shocking discovery that the remains are that of a more recent murder, Constable Mark Ridley asks her help in going ahead with the facial reconstruction in hopes the victim can be identified. But someone is willing to go to great lengths ... even murder ... to keep the skull's deadly secret.

Outside a small village near the Valley of the Kings, archaeologist Ardis Cole arrives in Egypt to help excavate a tomb recently discovered by her mentor, Jane Darvin. When Jane is murdered, Ardis must assume responsibility for the project. With the help of mysterious Blake Lydon, she must unravel the tomb's mystery-an ancient secret concerning two miniature obelisks of gold hidden by Queen Hatshepsut's love, Senmut, over 2000 years ago. As Ardis uncovers the ancient mystery, she finds herself drawn into a modern action tale of hatred, murder, and revenge.