This project’s main objective was to develop an early reading intervention for children with Down syndrome based on the related behavioral phenotype.
The intervention targeted reading skills, emphasizing letter-sound correspondences, reading decodable and high-frequency words, and phonological awareness. The sample size consisted of seven children that fulfilled the inclusion criteria to be part of the study. The researchers evaluated the intervention’s feasibility and potential efficacy with seven children between the ages of 6 and 8 who participated in multiple-probe series across lessons in single-case design studies.
This study indicates a functional relation between the intervention and mastery of taught content for three students through its findings. Two students demonstrated a positive although inconsistent response; two students demonstrated limited learning. Implications for future research and practice are discussed. More studies should be conducted to explore the development of an early reading intervention aligned with the Down syndrome behavioral phenotype so that useful interventions can be utilized to support this population for better life quality and therapeutic outcomes.
Reference: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1088357615618941
