Event Details

The WRS Level I Certification program is designed to prepare teachers to effectively implement WRS Steps 1–6 with students who are reading and spelling below grade level, as well as those diagnosed with a language-based learning disabilities, such as dyslexia. It consists of two components: the WRS Intensive Instruction for the Non-Responsive Reader (Steps 1–6) Online Course and the Web-Based WRS Steps 1–6 Practicum.

A critical factor for student success is teacher knowledge and skills, and their ability to apply them in the classroom. The WRS Level I Certification program provides a course that deepens teachers’ content knowledge while providing a supervised practicum that allows teachers to apply and practice skillful use of research-based strategies. Considerable time, effort, and study are required for the WRS Certification program. Each trainee is expected to acquire a very sophisticated working knowledge of the sound-symbol system of English (phonology), the rules that govern English spelling (orthography), and its structure (morphology), as well as the use of specific diagnostic techniques in teaching decoding and encoding and strategies for vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension.

Completion of WRS Level I Certification makes one eligible to receive the professional credential of Wilson® Dyslexia Practitioner (W.D.P.).

About This Practicum

This is a year-long practicum experience designed to fulfill the requirements for Wilson Reading System® Level I Certification. Participants will engage in intensive, hands-on learning while applying structured literacy practices with a practicum student over the course of the school year.

The practicum will be led by Cathy Kline, a certified Wilson® instructor.

Program Components Include:

• 5 in-person observations with individualized coaching and feedback

• 5 one-hour virtual implementation meetings for collaboration and support

• 1 three-hour startup session to kick off the practicum and prepare for success

• Ongoing online coursework aligned with Wilson® Steps 1–6

Participants must have completed the Wilson Introductory Course within the last five years to be eligible.

Upon successful completion of the practicum, participants earn Wilson Reading System® Level I Certification and will be able to:

• Identify characteristics of dyslexia and related learning disabilities

• Use assessments to select appropriate students for intensive intervention

• Deliver Structured Literacy instruction with explicit teaching and consistent review

• Understand how language processes impact reading and writing development

• Teach essential reading components: phonemic awareness, phonics, word structure, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension

• Accurately teach English language structure, including phonemes, syllable types, spelling patterns, and word origins

• Apply strategies for teaching irregular and high-frequency words

• Plan and deliver diagnostic lessons tailored to student needs

• Pace instruction to build mastery, accuracy, and fluency

• Use Wilson Comprehension S.O.S.™ to support deeper understanding of text

• Develop student fluency through modeled reading and structured feedback

• Administer assessments to document growth in key literacy areas