Reading Readiness Program (Prep)

Students enter their first year of school with diverse levels of readiness to learn. When students have weak readiness skills they encounter more difficulty learning to read. Dandenong North Primary School’s Reading Readiness Program is designed to identify domains of weakness and intervene according to need in order to accelerate students’ maturation in any areas identified.

The Reading Readiness Program identifies students’ level of mastery in five key learning readiness domains through the Early Years Evaluation Tool (EYE). Identified areas are then addressed through an individualised intervention program to ensure children are developmentally ready to learn reading skills. 

Reading Intervention Program (Prep - Year 3)

The Reading Intervention Program is designed to assist students who may not reach government standard benchmarks. The students are referred to the program by their classroom teacher. The program is very structured and provides students with individual support with all aspects of their literacy. In addition, the reading tasks are tailored to the individual students. The program is currently open to students from Prep to Year 3.

The students attend the program every day for approximately 40 minutes. They read their reader, learn sight words, and complete a spelling and comprehension activity. The students are benchmarked during the term. The classroom teacher is informed of their students’ progression.

All students that enter the program remain on the program until they have reached the year level benchmark or beyond.

The program have been very successful in ensuring that all students at Dandenong North Primary School are given the best possible chance to learn to read and enjoy reading of a life time.

Speech Therapy Assistant Program (Prep - Year 6)

Dandenong North Primary School has three trained Speech Therapy Assistants, who work under supervision of the school’s Speech Pathologist, to provide students with regular and consistent therapy.  Children who experience speech, language or fluency difficulties are assessed by the Speech Pathologist and placed into the program receive three, thirty minute sessions each week. Regular adjustments are made to their effective intervention where students make rapid, improvement within a relatively short time-frame.

Stuttering Program (Prep - Year 6)

Students participating in the Stuttering Program are assessed by the school’s Speech Pathologist who develops and oversees an individual therapy program that is delivered daily by a Speech Therapy Assistant. Parents are also involved in weekly practice and feedback sessions with both the Speech Pathologist and Speech Therapy Assistant to ensure all program modification are consistently practised a both home and school.