RESEARCH

Thank you for visiting the SRSN Research and Resources page! Our curriculum is both evidence- and research-based, and can be explored in detail in our blog. A comprehensive breakdown of the SRSN methodology will be published in fall 2016 by Woodbine House, and a prequel to the book is available here. On this page, we have gathered preferred secondary resources for you to explore, while our primary data collection is underway. Whether you are a parent or educator, our hope is that you will find validation and inspiration in the research and tools cited below, on the following topics:

Notes:

  1. Some of these entries contain embedded hyperlinks, with links to the complete original articles available for free downloadhttp://www.down-syn. Other articles may be available for download for a fee, and can likely be found either through GoogleScholar or your local library website. We hope that you will find these resources helpful! Feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.

  2. Some of the research cited predates the use of “people first” language. Due to copyright laws, we could not correct those phrases and hope that our readers will overlook outdated terminology and focus instead on the value of the material.

  3. Resources within each category are listed in alphabetical order.

Reading & Individuals with Down syndrome, Ages 0-Adult

  1. Browder, D. M., Wakeman, S. Y., Spooner, F., Ahlgrim-Delzell, L., & Algozzinexya, B. (2006). Research on reading instruction for individuals with significant cognitive disabilities. Exceptional children, 72(4), 392-408.
  2. Buckley, S. (1985a). Attaining basic educational skills: Reading, writing and number. Current approaches to Down syndrome, 315-343.
  3. Buckley, S. (1985b). Teaching parents to teach reading to teach language: A project with Down’s syndrome children and their families. Parental involvement in children’s reading. London: Croom Helm.
  4. Buckley, S. (2001). Reading and writing for individuals with Down syndrome – An overview. Down Syndrome Issues and Information. United Kingdom: A Publication of The Down Syndrome Educational Trust.
  5. Buckley, S., Beadman, J., & Bird, G. (2001). Reading and writing for children with Down syndrome (5-11 years). Down Syndrome Issues and Information. United Kingdom: A Publication of The Down Syndrome Educational Trust.
  6. Buckley, S., & Bird, G. (1993). Teaching children with Down syndrome to read. Down syndrome Research and practice, 1(1), 34-39.
  7. Buckley, S., & Bird, G. (2001). Reading and writing for infants with Down syndrome (0-5 years). Down Syndrome Issues and Information. United Kingdom: A Publication of The Down Syndrome Educational Trust.
  8. Buckley, S., & Bird, G. (2002). Reading and writing for teenagers with Down syndrome (11-16 years). Down Syndrome Issues and Information. United Kingdom: A Publication of The Down Syndrome Educational Trust.
  9. Burgoyne, K., Duff, F. J., Clarke, P. J., Buckley, S., Snowling, M. J., & Hulme, C. (2012). Efficacy of a reading and language intervention for children with Down syndrome: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 53(10), 1044-1053.
  10. Byrne, A., MacDonald, J.,& Buckley, S. (2002). Reading, language and memory skills: a comparative longitudinal study of children with Down syndrome and their mainstream peers. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 72(4), 513-529.
  11. Chiara Levorato, M., Roch, M., &Beltrame, R. (2009). Text comprehension in Down syndrome: The role of lower and higher level abilities. Clinical linguistics & phonetics, 23(4), 285-300.
  12. Conners, F. A. (1992). Reading instruction for students with moderate mental retardation: Review and analysis of research. American Journal on Mental Retardation, 96, 577-597.
  13. Gallaher, K., van Kraayenoord, C., Jobling, A., & Moni, K. (2002). Reading with Abby: A case study of individual tutoring with a young adult with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 8(2), 59-66.
  14. Fowler, A. E., Doherty, B. J., & Boynton, L. (1995). The basis of reading skill in young adults with Down syndrome. Down syndrome: Living and learning in the community, 182-196.
  15. Goodman, V. (1995). Reading is more than phonics!: A parents’ guide for reading with beginning or discouraged readers. Calgary, Alberta: Reading Wings.
  16. Horstmeier, D. (2012). Try reading again: How to motivate and teach older beginners, age 10 and up. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House.
  17. Hudson, R. F., Torgesen, J. K., Lane, H. B., & Turner, S. J. (2012). Relations among reading skills and sub-skills and text-level reading proficiency in developing readers. Reading and Writing, 25(2), 483-507.
  18. Hughes, J. (2006). Teaching reading skills to children with Down syndrome. Teaching reading skills to children with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome News and Update 6(2), 62-65.
  19. Laws, G., Buckley, S., MacDonald, J., & Broadley, I. (1995). The influence of reading instruction on language and memory development in children with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 3(2), 59-64.
  20. Næss, K. A. B., Melby-Lervåg, M., Hulme, C., & Lyster, S. A. H. (2012). Reading skills in children with Down syndrome: A meta-analytic review. Research in developmental disabilities, 33(2), 737-747.
  21. Oelwein, P. L. (1995). Teaching Reading to Children with Down Syndrome – A Guide for Parents and Teachers. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House.

Down syndrome & Literacy

  1. Al Otaiba, S., & Hosp, M. K. (2004). Providing effective literacy instruction to students with Down syndrome. Teaching Exceptional Children, 36(4), 28-35.
  2. Bochner, Sandra, Lynne Outhred, and Moira Pieterse. (2001). “A study of functional literacy skills in young adults with Down syndrome.” International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 48(1), 67-90.
  3. Boudreau, D. (2002). Literacy skills in children and adolescents with Down syndrome. Reading and Writing, 15(5-6), 497-525.
  4. Broun, L. T., & Oelwein, P. (2007). Literacy Skill Development for Students with Special Learning Needs: A Strengths-based Approach. National Professional Resources Inc./Dude Publishing.
  5. Byrne, A., Buckley, S., MacDonald, J., &Bird, G. (1995). Investigating the literacy, language and memory skills of children with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 3(2), 53-58.
  6. Cossu, G., Rossini, F., & Marshall, J. C. (1993). When reading is acquired but phonemic awareness is not: A study of literacy in Down’s syndrome. Cognition, 46(2), 129-138.
  7. Crawford, G. B. (Ed.). (2008). Differentiation for the adolescent learner: Accommodating brain development, language, literacy, and special needs. Corwin Press
  8. Farrell, M., & Elkins, J. (1994). Literacy for all? The case of Down syndrome. Journal of Reading, 270-280.
  9. Fitzgerald, J., Roberts, J., Pierce, P., & Schuele, M. (1995). Evaluation of home literacy environment: An illustration with preschool children with Down syndrome. Reading & Writing Quarterly: Overcoming Learning Difficulties, 11(4), 311-334.
  10. Katims, D. S. (1991). Emergent literacy in early childhood special education curriculum and instruction. Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 11(1), 69-84.
  11. Kliewer, C. (1998). Citizenship in the literate community: An ethnography of children with Down syndrome and the written word. Exceptional Children, 64(2), 167.
  12. Koppenhaver, D. A., Coleman, P. P., Kalman, S. L., & Yoder, D. E. (1991). The implications of emergent literacy research for children with developmental disabilities. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 1(1), 38-44
  13. Levy, B. A., Gong, Z., Hessels, S., Evans, M. A., & Jared, D. (2006). Understanding print: Early reading development and the contributions of home literacy experiences. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 93(1), 63-93.
  14. Morgan, M. F., & Moni, K. B. (2008). LITERACY: Meeting the challenge of limited literacy resources for adolescents and adults with intellectual disabilities. British Journal of Special Education, 35(2), 92-101.
  15. Ricci, L. (2011). Home literacy environments, interest in reading and emergent literacy skills of children with Down syndrome versus typical children. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 55(6), 596-609.
  16. Snowling, M., Nash, H., & Henderson, L. (2008). The development of literacy skills in children with Down syndrome: Implications for intervention. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 62-7.
  17. Trenholm, B., & Mirenda, P. (2006). Home and community literacy experiences of individuals with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 10(1), 30-40.
  18. van Bysterveldt, A., Gillon, G., & Foster-Cohen, S. (2010). Literacy environments for children with Down syndrome: What’s happening at home?. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 12(2), 98-102.

Down syndrome & Phonological Awareness

  1. Bird, E. K. R., Cleave, P. L., & McConnell, L. (2000). Reading and Phonological Awareness in Children With Down Syndrome A Longitudinal Study. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 9(4), 319-330.
  2. Cardoso-Martins, C., & Frith, U. (2001). Can individuals with Down syndrome acquire alphabetic literacy skills in the absence of phoneme awareness?. Reading and Writing, 14(3-4), 361-375.
  3. Cupples, L., & Iacono, T. (2000). Phonological awareness and oral reading skill in children with Down syndrome. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 43(3), 595-608.
  4. Gombert, J. E. (2002). Children with Down syndrome use phonological knowledge in reading. Reading and writing, 15(5-6), 455-469.
  5. Jarrold, C., Thorn, A. S., & Stephens, E. (2009). The relationships among verbal short-term memory, phonological awareness, and new word learning: Evidence from typical development and Down syndrome. Journal of experimental child psychology, 102(2), 196-218.
  6. Kennedy, E. J., & Flynn, M. C. (2003). Training phonological awareness skills in children with Down syndrome. Research in developmental disabilities, 24(1), 44-57.
  7. Kumin, L., Councill, C., & Goodman, M. (1994). A longitudinal study of the emergence of phonemes in children with Down syndrome. Journal of Communication Disorders, 27(4), 293-303.
  8. Laws, G. (1998). The use of nonword repetition as a test of phonological memory in children with Down syndrome. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 39(8), 1119-1130.
  9. Laws, G., & Gunn, D. (2002). Relationships between reading, phonological skills and language development in individuals with Down syndrome: A five year follow-up study. Reading and Writing, 15(5-6), 527-548.
  10. Laws, G., & Gunn, D. (2004). Phonological memory as a predictor of language comprehension in Down syndrome: a five-year follow-up study. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45(2), 326-337.
  11. Roch, M., & Jarrold, C. (2012). A follow-up study on word and non-word reading skills in Down syndrome. Journal of communication disorders, 45(2), 121-128.
  12. Stoel-Gammon, C. (2001). Down syndrome phonology: Developmental patterns and intervention strategies. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 7(3), 93-100.
  13. van Bysterveldt, A. K., Gillon, G. T., & Moran, C. (2006). Enhancing phonological awareness and letter knowledge in preschool children with Down syndrome. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 53(3), 301-329.
  14. van Bysterveldt, A. K., Gillon, G., & Foster-Cohen, S. (2010). Integrated speech and phonological awareness intervention for pre-school children with Down syndrome. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 45(3), 320-3.
  15. Verucci, L., Menghini, D., & Vicari, S. (2006). Reading skills and phonological awareness acquisition in Down syndrome. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 50(7), 477-491.

Language Development & Nonverbal Readers

  1. Allen, E. G., & Laminack, L. L. (1982). Language Experience Reading: It’s a Natural!. The Reading Teacher, 708-714.
  2. Buckley, S. (1984). Reading and language development in children with Down syndrome: A guide for parents and teachers. Portsmouth, England: Down’s Syndrome Project.
  3. Chapman, R., & Hesketh, L. (2001). Language, cognition, and short-term memory in individuals with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 7(1), 1-7.
  4. Duffen, L. (1974). Teaching reading to teach talking. Cheam: Down’s Babies Association. SE Branch.
  5. Duffen, L. (1976). Teaching reading to children with little or no language. Remedial Education, 11(3), 139-42.
  6. Fowler, A. (1988). Determinants of rate of language growth in children with Down syndrome. The psychobiology of Down syndrome, 217-245.
  7. Fowler, A. E. (1999). The challenge of linguistic mastery in Down syndrome. Down syndrome: A promising future, together, 165-182.
  8. Fowler, A., Gelman, R., & Gleitman, L. R. (1994). The course of language learning in children with Down syndrome. Constraints on language acquisition: Studies of atypical children, 91-140.
  9. Kumin, L. (1994). Communication skills in children with Down syndrome: a guide for parents. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House.
  10. Kotlinski, J., & Kotlinski, S. (2002). Teaching reading to develop language. Down Syndrome News and Update, 2(1), 5-6.
  11. Laws, G. (2004). Contributions of phonological memory, language comprehension and hearing to the expressive language of adolescents and young adults with Down syndrome. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45(6), 1085-1095.
  12. Roberts, J. E., Price, J., & Malkin, C. (2007). Language and communication development in Down syndrome. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 13(1), 26-35.
  13. Tager-Flusberg, H., Calkins, S., Nolin, T., Baumberger, T., Anderson, M., & Chadwick-Dias, A. (1990). A longitudinal study of language acquisition in autistic and Down syndrome children. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 20(1), 1-21.

Brain Research & Word Recognition

  1. Barbetta, P. M., Heward, W. L., & Bradley, D. M. (1993). Relative effects of whole-word and phonetic-prompt error correction on the acquisition and maintenance of sight words by students with developmental disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 26(1), 99.
  2. Browder, D. M., & Xin, Y. P. (1998). A meta-analysis and review of sight word research and its implications for teaching functional reading to individuals with moderate and severe disabilities. The Journal of Special Education, 32(3), 130-153.
  3. Cupples, L., & Iacono, T. (2002). The efficacy of ‘whole word’ versus ‘analytic’ reading instruction for children with Down syndrome. Reading and Writing, 15(5-6), 549-574.
  4. Dennison, P. E., & Dennison, G. E. (1986). Brain gym: Simple activities for whole brain learning. Ventura, CA: Edu-Kinesthetics.
  5. Doman, G. J., & Doman, J. (1975). How to teach your baby to read. Doubleday & Company.
  6. Fidler, D. J., Most, D. E., & Guiberson, M. M. (2005). Neuropsychological correlates of word identification in Down syndrome. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 26(5), 487-501.
  7. Jensen, E. (1998). Teaching with the brain in mind. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
  8. Lubec, G., & Engidawork, E. (2002). The brain in Down syndrome (TRISOMY 21). Journal of Neurology, 249(10), 1347-1356.
  9. Nicholson, T. (1998). The flashcard strikes back. The Reading Teacher, 52(2), 188-192.
  10. Perez, K. (2008). More than 100 brain-friendly tools and strategies for literacy instruction. Newbury Park, CA: Corwin Press.
  11. Sousa, D. A. (Ed.). (2006). How the special needs brain learns. Newbury Park, CA: Corwin Press.
  12. Tan, A., & Nicholson, T. (1997). Flashcards revisited: Training poor readers to read words faster improves their comprehension of text. Journal of Educational Psychology, 89(2), 276.

Classroom Support

  1. Bird, G., & Buckley, S. (1994). Meeting the educational needs of children with Down’s syndrome: A handbook for teachers. Portsmouth, UK: University of Portsmouth.
  2. Buckley, S. (1984). Reading and language development in children with Down syndrome: A guide for parents and teachers. Portsmouth, England: Down’s Syndrome Project.
  3. Buckley, S., Bird, G., Sacks, B., & Archer, T. (2006). A comparison of mainstream and special education for teenagers with Down syndrome: Implications for parents and teachers. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 9(3), 54-67.
  4. Burgoyne, K., Duff, F., Clarke, P., Smith, G., Buckley, S., Snowling, M., & Hulme, C. (2012). A Reading and Language Intervention for Children with Down Syndrome-Teacher’s Handbook. Down Syndrome Education International.
  5. Council for Exceptional Children. (2005). Universal design for learning: A guide for teachers and education professionals. Pearson, Merrill, Prentice Hall.
  6. Davis, A. S. (2008). Children with down syndrome: Implications for assessment and intervention in the school. School Psychology Quarterly, 23(2), 271.
  7. Haager, D., & Vaughn, S. (2013). The common core state standards and reading: Interpretations and implications for elementary students with learning disabilities. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 28(1), 5-16.
  8. Kumin, L. (2001). Classroom Language Skills for Children with Down Syndrome – A Guide for Parents and Teachers. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House.
  9. Mahoney, G., Perales, F., Wiggers, B., & Bob Herman, B. (2006). Responsive teaching: early intervention for children with Down syndrome and other disabilities. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 11(1), 18-28.
  10. National Reading Panel (US), National Institute of Child Health, & Human Development (US). (2000). Teaching children to read: An evidence-based assessment of the scientific research literature on reading and its implications for reading instruction. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health.

Personal Books & Curriculum Adaptation

  1. Cook, R. E., Klein, M. D., & Chen, D. (2011). Adapting early childhood curricula for children with special needs. Pearson Higher Ed.
  2. Fountas, I. C., & Pinnell, G. S. (1999). Matching Books to Readers: Using Leveled Books in Graded Reading, K-3. Heinemann, 88 Post Road West, PO Box 5007, Westport, CT 06881.
  3. Hiebert, E. H. (1998). Text matters in learning to read. (CIERA Report #1-1001). Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan School of Education, The Center for Improvement of Early Achievement.
  4. Oelwein, P. L. (1999). Individualizing reading for each child’s ability and needs. Down Syndrome: A Promising Future, Together. New York: Wiley-Liss.
  5. Rog, L. J., & Burton, W. (2001). Matching texts and readers: Leveling early reading materials for assessment and instruction. The Reading Teacher, 348-356.

Tools & Programs

  1. Dolch, E.W. (1948). Dolch sight words. Retrieved from http://www.mrsperkins.com/dolch.htm
  2. Doman, R. (2009). National Association for Child Development (NACD) – Down Syndrome. Retrieved from http://downsyndrome.nacd.org/
  3. Hale, N. (2009). Special Reads Books and Bundles. Retrieved from https://specialreads.com
  4. Kenney, L. (2014). The Reading Flashlight. Retrieved from http://www.lynnekenney.com/students-inattentive-try-the-flashlight-technique-ef/
  5. Kotlinski, S., & Kotlinski, J. (2000). Love and Learning Learning Kits. Dearborn, MI, USA: Love and Learning.
  6. Utah Education Network. (2003). High frequency words. Retrieved from http://www.uen.org/k-2educator/word_lists.shtml

Laws & Standards

  1. Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 (2004).
  2. National Council of Teachers of English, & International Reading Association. (1996). Standards for the English language arts. National Council of Teachers of English.
  3. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices & Council of Chief State School Officers. (2010). Common Core State Standards. Washington, DC: Authors.
  4. No Child Left Behind Act, 20 U.S.C. § 6319 (2008).