HISTORY OF SIT TOGETHER AND READ (STAR)
The original STAR studies were conducted in Head Start and early childhood special education classrooms. These programs focused on implementing read-aloud practices that supported the four domains of print referencing: words, letters, book and print organization, and print meaning.
In these studies, teachers used a 30-week book-reading program in which each book was read 2-4 times per week in a whole group setting. The data demonstrated that children in the treatment group made significant gains in their print knowledge as compared to their peers in the control group.
The second phase of this study was a randomized controlled trial conducted in early childhood special education classrooms throughout Ohio between 2008-2012. This study examined the efficacy of a print-referencing intervention designed to improve the pre-reading skills of preschool-aged children in early childhood special education classrooms with primary language impairments, both in the short-term (within the preschool year) and long-term (through kindergarten entry). It was funded by the Institute of Education Sciences. Data downloads are available here.
The third phase of this study was designed to support caregivers’ implementation of the STAR program with their children with language impairment. In previous STAR studies, results showed that nearly one-third of caregivers were unable to complete the intervention, and among those who did, not all were able to read to their child and reference print as often as prescribed.
Participants in this third phase were children who were receiving speech therapy from a children’s hospital in Ohio. The children’s caregivers received 15 STAR books and STAR cards, were individually trained to implement the STAR Read-Aloud Practices, and asked to read each book four times per week. Caregivers were randomly assigned to receive different types of support throughout the intervention period. Initial results suggested that children whose caregivers implemented the read-aloud practices demonstrated significant improvements in print-concept knowledge and alphabet knowledge over the 15-week period.
The most recent phase of STAR Read-Aloud Practices was implemented by early childhood special education teachers across Ohio. If you were an educator who participated in the 2016-2017 STAR-Ohio study, please click the link below to register for the updated STAR downloadable materials. Please note: If you were part of the 2016-2017 STAR-Ohio study, you cannot receive Ohio Approved/SUTQ credit for the updated full professional development module. However, you can receive additional credit for taking our extended family engagement and scaffolding modules.
If you are interested in learning more about the research behind STAR Read-Aloud Practices, click here to read the research brief on The History of STAR Read-Aloud Practices.