§ 115C-83.6B.  (Applicable beginning with the 2022-2023 school year) Individual Reading Plans.

(a) An Individual Reading Plan (IRP) shall be developed for any student in kindergarten through third grade demonstrating difficulty with reading development based on the results of either (i) the first diagnostic or formative assessment of the school year or (ii) the first diagnostic or formative assessment of the second semester of the school year. The IRP shall be continually adjusted based on multiple data sources as prescribed by the Department of Public Instruction, indicating that the student is not progressing toward grade-level standards in one or more major reading areas. Based on the most recently collected data, the IRP shall include the following information, specific to the identified student:

(1) The specific reading skill deficiencies identified by assessment data.

(2) Goals and benchmarks for growth.

(3) The means by which progress will be monitored and evaluated.

(4) The specific additional literacy interventions the student will receive.

(5) The Science of Reading-based instructional programming the teacher will implement.

(6) Any additional services the teacher deems appropriate to accelerate the student's reading skill and development.

(b) A student's parent or guardian shall be given notice that the student has been identified as having difficulty with reading development and that an IRP has been developed. The notice shall provide the parent or guardian the following:

(1) Specific strategies that can be easily understood and implemented to assist the student in reading at grade level.

(2) Encouragement to select one or more strategies for use at home that build on the student's interests and are most likely to engage the student and result in reading improvement.

(3) Direction to free online or hard copy literacy resources that can be accessed via a prominently displayed area on the homepage of the primary website maintained by the Department of Public Instruction and by the local school administrative unit.

(c) A multitiered system of support intervention may be used to satisfy the requirements of this section if all of the components of subsection (a) of this section are incorporated in the intervention.

(d) The Department shall develop the following model documentation of compliance with the requirements of this section:

(1) An IRP checklist.

(2) An alternative document for use with a multitiered system of support intervention. (2021-8, s. 6(e).)