If you are trying to navigate special education or intervention supports for your child, knowing your child has dyslexia is just the beginning. The most effective way to advocate isn’t simply saying, “My child needs Orton-Gillingham.” Instead, it's being able to say:

“Here’s what the data tells us about my child's strengths and weaknesses regarding literacy.”

This section will help you understand:

• Different reading profiles

• How to interpret school data and assessments

• What questions to ask in meetings

• Why understanding data-based individualization is critical to getting the right support

Understanding Reading Profiles: The Quadrant Model

When a child struggles with reading, it’s important to know why—and what kind of support they truly need. A major study by reading experts Dr. Miciak and Dr. Fletcher suggests that one of the most effective ways to understand dyslexia is to examine how a child responds to high-quality reading instruction.

Reading is not one skill—it’s the combination of word recognition (decoding) and language comprehension. The Simple View of Reading shows that both are necessary for strong reading comprehension.  Learning about the different reading profiles is essential to address the unique needs of students. 

The Quadrant Model is a framework that helps us understand different reading profiles by identifying patterns of strengths and weaknesses. By recognizing these profiles, educators can better target specific areas for intervention, ensuring that each student receives the support they need to advance their literacy skills. 

• Dyslexia Profile – Strong language comprehension, but weak word recognition. These students struggle to read words accurately and fluently, but they often understand language when it is spoken.
  
  

• DLD (Developmental Language Disorder) Profile – Stronger word recognition, but weak language comprehension. These students can sound out words, but they may struggle with vocabulary, grammar, and understanding what they read and hear.
  
  

• Mixed Profile – Weaknesses in both word recognition and language comprehension. These students need support in both decoding and language skills.
  
  

• Typical Reader – Strengths in both word recognition and language comprehension. These students typically develop reading comprehension as expected.

Why This Matters

Understanding a student’s reading profile helps schools set the right goals and interventions. For example:

• Interventions for dyslexia:  Structured Literacy interventions that focus on explicit instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency.
  
  

• Interventions fo DLD:  Explicit instruction in vocabulary, syntax, and comprehension strategies.
  
  

• Students with mixed profiles need a combination of both.
  
  

When we match assessment data to reading profiles, we ensure that interventions—and IEP goals—are targeted, effective, and responsive to each child’s needs.

In a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), diagnostic assessments are essential for understanding why a student is struggling with reading. Benchmark and universal screeners show if a student is at risk. Diagnostic assessments tell you what skill(s) students need to advance their literacy needs. Without that insight, interventions often miss the mark. Different reading profiles need different support. 

Understanding a student’s profile is critical for matching them to the right intervention.

Why Past Practices Fell Short

In the past, many students with underlying decoding difficulties—often including those with dyslexia—were misunderstood. Instead of receiving explicit, structured literacy instruction, they were given fluency drills or guided reading focused on meaning and context. These approaches do not address the root cause of the problem.

The Role of Diagnostic Assessments

Diagnostic assessments identify specific skill gaps in areas such as:

• Phonemic Awareness
  
  

• Phonics /Decoding
  
  

• Fluency
  
  

• Vocabulary and Language

• RAN (Rapid Automatized Naming)-Impacts fluency and word/fact retrieval, There is no specific intervention for this, but structured literacy can help reduce the cognitive overload of students. Click this link for a helpful article on this topic.
  
  

This data helps educators select targeted interventions that actually address the student’s needs, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach.

In MTSS, diagnostics move us from “what’s wrong?” to “what to do next?”—ensuring every student gets the right instruction at the right time.

Aligning Data, Knowledge of Reading Profiles, and Interventions

Example: 

A school used Aimsweb as a benchmark assessment and identified a student who was not meeting grade-level expectations in reading comprehension. While the student’s vocabulary skills were average, their silent reading fluency was below average. To better understand the cause, the school administered a Core Phonics screener to check if difficulties with decoding (sounding out words) were affecting the student’s fluency and comprehension. The student tested below grade-level in decoding and oral reading fluency skills. Based on this data, the intervention focused on improving decoding and fluency skills through a structured literacy intervention. The student’s progress is monitored through timed, bi-weekly oral reading fluency probes to ensure steady improvement. 

Non-Example (Red Flag): 

A school used Aimsweb as a benchmark assessment and found a student was not meeting grade-level expectations in reading comprehension. Although the student’s vocabulary was average, their silent reading fluency was below average—a sign that there could be decoding and fluency skill deficits that need targeted support. Instead of assessing these specific skill gaps further, the student was placed in a small group guided reading intervention based on their instructional reading level (e.g., reading on Level M). The intervention focused mainly on reading leveled texts rather than explicit decoding or fluency skills. Progress was monitored using the leveling system and anecdotal teacher feedback. Because the intervention did not address the student’s underlying decoding and fluency weaknesses, the student was not making progress toward grade level standards. 

Takeaways:

• If a student has poor reading comprehension and tests average or high average on vocabulary, then it is important to screen for decoding and fluency struggles. 

• If a student has strong fluency skills and has strong decoding skills, there can be underlying language comprehension struggles (Developmental Language Disorder). 

• If a student struggles to comprehend text because of weak foundational skills (phonemic awareness, decoding, and fluency), students will need a structured literacy intervention. These weaknesses can also show a student has characteristics of dyslexia. 

• A common challenge faced by students with dyslexia is the school focuses on fluency without addressing the underlying struggles with phonemic awareness and decoding skills. 

• RIDE Skills to Assess for Early Reading Difficulties 

Using Reading Profiles to Create Strong IEP Goals

Once you know your child’s reading profile—where they struggle and where they are strong—you can use that information to create IEP goals that actually target their needs.

1. Start with the Data
Look at assessments that measure key reading skills: decoding, spelling, fluency, and comprehension. These tools give a clear picture of what your child can do and where support is needed.

2. Match Goals to Needs
Tailor goals to the reading profile: IEP goals should match the specific type of reading difficulty a student has. For example, a student with dyslexia may need goals focused on decoding, phonemic awareness, and spelling, while a student with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) may need goals targeting vocabulary, syntax, and language comprehension. Matching goals to the profile ensures instruction targets the child’s unique needs rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach. 

3. Make Goals Measurable
A strong goal tells you exactly what your child will achieve and how progress will be measured. 

Sample Goal: Given a third-grade level reading passage, Thomas will read aloud at a rate of 115 words correct per minute (wpm) with 95% accuracy by the end of the school year. 

4. Use Scientifically-Based Instruction
IEP goals should align with instruction that research shows works. 

Knowing your child’s reading profile and using accurate assessment data ensures that IEP goals are targeted, measurable, and based on what your child actually needs to make real progress in reading.