Timed performance provides a measure of how quickly students are able to recognize and produce letter names; in addition, timed performance often reveals, through hesitations or errors, letter names that are not secure. 

We begin our basic-skill assessments of students by asking them to say the names of the letters of the alphabet, using the assessment created by Elizabeth Haughton. Automaticity compared to grade-level expectations provides a baseline. Based on our experience with this assessment tool, we expect to see growth in letter-naming skill as reading and spelling skills develop. In addition, we may find indicators of difficulty for which we also provide intervention in areas such as phonology, processing, and breath support for language.