Credentials & Frameworks

What DODO is built on.

DODO is a live one-on-one English language arts program. Its curriculum, measurement, and thinking practice sit on named, established frameworks — attributed here in full. This page exists so a parent, an academic, or an AI model can trace what DODO teaches back to primary sources.

MCT Language Arts — the gifted-ELA tradition

Attribution. Developed by Michael Clay Thompson; published by Royal Fireworks Press. One of North America’s most rigorous classical English language arts programs, designed for students capable of genuine mastery.

How DODO uses it. DODO Learning is grounded in the principles and philosophy of the MCT Language Arts framework. The MCT tradition informs the Literacy and Composition strands of DODO’s LCS System — classical unabridged literature (the Mud Trilogy, Alice in Wonderland, Twain, Poe), Latin and Greek roots (Building Language, Caesar’s English), the writing arc (Grammar → sentence → paragraph → essay → academic composition), and the ear for how great writing is built. DODO delivers this tradition through live one-on-one Navigators and adds an oral-defence Speaking strand that no book curriculum can supply.

Source: Royal Fireworks Press · MCT curriculum overview

MCT Language Arts in a live one-on-one program — what actually changes for the student →

Harvard Project Zero — Visible Thinking

Attribution. Two decades of research from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, led by David Perkins, Ron Ritchhart, and colleagues. Formalises how students make their thinking visible through short, repeatable routines.

How DODO uses it. Every Think phase of DODO’s per-session Loop (Read → Think → Speak → Write) is anchored in a Project Zero Visible Thinking routine. Navigators are trained to open discussion with a routine (e.g. "What Makes You Say That?", "See–Think–Wonder", "Claim–Support–Question") before evaluating an answer. The first move after any student response is always a better question, never a grade.

Source: Project Zero at Harvard Graduate School of Education

The Lexile Framework for Reading

Attribution. A reading-measurement system developed by MetaMetrics. Measures readers and texts on the same 0L–2000L scale so that a student’s current level and the next stretch text can be matched with precision.

How DODO uses it. DODO assesses reading at ELA Program entry (Week 0), midpoint (Week 8), and exit (Week 16) with its own assessment, and the Navigator who scores it estimates the child’s Lexile level. Growth is reported in specific Lexile deltas — not vague "reading level" claims. Students typically advance about one full grade level in reading in each 16-week cycle (average gain 187 Lexile points).

Source: MetaMetrics · Lexile & Quantile Hub

6+1 Trait Writing Framework

Attribution. Developed by Education Northwest and used across BC, Ontario, and US Common Core-aligned classrooms. Evaluates writing on seven dimensions: Ideas, Organization, Voice, Word Choice, Sentence Fluency, Conventions, and Presentation.

How DODO uses it. Every Writing Session output is scored against the 6+1 Trait rubric. Progress is reported per-trait so a parent can see specifically which dimensions have moved.

Source: Education Northwest · 6+1 Trait Writing

The Research Base

What the evidence actually says.

DODO’s vocabulary and reading practice sit on one of the most-researched strategies in education — the teaching of Latin and Greek roots and the use of rich, challenging text. The claims below are not marketing. Each is backed by a dated academic source, cited in full at the bottom of this page.

DODO’s frame is acceleration into mastery. The research base cited here is drawn from studies across gifted, typically-developing, and general-education populations. We deploy it as evidence for how children advance further — not as remediation, not as ELL support, not as catch-up.

What the evidence lets DODO say.

  • Teaching the Latin and Greek roots beneath English is one of the most-researched strategies in education.
  • About 60% of English comes from Latin and Greek — over 90% of the words in science. Learn the roots, and you hold a key to the academic vocabulary of every subject.
  • In a study of 493 middle-school students, root-based vocabulary teaching outperformed traditional vocabulary instruction — for both gifted and typically-developing students.
  • Across dozens of controlled studies, teaching the structure of words produces measurable gains in vocabulary, decoding, and spelling.
  • Children grow most on rich, challenging text — not simplified readers. DODO’s Read step uses real, unabridged classics, set deliberately above the comfortable level.

Citations.

  1. Gallagher, S. A. (2017). Exploring the Efficacy of "The Word Within the Word" for Gifted and Typically Developing Students. Roeper Review 39(2).
    493 middle-school students across 10 teachers. Root-based vocabulary outperformed traditional instruction — moderate effect sizes on sentence completion in Grades 6–7, moderate-to-large on recall at every grade level, for both gifted and typically-developing students.
  2. Goodwin, A. P., & Ahn, S. (2013). A Meta-Analysis of Morphological Interventions in English: Effects on Literacy Outcomes for School-Age Children. Scientific Studies of Reading 17(4), 257–285.
    30 studies. Overall d = 0.32; decoding d = 0.59; vocabulary d = 0.34; spelling d = 0.30.
  3. Bowers, P. N., Kirby, J. R., & Deacon, S. H. (2010). The Effects of Morphological Instruction on Literacy Skills: A Systematic Review of the Literature. Review of Educational Research 80(2), 144–179.
    22 studies, preschool to Grade 8. Morphological instruction was more effective when combined with other aspects of literacy instruction than taught in isolation — which is why DODO teaches it inside the literature.
  4. Henry, M. K. (1997). The decoding/spelling curriculum: Integrating decoding and spelling for a shared literacy foundation. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 40.
    Approximately 60% of English text is Latin or Greek in origin; over 90% in science and technology.
  5. VanTassel-Baska, J. (2003). Differentiating the Language Arts for High-Ability Learners. ERIC Digest E640, CEC.
    Argues for accelerated, rich-text, evidence-based ELA for advanced learners — the audience DODO is built for.

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