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Abstract
This case study examined the effects of a structured, multisensory phonics intervention delivered through one-on-one tutoring for a homeschooled third-grade student with persistent reading difficulties and characteristics consistent with dyslexia. Instruction occurred twice per week across a six-month period and targeted foundational literacy skills, including phonological awareness, letter–sound knowledge, decoding, and high-frequency word recognition. Progress was monitored approximately every eight weeks using a combination of informal skill inventories and DIBELS 8th Edition progress-monitoring measures. Across the intervention period, the student demonstrated substantial growth in phonological awareness and phonics skill mastery, increased letter naming fluency, and improved performance on decoding and high-frequency word measures. In contrast, performance on timed DIBELS measures consistently lagged behind untimed assessments, suggesting that automaticity and processing speed remained areas of need despite improved accuracy. Findings indicate that structured, multisensory instruction may support rapid acquisition of foundational reading skills for students with significant delays, while highlighting the importance of incorporating explicit fluency-building opportunities when timed performance is a critical outcome.