Certified Slingerland Teacher (CST)

Your Journey to Becoming a Certified Slingerland Teacher

Becoming a Certified Slingerland Teacher is a process of transforming knowledge into practice.

Throughout your Slingerland training, you develop an understanding of structured literacy, multisensory instruction, lesson planning, and student learning. Certification is your opportunity to demonstrate how those pieces come together to create effective instruction for real students.

Rather than measuring what you know through a single examination, the CST process recognizes what you can do as a teacher.

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What CST Certification Represents

Certified Slingerland Teachers have demonstrated:

Strong instructional knowledge
Effective classroom implementation
Thoughtful reflection and professional growth
Consistent application of structured literacy principles
Commitment to student success

Step 1:

Build Your Foundation

Complete the required Slingerland coursework and gain experience implementing the Slingerland Approach in your instructional setting.

The Roadmap to Becoming a Certified Slingerland Teacher lays out the typical order of classes.

During this stage, you continue refining your teaching while receiving guidance from instructors and colleagues.

The last stages of the Continuum Extended Practicum assist you in building your certification portfolio.

Step 2: Demonstrate Your Practice

As you prepare your certification portfolio, you will document how you plan instruction, deliver lessons, reflect on your teaching, and support student learning.

Your portfolio provides evidence that you can consistently implement the Slingerland Approach with fidelity.

The portfolio has two sections:

Demonstration of the Approach
- Video of one complete Slingerland lesson
- Lesson plan matching the video
- Structured and clean passage
- Examples of student work
Written Lesson Plans
- Two additional written lesson plans
- Often selected to demonstrate understanding of elements not present in the video demonstration

All materials may come from the Continuum Extended Practicum Class.

Step 3: Committee Review

Members of Slingerland's Certification Committee carefully evaluate your portfolio using established certification standards.

The review focuses on how effectively you apply the principles of the Slingerland Approach—not simply whether individual assignments have been completed.

The goal is 80% alignment to all Slingerland procedures and rationales. The 20% of flexibility reflects how students may need in-the-moment changes to ensure they learn.

Step 4: Earn Your Certification

Once all certification standards have been met, you are awarded the Certified Slingerland Teacher (CST) credential.

Certification recognizes your professional achievement and your ability to provide high-quality Slingerland instruction.

Certification lasts for three years once awarded. Certification renewal is detailed below.

Maintaining Slingerland Certification

To maintain certification, every three years a CST must:

Submit record of 30 hours of IMSELC CEUs
Maintain a Current SLI Subscription
Provide Current Background Check
Attend at least one (1) Slingerland Spring Meeting every three years
Pay the certification fee
Be confirmed by the Faculty Senate

IMSLEC Certification
Criteria: Teacher Level

Before applying for certification, candidates for the Teacher level must complete all coursework and meet IMSLEC requirements. The chart below confirms alignment between IMSLEC Standards and Slingerland Standards for certification at the Teacher level.