A multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) is a framework schools frequently use to provide academic and social-emotional strategies to students needing intervention. The MTSS framework or process aims to help school teams identify students in need of intervention early and quickly. The Rhithm App can be an easy and effective way to screen and continually monitor student social-emotional progress and determine quickly if additional interventions are needed to ensure student success.

A Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS)
Using Rhithm As Part of Your MTSS Framework
Further Considerations

A Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS)

MTSS is a proactive approach schools use to quickly identify students with academic or social-emotional needs. Early assessment and interventions for students displaying additional needs can assist with closing gaps in student progress sooner than an approach that waits for children to fail first. Critical components of MTSS include:

A universal screening process for all students at the start of the school year
A tiered intervention structure that increases by the level of student need
The continual process of data collection and student assessment
Parent and/or community involvement
Structured plans that address students’ academic and social-emotional needs
A schoolwide approach toward student success that includes teachers, counselors, psychologists, and other school specialists
Ongoing professional development for school staff to learn how to provide effective interventions and accurately monitor student progress
Frequent review of students’ progress to determine if additional interventions are needed
The incorporation of evidence-based strategies within each tier of support

MTSS’ use of an integrated instruction model allows for collected student data to be assessed and determine the appropriate intervention and tier required to best meet a student’s need.

Using Rhithm As Part of Your MTSS Framework

MTSS uses three tiers of support to support student needs at different levels. The three tiers include:

Tier 1 – The largest tier and the foundation for the entire framework.
- Tier 1 makes up the entire school body and includes primary interventions designed to build positive relationships between students and school staff.
- Including Rhithm in Tier 1: Schools can collect valuable data demonstrating student social-emotional standings by setting aside 3-5 minutes each day for students to "Get into Rhithm."
Tier 2 – Comprised of a small group of students.
- Tier 2 is for students needing additional support to meet academic and/or social-emotional goals. Interventions at this level often occur in a small group setting.
- Including Rhithm in Tier 2: Teachers or staff members working with students in small groups can use Rhithm to meet social-emotional goals by selecting a targeted video topic from Rhithm's Toolkit that the group can participate in together, and continue to use data from Wellness Check-Ins, Pre-built or Custom Assessments to monitor progress.
Tier 3 – Includes students with more significant challenges.
- Tier 3 is for a small subset of students that have not responded to the interventions within Tier 1 or 2 and require additional support.
- Including Rhithm in Tier 3: Data collected through the Rhithm App can help indicate the need for an escalation to Tier 3 interventions. During a 1:1 student and staff session, the staff member leading the intervention can select a video from Rhithm's Toolkit related to the student's current social-emotional need and practice the video exercise together with the student.

📌 Prefer a visual representation? Check out our helpful infographic here.

The Rhithm App can play a vital role in any school's MTSS Framework by supporting a school's ability to quickly and continually screen and monitor student social-emotional needs.

Each time a student "Gets in Rhithm" by completing a Wellness Check-In and watching targeted well-being video selected by our algorithm, important information related to their overall well-being and social-emotional needs is captured and shared with members of the school team. When Rhithm is part of a daily practice, frequent and ongoing data centered on students' social-emotional well-being can be used to quickly determine if any individual student requires additional interventions or support. Data collected at the start of the school year can also become a baseline to help school teams monitor and identify significant shifts in a student's social-emotional presentation.

Furthermore, the Rhithm Toolkit provides access to our library of 400+ English and Spanish videos and allows users to search for content aligned with their various needs. With access to such a wide array of content, school teams can implement Rhithm at each tier of their MTSS framework by providing students of all ages access to social-emotional interventions created by clinical specialists that help students stay well.

For example, one instance of using Rhithm as a Tier 1 intervention is asking a class to “Get In Rhithm” and watch their algorithm-identified well-being video. An example of using Rhithm as a Tier 2 intervention would be pulling aside a small group of students and showing a specific video from the Rhithm Toolkit related to their shared well-being needs, such as “Relational” skills. Lastly, an example of using Rhithm as a Tier 3 intervention is having a 1 on 1 student session either starting with a wellness check-in and/or showing specific video to that student from the Rhithm Toolkit related to the skills they are working through.

For more information, check out Rhithm’s article: Viewing assessment data, The Pre-built Assessment Library, or The Rhithm Toolkit.

Further Considerations

Interventions found within the MTSS framework help students and school staff with relationship building, which can lead to a supportive and collaborative school environment. When teachers and students utilize the Rhithm App regularly, they consistently receive strategies and tools that strengthen regulation and their overall well-being.

Research shows that school settings with a high level of student and staff well-being experience higher rates of intrinsic motivation, academic achievement, school satisfaction, and a decrease in disciplinary problems (Buecker et al., 2018). By including Rhithm in each tier of the MTSS Framework, schools can efficiently work towards a climate of overall well-being by using Rhithm to frequently monitor student social-emotional needs and provide tailored social-emotional interventions created by a clinical team. Having the Rhithm App as part of your MTSS Framework takes the guesswork out of student social-emotional monitoring and allows teachers to focus on success.

At Rhithm, we understand that just like students, each school setting has its own unique and individual needs. As part of our work, we strive to create programming that can meet the needs of schools and students at all levels.

We hope you find the information on using Rhithm as part of your MTSS Framework helpful. If you have any feedback or want additional tips, please do not hesitate to contact our support team to let us know!

Using a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) Framework with Rhithm