Utah students are doing better on state and national reading tests despite the slipping ranking of the United States on a worldwide stage.

Still, as the Nation's Report Card showed in September, Utah's scores are climbing, but not as fast as other states', and achievement gaps between whites and ethnic minorities and those of means and those in poverty persist.

Utah has honed in on literacy by third grade — including messages through the governor's office to read 20 minutes a day to children — for the better part of a decade. Its reading program for kindergartners through third-graders lets school districts decide how to tackle the issue, such as with lower class sizes or reading specialists. It also requires they measure kids throughout the school year and adjust the way they teach along the way if need be, associate state superintendent Brenda Hales said.

"We're seeing terrific gains with individual students who start the year maybe behind, and due to interventions that take place during the course of a year, end up getting back on grade level. It's really quite exciting," she said.

All-day kindergarten programs targeted at low-income students, as well as federal Reading First Grants, aim to make sure students have a better foundation in reading before they have a chance to get behind.