5th Grade - Gateway 1

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1b. 

Each of the 10 units contain a variety of text types and genres including speeches, myth, legend, fables, drama, mystery, biographies, personal narrative, realistic fiction, historical fiction, opinion, various poetry, and informational texts based on social studies and life science concepts. Across the core texts for all units, there is a 54/46 balance of literary and informational texts. This does not include the read aloud poem at the end of each unit because the lesson and tasks associated are not directly connected to the unit purpose or skills.  The majority of units provide mixed text types for students to cross-reference. Units 2, 4, 6, 9, and 10 fully focus on either informational or literary texts. 

Materials reflect the distribution of text types/genres required by the grade- level standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 1, the short read text is an opinion piece, The Past and Future of a Crop by Amelia Millilo. 

• In Unit 2, during small group instruction, students read the realistic fiction text Dad Came Home by Latoyoua Topping.

• In Unit 3, Week 1, the short read text is a speech, “President Lyndon Johnson’s Voting Rights Address,”by President Lyndon Johnson 

• In Unit 4, Week 1, during whole group instruction, students read the free verse poem “I Hear America Singing by Walt Whitman/ Caged Bird” by Maya Angelou.

• In Unit 5, Week 2, students read a set of poetry labeled “Poems of the Industrial Age'' by well-known poets and authors from the early 20th centruy. This set of poems includes “Banking Coal’ by Jean Toomer, “Train Wreck” by James Steel Smith, and “Prayers of Steel'' by Carl Sandburg. 

• In Unit 6, during small group instruction, students read the informational narrative nonfiction text Everest Dreaming by Sue Williams.

• In Unit 7, Week 1, students read the memoir “The Banners of Freedom” by Boyrereau Brinch.

• In Unit 8, Week 2, during small group instruction, students read the informational technical text Make a Family Emergency Plan by Kathy Furgang.

• In Unit 9, Week 1, during small group instruction, students have three opportunities for reading historical fiction: Dear Annie: Letters from a Young Silversmith, Working in the 1800's, and Zora's Great Migration.

• In Unit 10, Week 1, during whole group instruction, students read the biography John Dalton: Father of the Atomic Theory by Kathy Furgang.

Materials reflect an approximate 50/50 balance of informational and literary texts. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Overall the materials include 21 informational core texts and 23 literary core texts for a 48/52 balance.

• Unit 1 contains 4 core texts with 25% being literary and 75% being informational.

• Unit 2 contains 4 core texts with 100% being literary.

• Unit 3 contains 4 core texts with 100% being informational.

• Unit 4  contains 5 core texts with 100% being literary.

• Unit 5 contains 7 core texts with 71% being literary and 29% being informational.

• Unit 6 contains 4 core texts with 100% being literary.

• Unit 7 contains 4 core texts with 50% being literary and 50% being informational.

• Unit 8 contains 4 core texts with 50% being literary and 50% being informational.

• Unit 9 contains 4 core texts with 100% being informational.

• Unit 10 contains 4 core texts with 100% being informational.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1c. 

Anchor texts range from 740L–1090L, with the majority of texts falling within the Grades 4–5 Lexile Stretch Band. Text excerpts that complement texts on the higher end of the stretch band  range in quantitative complexity from 740L–780L. Texts have an appropriate level of qualitative complexity, with most ranging from moderate to high complexity. The qualitative complexity of texts spans dimensions such as complex sets of events and characters that require an understanding of the time period, complicated plots, time shifts, and unfamiliar vocabulary including academic and domain-specific words. The Program Support Guide provides a text complexity analysis and rationale for purpose and placement.

Anchor/core texts have the appropriate level of complexity for the grade according to quantitative and qualitative analysis and relationship to their associated student task. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 1, students read “The Drive Down” (1080L), an excerpt from Brave As You by Jason Renolds. The quantitative complexity is above the Grades 4–5 Lexile Stretch Band. Qualitatively, the text is considered highly difficult due to its unfamiliar vocabulary and complex sentence structure. Students summarize the text, and compare and contrast characters in the story. 

• In Unit 4, Week 3, Day 1, students read “Miguel’s Prophecy” (740L), an excerpt from Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan. The quantitative complexity falls below the Grades 4–5 Lexile Stretch Band; however, the text is qualitatively very complex as readers must draw inferences and navigate complex text structure. Students identify point of view and describe how point of view influences how events are described. 

• In Unit 6, Week 3, Days 1–3, students read “The Knotted Branch” (940L), an extended read excerpt from “The Winter People'' by Joseph Bruchac. The quantitative complexity falls within the Grades 4–5 Lexile Stretch band. This extended read has a high qualitative complexity, due to some rich vocabulary and descriptive language, unfamiliar terms that are not directly or indirectly supported with context clues, and the use of sentence structures that are both simple and complex. Students analyze characters in this text, as well as its accompanying paired selection, by comparing and contrasting the actions of the characters. 

• In Unit 8, Week 2, Days1–4, students read “The Voyage” (820L) by Mary Pope Osborne. This excerpt from the ancient Greek myth falls within the Grades 4–5 Lexile Stretch Band. The mythical, somewhat other- worldly/fantasy quality will be unfamiliar to readers at first. Dialogue, sequence of events, descriptive text with some unfamiliar vocabulary, and sentences ranging from simple to complex also lend themselves to the text’s high qualitative complexity. After completing a close read of “The Odyssey Begins,” the previous text by the same author, students analyze the texts to compare and contrast the main character and identify the author’s purpose. 

Anchor/Core texts and series of texts connected to them are accompanied by an accurate text complexity analysis and a rationale for educational purpose and placement in the grade level. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials include a separate text complexity document for both anchor texts and small group texts. The text complexity documents are accessible as PDFs for each grade in the digital Program Support Guide under the tab for Text Complexity Analyses and Rationales for Purpose and Placement. 

• The Teacher Resource System for each unit also includes introductory materials including a Guide to Text Complexity section that provides an accurate summary of the quantitative and qualitative data for each anchor text in the unit. This guide contains an overall qualitative text complexity measure based on a color-coded system with levels of low complexity, moderate complexity, substantial complexity, and highest complexity. The guide shares a brief statement on the four qualitative measures of each text: Purpose and Levels of Meaning, Structure, Language Conventionality and Clarity, and Knowledge Demands.

• The accuracy of the provided quantitative measures was verified using MetaMetrics or determined using the Lexile Text Analyzer on The Lexile Framework for Reading site. The accuracy of the provided qualitative measures was verified using literary and informational text rubrics.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1e.

Materials provide opportunities for students to engage in a range and volume of reading. The anchor texts provide some range of text types, with the majority of texts being informational science or social studies texts. More varied text types are included in the small group instruction Building Knowledge Text Sets. Each unit also includes a novel study that is recommended but not required for independent reading. 

Materials provide support for the teacher to foster independent reading; however, the prompts frequently focus on comprehension strategies. Materials provide independent reading procedures but many are not built into the program framework. The program includes “independent reading mini lessons;” however, there is no schedule or guidance available for teachers to know when to teach these mini lessons. Accountability systems for independent reading include a reading log and corresponding family letter. Materials provide a recommended amount of time students should spend reading, along with a schedule to provide students adequate opportunities to engage in independent reading; however, there is no information on the volume of reading students should do during this time. The Pacing Guide in the Teachers Resource Guide for each unit delineates implementation formats for 90-minute, 120-minute, and 150-minute blocks. For the implementation of the program within a 90-minute reading block, the Read Aloud is removed and the time for small group and independent reading time is combined to 15 minutes or less which would significantly reduce the volume of reading for students, as time allotted for the Building Knowledge Text Sets is reduced.

Instructional materials clearly identify opportunities and support for students to engage in reading a variety of text types and genres. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Across Units 1-10, the anchor texts include personal essays, realistic fiction, informational life science and social studies texts, biographies, fantasy, dramas and plays, opinion texts, journals, speeches, personal narratives, myths, legends, science fiction, fables, and free verse, lyric, and narrative poetry. 

• The Building Knowledge Text Sets (in which not every student will access all texts) include fantasy, realistic fiction, journals, social studies texts, biographies, plays, fables, procedural texts, opinion, drama, historical fiction, life science, technical texts, legends, narrative nonfiction, graphic stories, folktales and personal narrative texts. 

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Days 1-3 students read the realistic fiction “The Drive Down” an excerpt from As Brave As You by Jason Reynolds. In Unit 2, Week 1, Days 4-5 students read “Grandpop’s Surprise” an excerpt from As Brave As You by Jason Reynolds. In Unit 2, Week 2, Days 1-5 students read “Sky-Glitter” an excerpt from As Brave As You by Jason Reynolds. In Unit 2, Week 3 Days 1-2 students read “Ernie’s Secret” an excerpt from As Brave As You by Jason Reynolds. In Unit 2, Week 3, Day 5 students read the narrative poem Casey At Bat by Ernest Lawrence Thayer.

• In Unit 8, Week 1, Days 1-3, students read the myth The Odyssey Begins by Mary Pope Osborne. In Unit 8, Week 1, Day 4, students read the informational science interview Water-Wise Landscaper by Climate Kids/Michelle Pekko-Seymoure. In Unit 8, Week 2, Days 1-4 students read the myth The Voyage by Mary Pope Osborne. In Unit 8, Week 3, Days 1-3 students read the informational science text Questions and Answers About the Oceans by Climate Kids. In Unit 8, Week 3, Day 5 students read the narrative poem Burn Lake by Carrie Fountain.

Instructional materials identify opportunities and support for students to engage in a volume of reading. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Students read 50 anchor texts over the course of the year. 20 of these texts are short reads, 20 are extended reads, and 10 are poems. Additionally they read 30 vocabulary practice texts and 10 reader theater texts. Students listen to a read aloud for 10-15 minutes daily.

• Within a school day students listen to a read-aloud for 10-15 minutes, engage with an anchor text, and participate in small group and/or independent reading. 30-40 minutes of independent reading time is suggested per day.

• The Weekly Comprehensive Literacy Planner includes a section titled Independent Reading & Conferring. While materials offer independent reading selections, the teacher is also prompted within the lesson for students to use this time to complete the whole group reading and task. Each day has a focus task for independent reading including “Set Personal Learning Goals,” “Read Independently,” Begin the Blueprint,” “Read the Vocabulary Practice Text,” or “Create a Decision Making Guide.” The planner provides these teacher recommendations for independent reading:

  •  Ensure that all students read independently to build volume and stamina.

  • Confer with a few students on their text selections, application of strategies, and knowledge building tasks.

  • See additional independent suggestions (including the Research and Inquiry Project) on the Unit Foldout. 

• In Unit 4, during a three week time period, students read two short reads; poetry I Hear America Singing/Caged Bird by Walt Whitman and Maya Angelou and historical fiction text Gold Country by Laurence Yep. Students read two extended texts; a historical fiction text I Speak Spanish Too by Maria Mahia and realistic fiction text Miguel’s Prophecy by Pam Muñoz Ryan. In addition they read the narrative poem I, Too by Langston Hughs. Students participate in daily independent and/or small group reading.

There is sufficient teacher guidance to foster independence for all readers (e.g., independent reading procedures, proposed schedule, tracking system for independent reading). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The teacher edition includes daily Reading and Responding lessons to be used with the anchor texts.

• Materials provide a list of trade books for read alouds that could also be used as recommendations for students during independent reading time.

• Materials include a weekly reading log for both at home and at school, as well as a family letter that coincides with the home reading log.

• Materials offer additional resources to support the teacher with fostering students’ independent reading; however, some of these resources are not a part of the core program or are not incorporated into the daily framework. These materials include:

  • Independent reading mini lessons are provided but information as to when to do them is not included.

  • The Teacher Edition provides Review and Routines which includes independent reading routines. The routines provide information as to what to do during independent reading. They do not provide information for setting up procedures or expectations. Materials also do not provide information on the volume of reading students should be doing during this time.

  • The Additional Resources section includes a Managing Your Independent Reading Guide. This  resource includes teacher guidance on conferring periodically or as often as possible with students. The “Conferring with Students'' section explains what a reading conference is, why teachers should have them and a general idea of how to run one. This section does not give teachers guidance on how to grow independent readers during a conference.

  • Each unit provides a student ebook for recommended independent reading; however, materials do not provide text-specific guidance, student tasks, or accountability measures for the ebook.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1f. 

The majority of questions and tasks are text-specific, text-dependent, and require evidence from the text. Activities such as Build, Reflect, Write; Extended Thinking Questions; Apply Understanding; Share and Reflect; Constructive Conversations, and Guided Practice accompany the anchor texts for Short Reads and Extended Reads. When completing many of these tasks, students must use textual evidence to support answers to questions and discussions, both independently and collaboratively. Each unit also includes text-specific questions during which students synthesize or compare and contrast information across texts. 

The Teacher’s Resource System for each unit provides implementation and follow up support for text-dependent questioning and discussion. The Teacher’s Resource System also includes text-dependent questions and tasks for the teacher to use during mini-lessons and small group instruction. The student ebook for each unit’s anchor texts also includes text-dependent questions in the Apply Understanding and Build Knowledge sections after each text. Writing prompts that build toward the unit culminating task are also typically text-dependent. Materials include possible responses for many questions or discussion prompts posed during the mini-lessons. The Small Group texts also include text-dependent questions; however, due to the choice in literacy block length and needs of students, some students may not have the opportunity to respond to all of the text-dependent questions during small group time.

Text-specific and text-dependent questions and tasks support students in making meaning of the core understandings of the texts being studied. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 2, Lesson 4, students read the extended read text “A Short History of a Special Plant’ by Laura McDonald. During the reading, students “reread paragraphs 7–9. Identify and underline key details. Use these to determine the central idea.” During the Apply Understanding part of the lesson, “students reread paragraphs 10–15, identify key details, interpret graphic features, and identify a central idea.” Students then “write a short paragraph explaining how key details and graphic features helped them determine one or more central ideas.” Once students complete this, they respond to the following question in their e-notebook: “Reread paragraphs 14–15 and refer to the graph ‘U.S. Corn Production.’ Based on this information, what factors may have contributed to the decline in corn production in 2012? Cite evidence from the text to support your answer.” 

• In Unit 6, Week 3, Lesson 9, in Constructive Conversations, students work with a partner to read and annotate “Brushfire” by David Boelke and “The Knotted Branch” by Joseph Bruchac and respond to the following prompt: “Compare and contrast the ways Saxso from ‘The Knotted Branch’ and Ed from ‘Brushfire!’ respond to the challenges they face. What do their responses tell you about the relationship between family and survival? Cite specific evidence from each text to support your thinking.” Materials include possible responses and evidence for teacher use. 

• In Unit 9, Week 2, Lesson 12, in Apply Understanding, students independently use their notebooks or e-notebooks to respond to the following question: “ Which city was most affected by the Great Migration: Chicago, New York City, or Detroit? Cite specific text evidence to support your thinking.” Materials include sample answers and evidence as a model.

Teacher materials provide support for planning and implementation of text-based questions and tasks. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 2, Week 3, Lesson 9, materials include a script for teacher use to engage students’ thinking and set the purpose for the lesson: “Earlier in the unit, you read ‘Grandpop’s Surprise,’ which recounted how Genie found out his grandfather was blind. Today, you will use information from that text, as well as from ‘Ernie’s Secret,’ to compare and contrast two excerpts that have the same theme.” During Constructive Conversations, students work with a partner to compare and contrast the ways the texts introduce and develop the theme of being brave. Materials include possible responses for teacher use, such as “‘Grandpop’s Surprise’ introduces the theme of bravery when Genie learns why Grandpop does not want people to know he’s blind.”

• In Unit 5, Week 1, Lesson 12, the teacher reads aloud “Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin” by Judi Black and models going back into the text to find a problem/solution relationship. The Teacher Resource system includes the following script for teacher use: “I read that it was ‘tedious and labor-intensive work: to separate cotton fibers from the seed.’ In the next sentence of the text, the author says that this stage took the most time to complete. These sentences introduce a problem. I'm going to underline them and rewrite the problem in my own words in the margins: Separating cotton fibers was a difficult, time-consuming process. Now I'll continue to read and look for the solution.”

• In Unit 9, Week 3, Lesson 9, the teacher displays the close reading question, “What economic change did most cities in the United States experience between 1930-1960? What were the effects of this change? Cite specific text evidence from ‘Chicago: An American Hub’ and ‘Old Cities Revitalize’ to support your answer.” Students reread and annotate the texts with a partner. Then they discuss the close reading question. Materials include the following teacher guidance to support students with the task: “The question directs me back to a specific text. I scan ‘Chicago: An American Hub’ to locate relevant information about the economy in the 1930s to 1960s. I find information in paragraph 8 about the effect of the Great Depression in the 1930s on Chicago’s economy. The author compares it to other cities. There is also information about the 1950s and 1960s that will help me answer the question.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1g. 

Materials include regular opportunities for students to engage in discussions with the class or partners. The discussion protocols fall primarily under the following two protocols: Turn and Talk and Constructive Conversations. These discussion opportunities are frequent in the materials and vary in purpose. Guidance for teachers and students includes a question for the teacher to pose, possible student responses, and generic protocol directions through the use of the “Guidance for Effective Classroom, Small Group, and Partner Discussion in the Review and Routines Guide.” Most notably, the materials provide a breakdown of each protocol in the “Speaking and Listening Protocols” document found in the Additional Materials section. 

Materials provide varied protocols to support students’ developing speaking and listening skills across the whole year’s scope of instructional materials. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Multiple opportunities to Turn and Talk throughout each unit and the year. These Turn and Talks vary on their structure and their purpose. 

• Each unit contains Discuss the Blueprint lessons. These lessons include a Constructive Conversations component. The directions remain the same throughout the units and the school year. 

• Under Additional Resources for each unit, materials provide a Real-World Perspectives Supporting Constructive Conversations reproducible for use with the corresponding lesson of the unit. This reproducible tells students the different parts of a Constructive Conversation and includes sentence stems for student use during each part. According to the reproducible, the five parts of a Constructive Conversation include state ideas; clarify ideas; support and build up ideas; introduce, clarify, and support a second idea; and evaluate and compare ideas. The reproducible includes 5 Respectful Conversation Tips and a Build Knowledge Word Bank. The reproducible starts with the first 3 parts of the conversation and adds the fourth and fifth step as the year progresses. The Build Knowledge Word Bank changes from unit to unit.

• In the Day 2 mini lesson of the Launch materials, students learn about being an active listener. “Conduct a brief discussion about what people do to be active listeners. List suggestions given by students on the anchor chart. Some important things to include could be as follows: - Have eyes on the speaker, - Maintain a quiet body, - Use appropriate expression to show interest, - Be patient while the speaker chooses what to say. Give enough wait time - Think carefully about what the speaker is saying.” 

• In the Research and Inquiry guide for teachers, the margin on page 10 provides Options for Presenting for student use. The options are the same for each research project and the following is provided:

  • “There are many ways that students can share with one another. Choose one that works well in your classroom setting.

  • Whole group: Students can present to the entire class.

  • Small group: Break students into groups of 3–4 to present to one another.

  • Partnerships: Pair students up to share their projects.

  • Video: Students can film their presentation and share them on a digital platform.

  • Visits: Students can visit other classrooms to share what they have created and learned, or guests can join you in the classroom in person or virtually.

  • Out in the World: If the inquiry project is one that would be useful for others, students can mail or email the project.”

• In Unit 1, Week 1, Lesson 1, students engage in a Turn and Talk to “Discuss each caption’s connection to the image it supports.” Teachers remind students to “...take turns and listen carefully when their partner iis speaking.” 

• In Unit 5, Week 1, Lesson 3, at the end of the lesson, students engage in a discussion to share and reflect on their learning about the brainstorming process. Teacher guidance includes, “Have partners discuss the brainstorming process and how they chose what they want to write about. Select one or two students to share their ideas with the class. At the end of the lesson, students should review their writing checklists and, if necessary, update them.” 

• In Unit 10, Week 3, Lesson 9, students engage in a Constructive Conversation with a partner to dig deeper on the topic of chemical change: “How is Dalton's Atomic Theory relevant to Marie Daly's work linking the chemical reactions during digestion to human health in relationship to cholesterol? Cite specific evidence from ‘Marie M. Daly: Biochemistry Pioneer’ and ‘John Dalton: Father of the Atomic Theory’ to support your answer.” The teacher observes the conversation and provides support as needed. 

Speaking and listening instruction includes facilitation, monitoring, and instructional support for teachers. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the Teacher Resource material, under the Additional Materials section for each unit, materials include a document that provides general teacher guidance on “Maximizing the Quality of Classroom Constructive Conversations.” This guidance is the same throughout all units across the year.

  • For example, the resource states, “Teachers and students can better understand how to improve conversations with the tools that accompany the Benchmark Advance program. The first tool, the ‘Conversation Blueprint,’ is a visual guide to help teachers scaffold students’ conversations. This tool shows the structure of the two main types of conversations that should happen during lessons. The tools especially designed for students are the … Think-Speak-Listen Flip Book…” These tools offer sentence systems for various skills within a conversation.”

• The Discuss the Blueprint Constructive Conversations lessons include an Observational Checklist for Constructive Conversations for teacher use. Guidance in the Observational Checklist includes, “As peers engage in conversation, use the questions below to evaluate how effectively they communicate with each other. Based on your answers, you may wish to plan future lessons to support the constructive conversation process.” Questions include, “stay on topic throughout the discussion?, listen respectfully?, build on the comments of others?”

• In Unit 3, Week 2, Lesson 7, students conduct a Constructive Conversation with a partner. Materials include a list of Look-Fors for the teacher to use when monitoring students’ conversations. “Do peers:

  • stay on topic throughout the discussion?

  • listen respectfully?

  • build on the comments of others appropriately?

  • pose or respond to questions to clarify information?

  • support their peers to participate?”

• In Unit 6, Week 1, Lesson 4, students read “Androcles and the Lion,” a fable by Aesop. During the Constructive Conversation: Partner section of the Build Vocabulary mini-lesson, students determine the meaning of selected words from the story. Materials include a graphic organizer of context clues that the teacher should hear students say when discussing each word. 

• In Unit 9, Week 1, Lesson 7, students complete the short read “The Birth of Chicago” by Odia Wood-Krueger. After completing a partner practice task on gathering evidence from multiple sources, students then participate in a Turn and Talk. Materials provide teacher support for implementing the task and monitoring responses: “Pose questions that require students to use their knowledge of text features to focus on Enduring Understanding 1 from the Knowledge Blueprint (The first people to live in the area that becomes a city are part of that city’s history). Ask partners to share ideas using words from the Build Knowledge Word Bank. Invite a few students to share their ideas.” Materials include sample answers for teacher use.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1h. 

Throughout the year, students typically have the opportunity to engage in speaking and listening daily, including opportunities to speak in whole group, partner, and small group settings. In some units, students engage in whole group presentations. These opportunities include speaker and audience expectations in the form of teacher directions and anchor charts. The materials provide partner sharing and small group discussion opportunities during the majority of speaking and listening tasks. Students complete a Knowledge Blueprint graphic organizer during the unit and hold a class discussion on what they learned at the end of the unit; the Knowledge Blueprint is expanded upon throughout the unit. Materials include opportunities to implement agreed upon rules for discussions, partner and small group work, and to guide students on answering questions about a speaker. While the materials do provide opportunities for students to address all of the Speaking and Listening standards, some of the activities are optional or at the discretion of the teacher. 

Students have many opportunities over the school year to demonstrate what they are reading through varied speaking and listening opportunities. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, students work with a partner to integrate information from multiple sources. Students “[r]eread paragraphs 4–7 and review the line graph, U.S. Corn Yields (1866–present). How does the information presented by the line graph support the author’s opinion? Jot your notes in the margin as you integrate information from the text and line graph.” 

• Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions and carry out assigned roles. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Review and Routines Grade 5, Day 2, the teacher and students co-create an anchor chart about what it means to be an active listener. These agreed-upon rules are revisited and used throughout the year. The teacher then models how partners should take on roles during their discussion and says, “Now, in your partner group, each partner will take turns asking and answering a question. In round one, Partner 1 will start by asking the question while Partner 2 answers. Then Partner 2 will ask Partner 1 the same question and listen to Partner 1 answer. In round two, Partner 2 asks the question first while Partner 1 answers. Partner 1 asks Partner 2 the same question and listens to Partner 1 answer. Let’s begin. Partner 1, here’s your first question.”

• Include multimedia components (e.g., graphics, sound) and visual displays in presentations when appropriate to enhance the development of main ideas or themes. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Unit 9, students present a multimedia presentation to the class that addresses the following prompt: “In this unit, we will be creating a multimedia presentation about a way to improve your community.” Students work on the presentations in Weeks 1-3 to ensure that the presentation:

    • Identifies a clear topic and purpose, and is shaped for a specific audience.

    • Organizes information in a logical way.

    • Includes effective visuals and/or other multimedia components

While the materials indicate that students can incorporate other multimedia components outside of visuals, the materials only provide guidance to teachers about how to model including various types of visuals.

Speaking and listening work requires students to utilize, apply, and incorporate evidence from texts and/or sources. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Pose and respond to specific questions by making comments that contribute to the discussion and elaborate on the remarks of others. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the Research and Inquiry Project Teacher’s Guide Grade 5, Unit 2, Step 5, students present their author comparison studies. The materials direct the teacher to say, “Audience: Be prepared to contribute to a discussion by responding to specific questions from the presenter, and by posing some specific questions of your own. You should pose questions and make comments that elaborate on what the presenter said, as well as on the remarks of others. Think about the key ideas expressed in the presentation. What conclusions can you draw from the information and knowledge you learned?”

• Review the key ideas expressed. Materials do not have opportunities for students to draw conclusions in light of information and knowledge gained from the discussions. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the Research and Inquiry Project Teacher’s Guide Grade 5, Units 7-8, Step 5, students present their research project. The materials direct the teacher to say, “Audience: Be prepared to contribute to a discussion by responding to specific questions from the presenter, and by posing some specific questions of your own. You should pose questions and make comments that elaborate on what the presenter said, as well as on the remarks of others. Think about the key ideas expressed in the presentation. What conclusions can you draw from the information and knowledge you learned?”

• Summarize a written text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Unit 10, Week 3, Lesson 12, students read the poem “The Snowflake” (author not cited) and then listen to an audio recording. Students then analyze the meaning of the poem. 

• Summarize the points a speaker makes and explain how each claim is supported by reasons and evidence. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Unit 6, Week 3, students compare two unit texts, “The Knotted Branch” an excerpt of The Winter People by Joseph Bruchac, and “Brushfire” a play excerpt by David Boelke. During the Constructive Conversation section, students work in pairs to synthesize information across both texts: “Compare and contrast the ways Saxso from ‘The Knotted Branch’ and Ed from ‘Brushfire!’ respond to the challenges they face. What do their responses tell you about the relationship between family and survival? Cite specific evidence from each text to support your thinking.” Afterwards, students participate in a Turn and Talk and discuss the following question: “What lessons can readers learn about problem-solving and decision-making from the ways Saxso’s responds to challenges in ‘The Knotted Branch?’” 

• Report on a topic or text or present an opinion, sequencing ideas logically and using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Unit 1, Weeks 1–3, students work on a Research and Inquiry report: “For this Research and Inquiry Project, you will research a plant-based resource or a staple food crop such as rubber, timber, wheat, rice, soy, or potatoes. Then you will create a project to present the knowledge you have built. Your project will include facts and key information about the topic, as well as visuals such as maps, drawings, timelines, or photographs that help the audience build knowledge. You will create a podcast, a video, a print or digital timeline, or an idea of your own.” Students present their project upon completion and the teacher may utilize the Options for Presenting resource.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1i. 

Materials provide opportunities for on-demand writing and longer process writing tasks throughout the school year. Mini-lessons provide students with direct instruction, guided practice, and independent time for writing. Students engage in a variety of genres of writing tasks including, but not limited to, informative/explanatory, opinion, timelines, and summaries. At the end of each text or text set, students have opportunities to write in response to text and are required to cite text evidence in their response. With multi-day writing tasks, the teacher models various revision and editing strategies and students have time to revise and edit their writing. Materials provide guidance for digital opportunities with some writing tasks. Materials also include additional guided inquiry projects aligned with unit(s) topics that can be incorporated within the unit.

Materials include on-demand writing opportunities that cover a year’s worth of instruction. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 1, after reading “The Structure of a Corn Plant” by Matthew Felkonian and “The Future of a Crop” by Amelia Millilo, students write a 1–2 paragraph response in a notebook or e-notebook to answer the following questions: How do the parts of a plant work together to perform a function? Cite evidence from Short Read q to support your answer.  Summarize the two sides of “The Ethanol Debate” presented in Short Read 2.  Use key details from the text to support your work.  In Short Reads 1 and 2, the authors use plant diagrams.  How are the diagrams similar?  How are they different?  What is the purpose of each diagram?  Cite details from both texts that support your answer.  

• In Unit 4, Week 2, after reading “I Speak Spanish, Too” by Maria Mahiat, students rewrite an event from another perspective: “Reread paragraphs 8–15. How would this section be told differently from Judy’s perspective...write the change in perspective in the margins.”

• In Unit 5, Week 3, students independently complete the Write to Demonstrate Knowledge section of the Culminating Task. Students write 1–2 paragraphs about the Enduring Understandings for the Unit which address the positive and negative impacts of technological innovation: “Reread the Enduring Understandings on the inside front cover. How have the texts you’ve read, your own experience creating a timeline, and the research you’ve done for your Research and Inquiry Project given you new insights into these statements?”

• In Unit 6, Week 2, after reading “The Law of Club and Fang” from The Call of the Wild by Jack London, students write 1–2 paragraphs in response to the following prompt: “How does Buck’s life now compare with the life he lived in California? Based on your analysis, has being in this new environment changed his character? Cite specific evidence from the text to support your claim.”

• In Unit 10, Week 2, students write a summary of the key details and central idea of one section of “Changes in Matter” by Laura McDonald.  

Materials include process writing opportunities that cover a year’s worth of instruction. Opportunities for students to revise and edit are provided. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 3, Week 3, students write an informative/explanatory essay about a topic based on voting rights in the United States. Students plan and draft their essays and the teacher models evaluating and revising correct use of commas. During Guided Practice, students work with a partner to revise practice text for correct comma usage. During Independent Writing, students revise their drafts for correct comma usage.

• In Unit 5, Week 3, students create a timeline that includes important events and inventions during the Industrial Revolution. Students revisit the timeline and add additional information based on their responses to the following questions: “What new information from this week’s reading should be added to your timeline?” and “How do you determine what dates and events are important enough to include?” 

• In Unit 9, Week 3, students develop a multimedia presentation. During a mini-lesson, the teacher models how to evaluate each part of the presentation, connect ideas using note cards, and ensure visuals are strong. Students analyze and revise their presentations afterwards. 

Materials include digital resources where appropriate. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• All units include Build-Reflect-Write eNotebooks for student use when responding to the close reading text Apply Understanding questions and Culminating Activity Enduring Understanding questions, as well as when completing Build Vocabulary tasks, Build Grammar and Language tasks, and graphic organizers for their Research and Inquiry project.

• In Unit 3, Week 3, students type the final draft of their essays on voting rights in the United Stateson the computer. Materials also include a Keyboarding Practice Lesson that can be given to increase students’ keyboarding skills.

• In Unit 9, Week 1, students create a multimedia presentation. The teacher models generating ideas for strong supporting visuals. During oral rehearsal, students work with a partner to review their Multimedia Presentation Storyboard and discuss ideas for visuals. During independent time, students continue to work on their presentations, planning their reason/evidence slides and planning on visuals to support their presentation.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1j. 

Across the year, students engage in a variety of writing text types through many different types of writing activities. Materials include an entire unit on text-based prompts and a unit on process writing for each of the writing types. The Program Support Guide includes a K-6 Year-Long Writing Scope and Sequence indicating which writing types and standards are the focus of each unit. There is a balance between writing in response to texts as well as process writing on a topic aligned to the unit focus. The writing mini-lessons occur daily and each unit utilizes multiple anchor charts, checklists, and graphic organizers called planning guides to support and guide students through each writing process. The majority of units include mentor texts for students to analyze before writing their own pieces.

Materials provide multiple opportunities across the school year for students to learn, practice, and apply different genres/modes/types of writing that reflect the distribution required by the standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• The following percentages or number of writing opportunities for opinion writing encompass the writing types and prompts from the writing mini-lessons across the year but do not include the daily text-based questions:

  • Approximately 28% of the writing in Grade 5 is opinion writing. Students have opportunities to engage in opinion writing as the focus of Unit 2 and Unit 5. In Unit 6, students also use opinion writing for a text-based prompt in each of the weeks.

• The following percentages or number of writing opportunities for informative/explanatory writing encompass the writing types and prompts from the writing mini-lessons across the year but do not include the daily text-based questions:

  • Approximately 36% of writing in Grade 5 is informative/explanatory writing. Students have opportunities to engage in informative/explanatory writing as the focus of Units 1, 3, 8, and 9. Both the Research Project in Unit 8 and the Multimedia Project in Unit 9 are informational. In Unit 6, students also use informative writing for a text-based prompt in each of the weeks.

• The following percentages or number of writing opportunities for narrative writing encompass the writing types and prompts from the writing mini-lessons across the year but do not include the daily text-based questions:

  • Approximately 36% of writing in Grade 5 is narrative writing. Students have opportunities to focus on Unit 4 and Unit 7. In Unit 6, students also use narrative writing for a text-based prompt in each of the weeks. This percentage also includes the poetry writing students do in Unit 10.

• Explicit instruction in opinion writing:

  • In Unit 2, Week 2, students engage in writing a multimedia opinion essay addressing the following prompt: “After reading “The Drive Down,” and “Grandpop’s Surprise,” write a multi-paragraph essay in which you answer the question: Would you recommend author Jason Reynolds to other readers? Support your opinion with details from the excerpts.”  The teacher models developing reasons based on facts and details, using text evidence to form an opinion, and planning and organizing the opinion essay.  

• Explicit instruction in informative/explanatory writing:

  • In Unit 1 students write an informative/explanatory text. In Week 1 students analyze the features of an informative/explanatory essay and take notes from the source text and video. In Week 2, the teacher reviews the key elements of an informative/explanatory essay, reads the prompt, and models how to analyze it. During Independent time students generate questions about corn production that will help them focus on maid ideas and key details as they read and view sources. Students continue to plan, draft, revise, and edit through Week 3, the teacher models how to evaluate an essay. 

• Explicit instruction in narrative writing: 

  • In Unit 7, students study informational texts about ancient cultures and  engage in narrative writing by crafting a self-selected piece of historical fiction. In Week 1, students read a mentor text and the teacher uses the sample story of two brothers in Egypt as they model how to use the Historical Fiction Anchor Chart and Writing Checklist. The lesson models support students as they brainstorm a historical --- and determine the needed evidence or information to create characters and the event. In Week 2, students begin a draft of their piece with an attention to developing their characters and events. In Week 3, students continue enhancing their pieces and working with partners to use more descriptive details and pace the events in the story. Once edited, students use technology to publish their writing. 

Different genres/modes/types of writing are distributed throughout the school year. 

• Students have opportunities to engage in opinion writing. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • Introduce a topic or text clearly, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure in which ideas are logically grouped to support the writer's purpose. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 2, Week 1, the teacher models how to state an opinion and use facts, reasons, and details from a text to support a point of view in an opinion writing piece. During independent work time, students begin to plan and draft their own opinion essay by stating their opinion.  

  • Provide logically ordered reasons that are supported by facts and details. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 5, Week 1, the teacher models organizing and planning an opinion essay, using facts and details. During independent work time, students begin to organize their facts and add details to support their opinion.  

  • Link opinion and reasons using words, phrases, and clauses (e.g., consequently, specifically). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 5, Week 2, the teacher models using words and phrases to link and opinion and reasons.  The teacher draws attention to words and phrases that show the relationship between the opinion statement and the reason and explains that “linking words and phrases connect and hold ideas together.  These words and phrases show the relationships between the key ideas and give your entire essay a cohesive feel.”  Students work in pairs to examine their drafts and identify transition words and phrases they have already used.  They then talk about words and phrases they could add to better link their ideas and provide meaningful transitions between details and concepts.  During independent work time, students focus on using linking words and phrases in their individual drafts.  

  • Provide a concluding statement or section related to the opinion presented. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 2, Week 1, the teacher models creating a concluding statement.  Students work with a partner to write a concluding statement for a given opinion statement. During independent time students write a different concluding statement for the mentor opinion essay.

• Students have opportunities to engage in informative/explanatory writing. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Introduce a topic clearly, provide a general observation and focus, and group related information logically; include formatting (e.g., headings), illustrations, and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 1, Week 1, the teacher models how to organize related ideas in paragraphs. The teacher begins by introducing the topic in the first paragraph so readers know that corn is important to people and animals.  The teacher models using notes to develop the next paragraph by adding related ideas and descriptive words to help the reader understand what the plant looks like.  Students work in pairs to reread paragraph 4 of the Mentor text to analyze the main idea of the paragraph and the facts and details that support it. During independent work time, students analyze the Mentor text conclusion.  

  • Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples related to the topic. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 8, Week 2, the teacher models using relevant facts and details related to the topic to provide support for the main idea. Students work in pairs to write a sentence with no specific details.  Then, they rewrite the sentence using facts, details, and quotations to develop their ideas. During independent work time, students should add facts, details, and examples to their drafts.  The teacher should encourage students to add a quotation if appropriate.  

  • Link ideas within and across categories of information using words, phrases, and clauses (e.g., in contrast, especially). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 8, Week 2, the teacher models how to make connections in writing by linking ideas with linking words, phrases, and clauses.  During independent work time, students revise their individual writing to add linking words, phrases, and clauses.  

  • Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 3, Week 3, the teacher models revising an informative essay to add domain specific vocabulary and precise language for clarity.  During independent work time, students revise their individual informative writing pieces to add precise language and domain specific vocabulary.  

  • Provide a concluding statement or section related to the information or explanation presented. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 3, Week 2, students engage in a mini-lesson on providing a concluding statement to their essay. Teachers use a model to show how an effective conclusion summarizes the informative/explanatory essay. Students write a conclusion for their essay during independent time. 

• Students have opportunities to engage in narrative writing. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Orient the reader by establishing a situation and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 4, Week 2, the teacher models how to determine character traits and use this information to develop the narrator as a character in fictional narratives.  Students work with a partner to identify another character trait of the narrator, considering the narrator’s thoughts, actions, and words as they draw inferences. During independent work time, students write a short scene with the narrator, using one of the character traits.  When writing, students should use the narrator’s thoughts, actions, and words to show the character trait.  

  • Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, description, and pacing, to develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to situations. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 4, Week 3, students engage in a mini-lesson on how to improve the dialogue in a narrative writing task. Teachers model improving dialogue by matching the formality of the dialogue and by specific word choice such as adding an idiom or a comparative adverb. Then students work with a partner to revise a section of dialogue. Finally, students return to their drafts to revise their dialogue.

  • Use a variety of transitional words, phrases, and clauses to manage the sequence of events. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 7, Week 3, the teacher models using transitional words and phrases to a historical writing piece.  Students work in pairs to look for places in their historical fiction pieces to add words that signal event order.  During independent work time, students should add transitional words and phrases to their historical writing piece to make the sequence of events clearer.  

  • Use concrete words and phrases and sensory details to convey experiences and events precisely. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 7, Week 3, the teacher models using descriptive words to convey experiences and events precisely.  Students read aloud a practice text and work together to add descriptive details.  During independent work time, students revise their historical writing pieces to add precise words and phrases to “convey events and experiences more specifically.”  

  • Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

    • In Unit 7, Week 2, the teacher models writing a conclusion for a narrative piece of writing that “wraps up the action and the scene and provides the reader with something to think about.”  Students work in pairs to brainstorm a conclusion for their historical narrative writing piece.  During independent work time, students draft a conclusion to their historical fiction writing piece.  

Where appropriate, writing opportunities are connected to texts and/or text sets (either as prompts, models, anchors, or supports). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 3, Week 2, students reread a section of the text “Fighting for the Vote” identifying details that support a central idea, and then use those notes to write a summary. 

• In Unit 6, Week 1, students write a personal connection in the margins of paragraph 3 of “Androcles and the Lion.”

• In Unit 10, Week 1, students write a response to the following questions, “How does Dalton's atomic theory relate to modern science? Emphasize the importance of chronology in your answer.” Teachers instruct students to use both the text and graphic features to answer the question.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1k. 

The majority of units feature text-based prompts or process writing prompts that explicitly require students to gather and use evidence from either anchor texts or outside sources such as websites. Evidence-based writing instruction occurs during writing lessons and includes intentional modeling, practice, and analysis. Teacher modeling typically uses graphic organizers or anchor charts, think-alouds, and underlining in the text where to find evidence. Each unit includes three writing prompts and 1–2 longer writing texts in which students must use text evidence in their responses. 

Materials provide frequent opportunities across the school year for students to learn, practice, and apply writing using evidence. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 3, Week 2, Mini-lesson 6, the teacher explicitly models using evidence to develop topics and details in essays: “Once a writer introduces the topic of an informative essay, the next step is developing the topic. Today we will use the information we’ve gathered to develop our topics and add details to our essays.” Students work to review their Planning Guides and annotate details and examples to include in their essays. Students continue into independent writing time and draft specific details that will help them develop cohesive, relevant, and engaging paragraphs.

• In Unit 6, Week 2, Mini-lesson 9, the teacher explicitly models gathering facts and details from credible sources: “To gather information, I’m going to look for relevant facts and details in “The Structure of the Corn Plant” that relate to my essay topic.” The teacher models how to use the Note-Taking Guide to capture evidence. Students use evidence and apply it to writing by responding to the prompt: “Based on your notes from the source text, write a description of a corn plant in your own words.”

• In Unit 8, Week 1, Mini-lesson 9, the teacher explicitly models selecting knowledgeable and credible print sources: “I've chosen credible print sources to gather information for my topic on threats to the world’s water supply. By reviewing the Table of Contents and index, I found several facts in the book The Human Effect on Earth's Resources. I also found facts in an article in a science journal.” The teacher models how to use the Note-Taking Chart to gather evidence. Students collect evidence to use in the draft writing of a research project.

Writing opportunities are focused around students’ recall of information to develop opinions from reading closely and working with evidence from texts and sources.

• In Unit 3, Week 1, Mini-lesson 10, the teacher models how to summarize and synthesize to learn about voting rights. “When I synthesize, I read my summary and decide if my thinking has changed. Then I draw a conclusion to give new meaning to the text. My new opinion is if a group of voters is discriminated against, then the problem should be solved.” The teacher poses a guided practice task and students complete the task by finding key details in a paragraph and using them as evidence to summarize and synthesize their opinion.

• In Unit 5, Week 1, Mini-lesson 3 the teacher models how to write and opinion essay on a scienc and technology topic: “I want to select a clear opinion statement that I think can be supported with evidence, but I also know that I may need to revise my opinion if the evidence I find in my research does not support it.” Students begin drafting their informative/explanatory essays using the  Informative/Explanatory Essay Anchor Chart, the Informative/Explanatory Essay Writing Checklist, the Planning Guide, and the Texts for Close Reading.

• In Unit 7, Week 2, students write 1–2 paragraphs in their notebook or e-notebook in response to the following text-based prompt: “In ‘Natve Americans in the Revolution,’ the author claims that the conclusion of the American Revolution was not the end of the violence between Native nations and American settlers. Does the author’s evidence adequately support this claim? Cite specific evidence to support your thinking.” The bottom of each writing page in the e-notebook includes the following checklist:

  • “State an answer to the question.

  • Cite specific evidence from the texts to support the answer.

  • Check spelling, grammar, and punctuation.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the expectations of Indicator 1l.

Materials provide instruction for all grade-level grammar and usage standards. Student practice opportunities are designed to lead to mastery of the standards. Instruction on grammar and usage occurs in context within anchor reading texts and in grammar lessons provided in the writing block. Student practice is included in Grammar in Context lessons, the Phonics and Word Study Resource Book, and the Build-Reflect-Write e-Notebook. The Grammar & Spelling Activity Book contains opportunities to further reinforce students’ skills through guided practice, scaffolded learning, independent work, in class or for homework. Students routinely apply grammar and usage standards to their writing. All grammar lessons require students to return to their writing to edit for recently-taught skills, and students edit their writing for appropriate usage. 

Materials include explicit instruction of all grammar and usage standards for the grade level. For example:

• Explain the function of conjunctions, prepositions, and interjections in general and their function in particular sentences.

  • In Unit 1, Week 1, Lesson 14, the teacher tells students conjunctions combine words, phrases, and clauses. The teacher displays a modeling text and explains how the coordinating conjunctions in the text connect ideas. In partners, students write a sentence with a coordinating conjunction and explain how the conjunction joins ideas. 

  • In Unit 3, Week 3, Lesson 8, the teacher displays and reads the unedited Modeling Conjunctions and Prepositions Text from previous lessons and models evaluating and revising writing. The teacher says, “I’ll add the proposition “in” to combine these two sentences” and “I think I’ll connect these sentences with “however.” Students work together with partners to revise the sentences in the Practice Conjunctions and Preposition Text. Students also reflect on how conjunctions and prepositions are added to clarify their writing.

  • In Unit 4, Week 2, Lesson 13, the teacher introduces and reviews interjections and punctuation for effect. Students complete guided practice with partners to circle interjections in sentences and add the correct punctuation for effect. 

• Form and use the perfect (e.g., I had walked; I have walked; I will have walked) verb tenses.

  • In Unit 2, Week 1, Lesson 14, the teacher sets the purpose for the lesson saying, “The perfect forms of a verb are used to show completed, or “perfected” actions or conditions. Verbs can be past perfect, present perfect, or future perfect tense. Today I’m going to show you how to form and use the past perfect tense of verbs.” The teacher displays the Verb Tense Chart and discusses the verb tenses, how they are formed and used. Students rewrite a sample sentence using the past perfect tense. Students write three sentences using past, present, and future perfect tense. Students in need of additional practice complete Unit 2, Week 1 Grammar and Spelling Activity Book, in which students rewrite sentences using the indicated perfect tense.

  • In Unit 8, Week 2, Lesson 7, the teacher reviews past perfect verb tense and guides students through using verb tense to understand the sequence of events. 

    • In the Build-Write-Reflect e-Notebook, Unit 8, Week 2, students write sentences in the past perfect tense.

• Use verb tense to convey various times, sequences, states, and conditions.

  • In Unit 1, Week 1, Lesson 8, the teacher is provided with instruction to engage thinking, model verb tense text, and practice verb tense. During guided practice, students circle the verb phrases and identify the verb tenses. Students decide whether the verb is in the present, past, or future tense. 

    • In the Build-Reflect-Write e-Notebook, Unit 1, Week 1, students write their own sentences using verb tenses to describe when something happened, is happening, or will happen. Students refer to page 4 of the Texts for Close Reading. Students have an instruction paragraph to notice how the verb tense changes from present tense to past perfect tense. 

    • In the Grammar and Spelling Activity Book, Unit 1, Week 1, students complete the following activity: “Circle the form of the verb that best matches the rest of the sentence.”

  • In Unit 8, Week 3, Lesson 11, the teacher models checking that the verb tense used in unedited writing correctly conveys the time, sequence, state, or condition intended. The teacher models identifying and circling each verb or verb phrase in writing. Students read each other’s drafts and identify verb tense usage. Partners explain instances of correct usage and point out instances where verb tenses could be used more effectively. 

• Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Lesson 11, the teacher sets the purpose for the day’s lesson saying, “It’s important to use the correct tense in your writing so it’s easy for readers to understand what you are trying to communicate. Today we’ll look for inappropriate shifts in verb tense in our own writing and correct it when necessary.” The teacher displays and reads aloud unedited text and models how to edit the text’s first two sentences for inappropriate shifts in verb tense. In partners, students correct the verb tense in the second half of the modeling text. 

  • In Unit 8, Week 3, Lesson 8, the teacher models checking for verb tenses while editing their writing. The teacher circles each verb and verb phrase in the first sentence (had found was) and says, “Now I’m going to use words and phrases that signal time to help me determine if the verbs are in the correct tense. I need to ask myself: did this happen in the past, present, or future? The teacher models analyzing and using the correct verb tense in remaining sentences. Students practice using verb tense text with guided practice. Partners are to work together to revise the sentence to use the correct verb tenses. 

• Use correlative conjunctions (e.g., either/or, neither/nor).

  • In Unit 7, Week 2, Lesson 7, the teacher tells students that correlative conjunctions are pairs of words that work together to connect ideas in a sentence, including either/or, neither/nor, and not only/but also. The teacher identifies and discusses correlative conjunctions in a modeling text. Students identify correlative conjunctions in an additional sentence. 

  • In Unit 9, Week 2, Lesson 7, the teacher explains how conjunctions help connect clauses in sentences. The teacher models how to analyze the function of a conjunction. Students apply understanding in the Grammar and Spelling Activity Book and Build-Write-Reflect-e- notebook.

    • In the Grammar and Spelling Activity Book, Unit 9, Week 2, students complete the following activity: “Underline the correlative conjunctions in each sentence. Rewrite each sentence using the correlative conjunctions in ( ).”

• Use punctuation to separate items in a series.

  • In Unit 3, Week 3, Lesson 11, the teacher reviews the purpose of commas to separate items in a series or after an introductory phrase. The teacher models how to check a sentence for the correct comma use. In partners, students edit the practice text, correcting comma usage. 

    • In the Grammar and Spelling Activity Book, Unit 3, Week 3, students complete the following activity: “Rewrite each sentence, using commas to separate items in a series.”

  • No other evidence for using punctuation to separate items in a series was found. There is instruction for the Grade 4 standard of using punctuation for effect. For example:

    • In Unit 7, Week 3, Lesson 5, the teacher models how you think about and annotate the sentences. Students share and reflect on how using punctuation for effect can help them when writing dialogue. 

    • In Unit 8, Week 1, Lesson 8, the teacher provides instruction on punctuation for effect. Commas signal a pause during reading. Students pay attention to punctuation as they draft, revise, and edit their writing.

• Use a comma to separate an introductory element from the rest of the sentence.

  • In Unit 3, Week 3, Lesson 11, the teacher reminds students that they previously learned how commas are used to separate items in a series and after an introductory phrase. The teacher models how to evaluate and revise their writing to check for correct use of commas saying, “I’ll begin by looking for a series of items and introductory phrases. I noticed that the second sentence begins with an introductory phrase so I probably need to add a comma.” For guided practice, students work with partners to revise sentences for correct comma usage. Students read sentences from their drafts aloud and note places where they pause. Partners talk about whether or not the comma is necessary at the pause point.

  • In Unit 5, Week 1, Lesson 14, the teacher reviews using a comma to separate a modifying phrase from the rest of the sentence. The teacher displays and discusses modeling text that uses modifying phrases separated by commas, and students identify and discuss modifying phrases in the practice text. For guided practice, students work with partners to read the sentences, identify the modifying phrase in each, and discuss how the modifying phrase further develops the sentence's meaning. During independent writing, students include modifying phrases that will provide additional information to their readers.

• Use a comma to set off the words yes and no (e.g., Yes, thank you), to set off a tag question from the rest of the sentence (e.g., It’s true, isn’t it?), and to indicate direct address (e.g., Is that you, Steve?).

  • In Unit 4, Week 3, Lesson 8, the teacher tells students to use a comma to set off the yes and no words and indicate a direct address. The teacher displays a text and models revising the text to include correct commas. Students use the practice revision text to add commas to set off yes and no and indicate a direct address. 

  • In Unit 7, Week 3, Lesson 8, the teacher models adding a tag sentence, “I will add a tag question for emphasis. A tag question is a two-part sentence, with one part being positive and the other being negative, with a comma separating the two sentences.” Students revise their writing during independent and small group writing, focusing on using quotation marks and choosing punctuation effectively. 

• Use underlining, quotation marks, or italics to indicate titles of works.

  • In Unit 8, Week 1, Lesson 6, the teacher tells students that when they cite the title of a book, they must use underline or italics, and when they cite a magazine article, they must use quotation marks for the title. Students practice using correct punctuation citing titles in their research project. 

  • In Unit 9, Week 3, Lesson 7, students utilize text features to add to their understanding.

    • In the Grammar and Spelling Activity Book, Unit 9, Week 3, students complete the following activity: “Rewrite the sentences using quotation marks or underlining for titles.”

• Spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed.

  • In Unit 7, Week 1, Lesson 1, Phonics and Word Study Resource Book, the teacher writes metal, travel, April, dollar, spider, and color. The teacher reviews words with unaccented final syllables and underlines the final syllable in each word. Students sort a list of words into a chart headed al, el, il, ar, er, and or. Students complete a spelling pre-assessment of unaccented final syllable words and sort the words into the spelling chart. 

  • In the Spelling Reference Guide, during mini-lessons, students explore a variety of spelling reference material, look up words in a dictionary, and use a word’s definition to help check and correct spellings.

• Expand, combine, and reduce sentences for meaning, reader/listener interest, and style.

  • In Unit 7, Week 1, Lesson 14, the teacher models reducing sentences too long and difficult to read. The teacher displays the unedited modeling text and explains how to identify a run-on sentence and reduce it. In partners, students use the practice text to reduce and edit a sentence. 

    • In the Grammar and Spelling Activity Book, Unit 7, Week 1, students complete the following activity: “Read the first and second sentences. On the line, write whether the second sentence reduces, expands, or combines the first sentence(s).”

• Compare and contrast the varieties of English (e.g., dialects, registers) used in stories, dramas, or poems.

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Lesson 7, the teacher models comparing and contrasting varieties of English by displaying and discussing the close reading question: “Reread paragraphs 7 and 10-15. Compare the narrative voice in paragraph 7 to the dialect used by the boys in paragraphs 10-15. Cite specific evidence from the text to describe how these differences in language affect the overall tone of the scene.”

  • In Unit 7, Week 1, Lesson 12, the teacher indicates students will “compare and contrast styles of language used” in a letter and in a speech. The teacher points out the use of a formal register in the letter, and students annotate the text to show the varieties of English.

• Materials include authentic opportunities for students to demonstrate application of skills in context, including applying grammar and convention skills to writing. For example:

  • In Unit 6, Week 2, Lesson 13, the teacher reminds students to check their spelling during their independent writing time.

  • In Unit 8, Week 3, Lesson 8, during independent writing, students revise or edit their writing, being mindful of standard grammar rules such as inappropriate shifts in verb tense and other uses of grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

  • In Unit 10, Week 2, Lesson 11, students use an editing checklist to edit a model poem and their own poem for the format, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling. 

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for Indicator 1m. 

The Program Support Guide provides a one-page Year-Long Vocabulary Development Plan which provides the focus word list for each week. Vocabulary relates to the Unit’s theme or topic and appears in the texts and activities students engage in during the lessons. Each unit focuses on different types of vocabulary development including Language of Instruction, General and Domain-Specific Vocabulary, and Word Study/Spelling. Within these focuses, students have opportunities to work with vocabulary including, but not limited to, context clues, determining meaning through roots and affixes, drawing, and acting out words. The digital Program Support Guide includes an expanded version of the Vocabulary Development Plan. Anchor text and close reading texts have selected vocabulary identified and provide brief opportunities for students to define and/or exemplify the words. Vocabulary is explicitly taught before reading each anchor text in various ways.

The Additional Materials section provides several graphic organizers such as a Concept Map or Frayer Model for vocabulary acquisition. Materials also provide a Vocabulary Development Tool that includes graphic organizers and a one-page explanation of the Define/Example/Ask routine which is the main vocabulary routine highlighted in each unit. Materials also provide a Multilingual Glossary that includes a definition, example, and image for each of the focus words for the units. 

Materials provide teacher guidance outlining a cohesive year-long vocabulary development component. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Materials include a year-long vocabulary development plan which lists the explicitly taught words by units and weeks. The list identifies the words as Tier 2 or Tier 3 words. While this document is labeled as a plan, it is a one-page list of words per unit.

• The digital Program Support Guide includes an expanded version of the Vocabulary Development Plan. This plan highlights the vocabulary development research base and the key types of vocabulary instruction used in the materials.

• The Teacher’s Resource System includes a Vocabulary Development section for each unit. This section provides a two-page overview of the Build Knowledge Word Bank, Language of Instruction, General Academic and Domain-Specific words, graphic organizers, and Word Study/Spelling supports. The Build Knowledge Word Bank lists the words that are explicitly taught in the first lesson of each unit and repeated throughout. The Vocabulary Development section also provides a chart that includes the Tier 2 and Tier 3 words that are found in each text. Materials highlight words that are explicitly taught at the beginning of each week and include images of the graphic organizers used to teach these words. Each identified word also includes the page number on which it appears in the student text. 

• Materials provide a Vocabulary Development Tools resource. This resource contains printable vocabulary tools, including an analogy graphic organizer, a concept map, a Frayer model, a vocabulary word study log, vocabulary routines, and making meaning with words. There are two protocols in the Vocabulary Routine section: Define/Example/Ask and a Kate Kinsella routine. During the Kate Kinsella routine, the teacher introduces the word and provides verbal practice for students, and then students engage in written practice. 

• Materials include Vocabulary Routines that the teacher can use to introduce vocabulary words. The routine that is stated in the teacher lesson plans is Define/Example/Ask; however teachers can choose to use the Academic Vocabulary Routine provided in Vocabulary Routines. While the directions for these routines state that teachers should review vocabulary every day, the actual lesson plan does not allot time or provide guidance on vocabulary review other than in the lessons where vocabulary is introduced or when the skill is vocabulary-related. Additionally, teacher guidance for using vocabulary words that are not explicitly taught is unclear.

Vocabulary is repeated in contexts (before texts, in texts) and across multiple texts.

• The Vocabulary Development Plan notes that the Build Knowledge Vocabulary “words and phrases may or may not appear in the unit texts that students read. They were chosen to provide conceptual language that supports the unit topic and Enduring Understandings and for students to use as they communicate and grow their word knowledge within and across grades.” For example, in Unit 5, Unit Resources, Vocabulary Development, the Building Knowledge vocabulary words and phrases are industry, manufacture, progress, process, production, and revolution. The phrase mass production appears in “Technology and the Lowell Mill Girls” by Anonymous and Marshall Putnam Thompson and revolutionized appears in “The Making of the Industrial Age” by Kathy Furgang. Industry, manufacture, progress, and process do not appear in any of the unit texts that students read.  

• In Unit 4, Week 2, Lesson 1, during Build Vocabulary/Preview the Text, the teacher introduces four vocabulary words using the Define/Example/Ask Routine. Students will encounter these words as they read “Ready to Race” (author not cited). The teacher guide states, “Tell students that during independent time, they will encounter the Week 2 words again by reading the Vocabulary Practice Text on page 17 of the Texts for Close Reading and by completing vocabulary activities in their Build-Reflect-Write e-notebooks.” Some of these activities include answering vocabulary questions related to the Vocabulary Practice Text, answering questions connected to students’ experiences with the vocabulary words, drawing out words, and writing a riddle with a vocabulary word.

• In Unit 9, the focus is on The Economic Development of Cities. In Week 1, Lesson 10, students read the text, “Chicago: An American Hub,” by Ena Kao and encounter the word vibrant in context. In Week 2, Lesson 1, the teacher explicitly teaches the word vibrancy and students encounter the word as they read the text, “The Great Migration and the Growth of Cities” by Monica Halpern. 

Attention is paid to vocabulary essential to understanding the text and to high-value academic words (e.g., words that might appear in other contexts/content areas). 

• In each unit, the Vocabulary Development tab within Unit Resources illustrates the vocabulary terms students will cover. Materials note that the Build Knowledge Word Bank terms “are explicitly introduced in Mini-Lesson 1, practiced each week in Texts from Close Reading “Build Vocabulary” activities, and used orally and in writing as students construct the Knowledge Blueprint, discuss the Essential Question and Enduring Understandings, and complete-building tasks.” The General Academic and Domain-Specific words “appear in this unit’s Texts for Close Reading selections. Highlighted words are explicitly taught during First Reading mini-lessons each week. Students encounter these words again as they read the weekly Vocabulary Practice Texts.” Because explicit instruction focuses on the highlighted words, many of the General Academic and Domain-Specific words listed are not addressed. 

• Each unit includes a Vocabulary Practice Text for each week. This short new text focuses on some of the vocabulary words from the anchor texts. Students read these texts independently and complete vocabulary tasks in their Build-Reflect-Write e-Notebooks.

• In Unit 3, Week 1, students engage in a mini-lesson where they read a section of “The US Constitution: Then and Now” (author not cited). At the beginning of this mini-lesson, the teacher uses the Define/Example/Protocol to introduce several vocabulary words, such as amend, factor, and petition. The teacher defines amend as “To amend something is to change it.” Then, the teacher provides an example, “As I learn new details, I may amend my ideas.” Finally, the teacher asks students to turn and talk to their neighbor to answer the question, “What is something you could amend?”

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the expectations of Indicator 1n.

Grade 5 materials provide a consistent progression of phonics and word recognition lessons over the course of the year. The materials include a Scope and Sequence of phonics and word recognition skills and Phonics and Word Recognition Quick Checks that assess a range of phonics and word recognition skills. The materials indicate that the Quick Checks may be given at the beginning, middle, and end of the year or as needed to inform core instruction or intervention. Tasks and questions in the materials progress in a logical sequence that leads to the application of skills. Materials provide explicit instruction in grade-level phonics and word recognition skills and provide regular practice decoding multisyllabic words using a repeating Reading Big Words Strategy. Routines for decoding and building automaticity of reading multisyllabic words occur in each unit. Teachers use assessments to drive instruction and to help students make progress toward mastery. While all necessary assessment components are present, navigation of the multitude of related but separate assessment pieces is not streamlined. Teachers monitor students’ writing for phonics skills and provide additional instruction and practice, as needed.

Materials contain explicit instruction of irregularly spelled words, syllabication patterns, and word recognition consistently over the course of the year. For example:

• Use combined knowledge of all letter-sound correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology (e.g., roots and affixes) to read accurately unfamiliar multisyllabic words in context and out of context.

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Lesson 2, the teacher guides students through reading the accountable text “Danger Offshore” to focus on reading words with open syllables. The teacher models the decoding skill, and students circle five words with open syllables. 

  • In Unit 8, Week 2, Phonics and Word Study, Lesson 1, the teacher introduces the Latin roots aud, vis, form, cede. The teacher reads each root and explains the meaning. The teacher writes eight words with the roots and asks students to copy the words, read them aloud, and underline each root. Students read 50 words, first to the teacher and then independently. Students underline each root word. The sheet contains an additional 50 words for practice. 

  • In Additional Resources, the materials provide an instructional routine for decoding multisyllabic words, the Reading Big Words Strategy. The steps in this strategy include the following: look for common prefixes and/or suffixes, look at the base word and use knowledge of syllable types and spelling patterns to read it, sound out and blend together all of the word parts, repeat the word, adjusting pronunciation to account for unaccented syllables, check the word in the sentence to see if it makes sense. 

All tasks and questions are sequenced to application of grade-level work (e.g., application of prefixes at the end of the unit/year; decoding multi-syllable words). For example: *Note: Look for the sequence of skills over the course of the year

• In the Scope and Sequence, the materials outline the following sequence of phonics and word study skills: long and short vowels, r-controlled vowels, syllable types, homographs, variant vowels, noun suffixes, Latin roots, adjective suffixes, inflectional endings, plurals, Greek and Latin science roots. For example:

  • In the Scope and Sequence, Units 1 and 2 review short, long, and r-controlled vowels as well as closed and open syllables. 

  • In the Scope and Sequence, Unit 8 introduces Latin roots, adjective suffixes; Unit 9 introduces inflectional endings and prefixes; and Unit 10 introduces Greek and Latin science roots and science prefixes. 

• In My Word Study Book 2, Unit 7, Week 2, students underline the prefixes re-, pre-, dis-, or mis-. Students pronounce each word with the teacher, practice reading the word independently, and read with a partner.

Multiple assessment opportunities are provided over the course of the year to inform instructional adjustments of phonics, word recognition, and word analysis to help students make progress toward mastery. For example:

• In Assessments, Phonics and Word Recognition Quick Checks, the materials include 116 Quick Check assessments. The materials contain a Quick Check to Intervention Resource Map that indicates which intervention lessons correspond to specific Quick Check skills. 

• In Phonics and Word Recognition Quick Checks, Quick Check 97, students choose the correct suffix to add to a base word in a sentence. Students choose from five suffixes and complete ten words.

• In Unit 2, Teacher’s Resource System, Intervention and Reteaching Resources, a guide indicates phonics and word recognition quick checks assessment results for controlled vowels, closed and open syllables, correlate to re-teaching phonics and word recognition Lessons 1-3.

• In Phonics and Word Study Resource Book, Unit 10 Cumulative Assessment, students complete a spelling and dictation assessment. Teachers use assessments to drive instruction and help students make progress toward mastery. Teachers monitor students’ writing for phonics skills and provide additional instruction and practice as needed.

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the expectations of Indicator 1o.

Grade 5 materials offer opportunities for students to apply grade-level phonics, word analysis, and word recognition skills. Materials include tasks and questions that provide opportunities for students to access different foundational skills within the anchor texts and supporting texts. The weekly lesson pattern includes independent practice using a word study text that contains words targeting the week’s phonics or word analysis skill. Phonics and word analysis lessons provide students an opportunity to apply the skill to the core text with teacher guidance. During recurring weekly phonics and word study lessons two and three, students engage in two readings of the week’s accountable text targeting newly-taught or reviewed skills.

Multiple and varied opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to learn, practice, and apply phonics, word analysis, and word recognition skills in connected tasks. For example:

• In Unit 3, Week 1, Lesson 5, students practice dividing words with vowel-r patterns into syllables. The teacher guides students through dividing five words with vowel-r patterns into syllables. During independent work time, students read “Susan B. Anthony” “to develop fluency and automaticity with vowel-r syllable words.” Materials indicate teachers continue focusing on vowel-r patterns “during both whole-and small-group-time, as needed.”

• In Unit 7, Week 3, Lesson 2, students independently read “Young Patriots” in the Word Study e-book to develop fluency and automaticity with words with silent letters kn, wr, gh, gn, and wh. The teacher reminds students to monitor their accuracy using what they know about word families and syllable types.

• In Unit 9, Week 3, Lesson 2, the teacher models using the Reading Big Words Strategy to pronounce words with prefixes: pro-, em-, en-, per-, im-. The teacher displays words: proceed, employed, enlisted, performance, immigrating and circles the prefix in each word, explaining how the prefix changes the meaning of the word. During guided practice, students work in pairs to search for words in a print or online dictionary and add them to a 5-column chart with categories: pro-, em-, en-, per-, im-. When finished students add words to the class list, the teacher guides students to read the words generated during the lesson.

Materials include tasks and questions that provide opportunities for students to access different foundational skills within the anchor text and supporting texts. For example:

• In Unit 1, Week 2, Lesson 2, students review long vowel syllable patterns using “A Short History of a Special Plant” on pages 12-16 of Cultivating Natural Resources. The teacher displays words: humor, elevate, provide, breeding, propose and models flexible use of syllable division, dividing words after the first vowel or consonant. The teacher circles the long vowel syllables in each word and reviews that words with the VCV syllable pattern often have long vowel sounds. Students chorally read paragraph 2 of “Clean Burning Coal Is America’s Future.” The teacher models analyzing the word sustainable using knowledge of long vowel patterns and context clues. Students apply understanding of long vowel syllable patterns while reading “A Tale of Three Sisters” in the Word Study e-book.

• In Unit 5, Week 3, Lesson 2, after a lesson on homophones, students read the first paragraph of the core text, “The Making of the Industrial Age”, which contains the words way, affected, their would, and which. Students read the text chorally, and the teacher pauses to model decoding and determining the meaning of the word affected. Students read the word study text “Samuel Morse: Inventor and Artist”, independently to gain fluency and automaticity with homophones

• In Unit 10, Week 2, Lesson 5, the teacher models dividing VCV words. Students practice reading six words and breaking them “into syllables or manageable chunks.” During independent work time students read, “A Tale of Three Sisters”, to “develop fluency and automaticity with long vowel syllable pattern words.”

The materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the expectations of Indicator 1p.

Grade 5 materials include explicit instruction, modeling, and student practice in all areas of fluency. The materials include explicit instructional routines for rate, accuracy, and expression, including teacher modeling and student practice. Students engage in multiple readings of the core text and accountable texts each week. The materials support using context and decoding strategies to confirm understanding and word meaning. The materials indicate how to use quick checks to determine fluency. A resource map suggests Instructional adjustments to help students make progress toward mastery of fluency. The resource map references specific lessons to focus on reading with understanding, intonation, and expression. 

Multiple opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to demonstrate sufficient accuracy and fluency in oral and silent reading. For example:

• Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, Phonics and Word Study, Lesson 2, the teacher guides students through a whisper read of the accountable text “Intergalactic Space Force.” Students read the text chorally. The teacher asks students comprehension questions about the text. Students respond and underline words and phrases in the text to support their answers.

  • In Unit 6, Week 1, Phonics and Word Study, Lesson 2, the teacher guides students through a whisper read of the accountable text “The Crow and the Pitcher.” Next, students read the text chorally. The teacher asks students comprehension questions about the text. Students respond and underline words and phrases in the text to support their answers. 

Materials support reading of prose and poetry with attention to rate, accuracy, and expression, as well as direction for students to apply reading skills when productive struggle is necessary. For example: 

• Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.

  • In Unit 1, Additional Resources, Instructional Routines and Strategies, the materials provide instructional routines in areas of fluency: Inflection/Intonation - Pitch, Volume, Stress; Speed/Pacing - Slow, Varied, Fast; Dramatic Expression - Characterization/Feelings, Anticipation/Mood; Phrasing - Units of Meaning in Complex Sentences, Dependent Clauses; Confirm or Correct Word Recognition and Understanding; Short Pauses; Full Stops; High-Frequency Word Phrases. Each routine includes teacher modeling along with explicit instruction and student practice. 

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, Lesson 12, students read “A Girl’s Garden.” The teacher models identifying the features and structures of poems. In partners, students read aloud lines 25-44 of the poem, annotating the features and structures of poetry they encounter. Students reread the poem with a partner to build fluency or listen to the audio recording during independent time.

  • In Reader’s Theater Handbook, Unit 2, Lesson 5, students perform the script, and the teacher notes students’ “fluency and phrasing, intonation, pacing, accuracy, and expression.”

Materials support students’ fluency development of reading skills (e.g., self-correction of word recognition and/or for understanding, focus on rereading) over the course of the year (to get to the end of the grade-level band). For example:

• Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Lesson 2, during independent work time, students read with a focus of fluency and automaticity, monitoring “to make sure they read words correctly, using what they know about word families and syllable types.”

  • In Unit 5, Week 2, Lesson 2, the teacher models decoding and context clues to determine the pronunciation and meaning of the word invention in a second reading of the core text. The teacher models identifying the prefix in- and using it to decode the word. The teacher models using context to determine the meaning of the word. 

  • In Instructional Routines, Fluency Routines, the teacher uses a routine to guide students to read words correctly and make “sure that the words they read make sense in context.” The routine includes the teacher modeling how to confirm the meaning of a word, students choral-reading the same section, and students rereading the text while paying “attention to word parts.”

Assessment materials provide teachers and students with information of students’ current fluency skills and provide teachers with instructional adjustments to help students make progress toward mastery of fluency. For example:

• In Planning Your Yearly Assessments, Grade 5, teachers are directed to administer Fluency Quick Checks “at the beginning of the year to gauge baseline Fluency and to inform your instructional decisions. These should be administered 3 times a year, at the beginning, middle, and end, to monitor progress and employ next steps for instruction. There are next steps at the end of the Fluency Quick Checks.”

• In Assessments, Fluency Quick Checks, the materials include ten Grade 5 assessment passages that can be used to assess oral reading accuracy, reading rate, and fluency (phrasing, intonation, and expression). The passages are identified by Lexile, and students read passages at their instructional reading level. For example:

  • In Fluency Quick Check #46, A Big Scoop, students complete a fluency quick check with the teacher on how many words read per line. Students are also required to tell how they know. To determine fluency mastery, students are assessed on oral reading accuracy, reading rate (words per minute), and comprehension.

  • In Fluency Quick Check #47, Cutting Down on Trash, students complete a fluency quick check with the teacher on how many words read per line. To determine fluency mastery, students are assessed on oral reading accuracy, reading rate (words per minute), and comprehension.

• In Assessments, Fluency, the Fluency Quick Check Resource Map provides a map of fluency intervention lessons that match each fluency skill and quick check. The directions for assessment outline how to assess each skill and determine whether a student needs intervention lessons. 

• In Assessments, Fluency Quick Checks, the Additional Teacher Resources section contains alternate fluency assessments, including fluency rubrics, fluency self-assessments, reader’s theater self-assessments, performance assessments, and oral presentation assessments.