1st Grade - Gateway 2

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 partially meet the criteria of Indicator 2a.

In both the Shared Reading and ELA modules, some units are organized around topics to build knowledge, while others are organized around a theme; however, some units are not cohesively organized to build knowledge or do not build knowledge on the intended topics. In ELA, units often build knowledge around text structures. Text sets within each unit typically include three texts, with some units including one or two texts. The limited volume of texts and varying number of lessons for each text could impede students’ ability to build knowledge.

Some texts are connected by a grade-level appropriate topic. Some texts build knowledge and the ability to read and comprehend complex texts across a school year. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 3, Unit 2, students read texts about famous Americans including Long, Tall Lincoln by Jennifer Dussling, Harriet Tubman: Freedom Fighter by Nadia L. Hohn, and Martin Luther King Jr.: A Peaceful Leader by Sarah Albee.

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 4, Unit 1, students read several mysteries to build their understanding of “story elements and mystery genre characteristics.” Texts include Nate the Great and the Fishy Prize by Majorie Weinman Sharmat and Young Cam Jansen and the Library Mystery by David A. Adler. 

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Unit 3, students listen to four books that are all related to the fall season. Some of these texts include How do Apples Grow? by Betsy Maestro, Why do Leaves Change Color? by Betsy Maestro, and In November by Cynthia Ryalnt. 

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 3, Unit 2, students listen to a variety of texts about United States symbols, such as President’s Day by Anne Rockwell and The Washington Monument by Kristen L. Neson. 

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Unit 1, students listen to books that teach them about the world around them, such as From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons and Newton and Me by Lynne Mayer. 

Some texts are connected by a theme. Examples including, but are not limited to the following:

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 1, Unit 2, students read several texts that all have humorous animal characters. According to the publisher, the texts teach students how authors use animal characters to create humor. Examples include Biscuit by Alyssa Satin Caupcilli and The Fat Cat Sat on the Mat by Nurit Karlin. 

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 2, Unit 1, students read books about imaginary friends, such as Danny and the Dinosaur Go to Camp by Syd Hoff and Morris the Moose by Bernard Wiseman. 

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 4, Unit 2, students read texts that deal with the theme “Coping with Challenges.” Students listen to The Chalk Box Kid by Clyde Robert Bulla and The Paint Brush Kid by Clyde Robert Bulla.

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Unit 2, students listen to texts about the theme of learning and growing. Texts in this unit include Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst and The Art Lesson by Tomie dePaola. 

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Unit 2, students read books about making good decisions. Students read stories such as When I Grow Up by Al Yankovic and Max’s Words by Kate Banks.  

Some texts are not connected to a grade-appropriate cohesive topic or a theme. Examples include, but are not limited, to:

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Unit 1, students learn how to “write complete sentences and the elements of descriptive and opinion sentences.” While this unit focuses on students’ sentence-writing skills, the materials miss opportunities to use knowledge-building text sets to support students’ writing development.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 partially meet the criteria of Indicator 2b.

Students have many opportunities to analyze key ideas and details in both non-fiction and literary texts; however, there are minimal opportunities for students to analyze craft and structure throughout the year. There are a few instances where the teacher provides explicit instruction about the craft and structure, but students often do not have the opportunity to analyze craft and structure on their own through questions and tasks. Students have minimal opportunities to explain who is telling the story.

For most texts, students analyze key ideas and details (according to grade-level standards). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lessons 11–15, students read and listen to “What is That?” said the Cat by Grace Maccarone. After three days of reading the text, students respond to questions such as, “Who are the characters in the story? What is the setting of the story? The setting is where the story happens.” and “What happens first in the story? In the middle? At the end?” Students also have the opportunity to draw a picture of their two favorite characters and explain why the characters are their favorite.

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 6–15, students read and listen to Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff. After several days of reading the text, students engage in a discussion. The teacher states, “Now that we have finished the whole book let’s practice retelling the events. We’ll start with the characters and the setting. Next it’s helpful to think about what happens in the beginning, what happens in the middle, and what happens in the end.” The teacher updates the Danny the Dinosaur retelling chart. Then students complete a written response retelling the story. Materials provide a sentence frame for student use.

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lessons 31–35, students read and listen to Long, Tall Lincoln by Jennifer Dussling. After the first day, students answer several questions about key details from the text such as, “How do we know that Lincoln was hard working? How do we know that Lincoln was funny? How do we know that Lincoln was smart? What new facts did we learn about Abraham Lincoln today?”

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 6–15, students read and listen to Nate the Great Saves the King of Sweden by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat. After several days of reading the text, the teacher explains, “When we are reading information, we can look for the main idea. That is the most important information that the author is giving us. I think that the main idea here is to tell about a smorgasbord.” Then during the writing assignment, students use the following sentence frame, “The main idea is that _________.”, to respond to the question, “What is the main idea that the author wanted us to know about food in Sweden?” Throughout several lessons of this text, the teacher models thinking about the main idea and students respond to questions about the main idea.

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 36–37, students listen to Max’s Words by Kate Banks. The teacher creates an anchor chart story map. Students respond to questions such as, “Where does this story take place?” and name the three main characters. Questions during the interactive read aloud or the discussion do not support “[describing] characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.”

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lessons 26–27, students listen to Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. During the discussion, students retell the story and respond to questions such as, “What are the important events that have happened so far? What happened first?” However, questions during the interactive read aloud do not support students “[retelling] stories, including key details, and [demonstrating] understanding of their central message or lesson.”

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 13–14, students listen to From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons. During the read aloud, students respond to questions such as, “Can the pollen go from here to here on the very same flower? What are three ways that pollen can travel?” Then during the discussion, students review the process of pollination.

For most texts, students rarely analyze craft and structure (according to grade-level standards). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 6–15, students read and listen to Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff. Prior to reading the text, the teacher says, “Fantasies are stories where something could not really happen but we can use our imagination to pretend things could happen.” Then after reading the text, students answer questions such as, “Who is the imaginary character in this book? How do you know that the horse is imaginary?"

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lessons 31–35, students read and listen to Long, Tall Lincoln by Jennifer Dussling and Chin Ko. The teacher points out the timeline and explains what it does, the captions under the photographs, and the headings. This lesson does not provide any additional instruction on text features and does not give students the opportunity to distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations.

• In the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 6–15, students read Nate the Great Saves the King of Sweden by Marjorie Weinmen Sharmat. During the choral read, the teacher states, “I know that Nate the Great is realistic fiction. That means that nothing can happen that is not possible. So, the content has to show animals the way they are. So even though the talents of the animal are not very impressive, I can conclude that the author chose them because they are real characteristics of animals.” Students do not answer questions related to this think-aloud or “[e]xplain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types.”

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 19–20, while listening to Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and his Orchestra by Andrea Davis, the teacher pauses to model thinking about some of the phrases such as “cutting a rug.” Then during the Respond Together section, students co-construct a response about Duke Ellington’s nicknames. Students have to explain why he was called the “King of the Keys” and the “Piano Prince.”

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lesson 15, the teacher reads aloud My Brother Charlie by Holly Robinson Peete and Ryan Elizabeth Peete. During the read aloud, the teacher asks, “Who is telling the story in this book?” Then during the discussion, the teacher asks, “Why do you think the authors decide to tell the story from Callie’s point of view?”

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 partially meet the criteria of Indicator 2d.

The culminating tasks do not require students to demonstrate mastery of several different standards, comprehension, or knowledge of topics. The culminating tasks do not consistently require students to use the module texts, and instead, the focus of all four culminating tasks is writing skills.  In Module 1, students demonstrate understanding of texts about fall, while simultaneously learning how to research. In Module 2, students share their opinion about their favorite Syd Hoff book. Then in Module 3, students reflect on themselves as a learner and in Module 4, students write about their favorite book from the entire year. 

Culminating tasks are evident, but are not varied across the year and are sometimes multifaceted, requiring students to demonstrate mastery of several different standards (reading, writing, speaking, listening) at the appropriate grade level, and comprehension and knowledge of a topic or topics through integrated skills (reading, writing, speaking, listening). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lessons 42–45, students complete a research report for the culminating task. Students plan and write a collaborative research report about changes in fall using the four module texts about fall. This culminating task assesses students on their knowledge of the changes that occur in fall and the informative writing structure. Students also have opportunities to share daily, though the focus of this culminating task is writing and research.

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 41–45, during the culminating task, students spend five days writing about the six Syd Hoff books they read and listened to in Shared Reading. In their writing, students need to share their opinion about which text they think is best and convince someone why they think it is best. Students must demonstrate knowledge of the opinion writing genre which is taught throughout this module, the ability to use the writing process, and comprehension of a text. While the task states that it measures writing standards, the lessons include daily partner shares and the rubric includes support from the text and story elements. 

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lessons 41–45, during this five-day culminating task, students plan, write and revise a narrative piece about their growth as a reader and writer. Throughout the module, students read several texts that serve as examples of personal narratives as the characters overcome challenges. Then, students write about how they grew as a reader and writer throughout the year. Students do not need to demonstrate their knowledge of texts read or listened to during this task. This culminating task measures writing standards.

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, students spend five days on the culminating task. Students write an opinion piece about their favorite book from the entire year and create a commercial to persuade others that it is the best book of the year. Students include text evidence to persuade their readers on why their favorite book should be Book of the Year. This is not the first book review or opinion piece students have completed during the year, which should prepare them for the task. The culminating task addresses writing standards and students demonstrate their knowledge of one text.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 partially meet the criteria of Indicator 2f.

Students have some opportunities throughout the year to practice a variety of research skills. Students complete one research project about fall, one how-to book about making popcorn, and an observation report. Because materials provide one opportunity for each type of research project, students have limited opportunities to develop the skills and knowledge needed to demonstrate mastery of the research standards. Research opportunities occur in Modules 1 and 4 of the ELA Lesson Plans. Students do not conduct research to answer a question; rather, the research task focuses on ensuring students can identify, evaluate, and apply traits of informative writing. In addition, students do not use multiple texts and sources to write the how-to book.

Some research projects are sequenced across a school year to include a progression of research skills that build to mastery of the grade-level standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lessons 42–45, the teacher reads “Descriptive Text 1” (author not cited) and models how to find facts and details. The teacher and students co-construct a Parts of Descriptions chart. The teacher rereads the text November by Cynthia Rylant and works with students to create a list of facts from the text. The teacher models selecting three of the most important facts from their list to include in their descriptive writing about the month of November. The teacher models turning the facts into complete sentences. During the next lesson, the teacher models using the Informative Checklist to check their writing for all of the required elements of descriptive writing. In the next lesson, the teacher models using the Informative Graphic Organizer and the four informational texts from Unit 3 to plan and write a research report about what happens in the fall.

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 16–18, after listening to The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin by Gene Barretta, students draw a picture that shows three things that Ben Franklin invented. Students then label the items that they drew.

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 3–10, after using the Informative Checklist and several Descriptive Texts to support students with understanding the importance of naming all of the steps in a how-to informational piece, the teacher makes popcorn for the class. Students use a storyboard to take notes on the steps to make popcorn. Over the course of the next set of lessons, the teacher models how to write a how-to book about making popcorn, based on Tomie dePaola’s The Popcorn Book. The teacher draws an illustration to help the reader understand the steps and writes sentences to explain the step. The teacher models using transition words, such as first, second, and next while writing a page for each step in the how-to book.

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 18–20, the teacher displays the Informative Checklist and goes through each section, explaining its connection to the force and observation report they plan to write. The teacher takes notes on chart paper and models writing a topic sentence that explains the procedure they will take. The next day, the teacher models how to conduct their observation and use the text Newton and Me by Lynne Mayer to describe what they see when observing force and motion. The teacher uses a three-column chart to take notes during the observation. During the next lesson, the teacher models how to use their notes to complete the Facts section of the Informative Checklist. Afterwards, the teacher models how to write a conclusion, which is the final section of the Informative Checklist.

Materials support teachers in employing projects that develop students’ knowledge on a topic. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lessons 42–45, students complete a fall research report. Teacher materials include a rubric, a Parts of Description anchor chart, and an informative graphic organizer.

• In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 3–10, students complete a how-to project. Teacher materials include an informative checklist and a storyboard for up to eight steps about how to make popcorn.

Materials include some shared research projects to help develop students’ research skills. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of “how-to” books on a given topic and use them to write a sequence of instructions). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lessons 42–45, during the culminating task, students use the four books that they listened to in order to collect information about the fall. In the first lesson, as a class, students create a list of facts that they learned about from the book In November by Cynthia Rylant. Then students work with a partner to write three facts from the list in sentences. Students repeat this process with all four books from the unit and then respond to the following prompt: “Describe some of the changes that happen in the fall. Research facts from our fall books to help you write your description.”

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 3–10, students complete one how-to research project. Students use the book The Popcorn Book by Tomie dePaola as an exemplar and observe making popcorn to write an updated version explaining how to make popcorn.

  • In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 18–20, students write a force and motion observation report. Students begin by working with a partner to decide which object they will push and the procedure they will follow. Students create a Force and Motion Observational Report, based on research collected through observations and information from the text Newton and Me by Lynne Mayer.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 partially meet the criteria of Indicator 2g.

Instruction throughout the materials focuses on content that falls within grade-level aligned standards; however, not all grade-level standards are found throughout the program. Most writing standards encompass explicit instruction, tasks, and assessed skills; however, speaking and listening opportunities are limited. Reading standards are addressed through instruction and questions and tasks but are not always addressed through assessments. Some standards are explicitly taught, while others have questions and tasks but no explicit instruction. Each lesson in Shared Reading and ELA has multiple standards tagged, making it difficult for schools and teachers to know what the priority or focus standard might be and leaving it up to educators to determine which standard is aligned to which instruction, question, task, and assessment item. Some lessons have standards tagged, but the instruction and question and tasks do not align to the given standard(s). In addition, outside of the writing rubrics that accompany the culminating tasks in ELA and smaller writing assignments in Shared Reading, there is no mechanism for teachers to determine whether a student has mastered a standard. However, the materials do include a standards coverage document in the Appendix of the Teacher Manual, which allows the teacher to see how standards repeat across lessons, units, and modules.

Over the course of each unit, some instruction is aligned to grade-level standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• In the Appendix of the Bookworms K-1 Teacher Manual, the materials provide the standards by lesson for both the Shared Reading and ELA lessons, but it is unclear which standards listed are the priority and to which part of the instruction they align.

• Throughout Shared Reading and ELA, students receive explicit instruction that aligns to RL.1.3. in both Module 1 and Module 4. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lesson 34, while reading aloud The Fat Cat Sat on the Mat by Nurit Karlin, the teacher says, “I can see more about the cat character now. From the way he talks, I think he thinks he is better than other characters...” In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lesson 1, students listen to Raven: A Trickster Tale from the Pacific Northwestby Gerald McDermott and the teacher reminds students that the “main character solves problems in trickster tales by outsmarting others in a clever and funny way.” 

• Students receive some explicit instruction aligned to RI.1.3 in Module 3 of Shared Reading. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lesson 41, after reading aloud Martin Luther King Jr.: A Peaceful Leader, by Sarah Albee, the teacher thinks about the connection of the previous biographies and states that a biography often starts with the person being born and what happens in their life in order. There is no direct instruction of the standard in ELA. 

• Shared Reading Lesson Plans do not provide instruction aligned to RL.1.6, and ELA materials provide minimal instruction aligned to the standard. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 1–2, while reading aloud The Popcorn Book by Tomie dePaola, the teacher thinks aloud about the information that the reader can learn from the illustrations. There are some additional lessons where the standard is tagged; however, there is no direct instruction in the lesson. 

• Shared Reading and ELA Lesson Plans  minimally address RI.1.6. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lesson 34, while reading aloud Long, Tall Lincoln by Jennifer Dussling, the teacher pauses at the timeline and explains that “when authors write information books, they sometimes add additional sections or appendices to explain more about the topic at the end of the book.” The teacher then goes on to explain the timeline. 

• Throughout ELA, students learn about opinion writing through teacher modeling, which aligns to W.1.1. For example in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 8–10, students write a book review. Prior to doing it independently, the teacher models writing a book review in Lesson 1 using A Trickster Tale from the Pacific Northwest by Gerald McDermott. 

• Throughout ELA, the teacher models various aspects of informative writing, which aligns to W.1.2. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 21–25, the teacher uses a completed graphic organizer to write a description. While doing so, the teacher thinks aloud about what he/she is doing and a script is provided. 

• Beginning in Module 2, students receive explicit instruction on editing and revising, which aligns to W.1.5. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lessons 21–25, the teacher models using the informative checklist to evaluate his/her own writing. Then the teacher introduces the editing checklist and explains that it is like the sentence checklist. The teacher then models how to use it. 

• Materials provide explicit instruction aligned to W.1.7 in both Module 1 and Module 4 of ELA. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 18–20, students complete a Force and Motion Observation Report. The teacher begins by modeling using the Informative Checklist to plan an observation report about what happens when someone pushes an object in motion. The teacher also models and guides students in researching information about describing observations and using the research notes to write a fact section of the report. 

• Shared Reading and ELA Lesson Plans lack evidence of explicit instruction aligned to SL.1.4 or SL.1.5.

Over the course of each unit, some questions and tasks are aligned to grade-level standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Students have opportunities to answer questions and tasks aligned to RL.1.3 in all four modules of Shared Reading and throughout ELA. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lessons 1–5, students read and listen to Little Bear’s Friend by Else Holmelund Minarik. On each day, students add to an anchor chart where they write down or add to the characters, setting, and important events. In ELA, Module 2, after listening to Max’s Words by Kate Banks, the teacher and students create and add to an anchor chart of events in the story. They also add information about the characters. 

• Students do not have opportunities in Shared Reading to answer questions or complete tasks aligned to RI.1.3 and have minimal opportunities to answer questions aligned to the standard  in ELA. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lessons 13–14, students draw a picture that shows how pollen is scattered and then another picture that shows how seeds are scattered. Students then write a sentence that explains each picture. 

• Students have some opportunities in ELA to answer questions aligned to RL.1.6. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lesson 36, the teacher reads aloud The Rainbow Tulip by Pat Mora. During the read-aloud, the teacher asks students who is telling the story and how do they know. 

• Students have limited opportunities in ELA and Shared Reading to answer questions or complete tasks aligned to RI.1.6. In the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lesson 1, while listening to The Popcorn Book by Tomie de Paola, the teacher explains that the text is a story within a story. The teacher asks students if they think Columbus knew that it was corn and how they know that Tony is not very interested in what Tiny is reading. The teacher directs students to the illustrations to answer the questions. 

• In ELA and Shared Reading Lesson Plans, students have opportunities to write opinion pieces about the texts they read and listen to, which aligns to W.1.1. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 4, Lesson 25, students think about the three mystery texts they read and write which one is their favorite. Students have to include examples from the book’s setting, characters, or events to explain why it is their favorite. 

• Beginning in Module 2 of ELA, students have opportunities to edit and revise their writing, which aligns to W.1.5. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 3, Lessons 16–20, students use their narrative checklist and editing checklist to edit and revise their narrative piece. 

• Students have some opportunities in ELA to complete shared research projects, which aligns to W.1.7. For example, in the ELA Lesson Plans, Module 1, Lesson 42, students work with a partner to choose three facts about November from a class list that was researched and compiled with the teacher during modeling and then they write sentences about the facts. 

• Shared Reading and ELA Materials lack opportunities for students to answer questions or complete tasks aligned to SL.1.4 or SL.1.5. 

Over the course of each unit, some assessment questions are aligned to grade-level standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• On the fifth day of Shared Reading, students write about the text and the task often aligns to RL.1.3. Materials include a written response rubric, which measures accuracy and text evidence, to score the writing. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lesson 25, after reading and listening to the first half of  Oliver by Syd Hoff, students write about the events so far and the teacher uses the provided rubric to score the writing. ELA materials lack assessment opportunities aligned to RL.1.3. 

• Shared Reading and ELA Lesson Plans lack assessment opportunities aligned to RI.1.3, RL.1.6, and RI.1.6.

• ELA Lesson Plans provide assessment opportunities aligned to W.1.1 through use of the Opinion Writing Rubric. 

• The Text Connection section in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans  includes six lessons that contain assessment opportunities aligned to W.1.2. For example, in the Shared Reading Lesson Plans, Module 2, Lesson 5, students draw a picture of something funny the dinosaur did and then write about it after listening to Danny and the Dinosaur go to Camp by Syd Off. Each writing piece in ELA that is an informative writing piece is also assessed using the Informative Writing Rubric. 

• The teacher uses the editing and revising rubric to assess editing and revising skills, which aligns to W.1.5, beginning in Module 1 of ELA; however, the rubric measures capitalization, punctuation, and spelling, not revision skills.

• Each Shared Research task includes a rubric that is used to assess the individual student work. 

• Materials lack evidence of assessment opportunities for SL.1.4 and SL.1.5; however, there is a speaking and listening rubric that is used to measure all speaking and listening standards holistically.  

By the end of the academic year, some standards are repeatedly addressed within and across units to ensure students master the full intent of the standard. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Shared Reading and ELA Lesson Plans address RL.1.3 throughout all four modules, though materials focus more heavily on the standard in the beginning of the year through direct instruction and questions and tasks. By the end of the year, students create anchor charts with the teacher that require them to demonstrate understanding of characters, setting, and events in the text.

• The teacher briefly models instruction on RI.1.3  in Module 3 of Shared Reading. Students do not have an opportunity to practice the skill and materials do not provide assessment opportunities aligned to this standard. RI.1.3 sparingly appears in three of the ELA Modules.  

• ELA Lesson Plans minimally address RL.1.6 in ELA; this standard appears in Module 3 and 4. Materials include six total lessons that address this standard; however, two of the lessons do not include instruction, questions, or tasks that address this standard. 

• R!.1.6 appears in two of the lessons in the ELA program: Modules 3 and 4. 

• W.1.2 appears throughout all four modules in ELA and throughout Shared Reading. 

• Materials introduce W.1.5 in Module 2 of ELA. The teacher models the skill in Module 2 and Module 3. During each writing assignment in Module 4, students have the opportunity to edit and revise their writing using a checklist. In Module 3, the teacher also explicitly teaches students how to edit and revise their writing with a partner.

• Materials address W.1.7 is in both Module 1 and Module 4 of ELA. 

• Shared Reading and ELA materials lack evidence of opportunities to address SL.1.4 and SL.1.5. 

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 partially meet the criteria of Indicator 2h.

The Program Guide includes a suggested implementation schedule, which includes 2 hours and 15 minutes of instruction daily. In order to complete the lessons, one must spend 45 minutes per instructional block, Shared Reading, ELA, and Differentiated Instruction, each day. Materials include 180 lessons in ELA and 180 lessons in Shared Reading. While this could conceivably be completed in a school year, there is no time allotted for interruptions to the school year or reteaching. Core learning takes place during the Shared Reading and ELA blocks, for a total of 90 minutes a day, but some tasks from those blocks must be finished during the Differentiated Instruction block. The materials also provide flexible schedule documentation, though it is unclear whether students would master all standards if lessons were omitted. 

Suggested implementation schedules and alternative implementation schedules align to core learning and objectives. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The program allots 45 minutes for Shared Reading, 45 minutes for ELA, and 45 minutes for Differentiated Instruction. The Bookworms K–1 Teacher Manual states that the blocks have to be 45 minutes each in order to get the entire lesson in.

• Materials provide a sample schedule for a 9–3 school day. The schedule includes time for Shared Reading, ELA, and Differentiated Instruction as well as math, a daily special, and either social studies or science.

• In the Bookworms K-1 Teacher Manual, Planning for Success, the materials provide various flexible schedules for schools with fewer days or planned interruptions. These schedules can reduce the curriculum by either 10 or 20 days, though the impact on students’ mastery of the standards is not addressed.

Suggested implementation schedules cannot be reasonably completed in the time allotted. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The Shared Reading and ELA instructional blocks include 180 days of lessons. This cannot be reasonably completed in a school year, as the implementation schedule does not factor in interruptions to instruction, such as early release days, special events, field trips, testing, and celebrations, or time for reteaching and reassessing learning.  

• The Bookworms K–1 Teacher Manual states, “Each of the 3 blocks of time that we planned for in Bookworms must be 45 minutes long. It will not be possible for teachers to shorten any of them. Leaders who schedule the day without keeping those minutes protected are likely to frustrate teachers working on something very new and scuttle the potential effects of the design on student achievement.”

• The Shared Reading Lesson Plans include seven components and the ELA Lesson Plans include nine components; however, materials do not provide a recommended time frame for each part of the lesson to help the teacher stay within the 45 minute lesson structure.

Optional materials and tasks do not distract from core learning. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• No evidence of optional materials found. 

Optional materials and tasks are meaningful and enhance core instruction. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• No evidence of optional materials found.