5th Grade - Gateway 1
Note on review tool versions
See the series overview page to confirm the review tool version used to create this report.
- Our current review tool version is 2.0. Learn more
- Reports conducted using earlier review tools (v1.0 and v1.5) contain valuable insights but may not fully align with our current instructional priorities. Read our guide to using earlier reports and review tools
Loading navigation...
Focus & Coherence
| Score | |
|---|---|
Gateway 1 - Partially Meets Expectations | 64% |
Criterion 1.1: Focus | 2 / 2 |
Criterion 1.2: Coherence | 4 / 4 |
Criterion 1.3: Coherence | 3 / 8 |
The instructional materials reviewed for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 partially meet the expectations for focus and coherence in Gateway 1. The instructional materials do not assess topics before the grade level in which the topic should be introduced, and the materials do spend at least 65% of instructional time on the major work of the grade. The instructional materials do not meet the expectations for being coherent and consistent with the Standards as they partially have: supporting content that enhances focus and coherence by engaging students in the major work of the grade; consistency with the progressions in the Standards; and coherence through connections at a single grade.
Criterion 1.1: Focus
The instructional materials reviewed for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 meet the expectations for not assessing topics before the grade level in which the topic should be introduced.
Indicator 1a
The instructional materials reviewed for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 meet the expectations for assessing grade-level content. Most of the assessments include material that is appropriate for Grade 5, although there is some content from future grades assessed. In the instances where future content is assessed, the items could be easily omitted or modified by a teacher without impacting the structure and grade-level content of the overall assessment.
For this indicator, all summative assessments were reviewed across the three books included in the suite. In addition, the suite contains two PARCC practice assessments. These assessments were reviewed and also found to meet the expectation for assessing grade-level content. Probability, statistical distributions, similarity, transformations, and congruence do not appear in any of the assessments.
Common Core Coach contains a Domain Assessment for each of the five domains and one end-of-year summative assessment. All of these assessments are found in online in the Digital Assessments blade. Additionally, print-only Performance Task assessments can be accessed online in the Print-Only Assessments blade.
Examples of grade-level assessment items in Common Core Coach include:
- Domain 2 Assessment for Number and Operations in Base Ten, Question 6: “Joaquin has a special mountain bike that weighs only 16.25 pounds. Rhonda says her bike weighs 2.5 times as much as Joaquin’s bike. How much does Rhonda’s bike weigh?” (5.NBT.7)
- Domain 4 Assessment for Measurement and Data, Question 22: “Suri is going on a plane to visit relatives. She knows the airline will charge a fee if her suitcase weighs more than 50 lbs, so she has weighed everything she wants to take. The empty suitcase weighs 12 lb, her clothes and shoes weigh 31 lb 9 oz, her papers weigh 14 oz, and her book weighs 2 lb 12 oz. Will Suri be charged a fee? Show your work.” (5.MD.1)
Common Core Support Coach includes two practice tests, which may be used as summative assessments. These can be accessed online in the Print-Only Assessments blade.
Examples of grade-level assessment items in Common Core Support Coach include:
- Practice Test 1, Question 31: “Johan bought 1.807 pounds of almonds. Natalia bought 1.897 pounds of almonds. Which expression could be used to show who bought more almonds?” (5.NBT.3b)
- Practice Test 2, Question 44: “Samuel played football for 90 minutes on Friday and 2 hours on Saturday. How many more minutes did Samuel spend playing football on Saturday than on Friday?” (5.MD.1)
Common Core Performance Coach contains a summative Review and Performance Task assessment for each of the five domains. These assessments can be accessed online in the Print-Only Assessments blade.
Examples of grade-level assessment items in Common Core Performance Coach include:
- Domain 3 Review and Performance Task assessment for Number and Operations - Fractions, Question 5: “Drew hiked two trails at a state park. Rocky Hill Trail is 7/8 mile long. Babbling Brook Trail is 4/5 mile long. How much farther did Drew hike on the Rocky Hill Trail than on the Babbling Brook Trail? Write an equation to represent the situation using a common denominator. Drew hiked _____ farther on the Rocky Hill Trail.” (5.NF.1)
- Domain 5 Review and Performance Task assessment for Geometry, Question 6: “Brian says the ordered pair for point T is (4, 3), so it is 4 units from the x-axis and 3 units from the y-axis. Is he correct? Explain.” (5.G.1)
In the instances where future content is assessed, the items could be easily omitted or modified without impacting the structure and grade-level content of the overall assessment. The above grade-level items on assessments include several that require students to use Order of Operations (6.EE.2c). These assessment items include:
- Common Core Coach Operations and Algebraic Thinking Domain Assessment, Question 3: “What is the value of $$21+4\times8-2$$?”
- Common Core Coach Summative Assessment, Question 46: “Which expression has a value of 17?” (Sample answers include: “$$3+(5\times2)-8\div2+5$$” and “$$3+[(5\times2-8)\div2]+5$$”)
- Common Core Performance Coach Domain 1 Review and Performance Task Assessment, Question 4: “Jarrod wrote two numerical expressions: $$100–2\times5$$ and $$(100–5)\times2$$. His expressions use the same numbers and operations. Explain how these expressions are different.”
- Common Core Performance Coach Doman 1 Review and Performance Task Assessment, Question 10: “Which expression shows multiplication as the last operation to be performed? Circle all that apply.” (Sample answers include: “$$(3\times9+18\div6-4)\times3$$” and “$$9\times[(11-5)2=4]$$”)
Criterion 1.2: Coherence
Students and teachers using the materials as designed devote the large majority of class time in each grade K-8 to the major work of the grade.
The instructional materials reviewed for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 meet the expectations for students and teachers using the materials as designed devoting the large majority of class time to the major work of the grade.
Indicator 1b
Instructional material spends the majority of class time on the major cluster of each grade.
The instructional materials reviewed for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 meet expectations for spending a majority of instructional time on major work of the grade. Overall, approximately 71 percent of instructional time is spent on major work.
Common Core Coach Suite contains three components: Common Core Coach, Common Core Support Coach, and Common Core Performance Coach. “The Coach products are designed to provide a flexible instructional pathway that fits your classroom needs.” As such, the Implementation and Pacing Guide provides suggested activities and minutes for each day but leaves the decision to the teacher as to which students work with Common Core Support Coach and Common Core Performance Coach on any given day.
Calculations were based on the Implementation and Pacing Guide provided for the Common Core Coach Suite. Since all students work with the Common Core Coach but do not necessarily work with Common Core Support Coach and Common Core Performance Coach, the evaluation of major work, and supporting work connected to major work, in Common Core Coach is most representative of the instructional materials.
- Common Core Coach contains approximately 20 of 28 lessons focused on major work or supporting work connected to the major work of the grade (71 percent).
- Lessons are allocated to last between three and six days, and are broken into 20-30 minutes of core instruction using Common Core Coach and 10-20 minutes of differentiation through Common Core Support Coach and Common Core Performance Coach. According to the Implementation and Pacing Guide, students could spend the following minutes on major work of the grade or work that supports the major work of the grade:
- Common Core Coach approximately 2450 minutes out of 3380, or approximately 72 percent of the time is spent on major work or work that supports major work.
- Common Core Support Coach approximately 2200 minutes out of 2960, or approximately 75 percent of the time is spent on major work or work that supports major work.
- Common Core Performance Coach approximately 2000 minutes out of 2590, or approximately 77 percent of the time is spent on major work or work that supports major work.
The amount of lessons focused on major work of the grade or work that supports the major work of the grade is the most appropriate calculation for these materials for two reasons. One, it cannot be determined how much time or how many lessons any student would spend in Common Core Support Coach and Common Core Performance Coach. Second, the time provided by the publisher does not align to the perceived time of the reviewers (see 1d report for more information).
It is important to note that Common Core Support Coach does not contain lessons that address two standards that are major work of the grade (5.NBT.4 and 5.MD.5c), thus they are unaccounted for in the calculations of instructional time.
Criterion 1.3: Coherence
Coherence: Each grade's instructional materials are coherent and consistent with the Standards.
The instructional materials reviewed for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 do not meet the expectations for being coherent and consistent with the Standards. The instructional materials partially have: supporting content that enhances focus and coherence by engaging students in the major work of the grade; consistency with the progressions in the Standards; and coherence through connections at a single grade.
Indicator 1c
Supporting content enhances focus and coherence simultaneously by engaging students in the major work of the grade.
The instructional materials for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 partially meet expectations that supporting work enhances focus and coherence simultaneously by engaging students in the major work of the grade. Throughout the Common Core Suite of books, standards are mostly taught in isolation from other standards. Each lesson focuses on one standard without referencing connections to major work. Additionally, the teacher edition does not provide explicit connections from supporting work to major work; however, some natural connections are made.
Examples of supporting standards not connected to major work:
- Converting like measurements (5.MD.1) is addressed in Common Core Coach Lesson 21, Common Core Support Coach Lesson 15, and Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 23. However, no lesson connects to multiplying and dividing fractions (5.NF.4).
- Making line plots to display data sets (5.MD.2) is addressed in Common Core Coach Lesson 22, Common Core Support Coach Lesson 16, and Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 24. There are no connections to using equivalent fractions to add and subtract fractions (5.NF.1) or multiplying and dividing fractions (5.NF.B).
There are some connections made in the lessons; however, these connections are not explicit, and there is no indication of the connections for the student or teacher. For example:
- Common Core Coach Lesson 1 Evaluating Numerical Expressions and Lesson 2 Writing and Interpreting Numerical Expressions address using parentheses, brackets, or braces to write, interpret, and evaluate numerical expressions (5.OA.A). Both lessons connect the order of operations to understandings of operations with whole numbers (5.NBT.B). Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 1 Writing Numerical Expressions and Lesson 2 Evaluating Numerical Expressions support and extend understandings of these concepts.
Indicator 1d
The amount of content designated for one grade level is viable for one school year in order to foster coherence between grades.
The instructional materials for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 do not meet the expectation that the amount of content designated is viable for one school year in order to foster coherence between grades. The materials consists of three components: Common Core Coach, Common Core Support Coach, and Common Core Performance Coach. These three together make up the Common Core Coach Suite.
- Common Core Coach contains the core instruction and practice elements of the suite. There are 28 lessons broken up across the five domains, each designed to be taught over three to six days, for a total of 132 instructional days. Lessons are broken into smaller components that are scheduled to last between 20-30 minutes each day. Additionally, each domain contains a Domain Assessment, which is given over two 40-minute periods, for an additional ten days.
- Common Core Support Coach contains scaffolded lessons for students struggling with concepts taught during core instruction. There are 20 lessons, each designed to be supplemental by making explicit connections between prior knowledge and current grade-level concepts. Each lesson is designed to be taught over three to six days, between 10-20 minutes following the corresponding core instruction. Additionally, there are two Practice Test Assessments which are given over two days at the end of the year.
- Common Core Performance Coach extends skill development for on-level students and provides practice with a variety of item types for reinforcement and test preparation. There are 30 lessons, each designed to be taught over three to six days, between 10-20 minutes following the corresponding core instruction. Additionally, each domain contains a Domain Review, which is completed over two days as time permits, for ten days.
Common Core Coach Suite provides an insufficient number of problems to complete in the time allotted for lessons. Teachers would need to make significant supplementation and modifications for the program materials to be viable for one school year. Examples include:
- In Common Core Coach Lesson 14, Problem Solving: Adding and Subtracting Fractions and Mixed Numbers, students work four guided examples and five practice problems over five days to complete the lesson, at 20 minutes each session (100 minutes). These provide an insufficient amount of problems and practice for this lesson. Adding in the differentiation components of Common Core Support Coach or Common Core Performance Coach, another 20 minutes of instruction over five days (or 100 minutes) could be accounted for. Again, these two components consist of guided examples and little practice with grade-level work. The lessons in these components would add little instructional practice.
- Common Core Coach Lesson 26 Graphing Points on the Coordinate Plane spans four days (80 minutes) for three scaffolded examples, a “Mystery Graph” problem, and 26 practice problems.
- Common Core Support Coach Lesson 1 Analyzing Numerical Patterns spans four days (80 minutes) of supplemental learning through five scaffolded examples and 24 practice problems.
- Common Core Support Coach Lesson 15 Converting Measurements spans five days (100 minutes) of supplemental learning using six scaffolded examples and 32 practice problems.
- Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 3 Relating Numerical Expressions spans four days (80 minutes) for extending understandings of numerical expressions using three scaffolded examples, one coached example, and 10 practice problems.
- Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 10 Dividing Whole Numbers spans six days (120 minutes) for extending understandings of dividing whole numbers through four scaffolded examples, one coached example, and 11 practice problems.
Assessments also contain an overallocation of time:
- Common Core Coach Domain Assessments take place over two days (80 minutes) for 20-25 problems per assessment.
- Common Core Support Coach Practice Tests take place over two days (80 minutes) with teachers selecting key questions for students based on need; neither Practice Test is given in its entirety.
- Common Core Performance Coach Domain Review and Performance Tasks take place over two days (80 minutes) for 29-35 problems and one performance task per assessment.
Indicator 1e
Materials are consistent with the progressions in the Standards i. Materials develop according to the grade-by-grade progressions in the Standards. If there is content from prior or future grades, that content is clearly identified and related to grade-level work ii. Materials give all students extensive work with grade-level problems iii. Materials relate grade level concepts explicitly to prior knowledge from earlier grades.
The instructional materials for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 partially meet expectations for the materials being consistent with the progressions in the standards. Two components of the suite develop according to the grade-by-grade progressions in the standards, and most content from prior or future grades is clearly identified and connected to current grade-level work. However, the materials do not provide students with extensive work with grade-level problems, and the materials do not meet the full depth of the standards.
Examples of how the materials develop according to grade-by-grade progressions and identify content from prior or future grades, relating it to grade-level work:
- The Common Core Coach Teacher Edition contains a progressions chart at the start of each of the five domains, which show the connections between prior and future learning to the current grade-level standard being developed in each lesson. The Teacher Edition states that these connections also appear in the Student Edition on a visual roadmap of the domain progressions, showing “how new content builds upon previous grade levels and domains, and connects to future domains.”
- Domain 2 for Number and Operations in Base Ten, Grade 4 Lesson 2 Problem Solving: Using Multiplication and Division to Make Comparisons (4.OA.2) connects with Grade 5 Lesson 4 Multiplying Whole Numbers (5.NBT.5) which in turn connects to Grade 6 Lesson 4 Problem Solving: Unit Rates (6.RP.3b), Grade 6 Lesson 27 Finding the Area of Triangles and Quadrilaterals (6.G.1), and Grade 6 Lesson 28 Finding the Volume of Rectangular Prisms (6.G.2).
- Domain 4 for Measurement and Data, Grade 4 Lesson 10 Multiplying Whole Numbers (4.NBT.5) connects to Grade 5 Lesson 24 Finding the Volume of Rectangular Prisms (5.MD.5a, 5.MD.5b) and progresses to Grade 6 Lesson 28 Finding the Volume of Rectangular Prisms (6.G.2).
- Common Core Support Coach contains lessons that begin with a “Plug In” section, which reviews prior foundational standards. The “Power Up” section includes a grade-level standard that will support the work of the target standard for the lesson. These two are connected in the “Ready to Go” section, which provides students opportunities to work problems using the scaffolded support. Examples include:
- Powers of Ten, Lesson 2 supports students multiplying and dividing by powers of ten (Common Core Coach Lesson 4) (5.NBT.2). The “Plug In” draws on previous understandings of place value (4.NBT.1, 5.NBT.1), the “Power Up” reviews multiplying by multiples of ten (3.NBT.3, 4.NBT.5), and the “Ready to Go” practice gives them opportunities to use whole-number exponents to multiply and divide by powers of ten (5.NBT.2).
- Dividing Whole Numbers, Lesson 6 supports students dividing multi-digit numbers up to four-digit quotients and two-digit divisors (Common Core Coach Lesson 9) (5.NBT.6). The “Plug In” reviews using place value to multiply and divide (4.NBT.6), the “Power Up” reviews multiplying multi-digit numbers (4.NBT.5), and the “Ready to Go” practice provides opportunities for students to apply knowledge of place value and the relationship between multiplication and division to divide multi-digit numbers (5.NBT.6).
- Multiplying Fractions, Lesson 10 supports students using models to multiply fractions in order to solve real-world problems (5.NF.4a). The “Plug In” reviews understanding fractions as multiples (4.NF.4a), the “Power Up” reviews multiplying fractions by whole numbers (4.NF.4b), and the “Ready to Go” practice provides opportunities for students to use models to multiply fractions (5.NF.5a).
Although Common Core Coach and Common Core Support Coach are consistent with the progressions, Common Core Performance Coach does not support the progression of the grade-level standards and does not identify connections to prior knowledge or future work. There is no explicit guidance to show development of the progressions in any of the lessons. For example:
- In Line Plots, Lesson 29, students work with line plots to add and subtract fractions (4.MD.4). Guidance is not provided for students or teachers as to how this connects to previous understandings of representing and interpreting data using picture and bar graphs (3.MD.3) and extends to future learning involving using line plots and fraction measurements to solve problems (5.MD.2).
- In Common Core Performance Coach Multiplying Fractions, Lesson 17, students work with the grade-level standard for multiplying fractions. (5.NF.4a) Guidance is not provided within Common Core Performance Coach for students or teachers as to how this connects to previous understandings of multiplying fractions by a whole number (4.NF.4) and extends to future learning involving dividing fractions in Grade 6 (6.NS.1).
The instructional materials for Common Core Coach Suite do not attend to the full intent of the grade-level standards and do not provide students extensive work with grade-level problems. The core instruction in Common Core Coach does not attend to the full intent of the grade-level standards and does not provide students extensive work with grade-level problems. Most of the standards that are considered major work of the grade are taught in one lesson. Some above grade-level work is presented, but it is not identified as such. Examples include:
- Dividing Whole Numbers, Lesson 9 addresses 5.NBT.6, a major standard for Grade 5. In this lesson, students use a place-value model to find whole-number quotients and have no opportunities to use other strategies to find whole number quotients to meet the full intent of this standard.
- Recognizing Volume as Additive, Lesson 25 teaches the standard algorithm for multiplication, but does not provide students opportunities to relate volume to the operations or multiplication and addition in real-world problems. (5.NF.5) Additionally, the nine practice items do not provide students extensive work with grade-level problems.
Common Core Support Coach and Common Core Performance Coach provide additional support intended for students needing interventions or additional work with concepts and skills. While these components contain some standards that are not addressed to the full intent of the grade-level standard, including standards that are considered major work of the grade, most lessons do not contain sufficient practice for students to engage in extensive work with grade-level problems.
Examples of standards not addressed in Common Core Support Coach:
- “Use parentheses, brackets, or braces in numerical expressions, and evaluate expressions with these symbols.” (5.OA.1)
- “Write simple expressions that record calculations with numbers, and interpret numerical expressions without evaluating them.” (5.OA.2)
- “Use place-value understanding to round decimals to any place.” (5.NBT.4)
- “Recognize volume as additive. Find volumes of solid figures composed of two non-overlapping right rectangular prisms by adding the volumes of the non-overlapping parts, applying this technique to solve real-world problems.” (5.MD.5c)
Examples of standards not addressed to the full intent of the grade-level standard by not giving students extensive work with grade-level problems:
- Common Core Support Coach Adding and Subtracting Fractions with Unlike Denominators, Lesson 8 addresses two standards (5.NF.1 and 5.NF.2) and contains 17 practice problems.
- Common Core Support Coach Measuring Volume of Rectangular Prisms, Lesson 17 addresses all of 5.MD.3 (5.MD.3a, 5.MD.3b, and 5.MD.3c) and contains 14 practice problems.
- Common Core Performance Coach Dividing Decimals, Lesson 13 is the only lesson that attends to 5.NBT.7, major work for Grade 5. There are 10 practice problems presented.
Indicator 1f
Materials foster coherence through connections at a single grade, where appropriate and required by the Standards i. Materials include learning objectives that are visibly shaped by CCSSM cluster headings. ii. Materials include problems and activities that serve to connect two or more clusters in a domain, or two or more domains in a grade, in cases where these connections are natural and important.
The instructional materials for Common Core Coach Suite Grade 5 partially meet expectations that materials foster coherence through connections at a single grade, where appropriate and required by the standards. Materials are clearly shaped by domain headings but do not connect two or more domains or clusters.
Common Core Coach Suite contains three components: Common Core Coach, Common Core Support Coach, and Common Core Performance Coach. Lessons in Common Core Coach and Common Core Performance Coach are grouped by domain. CCSSM standards alignment can be found in the Table of Contents of the Teacher Edition for each component of the suite. Most lessons in the suite address one standard.
Examples of lessons in Common Core Coach shaped by domain headings include:
- Domain 1: Operations and Algebraic Thinking: Lesson 2 Writing and Interpreting Numerical Expressions (5.OA.2).
- Domain 3: Number and Operations - Fractions: Lesson 16 Multiplying Fractions (5.NF.4).
- Domain 4: Measurement and Data: Lesson 23 Understanding and Measuring Volume (5.MD.3).
Overall, the materials miss important natural connections. Examples include:
- Common Core Coach Lesson 21 Converting Units of Measure to Solve Problems, Common Core Support Coach Lesson 15 Converting Measurements, and Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 23 Converting Measurement Units do not connect 5.NBT.5 and 5.NBT.6, to place value (5.NBT.1).
- Common Core Coach Lesson 24 Finding Volume of Rectangular Prisms, Lesson 25 Recognizing Volume as Additive, Common Core Support Coach Lesson 18 Formulas for Volumes of Rectangular Prisms, and Common Core Performance Coach Lesson 26 Volume of Rectangular Prisms all address finding the volume of a right rectangular prism (5.MD.5a), but do not connect to multiplying fractions (5.NF.4).