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Report Overview
Summary of Alignment & Usability: Foundations A-Z | ELA
ELA K-2
The Foundations A-Z materials meet the expectations for alignment to standards and research-based practices for foundational skills instruction. Foundational skills instruction includes a research-based synthetic approach with systematic and explicit instruction. The program has a well-defined scope and sequence that follows the expected hierarchy of skills and that delineates daily opportunities for students to practice all foundational skills concepts through explicit teacher modeling and allows students to engage in oral practice activities that are reinforced through a variety of multimodal activities. Materials provide teachers with explicit instructional routines, systematic and repeated modeling, and instruction for all foundational skills concepts. Materials include a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation, which includes a detailed scope and sequence, support materials, and detailed information and instructional routines that help the teacher to effectively implement all foundational skills content through session-specific teacher-scripted lessons. Materials provide a clear research-based explanation for the instructional sequence of phonics skills that are taught and regularly and systematically provide a variety of assessment opportunities over the course of the year to demonstrate students’ progress toward mastery and independence of foundational skills concepts.
Kindergarten
View Full ReportEdReports reviews of foundational skills supplements determine if a program meets, partially meets, or does not meet expectations for alignment to research-based practices and college and career ready standards. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.
Alignment (Gateway 1)
Materials must meet or partially meet expectations for standards alignment in order to be reviewed for usability. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.
Usability (Gateway 2)
1st Grade
View Full ReportEdReports reviews of foundational skills supplements determine if a program meets, partially meets, or does not meet expectations for alignment to research-based practices and college and career ready standards. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.
Alignment (Gateway 1)
Materials must meet or partially meet expectations for standards alignment in order to be reviewed for usability. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.
Usability (Gateway 2)
2nd Grade
View Full ReportEdReports reviews of foundational skills supplements determine if a program meets, partially meets, or does not meet expectations for alignment to research-based practices and college and career ready standards. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.
Alignment (Gateway 1)
Materials must meet or partially meet expectations for standards alignment in order to be reviewed for usability. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.
Usability (Gateway 2)
Report for 2nd Grade
Alignment Summary
Materials provide explicit instruction in phonics through systematic and repeated modeling within daily lessons over the course of the year, including phonics lessons that provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade-level phonics pattern. Materials include regular teacher modeling and student practice opportunities in building, manipulating, and encoding phonemes and words through detailed sample scripts for teachers to use when modeling. Materials include systematic and explicit instruction in reading common high-frequency words by sight within the High-frequency Words lessons found throughout all units and modules. Materials include regular explicit instruction and modeling of word analysis strategies through teacher scripts and teacher modeling. Materials include frequent opportunities for explicit instruction in the fluency elements of accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings using grade-level texts through lessons with shared readers and decodable texts. Materials include lessons to support students in confirming or self-correcting errors in the Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines tab; however, these lessons are optional, so all students may not receive explicit instruction in confirming and/or self-correcting errors. Materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation through well-detailed lesson plans from pre-instruction to lesson videos to post-instruction. Materials contain lesson plans that utilize a research-based design for early literacy instruction. Materials contain a clear and evidence-based explanation for the expected hierarchy for teaching phonics skills, and the materials contain a phonics scope and sequence of instruction and practice based on the expected hierarchy. Materials include a variety of decodable texts that contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence to ensure that students secure newly-taught phonics skills, and materials provide ample opportunities to review previously-taught phonics skills. Materials include 32 decodable texts with high-frequency words that align with the program’s scope and sequence and provide students with multiple opportunities to encounter the words and the decodable texts. Materials include regular assessment opportunities in phonics in and out of context. Assessments include daily Observational Checklists and digital practice interactivities, formative Unit Assessments, and summative Interim Assessments. Materials include standards correlation information within daily lessons and attached to specific questions, tasks, and assessments.
Materials include some support for teaching ELL students. The materials provide general information in the Program Guide through the Frequently Asked Questions section, which outlines some best practices for different areas of foundational skills. Materials include extensive opportunities for reteaching and enrichment. The Foundations A-Z digital materials, which include teacher Lesson Plans, Professional Development, Resources, Student Progress reports, e-Books, and student games, are platform neutral and are compatible with multiple Internet browsers and operating systems. Materials support the effective use of technology and visual design to enhance student learning through eBooks, such as Shared readers, Decodable texts and Grade-level texts, and animated student games and videos. The students’ digital interactive learning videos, games, and assessments are well-organized and visually appealing and are designed to enhance student learning.
Usability (Gateway 2)
Overview of Gateway 1
Alignment to Standards and Research-Based Practices for Foundational Skills Instruction
Materials provide explicit instruction in phonics through systematic and repeated modeling within daily lessons over the course of the year, including phonics lessons that provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade-level phonics pattern. Materials provide explicit instruction and student practice opportunities for decoding in context. Materials include regular teacher modeling and student practice opportunities in building, manipulating, and encoding phonemes and words through detailed sample scripts for teachers to use when modeling. Materials include systematic and explicit instruction in reading common high-frequency words by sight within the High-frequency Words lessons found throughout all units and modules. Materials include frequent opportunities for the teacher to model and students to practice the spelling and reading of high-frequency words both in isolation and in authentic context. Materials include regular explicit instruction and modeling of word analysis strategies through teacher scripts and teacher modeling. Materials include frequent opportunities for explicit instruction in the fluency elements of accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings using grade-level texts through lessons with shared readers and decodable texts. Materials include resources for teachers to support progress in oral reading fluency, including prompts for self-correction and detailed fluency routines with sample scripts and key points of instruction. Materials include lessons to support students in confirming or self-correcting errors in the Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines tab; however, these lessons are optional, so all students may not receive explicit instruction in confirming and/or self-correcting errors.
Criterion 1.1: Phonics
Materials emphasize explicit, systematic instruction of research-based and/or evidence-based phonics.
Materials provide explicit instruction in phonics through systematic and repeated modeling within daily lessons over the course of the year. The phonics lessons provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade-level phonics pattern. Materials provide students with frequent opportunities to decode phonetically spelled words and read new words that contain the newly taught phonics skills. Lessons are intentionally designed to provide review opportunities and build on what has been previously taught. Materials provide explicit instruction and student practice opportunities for decoding in context. During instruction, the teacher uses the Decodable book and Shared reader to connect to the newly learned phonics skill. Materials include regular teacher modeling and student practice opportunities in building, manipulating, and encoding phonemes and words through detailed sample scripts for teachers to use when modeling. Materials contain explicit, systematic teacher-level instruction of teacher modeling that demonstrates the use of phonics to encode sounds to letters and words in writing tasks with teacher modeling and teacher sample dialogue within Encode Sound, Word, and Sentence Dictation activities.
Indicator 1F
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1f.
Materials provide explicit instruction in phonics through systematic and repeated modeling within daily lessons over the course of the year. The phonics lessons provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade-level phonics pattern.
Materials contain explicit instructions for systematic and repeated teacher modeling of all grade level phonics standards. For example:
Distinguish long and short vowels when reading regularly spelled one-syllable words.
In Unit 1, Module 2, Lesson 4, the teacher reviews open and closed syllables and how to use what is known about those syllable types to read longer words. The teacher tells students they will study the vowel-consonant-e syllable or VCe. The teacher tells students, “This syllable type has a vowel sound followed by a consonant sound followed by a silent e. What does the final silent e tell us to do? You know that from studying the consonant-vowel-consonant-e spelling pattern. Many VCe syllables have a consonant-vowel-consonant-e spelling pattern in them. So, when you recognize a VCe syllable, remember to use a long sound when pronouncing its vowel. And keep in mind that a VCe syllable can appear anywhere in a long word, not just at the end.”
In Unit 2, Module 1, Lesson 3, the teacher models reading words with phonograms -ild, -old, ost, olt, oll, and -ind. The teacher says, “Today, we are going to read syllables and words that have long vowel sounds, even though you may expect them to have short vowel sounds. Let’s start with this phonogram, or spelling pattern, spelled i-l-d. Do you hear the vowel sound? What is it? It is long i. One word that ends in this spelling pattern is wild. It’s a one-syllable word. What kind of syllable is it? Yes, it’s closed because it ends in a consonant. Does a closed syllable usually have a short or long vowel sound? It’s usually short. So, if you didn’t recognize this word, you might pronounce it with a short vowel sound: /wĭld/. That’s why it’s helpful to learn about phonograms and recognize words in their family.”
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 3, the teacher models reading words with vowel team syllables containing ea. The teacher says, “Another example of a vowel team that represents a lot of different vowel sounds is ea. The vowel team ea can represent a long a sound, as in the word steak; /s/ /t/ /ā/ /k/: steak. The vowel team ea can also represent the long e sound, as in the word eat: /ē/ /t/, eat. But we also know this vowel team can stand for the short e sound, /ĕ/, like in this word, bread. I will break the word into its sounds. What vowel sound do you hear in the word bread? In this word, the vowel team ea represents a short e sound.”
Know spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams.
In Unit 2, Module 4, Lesson 3, the teacher reviews vowel digraphs for long a: ai, ay, ea, and ei; long i spelled ie; long e spelled: ee, ea, ie, and ei; short e spelled ea; and long o spelled: oa, oe, and ow. The teacher reviews vowel sounds and digraphs representing them and draws a chart on the board with the sounds as column headings. In each column, the teacher writes the digraphs that can spell that sound, along with an example word. The teacher models saying the sound, reading the spellings, and reading the example word in each column.
In Unit 4, Module 1, Lesson 1, the teacher introduces the variant vowels/o͞o/ and /yo͞o/ with the spellings oo, u, u_e, ue, ew, ui, ou. The teacher writes these spellings on the board with examples under each. The teacher reads each word, emphasizing the /o͞o/ /yo͞o/ sound and underlining the letters that spell the sound.
Decode regularly spelled two-syllable words with long vowels.
In Unit 1, Module 4, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews the CVCe spelling pattern and VCe syllable pattern. The teacher says, “There are three vowels in this word, but one is a final silent e. There are just two vowel sounds in the word. So, how many syllables does the word have? Where does it break into syllables? We can see a CVCe pattern here, so we know this is a VCe syllable. So let’s divide the word before this syllable. Let’s read the first syllable together: cup. Let’s read the second syllable, and remember to use a long vowel sound because it’s a VCe syllable: cake. Now let’s blend the syllables to read the whole word: cup, cake, cupcake.”
In Unit 4, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher models decoding words with vowel team syllables using the word streaming. The teacher says, “How many vowel sounds are in the word? We see three vowels, but two of them work as a team: e-a. If there are two vowel sounds, then how many syllables are in the word? We need to divide somewhere between the vowel sounds. We know we can’t divide between the letters of the vowel team. Do you recognize a common suffix, or word ending, in this word? Let’s divide so the suffix is in its own syllable. Now, let’s read the first syllable, which is the vowel team syllable. We know this vowel team can stand for more than one sound. One of those sounds is the long e sound, /ē/. Let’s try that as we read the first syllable: /s/ /t/ /r/ /ē/ /m/. Stream. Now let’s add the suffix -ing to read the whole word: stream, ing, streaming.”
Decode words with common prefixes and suffixes.
In Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 4, the teacher models reading words with derivational suffixes -less, -ness, -ful, -ly, and -ment. The teacher writes the suffixes along with their meaning on the board. The teacher explains that suffixes have meanings and can be added to the base part of a word. The teacher says, “When we read a word that has one of these suffixes in it, we can figure out the word’s meaning by combining the meaning of the base word with the meaning of the suffix. For example, we know the base word hope. It’s like a wish that something will happen. The suffix -ful means ‘full of.’ So, the word hopeful is a describing word that means ‘full of hope.’”
In Unit 7, Module 4, Lesson 4, the teacher models reading words with the prefixes un-, in-, re-, dis-, by-, tri-. The teacher reminds students prefixes have meanings and can be added to the base part of a word that may cause the new word to have a different meaning. The teacher says, “Do you see one of the prefixes we have learned in this word? Which one do you see? What does the prefix un- mean? (It means “not.”) Who can tell me what the base word of unclear is? One meaning of clear is “easy to understand.” He gave clear directions. So, what is the meaning of unclear?”
Identify words with inconsistent but common spelling-sound correspondences.
In Unit 5, Module 2, Lesson 3, the teacher models changing y to i and adding -es to create a plural word. The teacher reminds students about nouns and the spelling patterns -s and -es to form plurals. The teacher says, ”The rule applies to singular nouns that end with a consonant followed by the letter y. In these words, the y stands for the sound /ī/ or /ē/. To form the plural, we change the letter y to the letter i, then we add -es.” The teacher models with the word pony/ponies.
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher introduces the schwa sound, says its sound, writes the words a and the on board, and reads them aloud, comparing the vowel in each sound. The teacher says, “It’s the most common vowel sound in the English language. The schwa is pronounced “uh.” It sounds like a short u sound, but softer and weaker. Sometimes, it can sound like the short i sound, but softer and weaker.” The teacher models with the words a and the.
Lessons provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade level phonics pattern. For example:
In Unit 3, Module 2, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews spelling changes before endings, which include doubling consonants, dropping silent e, and changing y to i. The teacher reviews the consonant double spelling rules of one syllable, one short vowel, and one consonant at the end. Students encode words the teacher is dictating with the sound spellings taught in the lesson. Students also read the decodable text, The Mole Machine, which includes the words: digging, digger, bodies, and cities.
In Unit 8, Module 1, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews guidelines for when the letter c stands for the soft /s/ sound. The teacher models decoding the word race and writes the word on the board. After reviewing the meaning of the word, the teacher introduces the words face, page, and place, and the students say and chorally spell each word then, students write the words on the whiteboard as the teacher says the word slowly.
Indicator 1G
Materials include daily practice opportunities for students to decode words that consist of common and newly-taught sound and spelling patterns and provide opportunities for students to review previously taught phonics skills.
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1g.
Materials provide students with frequent opportunities to decode phonetically spelled words and read new words that contain the newly taught phonics skills. Lessons are intentionally designed to provide review opportunities and build on what has been previously taught. The review is embedded in the lesson structure, as Lesson 5 of each module and Module 4 of each unit function as a structured review of previously taught phonics skills. Practice occurs in teacher-led activities during lessons, in partner practice work, and in independent practice using interactive practice games.
Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to decode (phonemes, onset and rime, and/or syllables) phonetically spelled words. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 1, Lesson 3, students practice decoding words with a VCe syllable with word cards as the teacher guides them to read the words aloud. Words include caveman, pancake, baseball, invade, online, sunrise.
In Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 2, students read and air write words containing the -ash and -est phonograms, using phonogram cards ash, est, b, c, m, n, r, w. Students place a consonant card to the left of the card, either -ash or -est, to make a word. Students blend the initial sound with the phonogram and read the whole word, and then air write the word.
In Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 3, students copy the following compound words on whiteboards, underline both word parts, then decode each word: baseball, football, ballpark, snowball, softball, gumball, ballgame, volleyball.
Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to read complete words by saying the entire word as a unit using newly taught phonics skills. For example:
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 1, students read the words main, gray, break, coal, foe, grow, boy, and soil as the teacher writes them on the board. Students identify the letters in the word that make the vowel sound.
In Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 3, students play a game in teams where a student from one team reads a word from a card, and a student from the other team writes the word, then checks the spelling. Students rotate through the game so that every student has a turn to read and spell. The game uses the words asked, bigger, buses, cats, dishes, fixed, hides, jumping, quickest, shortest, slower, toys, and watching.
In Unit 4, Module 1, Lesson 2, students segment, write, and read each word: could, good, foot, would, bush, and push to practice variant vowel sounds.
Materials contain opportunities for students to review previously learned grade-level phonics. For example:
In Unit 4, Module 1, Lesson 5, students read the following words on the Word Work Chart to review the phonograms -ew, -ue, and -ould: blue, chew, clue, could, drew, flew, glue, should, stew, true, would.
In Unit 6, Module 4, Lesson 2, students review the previously taught phonograms -ap, -an, and -at by blending the sounds, reading the whole word, and air writing the word. In partnerships, students practice writing sentences with words that include these phonograms.
In Unit 8, Module 4, Lesson 2, students copy the following words on whiteboards, mark the vowels and consonants and syllable divisions, mark each syllable as open or closed, then decode each syllable and word: begin, return, even, lucky, depend, latest.
Materials contain a variety of methods to promote students’ practice of previously taught grade-level phonics. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 4, Lesson 1, students review closed syllables and the FLosSS rule. Using the words hill, miss, and buzz, the teacher asks if the FLoSS rule applies, then directs students to spell the word aloud, write it on their whiteboard, and underline the final double consonants.
In Unit 5, Module 4, Lesson 1, students review r-controlled vowel sounds by reading the following words and identifying the letters that spell the r-controlled vowel sound in each word: acorn, bear, church, clerk, four, share, shirt, shore, soar, tart, wheelchair.
In Unit 7, Module 4, Lesson 1, students play the interactive game Read and Spell Words with Consonant -le Syllables. During the game, students record themselves reading paddle, pebble, wiggle, bubble, bottle, and raffle.
Indicator 1H
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1h.
Materials provide explicit instruction and student practice opportunities for decoding in context. During instruction, the teacher uses the Decodable book and Grade-level text to connect to the newly learned phonics skill. As the lesson transitions to guided practice, the teacher uses pages from the texts to model decoding words in sentences. Students use the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet when working with a partner to practice decoding words, phrases, and sentences that contain newly and previously learned phonics patterns.
Materials provide explicit, systematic practice for decoding phonetically regular words in a sentence. For example:
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 4, students practice decoding words with suffixes and vowel team ea in the decodable Connected text, The Rain Cloud. Students echo read with the teacher after the teacher reviews phonics concepts and reminds students to look for those concepts and apply them when reading. Students then whisper read the text, which includes sentences: “Can you hand me the bread? I love its freshness.”
In Unit 4, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher models how to decode words with vowel team syllable types. The teacher reads the second sentence on page 10 of the Grade-level text, Art Made from What?, and says, “Let’s look at the word neighborhood. How many syllables do you hear in this word? (three) Yes, there are three syllables, neigh, bor, hood. Two of those syllables are vowel team syllables. Can you tell me which ones? (the first and third) What is the vowel team in the first syllable? (eigh) What sound does it stand for? (/ā/) What is the vowel team in the last syllable? (oo) What sound does it stand for? (/o͝o/)
In Unit 5, Module 1, Lesson 4, students practice decoding words with r-controlled vowels in the decodable Connected text The Best I Can Be! Students echo read with the teacher after the teacher reviews phonics concepts and reminds students to apply what they know about sound-spelling patterns and word parts to the text. Students then whisper read the text, which includes the sentence: “The sun was bright, and birds sweetly chirped nearby.”
Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to decode words in a sentence. For example:
In Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 2, students form partner groups and choral read the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet to practice decoding words that contain the phonograms -ell and -ill. After reading new words and phrases that contain the target phonograms, previously learned phonics patterns, and the newly learned contraction, students read new high-frequency words and the following sentences: “She couldn’t find a shell. I thought you didn’t like those bells. We won’t leave the house.”
In Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 2, students complete the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet with a partner to practice decoding three-syllable words that contain previously learned phonics patterns. After reading new words, new high-frequency words, and phrases, students read the following sentences: “The factory will build electric cars. It was fantastic to see the opening of the new habitat.”
In Unit 7, Module 2, Lesson 2, students work with a partner, and choral read the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet to practice decoding words that contain a consonant pair with a silent letter. After reading new words and phrases that contain the target sound and previously learned phonics patterns, as well as new high-frequency words, students read the following sentences: “Sing the song about the ghost. The gnat keeps buzzing around my knee.”
Indicator 1I
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1i.
Materials include regular teacher modeling and student practice opportunities in building, manipulating, and encoding phonemes and words. The materials provide detailed sample scripts for teachers to use when modeling. Teacher-led activities include building words with workmats and spelling and encoding words using Phoneme/Grapheme Mapping Paper and Spelling Practice Paper. Teacher modeling transitions into guided student practice opportunities during which students use various methods and hands-on chips, letter cards, and workmats to practice. Spelling practice also takes place in interactive practice games.
The materials contain teacher-level instruction/modeling for building/manipulating/spelling and encoding words using common and newly-taught sound and spelling patterns of phonics. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 1, Lesson 3, lesson guidance directs teachers to “Write a sentence on the board that ends with a CVCe word. Read the sentence chorally with students, and point out the CVCe pattern in the final word. Work together as a class to think of another sentence that ends in a word that rhymes with the first sentence and is spelled with a CVCe pattern. Have students write the sentence on their whiteboard. Then, start over with a new sentence, this time ending in a CVCe word with a different vowel sound than the previously used one.”
In Unit 2, Module 1, Lesson 5, the teacher builds words with -old, -ink phonograms using Phonogram cards ink, old, b, g, h, p, r, s. The teacher uses the cards to add initial consonants before the phonogram to form words. The words are read by blending the consonant sound with the phonogram.
In Unit 4, Module 3, Lesson 2, the teacher models building the word push using a Four-Sound Box Workmat. The teacher says each phoneme in the word, placing a bingo chip on the workmat for each sound, then replacing each bingo chip with the matching grapheme card.
In Unit 5, Module 2, Lesson 2, the teacher models the process of spelling the word teeth. The materials provide a script for the teacher to use to model spelling the word, letter by letter, including think-aloud reasoning.
Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to build/manipulate/spell and encode words using common and newly-taught sound and spelling patterns of phonics. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 3, Lesson 3, students build the words spring, splash, scrape, squint, and stroke using a Five-Sound Box Workmat. Students say each word and stretch the phonemes, placing a bingo chip on the workmat for each sound. Students then replace each bingo chip with the grapheme card that matches the sound.
In Unit 2, Module 1, Lesson 1, students use Phoneme/Grapheme Mapping Paper to encode the words trips, misses, wolves, sheep, and monkeys.
In Unit 4, Module 1, Lesson 2, students practice encoding variant vowel sounds through word and sentence dictation. The teacher reads each word and a sentence for context. Then students segment each sound and write the word on the Spelling practice sheet as they say each sound.
Indicator 1J
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1j.
Materials contain explicit, systematic teacher-level instruction of teacher modeling that demonstrates the use of phonics to encode sounds to letters and words in writing tasks with teacher modeling and teacher sample dialogue within Encode Sound, Word, and Sentence Dictation activities. The materials also provide students with frequent activities and tasks to promote application of phonics as they encode words in sentences or in phrases based on common and newly taught phonics patterns through Encode Sound, Word, and Sentence Dictation activity sentences.
Materials include explicit, systematic teacher-level instruction of teacher modeling that demonstrates the use of phonics to encode sounds to letters and words in writing tasks. For example:
In Unit 2, Module 1, Lesson 5, the teacher writes the module’s high-frequency words, as well as four to six words from the Decodable book, Game Time!, that are exemplars of the module’s phonics skills, on the board. The teacher displays the first page of the Wordless decodable book: Game Time! and models how to write one or two sentences while thinking aloud. Lesson guidance directs the teacher to include one of the phonics exemplar words in their writing. “I used a plural noun and a past-tense verb in my writing. I also started my sentences with capital letters and used end punctuation at the end of the sentences.”
In Unit 5, Module 4, Lesson 4, the teacher writes the module’s high-frequency words, as well as four to six words from the Decodable book, Clare Races the Horse, that are exemplars of the module’s phonics skills, on the board. The teacher displays the first page of the Wordless decodable book: Clare Races the Horse and models how to write one or two sentences while thinking aloud. Lesson guidance directs the teacher to include one of the phonics exemplar words in their writing. “As I write my book, I am going to remember to start each sentence with a capital letter, place spaces between my words, and end my sentences with punctuation. I will also remember what I have learned about how prefixes and suffixes can change a word’s meaning. I’ll also include words from the board in my writing.”
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 5, the teacher writes the module’s high-frequency words, as well as four to six words from the Decodable book, The Green Belt Movement, that are exemplars of the module’s phonics skills, on the board. The teacher displays the first page of the Wordless decodable book: The Green Belt Movement and models how to write one or two sentences while thinking aloud. Lesson guidance directs the teacher to include one of the phonics exemplar words in their writing. “As I write my book, I am going to remember to start each sentence with an uppercase letter, place spaces between my words, and end my sentences with punctuation. I will also remember to use prefixes and suffixes with some of my words. Maybe I’ll use the word changed and the common word across in my writing. I’ll also include words from the board in my writing.”
Lessons provide students with frequent activities and tasks to promote application of phonics as they encode words in sentences or in phrases based on common and newly taught phonics patterns. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 2, Lesson 4, students apply their learning to spell words, including one- and two-syllable words with the CVCe syllable type, using learned patterns and generalizations. After students write a series of teacher-dictated words that contain previously learned phonics patterns and generalizations, the teacher dictates a sentence that includes words that follow the same phonics patterns: “A tadpole is a reptile.” Students repeat the sentence, draw a line for each word on their Spelling practice sheet, and write the sentence.
In Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 2, students encode dictation sentences with current phonics patterns taught and contractions, including, “I won’t forget to call you.”
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 2, students encode dictation sentences with current phonics patterns taught, including schwa making the uh sound spelled o or u. Dictation sentences include, but are not limited to, “A cactus does not need much water.”
Criterion 1.2: Word Recognition and Word Analysis
Materials include systematic and explicit instruction in reading common high-frequency words by sight within the High-frequency Words lessons found throughout all units and modules. Materials include frequent opportunities for the teacher to model and students to practice the spelling and reading of high-frequency words in isolation. Materials include lessons that provide students with frequent opportunities to read grade-level high-frequency and irregularly spelled words in a sentence using the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheets and connected decodable texts. Materials also provide students with frequent opportunities to write grade-level high-frequency and irregularly spelled words in tasks within sentences in order to promote automaticity, as students create sentences for wordless books. Materials include regular explicit instruction and modeling of word analysis strategies through teacher scripts and teacher modeling. Lessons include frequent instruction in phoneme/grapheme recognition and matching using word building and decoding of word cards. Student practice occurs in the context of teacher-guided lessons, in decodable text with teacher support, and using interactive digital games.
Indicator 1K
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1k.
Materials provide systematic and explicit instruction for students to recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words within the High Frequency Words lessons found within the modules. The materials include frequent opportunities for the teacher to model the spelling and reading of irregularly spelled words in isolation. The materials allow opportunities for students to practice identifying and reading irregularly spelled words in isolation. The materials introduce 131 high-frequency words and 34 irregularly spelled high-frequency words throughout the eight units and modules, a sufficient quantity of grade-appropriate high-frequency words for students to make reading progress.
Materials include systematic and explicit instruction of irregularly spelled words. For example:
Recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words.
In Unit 2, Module 1, Lesson 3, the teacher introduces the words with High-frequency word flash cards, then displays and reads each word. The sample dialogue includes, “Some words have sound-spellings that don’t follow the patterns we have learned. We call these words ‘heart words’ because we have to remember them by heart. Our words today, does and sure, are ‘heart words.’”
In Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher introduces the high-frequency words thought and through using the high-frequency word cards. The teacher practices saying the word a few times and then chorally spelling the word. The teacher explains the word’s meaning and uses the word in a sentence.
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 3, the teacher introduces the word with High-frequency word flash cards, displaying and reading the word, and explaining that again has an irregular spelling.
Materials include frequent opportunities for the teacher to model the spelling and reading of irregularly spelled words in isolation. For example:
In Unit 3, Module 1, Lesson 1, the teacher uses High-frequency word flash cards to introduce the words could, should, and would and reads each of the words. The teacher says, “The word would is spelled w-o-u-l-d. Now, we are going to break the word into its individual sounds: /w/ /o͝o/ /d/.”
In Unit 6, Module 2, Lesson 1, the teacher uses High-frequency word flashcards to introduce the word pretty and read the word. The teacher says, “Let’s build the word pretty. Spell the /p/ sound with the letter p. Spell the /r/ sound with the letter r. Spell the /ĭ/ sound with the letter e. This is an irregular spelling of that sound. So let’s mark it with a heart card. That reminds us that we have to learn its sound-spelling by heart. Next, spell the /t/ sound with the letters t-t. Finally, spell the /ē/ sound with the letter y.”
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 3, the teacher introduces the words across, along, again, and away using the high-frequency word cards. The teacher and students analyze the word’s spelling by pointing out any challenging sound-spelling patterns using skills that students have not yet learned. The teacher guides students to spell the words on their whiteboards. Students touch a sound box on the workmat for each sound within the word and spell the word with grapheme cards while using the sound box workmat.
Students practice identifying and reading irregularly spelled words in isolation. For example:
In Unit 4, Module 2, Lesson 3, students practice identifying the irregularly spelled high-frequency word laugh by locating it in their High-frequency word flash cards. In Lesson 4, students play the interactive game Read and Spell High-frequency Words, which includes reading the word laugh for independent practice.
In Unit 8, Module 1, Lesson 3, students practice reading and spelling the words large and since. Students analyze the reading and spelling of the words by identifying the challenging sound-spelling patterns. Students then spell the words on their whiteboards while segmenting each sound and writing the corresponding grapheme.
In Unit 8, Module 3, Lesson 1, students practice identifying the irregularly spelled high-frequency word been by locating it in their High-frequency word flash cards. In Lesson 4, students work in partner groups, with one student as a reader and the other as a checker, using the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet, which includes reading the word laugh.
Materials include a sufficient quantity of grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words for students to make reading progress. For example:
In the Program Guide, the Research and Rationale for High-Frequency Words provides a chart indicating that the Grade 2 Scope and Sequence includes 131 high-frequency words. Thirty-four irregularly spelled high-frequency words are identified with a heart and are in bold type.
The Grade 2 Scope and Sequence provides the following high-frequency words taught and listed in each unit. Irregularly spelled high-frequency words listed by the program are identified with a heart and are in bold type, 34 are listed: Unit 1: car, carry, every, spell, story, very, year, easy, leave, money, plan, plant, stand, state, check, drink, thank, thing, think, watch; Unit 2: close, does, goes, pulled, sure, even, only, open, over, study, air, boat, gone, house, love; Unit 3: could, point, should, tree, wood, would, didn’t, please, these, those, won’t, himself, size, thought, through; Unit 4: blue, food, new, push, school, soon, draw, laugh, room saw, water, book, few, good, took, use; Unit 5: birds, form, horse, mark, turn, words, work, after, friends, number, under, become, before, farm, more; Unit 6: hours, myself, oh, today, toward, whole, both, live, live miss, pretty, above, almost, always, another, buy, guy, other, two; Unit 7: ever, never, together, upon, warm, enough, people, song, talk, walk, about, across, again, along, around, away, sound; Unit 8: face, large, page, place, since, city, cold, hold, old, told, been, began, begin, eye, father.
In the Program Guide, Research and Rationale, the materials state, “consideration was placed on when the HFWs selected from the Dolch and Fry lists are taught. Grade K students learn the most frequent words as they learn the letters in the alphabet and phoneme-grapheme correspondences. The rest of the words chosen for grades K–2 are sequenced by frequency and whether their spellings are entirely regular (decodable), temporarily irregular because students have not learned the spelling pattern yet, or permanently irregular.”
Indicator 1L
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1l.
Materials include lessons which provide students with frequent opportunities to read grade-level high-frequency and irregularly spelled words in a sentence using the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheets and connected decodable texts. The materials also provide students with frequent opportunities to write grade-level high-frequency and irregularly spelled words in tasks within sentences in order to promote automaticity, as students create sentences for wordless books. The materials provide repeated, explicit instruction on how to use the student-friendly reference materials and resources, the High-frequency word flash cards and the Word, phrases, and sentences practice sheet, to support students with reading and writing high-frequency and irregularly spelled words in sentences.
Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to read grade-level irregularly spelled words in a sentence. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 3, Lesson 3, students learn the irregularly spelled high-frequency word watch. Then students read the connected text, Leader for a Day, which includes the sentence: “Marco must watch the leaders speak.”
In Unit 5, Module 3, Lesson 3, students learn the irregularly spelled high-frequency word become. Then students read the connected text, No Thanks, which includes the sentence: “I should become more fearless than I was before.”
Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to write grade-level irregularly spelled words in tasks (such as sentences) in order to promote automaticity in writing grade-level irregularly spelled words.
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 5, students work in partner groups or independently to create sentences for the wordless decodable book, The Rain Cloud. The teacher writes irregularly spelled high-frequency words from the module on the board. Students include and underline these words in their written sentences. Irregularly spelled high-frequency words for the module include: does, sure, gone, and love.
In Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 5, students work in partner groups or independently to create sentences for the wordless decodable book, Strange Animals. The teacher writes irregularly spelled high-frequency words from the module on the board. Students include and underline these words in their written sentences. Irregularly spelled high-frequency words for the module include: oh, today, toward, whole, live, pretty, above, another, buy by, guy, other, and two.
Materials provide repeated, explicit instruction in how to use student-friendly reference materials and resources and reading high-frequency words (e.g., word cards, word lists, word ladders, student dictionaries). For example:
In Foundations A-Z, Grade 2, Units 1–8, the lesson plans utilize various materials and resources, such as high-frequency word flash cards, decodable readers, high-frequency practice sheets, digital games, and wordless decodable books for shared writing. Each activity provides explicit instruction on how to use the student-friendly materials and resources.
In Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher models how to use the High-frequency word flash cards for thought and through. The teacher “[introduces] each word by saying it, saying it again with students, and then chorally spelling it with students.” The teacher also explains the word’s meaning and uses it in a sentence. After supporting students with using the Three-sound box workmat to sound out the words, the teacher “[guides] students to build the word[s] on their mat using the Grapheme cards.” The teacher points out the spelling of each sound, noting the irregular spelling -o-u-g-h. The teacher tells “students to use the heart card to mark the irregular spelling and tell[s] them that the spelling of this word has to be learned ‘by heart.’”
In Unit 8, Module 2, lesson 2, the teacher models how to decode and read fluently using the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet. The teacher notes that students should figure out where a word breaks into syllables, segment and blend each syllable, and blend the syllables to read the word, when encountering words with more than one syllable. The teacher models reading one of the words from the practice sheet. Afterwards, students work with a partner to complete the Words, phrases, and sentence practice sheet, with one student serving as the reader and the other student serving as the checker. Students switch roles, after the reader reads the words, phrases, and sentences aloud to the checker.
Indicator 1M
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1m.
Materials include regular explicit instruction and modeling of word analysis strategies through teacher scripts and teacher modeling. Lessons include frequent instruction in phoneme/grapheme recognition, syllable types and syllabication strategies, and word part analysis. Student practice occurs in the context of teacher-guided lessons, in decodable text with teacher support, and using interactive digital games.
Materials contain frequent explicit instruction of word analysis strategies (e.g., phoneme/grapheme recognition, syllabication, morpheme analysis). For example:
In Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews open syllables and long vowels. The materials direct teachers to “Repeat with the words music and apron. Write the words on the board and guide students to break the words into syllables after the first vowel. Then have students identify which syllable is open and probably has a long vowel sound in it. Sound out each syllable together, then blend to read the whole word.”
In Unit 5, Module 2, Lesson 1, the teacher tells students that when they divide a long word into syllables, r-controlled spelling patterns stay together in a syllable. The teacher models syllabication of the following words: downpour, ignore, inform, orbit, roaring, seashore, swarming, uproar.
In Unit 8, Module 1, Lesson 2, the teacher introduces the phonograms -ace and -ice. The teacher tells students that the final e in the phonograms makes the vowel long, and the c makes an /s/ sound. The teacher uses the phonogram cards -ace, -ice, d, l, n, p, and r to model building and reading -ace and -ice words. The teacher builds a word, reads the word with students, and guides students to write the words in the air.
Materials contain frequent explicit instruction of word-solving strategies to decode unfamiliar words. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 2, Lesson 4, the teacher points out the word pride in the text When I Vote. The teacher points out that the number of vowels does not match the number of vowel sounds because of the way the silent e works in the word. The teacher models using the long i sound to decode the word pride.
In Unit 4, Module 3, Lesson 4, the teacher reviews that a “vowel team syllable is a syllable whose vowel sound is spelled with a vowel team” and models how to recognize the vowel team in the word charcoal, divide the word into syllables, and decode it. The teacher then guides students in practicing with additional words.
In Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 1, the teacher reminds students of strategies to read long words, including looking for familiar word parts, counting the number of vowels or vowel teams to determine the number of syllables, dividing the word into syllables, then reading and blending the syllables. The teacher models applying these strategies to read the word excitement.
Multiple and varied opportunities are provided over the course of the year for students to learn, practice, and apply word analysis strategies. For example:
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 4, students record the following words in their notebooks, then circle the base word and underline the suffix: wonderful, badly, enjoyment, fondness, colorless.
In Unit 7, Module 1, Lesson 2, students play the independent practice game Read and Spell Words with Consonant -le Syllables. During the game, students practice the following skills with consonant -le words: read, identify, and match words, choose the correct syllabication, record themselves reading words, and drag letters to spell words correctly.
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 2, students practice decoding words from left to right using the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet. The materials direct teachers to “Point out that when students see words with more than one syllable, they should first figure out where the word breaks into syllables, keeping in mind that there is one vowel sound in a syllable. Then, they should segment and blend each syllable and finally blend the syllables to read the word.” Students practice reading the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet in partner groups, with one partner being the reader and the other being the checker. Students then switch roles.
Criterion 1.3: Decoding Accuracy, Decoding Automaticity and Fluency
Materials include frequent opportunities for explicit instruction in the fluency elements of accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings using grade-level texts through lessons with shared readers and decodable texts. Materials also provide students with opportunities to hear modeled fluent reading of grade-level text by their teachers and daily practice to gain oral reading fluency. Lesson plans include fluency practice using Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheets, repeated readings of decodable texts, and interactive digital games focused on fluency. Materials include resources for teachers to support progress in oral reading fluency, including prompts for self-correction and detailed fluency routines with sample scripts and key points of instruction. Materials include lessons to support students in confirming or self-correcting errors in the Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines tab; however, these lessons are optional, so all students may not receive explicit instruction in confirming and/or self-correcting errors. Materials include support in self-correction in the context of student practice and routines and teacher scripts that emphasize reading for purpose and understanding.
Indicator 1O
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1o.
Materials include frequent opportunities for explicit instruction in the fluency elements of accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings using grade-level texts through lessons with shared readers and decodable texts. The materials also provide students with opportunities to hear modeled fluent reading of grade-level text by their teachers. The materials provide various resources for explicit instruction in fluency, including Shared readers and Decodable books in a variety of genres, within optional Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines, and through student videos the teacher assigns during independent work time.
Materials include opportunities for explicit, systematic instruction in fluency elements using grade-level text. For example:
RF.2.4.B Read grade-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.
In Unit 1, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher chooses a specific fluency skill (accuracy and self-correction, reading rate, phrasing, or intonation and stress) and explicitly teaches/models that skill using the mini-lesson from Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines. Because this mini-lesson is optional, all students may not receive this instruction.
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher models reading with appropriate intonation and expression using pages 4–6 from the grade-level text Louis Braille: A Man and His Method. Students then chorally read pages 7–8, following the teacher’s example.
In Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 5, the teacher begins reading aloud a page from Artic Life haltingly with poor pacing and little intonation. Then the teacher reads the paragraphs again with good expression and an even, steady rate. After reading, the teacher asks the students what made the second read sound better than the first. The teacher is to “Identify reasons why someone might read the paragraphs the first way (too many unfamiliar words, lengthy sentences, and so forth).” The teacher then reinforces that becoming a fluent reader comes by practicing the skills they have learned.
In Unit 7, Module 4, Lesson 2, the teacher begins reading aloud Our Classroom Folktale in a halting monotone or too quickly and inaccurately. The teacher tells students they will read a second time more fluently, adjusting their reading using appropriate rate and self-correcting errors. After reading, the teacher asks the students what made the second read sound better than the first. The teacher is to “Identify reasons why someone might read the paragraphs the first way, such as misreading unfamiliar words, ignoring punctuation cues, and reading too quickly.” The teacher then reinforces that becoming a fluent reader comes by practicing the skills they have learned.
Materials provide opportunities for students to hear fluent reading of grade-level. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 1, Lesson 1, the teacher models reading with appropriate intonation and expression as they read pages 4 and 5 of Dr. King’s Memorial to students.
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 3, the teacher models reading Louis Braille: a Man and His Method by chorally reading pages 12–14. The teacher models reading at a good rate and with expression while also pointing out words that follow the phonics skill for this week, vowel teams.
In Unit 5, Module 3, Lesson 3, the teacher models reading about the rules for food sharing at a good rate and with expression, as they read Let’s Share Lunch.
Materials include a variety of resources for explicit instruction in fluency. For example:
In Research and Rationale, the Fluency section states that the program contains Grade-level texts and Decodable books for modeling and practice of fluent reading in a variety of genres, including fiction, narrative nonfiction, informational text, poetry, and plays. It also states that the Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines provide explicit instructions for accuracy, self-correction, rate, and expression concepts.
Indicator 1P
Varied and frequent opportunities are built into the materials for students to engage in supported practice to gain oral reading fluency beginning in mid-Grade 1 and through Grade 2 (once accuracy is secure).
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 1p.
Materials include daily practice to gain oral reading fluency. Lesson plans include fluency practice using Words, Phrases, and Sentences Practice Sheets, repeated readings of decodable text, and interactive digital games focused on fluency. The materials include resources for teachers to support progress in oral reading fluency, including prompts for self-correction and detailed fluency routines with sample scripts and key points of instruction.
Varied, frequent opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to gain oral reading fluency. For example:
In Unit 2, Module 1, Lesson 2, students work with partners to read the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet. Partners chorally read the practice sheet, then take turns reading the sheet with automaticity in a one-minute timed read.
In Unit 5, Module 3, Lesson 2, students work in partner groups to read the Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet. Partners chorally read the practice sheet, then take turns reading the sheet with automaticity in a one-minute timed read. Students reread the sentences and change intonation based on the punctuation mark.
In Unit 8, Module 1, Lesson 3, students whisper read the decodable text Carmen’s Farm to the teacher, themselves, or a partner. The teacher listens to students read and prompts them to use their letter-sound knowledge as they read.
Materials contain opportunities for students to participate in repeated readings of a grade-level text to practice oral reading fluency. For example:
In Unit 3, Module 1, Lesson 4, students engage in a second read of the Decodable text Let’s Move. Students echo read the first page after the teacher, then whisper read the remainder of the text.
In Unit 6, Module 3, Lesson 4, students engage in a second read of the Decodable text Two Clever Birds. Students echo read the first page after the teacher, then whisper read the remainder of the text. Students engage in an additional one-minute timed rereading and record their words correct per minute on the Fluency Graph.
In Unit 7, Module 2, Lesson 3, students whisper read the Decodable text, Name that Landmark! The materials provide guidance to the teacher about how to monitor student reading through recording words correct per minute on a fluency graph. In Lesson 4, students echo read the same text while the teacher models good phrasing and expression, pointing out clues in the text that help readers understand how to do that.
Materials include guidance and feedback suggestions to the teacher for supporting students’ gains in oral reading fluency. For example:
In Fluency Mini Lessons and Routines, the materials provide teachers with Key Points of Instruction, modeling scripts, and student practice/application instructions for accuracy and self-correction, reading rate, phrasing, and intonation and stress.
In Fluency Mini Lessons and Routines, the materials provide teachers with step-by-step directions for routines to be used with individuals, groups, or the whole class, including echo reading, choral reading, repeated reading, partner reading, letter naming fluency, and reading with expression.
In Unit 1, Module 2, Lesson 4, the Teacher Tip in the Fluency section states, “Tracking words per minute is an indicator of students’ growth in automaticity, but do not let students think you are trying to get them to read faster. The increase in reading speed (as well as improvements in reading with expression) will happen with authentic reading practice, not with overt instruction or implied emphasis on reading fast.”
In Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 1, the materials provide an optional Focus on Fluency section and direct teachers to choose a specific fluency skill to work on with students. The directions for teachers note, “If needed, use the Fluency Rubric Table to evaluate students’ mastery of specific fluency skills before choosing a skill to focus on. Although each mini-lesson includes a section for practice and application, we recommend using only the teaching/modeling portion of the mini-lesson now. If you feel students need additional practice with that specific fluency skill, use the practice/apply section of the mini-lesson during small-group time.”
Indicator 1Q
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 partially meet the criteria for 1q.
Materials include lessons to support students in confirming or self-correcting errors in the Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines tab; however, these lessons are optional, so all students may not receive explicit instruction in confirming and/or self-correcting errors. The materials include support in self-correction in the context of student practice. The materials also include routines and teacher scripts that emphasize reading for purpose and understanding. The materials frame each module with a content question related to the module’s text. The materials emphasize setting a purpose for reading using the module question. The materials provide sample scripts for setting a reading purpose and sample comprehension questions for checking understanding.
Materials provide explicit lessons for the teacher in confirming and self-correcting errors in fluency; however, these lessons are optional and may not occur for all students. For example:
Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
In Fluency Mini-Lessons and Routines, the materials include a lesson on Accuracy and Self-Correction. The lesson includes instruction in making sure a word makes sense in context. The teacher models making errors while reading out loud and asking students to monitor and point out errors. The teacher then models correcting the error and rereads the text correctly. Because this mini-lesson is optional, all students may not receive this instruction.
In Unit 3, Module 1, Lesson 3, the materials include an optional Focus on Fluency section. This section includes a self-correction lesson that has key points of instruction and outlines teacher modeling procedures. Because this section is optional, all students may not receive this instruction.
Materials provide opportunities for students to practice using confirmation or self-correction of errors. For example:
In Unit 5, Module 2, Lesson 3, students whisper read the Decodable text Make a Difference. The teacher uses Self-Correction Strategies to guide students to self-correct as they read. The Self-Correction Strategies chart includes teacher prompts to guide self-correction in the areas of decoding, fixing language, and vocabulary. Prompts include having students ask themselves if their reading makes sense and sounds right and guiding students to use context clues to confirm or self-correct errors.
In Unit 5, Module 4, Lesson 3, students whisper read the Decodable text, Clare Races the Horse, while the teacher listens and prompts them to use their phonics and word study skills. As they read, students use self-correction strategies for decoding, fixing language, and vocabulary.
In Unit 7, Module 1, Lesson 4, students whisper read the Decodable text Games Around the World. The teacher uses Self-Correction Strategies to guide students to self-correct as they read. The Self-Correction Strategies chart includes teacher prompts to guide self-correction in the areas of decoding, fixing language, and vocabulary. Prompts include having students ask themselves if their reading makes sense and sounds right and guiding students to use context clues to confirm or self-correct errors.
Multiple opportunities are provided over the course of the year for students to read on-level texts (Grades 1-2) for purpose and understanding. For example:
Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews the module question “How does the government help people solve problems?” before echo-reading the first page of the grade-level text Dear Mr. Mayor. After reading, students discuss the problem and proposed solution in the text.
In Unit 8, Module 2, Lesson 4, students whisper read the Decodable text What Is a Totem Pole? The teacher leads a class discussion about the text to check understanding. The materials include four example discussion prompts for teacher use.
In Unit 8, Module 4, Lesson 2, students listen to the teacher reread the Decodable book Extreme Weather. They discuss why it might be important to read a book more than once, and the materials provide guidance to teachers, including “Ask students what made the second reading better than the first. Identify reasons why someone might read the paragraphs the first way, such as misreading unfamiliar words, ignoring punctuation cues, and reading too slowly or quickly. Reinforce with students fluent reading, like any skill, comes with practicing the skills they have learned.”
Overview of Gateway 2
Implementation, Support Materials & Assessment
Materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation through well-detailed lesson plans from pre-instruction to lesson videos to post-instruction. The online teacher resource contains detailed information and instructional routines that help the teacher to effectively implement all foundational skills content, with many supports found within the Professional Development library of videos. Materials contain lesson plans that utilize a research-based design for early literacy instruction. Materials contain a clear and evidence-based explanation for the expected hierarchy for teaching phonics skills, and the materials contain a phonics scope and sequence of instruction and practice based on the expected hierarchy. Materials contain jargon-free resources and processes to inform all stakeholders about foundational skills taught at home through Caregiver letters and online student data requested by the caregiver. Materials include a variety of decodable texts that contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence to ensure that students secure newly-taught phonics skills, and materials provide ample opportunities to review previously-taught phonics skills. Students also have opportunities to independently read decodable texts during the Independent Practice portion of the lesson. Materials include 32 decodable texts with high-frequency words that align with the program’s scope and sequence and provide students with multiple opportunities to encounter the words and the decodable texts. Materials include regular assessment opportunities in phonics in and out of context. Assessments include daily Observation checklists and digital practice interactivities, formative Unit Assessments, and summative Interim Assessments. Assessment of phonics in context is limited to Observation checklists and digital interactivities. Materials include regular assessment opportunities in word recognition and analysis. Materials provide opportunities to measure student progress in fluency, but they are informal and do not provide sufficient guidance to teachers about what to do with that information. Materials include standards correlation information within daily lessons and attached to specific questions, tasks, and assessments. Each lesson lists the standards addressed within it, and the games and Interactivities students complete during Independent Practice also include standards alignment information. Materials include some support for teaching ELL students. The materials provide general information in the Program Guide through the Frequently Asked Questions section, which outlines some best practices for different areas of foundational skills. Materials include extensive opportunities for reteaching and enrichment. These opportunities are structured in the materials in a recurring pattern, which includes Reteach opportunities at the end of each Base Day lesson, during Lesson 5 Stretch Days, and during Module 4 Unit Review weeks. The Foundations A-Z digital materials, which include teacher Lesson Plans, Professional Development, Resources, Student Progress reports, e-Books, and student games, are platform neutral and are compatible with multiple Internet browsers and operating systems. Materials support the effective use of technology and visual design to enhance student learning through eBooks, such as Shared readers, Decodable texts and Grade-level texts, and animated student games and videos. Materials also provide a customizable search of resources and lessons by Common Core State Standards and stand-alone state standards. The student-facing materials, both print and digital, contain clear and concise directions and appropriate guidelines when writing is expected. The students’ digital interactive learning videos, games, and assessments are well-organized and visually appealing and are designed to enhance student learning.
Criterion 2.1: Guidance for Implementation, Including Scope and Sequence
Materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation through well-detailed lesson plans from pre-instruction to lesson videos to post-instruction. The online teacher resource contains detailed information and instructional routines that help the teacher to effectively implement all foundational skills content, with many supports found within the Professional Development library of videos. The Professional Development library includes videos and detailed examples of grade-level foundational skills concepts to support teachers with developing and building their content knowledge. Materials contain lesson plans that utilize a research-based design for early literacy instruction. The pacing of each component of daily lesson plans is clear and appropriate and contains an outline with detailed sections of the lesson plan and times for each lesson plan section. Materials contain a clear and evidence-based explanation for the expected hierarchy for teaching phonics skills, and the materials contain a phonics scope and sequence of instruction and practice based on the expected hierarchy. Materials contain phonics instruction based on high utility patterns and/or common phonics generalizations. Materials contain jargon-free resources and processes to inform all stakeholders about foundational skills taught at home through Caregiver letters and online student data requested by the caregiver. Each unit includes Caregiver letters that provide stakeholders with strategies and activities for practicing foundational skills to support student progress toward and achievement of grade-level foundational skills standards.
Indicator 2A
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2a.
Materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation through well-detailed lesson plans from pre-instruction to lesson videos to post-instruction. The online teacher resource contains detailed information and instructional routines that help the teacher to effectively implement all foundational skills content, with many supports found within the Professional Development library of videos. Materials contain technology that provides support and guidance for the teacher.
Materials provide a well-defined, teacher resource (teacher edition, manual) for content presentation. For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use It?, materials provide a sample lesson plan with an outline of lesson steps that include step-by-step instruction and follows the gradual release model. The Lesson Steps include: Set the Stage, which prepares students for learning; Teach, which provides explicit instructions to teach and model foundational skills; Guided Practice, which provides students practice with skills taught in the Teach section; Independent Practice which provides digital experiences for students independent practice; Closure which brings students together again and ties in language connection and knowledge building; and Reteach and Enrichment, which allows for differentiated small group instruction based on student data.
In Lesson Plans, within the Lesson Plan section of the program, each unit contains a link to the scope and sequence for the grade level, the caregiver letter for each unit, and a link to professional development for concepts within the unit. There are tabs for the four modules within each lesson, that once you click on them, provide the five lessons within the module with videos for each lesson. The Lesson Plan section provides objectives, student objectives, pre-instruction, instruction, and post-instruction. The lesson plans provide a consistent format throughout all eight units.
The teacher resource contains detailed information and instructional routines that help the teacher to effectively implement all foundational skills content (i.e. phonological awareness, print concepts, letters, phonics, HFW, word analysis, decoding). For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use It?, materials include a section on how Foundations A-Z uses multimodal strategies. The resource lists instructional routines and what they consist of. Materials provide detailed instructional routines for the following: Handwriting routines, High-Frequency Word routines, Word-Building routines, Word Chaining, and Word Sort routines. For example, the Word-Building routine consists of students listening to a word and using bingo chips on sound mats as they say and count each sound in a word. Then students build the word by replacing the bingo chips with phoneme-grapheme cards, and finally, students read the word out loud.
In Professional Development, materials provide videos on instructional routines. Lesson plans also include links to the videos where applicable. For example, the Sight Words vs. HFW video in the Professional Development library provides a routine for all irregular high-frequency words: See it, Say it, Sound it, Spell it, and Write it. This video appears in Unit 8.
Any technology pieces included provide support and guidance for the teacher and do not create an additional layer of complication around the materials. For example:
In Guided Walkthroughs, materials provide a menu of teacher resources for web-based tools to assist teachers with adding, transferring, deleting students, and editing their student roster for web-based practice lessons and testing. Teachers can also customize their student groups and directions on assigning foundational skills practice lessons to students.
For each lesson, teachers can assign students independent work to practice and apply new concepts and skills using the digital resources, which may include videos, games, or reading resources.
In Unit 6, Module 2, Lesson 1, materials provide links to the resources needed throughout the lesson. For example, in the I Do portion of the lesson, the high-frequency words section includes directions and links to the High-frequency words flashcards, Five-sound box workmat, and Grapheme cards. In Unit 6, Module 2, materials also provide an Observational checklist. Teachers have the option to download or present the online resources.
Indicator 2B
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2b.
Materials contain complete, detailed adult-level explanations for foundational skills taught in the grade. The Professional Development library includes videos and detailed examples of grade-level foundational skills concepts to support teachers with developing and building their content knowledge.
Complete, detailed adult-level explanations are provided for each foundational skill taught at the grade level. For example:
In Professional Development, materials provide a library of videos for teachers on various foundational skills concepts with filters by grade level, resource type, and topic. There are four types of videos: Listen and Learn, Read the Research, Learn from Experts, and Put into Practice. For example, materials include A Put into Practice video on sight words versus high-frequency words. The video includes the following definition for high-frequency words, “Most commonly occurring words in printed text.”
In Unit 1, Module 3, materials provide a link for Professional Development which contains two videos: a Read the Research video on fluency and a Put into Practice video on prompting decoding. The Read the Research video answers the questions, “What is fluency?”; “How does it develop?”; and “Why is it important to teach?”
Each lesson within all units and modules provides teacher tips along the right side of the lesson plan. These tips are designed to deepen teacher understanding of the foundational skills being taught and provide examples to assist teachers with implementing that particular foundational skill. For example, in Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 3, the teacher tip includes grouping support for students during the phonics game for that lesson. The tip suggests pairing a struggling reader with a supportive and helpful student to help the struggling reader gain confidence with the game.
Detailed examples of the grade level foundational skill concepts are provided for the teacher. For example:
The Five Elements of Skilled Reading video defines the science of reading and its implications for reading instruction. The video discusses the large body of research conducted over the past several decades across many disciplines that tells us about how people learn to read, how the research has informed us about the cognitive processes and instructional approaches that best support children in becoming skilled readers, and how teachers can incorporate these approaches into their instruction.
In Unit 2, Module 2, materials provide a link for Professional Development which contains the Put into Practice: Six Syllable Types video. The video explains what syllables are and provides a chart with each of the six syllable types. The chart includes examples for each syllable type and explanations as to how vowel sounds are impacted for each syllable type. For example, closed- tug, ends in VC- short vowel sound and vowel team-goat, two vowels together-long or new vowel sound.
In Unit 4, Module 1, materials provide a link for Professional Development which contains the Put into Practice: Phoneme-Grapheme Mapping video. The video provides definitions for phonemes and graphemes, as well as what the concept of phoneme-grapheme mapping is. The word light is used as an example, breaking the word into three phonemes and its matching graphemes l-igh-t. The word send is also used to model phoneme-grapheme mapping by showing it has four sounds and four graphemes s-e-n-d.
Indicator 2C
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2c.
Materials contain lesson plans that utilize effective, research-based lesson plan design for early literacy instruction. The pacing of each component of daily lesson plans is clear and appropriate and contains an outline with detailed sections of the lesson plan and times for each lesson plan section. The program contains 160 lessons, can reasonably be completed in one school year, and should not require modifications to do so. The effective lesson design structure includes suggestions for both whole-group and small-group instruction.
Lesson plans utilize effective, research-based lesson plan design for early literacy instruction. For example:
In Research and Rationale, materials provide a Research Summary. The Research Summary begins by referencing Scarborough’s Rope, where in order to become a skillful reader, students must engage in both word recognition skills and language comprehension skills simultaneously. It states, “Word recognition requires decoding skills, including alphabet knowledge, phonological awareness, phoneme-grapheme associations and sight recognition.” In the Predictors of Reading Achievement section, it states, “When measured in preschool and kindergarten, foundational skills such as alphabetic knowledge and phonological awareness predict word recognition skills in the first and second grades (NICHD 2005, Storch and Whitehurst, 2002) when decoding is the major reading challenge.” The Research Summary also references the Simple View of Reading: “A similar view of skilled reading is evident in Simple View of Reading (1986), which suggests reading comprehension includes both decoding and language comprehension (see Figure F2). According to Gough and Tunmer, if either process breaks down, comprehension cannot occur: “In other words, in order for students to be skilled readers, it requires deliberate instruction to both sides of the equation: decoding (word reading)and understanding the nuances of spoken language (listening comprehension).”
In Research and Rationale, the Research Summary states, “Based on the scientific reading research and development by educators, the Foundations A-Z literacy program is unique in that it offers explicit, systematic foundational skills from kindergarten through grade 5.” The summary states that the program contains grade-level scope and sequences with a continuum of foundational skills which go from simple to more complex skills, starting at the alphabetic phase and ending with the polysyllabic and morphemic phase. It also states that the program and scope and sequence are aligned to both state and national standards.
Lesson plans follow a research-based design appropriate for early literacy instruction. For example, in Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 2, the lesson follows an I Do, We Do, You Do gradual release model, working from simple to complex skills. The beginning of the lesson connects to the module question related to characters in a text. The lesson then progresses to practice previously learned phonics skills -ck and -y spelling rules. The lesson then moves from the word level to sentence level reading and then finally text level reading. The lesson plan is finalized by asking students to write compound sentences related to the connected text for this lesson.
The effective lesson design structure includes both whole group and small group instruction. For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use It?, in Frequently Asked Questions, one of the recommendations provided for teachers with limited time in grades kindergarten through grade 2 is as follows: complete 30 minutes of whole group instruction four days a week, with independent practice assigned as homework and the Reteach and Enrich be used for small group instruction.
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use It?, in Frequently Asked Questions, one of the recommendations provided for teachers with limited time in grades kindergarten through grade 2 is as follows: complete the 10–15 minute Teach lesson in a whole group setting, followed by the 10–15 minutes of Guided Practice in a small group setting during reading center time, and use the 10–15 minutes of Independent Practice within center rotations.
The pacing of each component of daily lesson plans is clear and appropriate. For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use It?, materials provide a sample lesson plan with duration suggestions that list the total suggested time as 45–60 minutes for kindergarten through grade 3. This time includes 25–30 minutes for explicit instruction through Teach and Guided Practice, 10–15 minutes for independent practice, and 15 minutes for the optional lesson plan components found in Set the Stage, Closure, and Reteach and Enrich.
In Unit 5, Module 1, Lesson 1, the lesson plan provides an outline with detailed sections of the plan and times for each plan section. Instruction includes the following sections: Set the Stage (5 minutes) during which the model question is introduced and there is a preview of the Shared reader; I Do: Teach (15 minutes) which includes Phonics: decode words and Phonics: build words activities, and high-frequency words; We Do: Guided Practice (15 minutes) which includes a phonics and phonics and fluency activity; You Do: Independent Practice (15 minutes) which includes digital resources for students; Closure (5 minutes) which includes a language connection; and Reteach and Enrich (5 minutes for each).
The suggested amount of time and expectations for maximum student understanding of all foundational skill content (i.e. phonological awareness, print concepts, letters, phonics, HFW, word analysis, decoding) can reasonably be completed in one school year and should not require modifications. For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use It?, materials state that there are 160 lessons per grade level K–5, which includes 960 foundational skills lessons within the program.
In Lesson Plans, materials provide a Grade 2 Scope and Sequence. The scope and sequence includes the following foundational skills: phonics, high-frequency words/phonograms, fluency, word study/language connection, and handwriting (print and cursive). The scope and sequence provides detailed information for each foundational skill over the span of eight units, each of which includes three modules of lessons and Module 4, which includes a review of Modules 1–3 within the unit.
For those materials on the borderline (e.g. approximately 130 days on the low end or 200 days on the high end), evidence clearly explains how students would be able to master ALL the grade level standards within one school year. For example:
The materials do not fall on the borderline.
Indicator 2D
Indicator 2D.ii
Scope and sequence clearly delineate an intentional sequence in which phonics skills are to be taught, with a clear explanation for the order of the sequence.
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2d.ii.
Materials contain a clear and evidence-based explanation for the expected hierarchy for teaching phonics skills, and the materials contain a Grade 2 phonics scope and sequence of instruction and practice based on the expected hierarchy. The materials contain phonics instruction based on high utility patterns and/or common phonics generalizations. The patterns and generalizations are carefully selected to provide a meaningful and manageable number of phonics patterns and common generalizations for students to learn deeply, incorporating review and repetition.
Materials clearly delineate a scope and sequence with a cohesive, intentional sequence of phonics instruction and practice to build toward application of skills. For example:
The Grade 2 Scope and Sequence contains the following sequence for phonics in each unit for Modules 1–3, with Module 4 used for review:
Unit 1: CVC spelling pattern; jobs of the y; closed syllables; FLoSS rule; VCe spelling pattern; VCe syllable; consonant digraphs: ch variants, ck, ng, ph, sh, th, wh; consonant blends: s-blends, sk, sm, sn, sp, st, sw; r-blends br, cr, dr, fr, gr, pr, tr; l-blends bl, cl, fl, gl, pl, sl; blends: shr, squ, the, tw; final n-blends and other blends: ct, ft, ld, lk, lp, mp, nd, nk, nt, pt; final consonant blend with digraph nch and trigraph tch; closed syllables and VCe syllable; contractions: he’ll, she’ll, they’ll, we’ll, can’t, don’t, he’s, I’m, I’ve, she’s
Unit 2: inflectional endings es, s, d, ed; regular and irregular plural nouns and verbs; long vowel patterns that look like short vowel patterns: ild, ind, o, old, oll, olt, ost; spelling changes before inflectional endings; long vowels and open syllables; open syllables ending with y: by, dy, fy, ly, ny, py, sy, vy; inflectional endings ed, est; derivational suffixes ful, less, ly, ment, ness; contrast open and closed syllables; vowel digraphs and diphthongs; long a digraph ei; long e digraph ei; short e digraph ea; vowel team syllables; derivational suffixes ful, less, ly, ment, ness
Unit 3: consonant doubling, drop silent e rule, change y to i rule
Unit 4: variant vowel /o͞o/ and /yo͞o/: ew, oo, ou, u, ue, u_e, ui; variant vowel /o͝o/: oo, oul, u; read words with vowel teams and syllable types; variant vowel o: a, au, aw, augh, ough; read words with vowel teams syllable types; spellings for /f/ including gh; variant vowel /o͝o/: oo, oil, u; read words with vowel teams and syllable types; different spellings for the /y/ sound: eu, ew, i, u, y; s stands for /z/ between two vowels
Unit 5: r-controlled vowel sounds: /är/, /ûr/, /ôr/, /îr/; other spellings of r-controlled vowel sounds: air, are, eer, re, our, ure; spellings of /ôr/: ar, oar, or, ore, our; r-controlled syllable type; irregular plurals; change y to i before adding es; review syllable types: closed, open, VCe, vowel teams; r-controlled vowels; irregular plurals; change y to i before adding es
Unit 6: three-syllable words; multisyllabic words; three-syllable closed compound words; spellings that contains silent consonants: b in mb, gh in ght, h in gh, k in kn, n in mn, t in stle, w in wr; multiple spellings for final consonant sounds: /f/, /j/, /k/, /m/, /s/, /z/
Unit 7: consonant le spelling pattern: ble, cle, dle, gle, ple,tle, ze; consonant le syllable type; silent consonants in spelling: gh, gn, kn, wr, lf, lk, mb, mn, sc, wh, schwa and its spellings
Unit 8: hard and soft c and g- final soft g spelled dge, ge; final soft c spelled ce; review open and closed syllable types; review vowel team and r-controlled syllable types; review VCe and consonant le syllable types
The Grade 2 Scope and Sequence illustrates a simple to complex progression within phonics lessons in Unit 6. In Module 1, students work with three-syllable words; in Module 2, students work with multisyllabic words; and in Module 3, students work with three-syllable closed compound words.
Materials have a clear research-based explanation for the order of the phonics sequence. For example:
In Program Guide, Research and Rationale, materials provide their full Research Base. The Phonics section states, “To be effective, phonics instruction should follow a systematic scope and sequence, moving from simple to more complex skills. Scope refers to instructional content; sequence refers to the order in which letter-sound correspondences are taught Mesmer & Griffith (2005). The sequence should start with the correspondences with the greatest utility in making and reading words (Adams, 1990; Moats, 2009). It also states that high-frequency consonants such as /m/,/n/, and /are usually found at the onset of phonics instruction “... because they appear frequently in common words and are not prone to mispronunciation (Adams, 1990; Stahl et al., 2006). Short vowel sounds should follow high-use consonants, allowing students to segment and blend the sounds in simple CVC words such as mat. As students gain proficiency with more common phonics elements, they can move on to digraphs, inflectional endings, and long vowels (Moats, 2009).”
In Program Guide, Research and Rationale, the Phonics section states that within the Reading A-Z program, “The program progresses from simple phoneme-grapheme correspondence (sound spellings) to complex morphology and incorporates frequent regular spiral review and repetition. Instruction is explicit and cumulative and includes sample dialogue to teacher and model skills and concepts using research-based, multimodal instructional routines.”
In the Professional Development Library, the Phonics Read the Research article contains research from various cited evidence that supports the scope and sequence selected for Grade 2, emphasizing the simple to complex approach. An embedded video also explains practical strategies to support foundational skills that can be implemented immediately in the classroom.
Phonics instruction is based in high utility patterns and/or common phonics generalizations. For example:
In Lesson Plans, the Grade 2 Scope and Sequence provides the information for Unit 1. In Modules 1, 2, and 3, students work on closed syllables and VCe syllables.
In Unit 7, Module 1, instruction includes the high utility pattern of consonant -le spelling patterns with spelling patterns -ble, -cle, -dle, -fle, -gle, -kle, -tle, and -zle. In Lesson 1, students decode and build words with consonant -le. In Lesson 2, students decode words with the consonant -le syllable type. In Lesson 3, students decode and build words with consonant -le syllable type.
Patterns and generalizations are carefully selected to provide a meaningful and manageable number of phonics patterns and common generalizations for students to learn deeply. For example:
The Grade 2 Scope and Sequence includes information for inflectional endings taught and reviewed. In Unit 2, Module 1, students work on inflectional endings for plurals -es and -s, along with inflectional endings -d and -ed, as well as spelling changes before inflectional endings when doubling consonants and dropping silent e. In Unit 2, Module 2, students work with inflectional endings -ed, -ing, -er, and -est.
In Unit 5, Module 1, students learn about r-controlled vowel sounds /är/, /ûr/, /ôr/, /îr/ and r-controlled vowel spellings: air, are, eer, re, our, ure. In Module 2, students review the spelling of /ôr/: ar, oar, or, ore, our, as well as, r-controlled syllable types. In Module 3, students review closed, open, VCe, vowel teams, and r-controlled vowel syllable types.
Indicator 2E
Materials contain jargon-free resources and processes to inform all stakeholders about foundational skills taught at home through Caregiver letters and online student data requested by the caregiver. Each unit includes Caregiver letters that provide stakeholders with strategies and activities for practicing foundational skills to support student progress towards and achievement of grade level foundational skills standards.
Materials contain jargon-free resources and processes to inform all stakeholders about foundational skills taught at school.
In the Program Guide, How Do Caregivers Get Involved?, materials note that each unit includes a letter for caregivers. The letter explains what students will be learning and provides activities for caregivers to support student learning at home. The materials direct teachers to send a copy or email of the letter home at the beginning of each unit.
In the Program Guide, How Do Caregivers Get Involved?, the Send Information Home section states teachers can download student login letters for caregivers through a link on the Kids A-Z roster. The parent letter provides website resources for students with login information and how to register to receive student progress reports.
In Unit 3, the Caregiver letter contains a unit summary, an explanation of the module skills and connected texts, and caregiver tips for the unit. The Module Skills and Connected Texts portion of the letter contains the following for module 1, “Learn the prefixes un-, in-, re-, mis- dis- and non-, as in unlock, inform, reheat, dislike and nonstick. Read words with the phonograms, or word families, -ay and -ead, such as spray and bread.”
Materials provide stakeholders with strategies and activities for practicing phonological awareness, phonics and word recognition, fluency, and print concepts that will support students in progress towards and achievement of grade level foundational skills standards.
In the Program Guide, How Do Caregivers Get Involved?, Send Information Home, materials provide student login letters for caregivers through a link on the Kids A-Z roster. The parent letter advises parents that students can work at home through the website on online assignments or work on online practice activities for both reading and writing.
In Unit 7, Unit 7 Caregiver Letter, the Caregiver Tips for the Unit section contains suggestions in the following areas: Hear and recognize words that are made up of sounds, Look for and play games with patterns, Practice skills in connected texts, and Practice high-frequency words. The section includes the following suggestion for Look and play games with patterns: “Play a rhyming game sorting consonant-le words. Use words such as middle, fiddle, riddle, rattle, battle, settle, able, table and cable and have your child say words that rhyme. Have students look for words with consonant-le in books and around their community.”
Criterion 2.2: Decodable Texts
Materials include a variety of decodable texts that contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence to ensure that students secure newly-taught phonics skills, and materials provide ample opportunities to review previously-taught phonics skills. Students have opportunities to read decodable texts with the teacher and with the teacher’s support. Students also have opportunities to independently read decodable texts during the Independent Practice portion of the lesson. Materials include 32 decodable texts with high-frequency words that align with the program’s scope and sequence and provide students with multiple opportunities to encounter the words and the decodable texts. Each decodable book includes an Instructional Focus Chart highlighting the newly and previously taught high-frequency words.
Indicator 2F
Indicator 2F.i
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2f.i.
Materials include a variety of decodable texts that contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence to ensure that students secure newly-taught phonics skills and materials provide ample opportunities to review previously-taught phonics skills. Students have opportunities to read decodable texts with the teacher and with the teacher’s support. Students also have opportunities to independently read decodable texts during the Independent Practice portion of the lesson. Every fourth module in a unit includes a decodable text that includes most of the unit’s phonics elements to help secure phonics skills.
Materials include decodable texts to address securing phonics. For example:
In Unit 3, the materials include four decodable texts, one for each module within the unit. Module 4 includes the decodable text Movement Reshapes the Land, which reviews the unit’s phonics elements, including prefixes dis-, non-, and re-, inflectional and derivational suffixes, consonant doubling, dropping silent e, contractions, and the unit’s target phonograms.
In Unit 8, Module 2, Lesson 3, students read the decodable text Our Changing Earth, which includes the suffixes -able, -ish, -ar, -er, and -or, r-controlled and vowel team syllables, and the phonograms -edge and -idge.
Decodable texts contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 3, Lesson 3, students read the decodable text Leader for a Day, which includes final n-blends and other final blends, final consonant blends with trigraphs -nch and tch, initial three-letter blends, contractions, and phonograms -atch and -ing. These phonics skills match the Grade 2 Scope and Sequence for Unit 1, Module 3.
In Unit 6, Module 3, Lesson 3, students read the decodable text Strange Animals, which includes three-syllable words, closed compound words, and phonograms -in, -ip, and -it. These phonics skills match the Grade 2 Scope and Sequence for Unit 6, Module 3.
Materials include detailed lesson plans for repeated readings of decodable texts to address securing phonics skills. For example:
In Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 4, students engage in a second read of the decodable text Bear Gets Lots. The teacher connects the text to the day’s phonics lesson by drawing attention to the suffixes -less, -ness, -ful, -ly, and -ment and the phonograms -ack and -ick. The teacher reads the first page of the text with students and draws students’ attention to newly-taught phonics patterns. Students whisper read the rest of the book.
In Unit 5, Module 1, Lesson 4, students engage in a second read of the decodable text The Best I Can Be! The teacher connects the text to the day’s phonics lesson by drawing attention to bossy r patterns. The teacher reads the first page of the text with students and draws students’ attention to newly-taught phonics patterns. Students whisper read the rest of the book.
Indicator 2F.ii
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2f.ii.
Materials include 32 decodable texts with high-frequency words that align with the program’s scope and sequence and provide students with multiple opportunities to encounter the words and the decodable texts. Each decodable book includes an Instructional Focus Chart highlighting the newly and previously taught high-frequency words. Every fourth module in a unit includes a decodable text that includes most of the unit’s high-frequency words.
Materials include decodable texts that utilize high-frequency/irregularly spelled words. For example:
In Unit 4, the materials include four decodable texts, one for each module within the unit. Module 4 includes the decodable text The Fall Fair, which reviews the unit’s high-frequency words, including blue, book, draw, few, food, good, laugh, new, push, room, saw, school, soon, took, use(d), and water.
In Unit 7, the materials include four decodable texts, one for each module within the unit. Module 4 includes the decodable text Our Classroom Folktale, which reviews the unit’s high-frequency words, including about, across, again, along, around, away, enough, ever, never, people, song, sound, talk, together, upon, walk, and warm.
Decodable texts contain grade-level high-frequency/irregularly spelled words aligned to the program’s scope and sequence. For example:
In Unit 3, Module 1, Lesson 3, students read the decodable text Let’s Move, which includes the decodable high-frequency words point, tree, and wood and irregularly spelled words could, should, and would. These high-frequency words match the Grade 2 Scope and Sequence for Unit 3, Module 1.
In Unit 5, Module 2, Lesson 3, students read the decodable text Make a Difference, which includes the decodable high-frequency words after, number, and under and the irregularly spelled word friends. These high-frequency words match the Grade 2 Scope and Sequence for Unit 5, Module 2.
Materials include detailed lesson plans for repeated readings of decodable texts to address securing reading high-frequency words/irregularly spelled words in context. For example:
In Unit 1, Module 1, Lesson 4, students engage in a second read of the decodable text Why Do We Vote?, which includes the decodable high-frequency words car, every, spell, story, and year and irregularly spelled words carry and very. The teacher reads the first page of the text with students. Students whisper read the rest of the book.
In Unit 6, Module 3, Lesson 4, students engage in a second read of the decodable text Staying Alive, which includes the decodable high-frequency words almost and always and irregularly spelled words above, another, buy, guy, other, and two. The teacher reads the first page of the text with students. Students whisper read the rest of the book.
Criterion 2.3: Assessment and Differentiation
Materials include regular assessment opportunities in phonics in and out of context. Assessments include daily Observation checklists and digital practice interactivities, formative Unit Assessments, and summative Interim Assessments. Assessment of phonics in context is limited to Observation checklists and digital interactivities. Materials include regular assessment opportunities in word recognition and analysis. Scoring criteria provide teachers with information about students’ present performance levels and indicate which Reteach and/or Extend activities and lessons to use to help students progress toward mastery. Materials provide opportunities to measure student progress in fluency, but they are informal and do not provide sufficient guidance to teachers about what to do with that information. Materials direct teachers to encourage students to record their fluency progress over time on a fluency graph, but formal opportunities for fluency assessment by the teacher are limited. The Program Guide also includes a Fluency Rubric Table, but it is unclear when and how a teacher should use this tool. Materials include standards correlation information within daily lessons and attached to specific questions, tasks, and assessments. Each lesson lists the standards addressed within it, and the games and Interactivities students complete during Independent Practice also include standards alignment information. Each Unit and Interim Assessment includes a standards alignment document that details standards alignment at the item level. Materials include some support for teaching ELL students. The materials provide general information in the Program Guide through the Frequently Asked Questions section, which outlines some best practices for different areas of foundational skills. Within the lessons themselves, Teacher Tips to support ELL students are present in some lessons but are limited in regularity and frequency. The best practices outlined in the Program Guide are not consistently implemented by the materials in the body of the lessons. Materials include extensive opportunities for reteaching and enrichment. These opportunities are structured in the materials in a recurring pattern, which includes Reteach opportunities at the end of each Base Day lesson, during Lesson 5 Stretch Days, and during Module 4 Unit Review weeks. The materials instruct teachers to use formative assessment data to select appropriate reteaching lessons.
Indicator 2G
Indicator 2G.iii
Materials regularly and systematically offer assessment opportunities that measure student progress of phonics in- and out-of-context (as indicated by the program scope and sequence). (K-2)
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2g.iii.
Materials include regular assessment opportunities in phonics in and out of context. Assessments include daily Observation checklists and digital Practice Interactivities, formative Unit Assessments, and summative Interim Assessments. Scoring criteria provide teachers with information about students’ present performance levels and indicate which Reteach and/or Extend activities and lessons to use to help students progress toward mastery.
Materials provide resources and tools to collect ongoing data about students’ progress in phonics. For example:
Each lesson includes a daily Observation checklist linked to the lesson’s Check for Understanding. Observation checklists include observations of decoding and encoding tasks, both in isolation and in the context of phrases and sentences. For example, in Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 4, teachers collect observational data about how well students are progressing in reading words with the phonograms -unk and -ank.
Each lesson includes a game-style Interactivity in the Independent Practice portion of the lesson. These Interactivities function as student practice and as a formative assessment. Interactivities include decoding and encoding tasks that practice and assess newly-taught phonics skills. Interactivities include word-level phonics tasks and tasks that occur in the context of sentence and sentence building.
Materials offer assessment opportunities to determine students’ progress in phonics that are implemented systematically. For example:
In the Assessment Administration Guide, the materials describe how the Observation checklists, Practice Interactivities, Unit Assessments, and interim Assessments work together as a system to help teachers determine students’ progress and make instructional decisions.
In the Assessment Administration Guide, the materials indicate that teachers should use the formative Observation checklists and Practice Interactivities daily in the context of lessons.
In the Assessment Administration Guide, the materials indicate that the teacher should administer Unit Assessments eight times per year after each unit.
In the Assessment Administration Guide, the materials indicate that the teacher should administer the first Interim Assessment at the beginning of the year, the second Interim Assessment after Unit 4, and the third Interim Assessment after Unit 8.
Multiple assessment opportunities are provided regularly for students to demonstrate progress toward mastery and independence with phonics. For example:
Units 1–8 include a formative Unit Assessment. Unit Assessments include items that assess encoding words, decoding words, and decoding sentences and short passages in Units 1–8. For example, in Unit 1, Module 4, Lesson 5, the Unit Assessment includes questions related to differentiating between and decoding long and short vowel sounds in words, decoding words with CVCe spelling patterns, decoding words with various consonant patterns, and decoding words with contractions.
The program includes three Interim Assessments. The Interim Assessments include encoding words, decoding words, and decoding short passages. Interim assessments are taken three times a year—at the beginning of the year, the middle of the year, and the end of the year.
Assessment materials provide teachers and students with information about students’ current skills/level of understanding of phonics. For example:
In the Observation checklist, the teacher records observations of student practice. Teachers describe students as approaches, meets, or exceeds in specific skills.
Digital Interactivity games at the end of each lesson and digital Unit and Interim Assessments generate automatic formative assessment information. Student results are color coded. Red indicates a score of 0–69% correct and signals a reteach opportunity. Yellow indicates a score of 70–79% correct and signals a reinforce opportunity. Green indicates a score of 80–100% correct and signals an enrich opportunity.
In the Assessment Administration Guide, the Scoring and Reporting section details how the digital assessments provide data to teachers in multiple ways. The reports for the assignments, Unit Assessments, and Interim Assessments answer questions such as:
“How are students performing, and what are their domain-specific (foundational category) needs?
What misconceptions might students have based on their answers?
For each standard, did students make progress or show growth?”
Materials genuinely measure students’ progress to support teachers with instructional adjustments to help students make progress toward mastery in phonics. For example:
The program includes an option to assign auto-recommended resources. Based on formative assessment data, the program recommends independent practice activities tailored to individual students that teachers can choose to assign.
The materials indicate that daily Observation checklists should be used to inform instruction in the Reteach/Enrich portion of the lesson and to select lessons for the Lesson 5 “stretch day.” The “stretch day” lesson offers teachers a menu of review options, including both reteach and enrich options. Teachers also use Observation checklists to select target review activities for Module 4 of each unit, the unit review module.
Indicator 2G.iv
Materials regularly and systematically offer assessment opportunities that measure student progress of word recognition and analysis (as indicated by the program scope and sequence). (K-2)
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2g.iv.
Materials include regular assessment opportunities in word recognition and analysis. Assessments include daily Observation checklists and digital Practice Interactivities, formative Unit Assessments, and summative Interim Assessments. Scoring criteria provide teachers with information about students’ present performance levels and indicate which Reteach and/or Extend activities and lessons to use to help students progress toward mastery.
Materials regularly and systematically provide a variety of assessment opportunities over the course of the year to demonstrate students’ progress toward mastery and independence of word recognition (high-frequency words or irregularly spelled words) and analysis. For example:
Each lesson includes a daily Observation checklist linked to the lesson’s Check for Understanding. Observation checklists include word analysis skills and high-frequency words.
Each lesson includes game-style Interactivity in the Independent Practice portion of the lesson. These Interactivities function as student practice and as a formative assessment. Interactivities include reading and spelling high-frequency words, identifying and reading phonograms, contractions, identifying syllable types and reading words with those syllable types, reading two-syllable and three-syllable words, reading homophones and homographs, and identifying and reading words with base words and affixes.
Units 1–8 include a formative Unit Assessment. Unit Assessments include items that assess identifying word families in Units 1–8; identifying and analyzing contractions in Units 1 and 3; reading high-frequency words in Units 1–8; analyzing affixes and base words in Units 2–8; analyzing homophones and homonyms in Unit 6, and syllabication in Unit 8.
The program includes three Interim Assessments. Interim Assessment 3 includes reading high-frequency words, analyzing and reading words with prefixes and suffixes, and analyzing compound words.
In Unit 2, Module 4, Lesson 5, students take an online assessment that assesses the skills learned throughout the unit, including decoding words with inflectional endings, decoding words with vowel digraphs, and reading and spelling high-frequency words.
Assessment materials provide teachers and students with information concerning students’ current skills/level of understanding of word recognition and word analysis. For example:
In the Observation checklist, the teacher records observations of student practice. Teachers describe students as approaches, meets, or exceeds in specific skills.
Digital Interactivity games at the end of each lesson and digital Unit and Interim Assessments generate automatic formative assessment information. Student results are color coded. Red indicates a score of 0–69% correct and signals a reteach opportunity. Yellow indicates a score of 70–79% correct and signals a reinforcment opportunity. Green indicates a score of 80–100% correct and signals an enrichment opportunity.
In the Assessment Administration Guide, the materials instruct teachers on using Observation checklists and digital reports to determine instructional next steps. The materials state that teachers can use the information they collect on the Observation checklists “to prioritize reteach opportunities for struggling students and to plan enrichment opportunities for students who have exceeded expectations.” The digital reports help teachers answer the following questions:
“How did my students perform on the foundation standards in this program in each of the three interim assessments?
Which items are my students struggling with or performing well on?
Which standards do my students need more practice with based on each of the three interim assessments?
For each standard, did students make progress or show growth?”
Materials support teachers with instructional suggestions for assessment-based steps to help students to progress toward mastery in word recognition and word analysis. For example:
The program includes an option to assign auto-recommended resources. Based on formative assessment data, the program recommends independent practice activities tailored to individual students that teachers can choose to assign. Based on students’ performance on the unit assessment at the item level, the reports will auto-recommend “instructional recommendations to reteach important foundational skills that students are struggling with, reinforce student understanding to ensure progress, or enrich student learning by providing appropriate challenges to expand their skills.”
The materials indicate that daily Observation checklists should be used to inform instruction in the Reteach/Enrich portion of the lesson and to select lessons for the Lesson 5 “stretch day.” The “stretch day” lesson offers teachers a menu of review options, including both reteach and enrich options. Teachers also use Observation checklists to select target review activities for Module 4 of each unit, the unit review module.
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews the inflectional ending -ing and how to add that ending to the base word. Students then practice decoding the base word, adding the suffix back, and reading the word. While students practice, the teacher records observational data about students’ progress on the Observation checklist for this unit. Based on the observational data, the materials direct teachers to “Take more time as needed to review the rules on dropping the silent e and doubling the consonant. It may help to go back and write the original base word and model, taking away the letter e before adding -ing or doubling the consonant.”
Indicator 2G.v
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 partially meet the criteria for 2g.v.
Materials provide opportunities to measure student progress in fluency, but they are informal and do not provide sufficient guidance to teachers about what to do with that information. Materials direct teachers to encourage students to record their fluency progress over time on a fluency graph, but formal opportunities for fluency assessment by the teacher are limited. Each unit includes an Observation checklist for teachers to record observational data about the skills taught, including fluency skills. The Program Guide also includes a Fluency Rubric Table, but it is unclear when and how a teacher should use this tool.
Multiple assessment opportunities are provided regularly and systematically over the course of the year in core materials for students to demonstrate progress toward mastery and independence of fluency. For example:
Throughout each module, students have opportunities to monitor their fluency skills through repeated readings of a decodable text and recording their words correct per minute on a fluency graph. For example, in Unit 3, Module 1, Lesson 3, students whisper read the decodable text, Let’s Move. They then reread part of the text for one minute to the teacher or a partner and record their words correct per minute on their fluency graph.
In Unit 4, Module 2, Lesson 2, the Observation checklist includes the descriptor, “I can recognize and read words, phrases, and sentences with learned phonics patterns with phrasing and expression.” The teacher rates each student as “exceeds, meets, or approaches” while circulating and listening to students read the grade-level text Ancient Egypt.
In Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 3, students complete a fluency check. Students read the decodable text Strange Animals for one minute, then calculate and record the words read correctly per minute using the Fluency Graph. Students use the graph to record their fluency goal for the week. The materials include a suggested Words Correct Per Minute Chart with target goal ranges for fall, winter, and spring.
Each lesson includes a game-style Interactivity in the Independent Practice portion of the lesson. These Interactivities function as student practice and as a formative assessment. Interactivities include fluency tasks that ask students to record themselves reading aloud.
Assessment materials provide teachers and students with limited information about students' current skills/level of understanding of fluency. For example:
Each unit includes an Observation checklist that allows teachers to record observational data about the skills students are learning within the unit and make instructional decisions based on that. For example, in Unit 6, Module 1, Lesson 3, the teacher can record observational data about students’ ability to self-correct and reread to check for understanding.
Digital Interactivity games at the end of each lesson and digital Unit and Interim Assessments generate automatic formative assessment information. Student results are color coded. Red indicates a score of 0–69% correct and signals a reteach opportunity. Yellow indicates a score of 70–79% correct and signals a reinforce opportunity. Green indicates a score of 80–100% correct and signals an enrich opportunity.
In Unit Assessments, the Unit Assessments for Units 1–8 include a short passage for students to read aloud. The scoring criteria indicate that students should be able to “Read at least 30–80 words correctly per minute in grade-level material, with at least 92% correct and with appropriate expression.” The Unit 4 assessment does not include a scoring guide. The target words correct per minute in Units 5–6 is 50-100 and 70–130 in Unit 7. The Unit 8 assessment does not include a scoring guide. Administration directions instruct teachers to administer the items individually but do not instruct the teacher to time the passage reading. Administration directions do not give support for calculating accuracy or evaluating appropriate expression.
In Interim Assessments, all three assessments include two short passages for students to read aloud. The items are scored as “pass/fail.” The scoring criteria indicate, “Given a decodable connected text read in the spring, students will read at least 30–90 words correctly per minute with at least 92% correct and with appropriate expression.” Passages are 70–80 words in length. Administration directions instruct teachers to administer the items individually but do not instruct the teacher to time the passage reading. Administration directions do not give support for calculating accuracy or evaluating appropriate expression. Materials do not provide fluency benchmarks for the beginning and middle of the year.
Materials minimally support teachers with instructional adjustments to help students make progress toward mastery in fluency. For example:
In the Program Guide, Research and Rationale, Fluency, the materials indicate that teachers can use the Fluency Rubric Table to formatively assess students’ fluency progress and adjust instruction as necessary; however, it is unclear when and how this tool should be used.
In Unit 2, Module 2, Lesson 2, the Fluency Check for Understanding section instructs teachers to see the Reteach/Enrich section for follow-up activities if needed after scoring students using the Observation checklist. The Reteach directions instruct the teacher to echo read pages 6–8 of the lesson text The Five Brothers to help students read with purpose and understanding, pausing at the end of each page to summarize and confirm understanding. The Enrich directions instruct the teacher to write a series of more challenging words, phrases, and a sentence on the board, then ask students to read them with good phrasing and explain why they paused where they did while reading.
In Unit 7, Module 3, Lesson 4, the Fluency Check for Understanding section instructs teachers to see the Reteach/Enrich section for follow-up activities if needed after scoring students using the Observation checklist. The Reteach directions instruct the teacher to echo read the decodable text The Green Belt Movement with students, modeling self-correction strategies. The Enrich directions instruct the teacher to have students partner read the grade-level text Sled Dogs to the Rescue. Students choose one of the most exciting parts of the text and practice reading with expression to show how exciting it is.
Indicator 2H
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2h.
Materials include standards correlation information within daily lessons and attached to specific questions, tasks, and assessments. Each lesson lists the standards addressed within it, and the games and Interactivities students complete during Independent Practice also include standards alignment information. Each Unit and Interim Assessment includes a standards alignment document that details standards alignment at the item level.
Materials include denotations of the standards being assessed in the formative assessments. For example:
Digital Interactivity assessments include correlation for Common Core State Standards and state-specific standards.
In Assessments, Unit Assessments, all Unit Assessments contain a Standards Alignment for Unit Assessments document that cites the Common Core standard assessed for each item. For example, in the Unit 1 Assessment, students record a verbal response that correctly blends the sounds given, which aligns to standards RF.1.2b, “Orally produce single-syllable words by blending sounds (phonemes), including consonant blends” and Rf.1.3b, “Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words.”
In Unit 4, Module 3, Lesson 4, students play a game called “Correct Mistakes and Read Fluently” during Independent Practice. This interactive game is aligned to standards L.2.4a, RF.2.4a, RF.2.4b, and RF.2.4c.
Materials include denotations of standards being assessed in the summative assessments. For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use Foundations A-Z?, Assessments, the materials provide standards alignment documents for each interim assessment that details what standard each item on the assessment is aligned to.
In Interim Assessment 3, students answer a multiple-choice question about a short text, which aligns to standard Rf.2.41, “Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.”
Alignment documentation is provided for all tasks, questions, and assessment items. For example:
In the Program Guide, How Do Teachers Use Foundations A-Z?, Assessments, the materials provide standards alignments documents for each Unit Assessment and Interim Assessment that details what standard each item on the assessment is aligned to.
In the Independent Practice section of each lesson, students have various activities they can complete, like watching instructional videos related to the day’s lesson, playing interactive games, and reading decodable texts. Each of these activities includes standards correlation information.
Alignment documentation contains specific standards correlated to specific lessons. For example:
Each lesson contains a standards alignment box at the top of each lesson that lists the Common Core or state standards addressed in the lesson. For example, in Unit 8, Module 3, Lesson 1, the materials list the following standards: L.2.1f, L.2.2d, Rf.2.3c, RF.2.3e, and RF.2.3f.
Indicator 2I
Differentiation for Instruction: Materials provide teachers with strategies for meeting the needs of a range of learners so the content is accessible to all learners and supports them in meeting or exceeding grade-level standards.
Indicator 2I.i
Materials regularly provide all students, including those who read, write, speak, or listen in a language other than English with extensive opportunities for reteaching to meet or exceed grade-level standards.
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 partially meet the criteria for 2i.i.
Materials include some support for teaching ELL students. The materials provide general information in the Program Guide through the Frequently Asked Questions section, which outlines some best practices for different areas of foundational skills. Within the lessons themselves, Teacher Tips to support ELL students are present in some lessons but are limited in regularity and frequency. The best practices outlined in the Program Guide are not consistently implemented by the materials in the body of the lessons.
Materials provide some support for English Language Learner (ELL) students. For example:
Lessons sometimes include embedded ELL Tips for the teacher. For example, in Unit 8, Module 1, Lesson 1, a sidebar ELL Tip box indicates, “Provide vocabulary support as you decode soft c words. Use visuals and/or motions when possible to help convey word meanings. For example, show a penny when you say cent.”
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 1, the Teacher Tip box highlights the ELL tip, “The sounds represented by the blend nk include a very subtle /g/ sound. ELL students might need support pronouncing this blend. Demonstrate the difference between pronouncing the blend with and without the /g/ sound, using words such as bank and ink.
In Unit 5, Module 2, Lesson 1, the Teacher Tip box instructs teachers to “be aware that in Spanish, -es is added to nouns that end in y or any consonant to form plurals.”
General statements about ELL students or strategies are noted at the beginning of a unit or at one place in the Teacher Edition are then occasionally implemented by the materials throughout the lessons. For example:
In the Program Guide, Mindful Reading Teacher, Differentiating for English Language Learners, the materials provide background information, helpful resources organized by skills, and answers to frequently asked questions. The FAQ section includes strategies to differentiate the content, process, product, and environment for ELL students. The FAQ section also includes an overview of best practices and strategies for phonological awareness, phonics, high-frequency words, language skills, and fluency.
In Professional Development, the materials include five professional development videos related to ELL students, including two versions of “ELLs and Foundational Skills,” “Embracing Your Students’ Bilingualism,” “Explicit and Systematic Instruction,” and “Scaffolding Reading Instruction to Support ELLs.”
Indicator 2I.ii
Materials regularly provide all students, including those who read, write, speak, or listen below grade-level with extensive opportunities for reteaching to meet or exceed grade-level standards.
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2i.ii.
Materials include extensive opportunities for reteaching. These opportunities are structured in the materials in a recurring pattern, which includes Reteach opportunities at the end of each Base Day lesson, during Lesson 5 Stretch Days, and during Module 4 Unit Review weeks. The materials instruct teachers to use formative assessment data to select appropriate reteaching lessons. Additionally, teachers may assign suggested reteaching and review digital interactivities based on digital formative and summative assessments.
Materials provide opportunities for small group reteaching. For example:
In the Program Guide, Mindful Reading Teacher, Differentiating Below Grade Level, the materials outline a three-layer approach to small group reteaching for students needing additional support. The first layer occurs on Base Days (Modules 1–3, Lessons 1–4), in which the Reteach section includes instructions for small-group reteaching of lesson objectives. The second layer occurs on Stretch Days (Lesson 5 of Modules 1–3), where instruction is dedicated to reteaching or enrichment lessons based on student need. The third layer occurs in the Unit Review (Module 4 of each unit), during which the teacher reviews unit skills and concepts, with embedded opportunities for reteaching.
In Unit 1, Module 4, Lesson 1, the materials provide a phonics review during the We Do: Guided Practice section. A callout box indicates, “The teacher, with the help of students, applies the content of the concept being taught; may include think-alouds, whole group and small-group activities, checks for understanding, and formal evaluation.”
In Unit 2, Module 3, Lesson 3, the Reteach & Enrich section at the end of the lesson includes opportunities for reteaching the lesson’s skills in the areas of phonics, fluency, and language. The materials instruct teachers to select reteaching lessons based on observations made using the formative Observational Checklist.
Materials provide guidance to teachers for scaffolding and adapting lessons and activities to support students who read, write, speak, or listen below grade level in extensive opportunities to learn foundational skills at the grade-level standards. For example:
In the Program Guide, Lesson Plans, the materials indicate that every fourth module is a review week, which provides pause points for review and reteaching. The materials indicate that teachers choose the activities based on the needs of each student.
In Unit 3, Module 3, Lesson 2, the Reteach & Enrich section includes a five-minute check for understanding “for students who need additional instruction and practice to meet a learning objective or skill.”
In Unit 6, Module 4, Lesson 4, the Word Study section offers a Reteach Review option in which students review the homophones there/their and to/too/two. The lesson includes teacher review and a student practice sheet. The lesson includes corrective feedback support for students who struggle.
Indicator 2I.iii
Materials regularly provide extensions and/or more advanced opportunities for students who read, write, speak, or listen above grade-level.
The materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet the criteria for 2i.iii.
Materials include extensive opportunities for enrichment lessons. These opportunities are structured in the materials in a recurring pattern, which includes Enrich opportunities at the end of each Base Day lesson, during Lesson 5 Stretch Days, and during Module 4 Unit Review weeks. The materials instruct teachers to use formative assessment data to select appropriate enrichment lessons. Additionally, teachers may assign suggested enrichment digital interactivities based on digital formative and summative assessments.
Materials provide multiple opportunities for advanced students to investigate grade-level foundational skills at a greater depth. For example:
In the Program Guide, Mindful Reading Teacher, Differentiating Above Grade Level, the materials outline a three-layer approach to small group enrichment for students working above grade level. The first layer occurs on Base Days (Modules 1–3, Lessons 1–4), in which the Enrich section includes instructions for small-group extension of lesson objectives. The second layer occurs on Stretch Days (Lesson 5 of Modules 1–3), where instruction is dedicated to reteaching or enrichment lessons based on student need. The third layer occurs in the Unit Review (Module 4 of each unit), where the teacher reviews unit skills and concepts, with embedded opportunities for extension and enrichment.
In Unit 1, Module 3, Lesson 5, a stretch lesson dedicated to reteaching or enrichment activities, the materials provide enrichment opportunities embedded within the lesson, including “Have students draw two columns on their whiteboard for the phonograms discussed in this lesson. Ask them to work with a partner to write at least three more words for each word family. Remind them they can use two- and three-letter consonant blends to begin words.”
In Unit 8, Module 2, Lesson 1, the Reteach & Enrich section at the end of the lesson includes opportunities for extending the lesson’s skills in the areas of phonics and language. The materials instruct teachers to select enrichment lessons based on observations made using the formative Observational Checklist.
There are no instances of advanced students simply doing more assignments than their classmates. For example:
In the Program Guide, Lesson Plans, the materials indicate that every fourth module is a review week, which provides pause points for review and/or enrichment. The materials indicate that teachers choose the activities based on the needs of each student.
In Unit 3, Module 4, Lesson 2, the Word Study section includes an Enrich option in which students ask each other questions using a contraction, then the partner must answer with a sentence that uses a contraction. The teacher challenges the students to keep the conversation going as long as possible.
In Unit 8, Module 3, Lesson 1, the Post-Instruction section of the lesson contains short reteaching or enrichment opportunities based on the data the teacher has recorded on the Observation Checklist. Teachers can provide enrichment opportunities for phonics, fluency, high-frequency words, handwriting, and language connection.
Criterion 2.4: Effective Technology Use and Visual Design
The Foundations A-Z digital materials, which include teacher Lesson Plans, Professional Development, Resources, Student Progress reports, e-Books, and student games, are platform neutral and are compatible with multiple Internet browsers and operating systems. The PDF resources are also downloadable and printable from all devices, systems, and browsers. The Foundations A-Z materials support the effective use of technology and visual design to enhance student learning through eBooks, such as Shared readers, Decodable texts and Grade-level texts, and animated student games and videos. Materials allow customization of Independent Practice resources, such as videos, games, and reading resources, within each lesson. Materials allow teachers to customize their student rosters in Reports to review and manage both student practice and assessment data. The materials also provide a customizable search of resources and lessons by Common Core State Standards and stand-alone state standards. The print and digital materials are well-organized. Pages in the student books contain an easy-to-read font and size. The student-facing materials, both print and digital, contain clear and concise directions and appropriate guidelines when writing is expected. The students’ digital interactive learning videos, games, and assessments are well-organized and visually appealing and are designed to enhance student learning.
Indicator 2J
The Foundations A-Z digital materials, which include teacher Lesson Plans, Professional Development, Resources, Student Progress reports, e-Books, and student games, are platform neutral and are compatible with multiple Internet browsers. The digital materials are compatible with Windows, Amazon Fire tablet, and Apple iOS operating systems. The PDF resources are also downloadable and printable from all devices, systems, and browsers.
The Unit 1, Module 1, Lesson 3 video independent student practice, Flying High with The Jobs of E and Y, could be accessed and viewed on an iPhone device as well as a computer operating system.
The Lesson Plans for Unit 5, Module 3, Lesson 3 could be accessed and viewed along with all of the lesson point-of-use link-related materials on a laptop using a Microsoft Edge browser.
Families will need to download the free Kids A-Z mobile app on iTunes, Google Play, or Amazon App Store.
Indicator 2K
The Foundations A-Z materials support the effective use of technology and visual design to enhance student learning through eBooks, such as Shared readers, Decodable texts and Grade-level texts, and animated student games and videos. Additional student resources are also provided electronically, such as High-frequency word flash cards, Sentences, phrases, and word worksheets, and word sorts. The materials can be presented to students through point-of-use access in lesson plans or downloaded and contain tools for teachers such as full-screen features, pens, highlighters, and erasers for presentation.
The Unit 2 Grade-level text, The Five Brothers, can be displayed through the present view or downloaded for teacher use. The text contains colorful illustrations, and the text can be read clearly. The text can be downloaded and contains tools for teachers, such as full-screen features, pens, highlighters, and erasers for presentation.
In Unit 4, Module 4, Lesson 2, students review variant vowel sounds, apostrophes, and possessives through an instructional video.
All units contain High-frequency word flash cards. The Unit 7 projectable High-frequency word flash cards contain large black font high-frequency words for the unit, and the four irregularly spelled high-frequency words, again, enough, people, and together, have a heart in the upper right-hand corner for students to know they must remember those words by heart.
Indicator 2L
Materials allow customization of Independent Practice resources, such as videos, games, and reading resources, within each lesson. The teacher can assign these resources to all students or individual students in a class as needed for practice. Books assigned by the teacher for independent practice can be assigned to be listened to or read independently by students.
Independent Practice provided at the end of each lesson contains digital resources, such as videos, games, and reading resources, for practice and application of new skills. The teacher can assign these resources to all students or individual students in a class as needed for practice.
In Unit 3, Module 2, Lesson 3, the teacher can assign the following resources for independent student practice: a video and a game on contractions and the Decodable book Then and Now. Teachers can assign the book to be listened to or read independently by students.
Indicator 2M
The Foundations A-Z materials allow teachers to customize their student rosters in Reports to review and manage both student practice and assessment data. The materials also provide a customizable search of resources and lessons by Common Core State Standards and stand-alone state standards.
Materials provide a Guided Walkthroughs section, which allows teachers to add, import, transfer, delete and edit student rosters.
Materials may be customized through the Standards search feature. For example, users may search for Florida state standards, which differ from the Common Core State Standards, within the materials.
In Unit 6, Module 4, lesson 5, there is an auto-recommended resources option for reteaching, reinforcing, and enriching based on student data. Teachers use the “auto-recommend resources” button to show the student report and guide their instruction based on results.
Indicator 2N
The print and digital materials are well-organized. Pages in the student books contain an easy-to-read font and size. The use of color is not distracting but instead enhances the story. The student-facing materials, both print and digital, contain clear and concise directions and appropriate guidelines when writing is expected. The students’ digital interactive learning videos, games, and assessments are well-organized and visually appealing and are designed to enhance student learning.
The print Image Cards provide colorful illustrations, some with and others without words. When they include words, the words are in black print and contain phonics patterns. Unit 3, Module 1, Lesson 2 contains images beneath to match the following -ead and -ay words: bread, spray, hay, head, tray, thread. The -ead and -ay portions of the words are underlined.
The Words, phrases, and sentences practice sheet provided through point of use within lessons contains the following sections: New Words, New High-Frequency Words, Phrases, and Sentences. These sheets, which can be projected or downloaded, have dots separating the words to be read from left to right, and the phrases and sentences are listed one under another.
In Unit 5, Module 4, Lesson 5, the student assessment is well organized and grouped into two sections. Each question within the test is enclosed in a box that contains any resources (word, image, passage, etc.) needed to answer the question.
In Unit 5, Module 4, Lesson 1, student cursive writing paper contains guidelines to aid in handwriting practice using top line, dotted line, and bottom line. This handwriting paper is embedded into the explicit instruction of cursive writing for letters a, o, e, and c. The teacher models the strokes of the aforementioned letters on the board using the handwriting paper. Materials also include additional handwriting paper for each targeted letter that contains the scaffolded practice of tracing, connecting the dots, and writing independently. The handwriting papers also have the keyword and photo listed on the top of the page.