6th to 8th Grade - Gateway 2

The text quality and volume of reading in Inquiry by Design materials meet expectations for indicator 2a. The program includes well-crafted, content-rich, and engaging core texts across Grades 6–8. Students read a variety of literary and informational texts across subgenres, including novels, short stories, drama, poetry, articles, essays, memoirs, and speeches. Texts are selected for their connections to unit topics and themes as well as noteworthy elements of author’s craft, providing students with meaningful opportunities for close reading and analysis. Across grade levels, texts address age-appropriate topics and themes such as identity, human connection, resilience, justice, culture, power, and the ways information shapes society. The materials include both full texts and excerpts as well as short- and long-form texts, providing students with opportunities to engage with texts of varying lengths and formats. The materials also provide a rationale for selecting individual texts within each unit. Independent reading extends students’ engagement with unit topics through curated text lists that include varied authors and a range of reading levels. Students are expected to read regularly outside of class, complete at least one teacher-approved choice text per unit, and respond to and discuss their independent reading. While these structures offer some opportunities for teachers to monitor students’ independent reading, the materials lack a formal tracking system, specific guidance on providing feedback, or a proposed independent reading schedule.

• Materials include core/anchor texts that are well-crafted, content-rich, and engaging for students at their grade level. 

  • The Inquiry by Design curriculum for Grades 6-8 includes well-crafted, content-rich texts that provide a mix of literary and informational works across various subgenres. Literary texts include novels, short story, drama, and poetry, while informational texts encompass articles, essays, and speeches. The texts in the program present age-appropriate themes that engage students at each grade level. Texts are selected for their connection to unit topics and themes and noteworthy elements of author’s craft. These factors make texts worthy of student study, enhancing students’ comprehension and analytical skills.

    • Grade 6 materials include texts on heroes, human connection, the human experience, and determination, which will engage 6th-grade students. 

    • Grade 7 materials include texts on identity, resilience, justice, culture, community, and controversy, which will engage 7th-grade students. 

    • Grade 8 materials include texts on fashion, tricksters, justice, power, and the spread of information, which will engage 8th-grade students. 

  • Throughout the materials, texts are content-rich, well-crafted, and worthy of student analysis. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 3, students read Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose, which features indirect characterization, dramatic irony, rhetorical appeals, and character foils to develop the drama’s themes of justice and prejudice. 

Note: As part of this review, the publisher submitted documentation detailing text characteristics, including genre and subgenre classifications and counts of full texts, excerpts, long-form texts, and short-form texts. The information below is presented as contextual evidence only and is not factored into the overall score or rating.

• Materials reflect the balance of informational and literary texts required by the grade-level standards (55/45 in 6-8), including various subgenres. Materials include a range of full texts and excerpts (including long-form and short-form texts), depending on the materials’ stated purpose. (The information below is presented as contextual evidence only and is not factored into the overall score or rating.)

  • In Grade 6, materials reflect a balance of 58/42, informational to literary texts, which reflects the 55/45 balance required by the grade-level standards. 

    • The materials include 31 core texts, 18 informational and 13 literary. 

    • Texts include the following subgenres: short story, article, essay, novel, poetry, and speech. 

    • The materials include 29 full texts and two excerpts. 

    • The materials include 29 short-form texts and two long-form texts.

  • In Grade 7, materials reflect a balance of 55/45, informational to literary texts, which generally reflects the 55/45 balance required by the grade-level standards. 

    • The materials include 31 core texts, 17 informational and 14 literary.

    • Texts include the following subgenres: poetry, article, short story, memoir, essay, speech, and novel. 

    • The materials include 24 full texts and 7 excerpts. 

    • The materials include 29 short-form texts and two long-form texts.

  • In Grade 8, materials reflect a balance of 47/53, informational to literary texts, which somewhat reflects the 55/45 balance required by the grade-level standards. 

    • The materials include 34 core texts, 16 informational and 18 literary. 

    • Texts include the following subgenres: poetry, article, short story, essay, drama, and novel. 

    • The materials include 25 full texts and nine excerpts. 

    • The materials include 32 short-form texts and two long-form texts.

  • The publisher provides a clear rationale for selecting each text for each unit.

  • Note: As part of this review, the publisher submitted documentation outlining text characteristics, including genre and subgenre designations and counts of full texts, excerpts, long-form texts, and short-form texts.

• Materials include some teacher guidance (e.g., monitoring and feedback) and limited or no student accountability structures for independent reading (e.g., independent reading procedures, proposed schedule, tracking system for independent reading). (The information below is presented as contextual evidence only and is not factored into the overall score or rating.)

  • The Program Guide establishes expectations that students read for at least 20 minutes outside of class each day and complete at least one teacher-approved choice text during each unit. Although independent reading is not incorporated into the program’s 45-minute lesson plans, teachers may provide independent reading time during longer class periods or allow students who finish other work early to read independently. Each unit includes a Student Independent Reading Guide with a curated list of texts aligned with the unit topic and spanning a range of reading levels to support teachers and students in selecting appropriate texts. Independent reading questions provide a structure for students to respond to their reading, and students have multiple opportunities throughout each unit to discuss their independent reading, allowing teachers to monitor students’ reading and understanding. The Program Guide says to “Track independent reading and personal learning goals” in their notebooks, but there is no specific tracking system or guidance for teachers to give students feedback on them.

  • Each Teacher Guide Appendix includes an Independent Guidance section that provides additional guidance for implementing independent reading within the unit. This includes a curated Text List aligned with the unit’s topic, themes, and essential questions, featuring texts by diverse authors at varying levels. Teachers are encouraged to consider district policies and individual student needs when recommending texts and approving students’ independent reading selections. Independent reading is also periodically incorporated into unit lessons through discussions, writing assignments, and skill practice, allowing students to make connections between their independent reading and core instruction. The guide provides student-facing questions that students can respond to in writing or in discussion, supporting accountability and giving teachers opportunities to monitor students’ reading and understanding. 

    • Each unit includes a Student Independent Reading Guide that lists the texts students should choose for Independent Reading in that unit and the Independent Reading Questions to consider during and after reading. 

  • The materials do not provide a proposed schedule for independent reading. However, independent reading is periodically incorporated into core instruction, with students prompted to make connections between their independent reading and unit texts, topics, and skills through discussions, writing assignments, and other lesson activities. These connections reinforce independent reading as an ongoing component of the program.

The text complexity analysis in the Inquiry by Design materials meets expectations for indicator 2b. The program provides quantitative and qualitative information on text complexity and rationales explaining the educational purpose and grade-level placement of core texts. For each unit, teachers can access Text Rationales that explain each text’s educational purpose and reason for placement at the grade level and address reader and task considerations, including the knowledge and skills developed through the text, connections to other texts, reading format, and associated tasks, potential challenges, and background knowledge considerations. Unit Overviews in Teacher Guides identify the Lexile level of each applicable text, while Qualitative Measures documents analyze texts according to text structure, language features, meaning, and knowledge demands and provide explanations for each rating. Across Grades 6–8, the program includes texts spanning a range of quantitative and qualitative complexity levels, including texts below, within, and above the grade-band Lexile ranges as well as non-prose texts or texts without Lexile measures. Qualitatively, most texts are rated as slightly or moderately complex, with students also encountering very complex texts across all three grades and one exceedingly complex text in Grade 8. Considered alongside the grade-appropriate tasks associated with the texts, the quantitative and qualitative analyses support the appropriateness of the program’s core texts for their respective grade levels.

• Accurate text complexity analysis and a rationale for educational purpose and placement in the grade level accompany core/Anchor texts and a series of texts connected to them.

  • For each unit, the materials include a Text Rationales document, which teachers can access at each unit’s  Teacher Resources section of the Digital Resource Hub. These documents include an explanation of each text’s educational purpose, reason for placement at the grade level, and information about reader and task considerations. For Reader and Task considerations, the document explains the knowledge and skills gained from the text, text connections, and reading format, tasks, likely challenges, and background knowledge considerations. 

• According to quantitative and qualitative analysis and their relationship to the associated student task, core/anchor texts have the appropriate level of complexity for the grade.

  • Anchor texts have the appropriate level of complexity based on their text complexity analysis and the associated reader and task. The materials provide each text’s Lexile level in the Unit Text List, which is included in the Unit Overview of each Teacher Guide. For each text, the materials include a Qualitative Measures document, which teachers can access in each unit’s Teacher Resources section of the Digital Resource Hub. This document shows where each text falls on the qualitative complexity rubric across the following categories: text structure, language features, meaning, and knowledge demands, and includes a publisher explanation for each score. Throughout the program, tasks are appropriate for each grade level. 

  • Note: For this review and norming to other reviews, the publisher submitted qualitative information on levels of meaning/purpose, text structure, language conventionality and clarity, and knowledge demands for each text. 

    • Grade 6

      • Quantitatively: Texts range from 420L-1290L

        • Six texts are below the Lexile range for the grade band

        • 19 texts are in the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Three texts are above the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Three texts are Non-Prose (NP) or do not have a Lexile, given their format

      • Qualitatively: Eight texts are slightly complex, 18 texts are moderately complex, five texts are very complex, and zero texts are exceedingly complex. 

    • Grade 7

      • Quantitatively: Texts range from 530L-1410L

        • Four texts are below the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Nine texts are in the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Ten texts are above the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Eight texts are Non-Prose (NP) or do not have a Lexile, given their format

      • Qualitatively: 14 texts are slightly complex, 14 texts are moderately complex, four texts are very complex, and zero texts are exceedingly complex. 

    • Grade 8

      • Quantitatively: Texts range from 820L-1570L 

        • Six texts are below the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Ten texts are in the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Nine texts are above the Lexile range for the grade band

        • Nine texts are Non-Prose (NP) or do not have a Lexile, given their format

      • Qualitatively: Nine texts are slightly complex, 18 texts are moderately complex, six texts are very complex, and one text is exceedingly complex. 

The text set organization in the Inquiry by Design materials meets expectations for indicator 2d. The program includes grade-appropriate text sets organized around cohesive topics and themes that support knowledge building across Grades 6–8. Each grade level has an overarching focus, with five units exploring different facets of that focus through literary and informational texts across multiple genres. Each unit is organized around three essential questions that connect texts and instructional tasks, providing opportunities for students to develop and deepen their understanding of the unit topic over an extended period. Text sets address knowledge strands across disciplines, including history, science and technology, the arts, literature, and social issues, exposing students to content knowledge, academic vocabulary, and complex texts. These knowledge strands are revisited across units and grade levels to support cumulative knowledge-building and cross-disciplinary connections. Within each unit, Reading, Writing, Discussion, and Research lessons build on one another, providing opportunities for students to explore different facets of the topic, analyze texts, synthesize information, and apply their learning. Students develop knowledge statements based on their reading and revisit these statements alongside the unit’s essential questions through cross-text discussions, writing, and research. Independent reading and culminating assessments provide additional opportunities to extend and synthesize knowledge. Together, the organization and sequencing of texts and tasks support students in developing a deeper understanding of unit topics and in making connections across texts and disciplines.

• Text sets are organized around a grade-appropriate, tightly-connected topic or theme. 

  • Each Inquiry by Design unit is organized by a grade-appropriate topic/theme and three essential questions. Each grade level consists of five units, with each unit including several texts across several genres. For each grade level, two units are short-text units, one is a graphic novel unit, one is a novel study unit, and one is a research unit. Each unit includes nine lesson types, and each type indicates the lesson's main instructional focus. Lesson Types include: Unit Introduction, Reading, Writing, Discussion, Research, Mid-Unit Assessment, Mid-Unit Extension, End-of-Unit Assessment, and End-of-Unit Extension. All lessons build on each other and are connected to the unit’s topic or theme. Each year has an overall topic focus, with units that encompass a facet of that topic. Unit titles, essential questions, writing genres, and knowledge strands are listed below. 

    • Grade 6:  Storytelling

      • Unit 1: Everyday Epic

        • Essential Questions: What are the essential traits of a hero? How do storytellers portray acts of heroism? How can experiences cultivate heroes?

        • Writing Genre: Argument

        • Knowledge Strands: Society and Identity, Art and Aesthetics

      • Unit 2: Stories that Shape Us

        • Essential Questions: How do stories change behaviors? How do stories build cultural connections? What do stories teach us about ourselves?

        • Writing Genre: Narrative

        • Knowledge Strands: Art and Aesthetics, Health and Human Development

      • Unit 3: Wired for Connection

        • Essential Questions: How do other people’s stories expand our world? What role does innovation have in our stories? How does technology help us overcome challenges?

        • Writing Genre: Informative

        • Knowledge Strands: Science and Technology, Health and Human Development

      • Unit 4: Strength in Our Stories

        • Essential Questions: How does the purpose for sharing a story or message shape the way we tell it? How do family bonds influence us? How can responses to tragedy inspire us?

        • Writing Genre: Informative

        • Knowledge Strands: Conflict and Change, Society and Identity

      • Unit 5: Upstanders and Trailblazers

        • Essential Questions: How can we learn from upstanders and trailblazers? How can we use storytelling to encourage others to care about social issues? Why is it important to understand multiple perspectives of an issue?

        • Writing Genre: Argument

        • Knowledge Strands: Environment and Sustainability, Civics and Governance

    • Grade 7: Identity

      • Unit 1: Against All Odds

        • Essential Questions: What influences the choices we make? How do limitations affect the choices we make? How do our choices shape our identity? 

        • Writing Genre:  Narrative

        • Knowledge Strands: Society and Identity, Health and Human Development

      • Unit 2: Shared Voices Shaping Policy

        • Essential Questions: Why does accessibility matter for society? How do individuals create change? How do public perceptions and policies impact the lives of individuals with disabilities?

        • Writing Genre: Informative

        • Knowledge Strands: Civics and Governance, Society and Identity 

      • Unit 3: The Masks We Wear

        • Essential Questions: Why do we embrace or transform parts of our identity? How do our relationships with others affect our identity? How do media and popular culture shape our sense of self?

        • Writing Genre: Argument

        • Knowledge Strands: Society and Identity, Conflict and Change

      • Unit 4: Woven from Story

        • Essential Questions: What impact do the stories we tell have on our identity? How do we build resilience? How do we honor our roots and explore new communities? 

        • Writing Genre: Informative

        • Knowledge Strands: Health and Human Development, Conflict and Change

      • Unit 5: Artists, Athletes, and Gamers

        • Essential Questions: How can research influence an argument? How do our arguments reveal aspects of our identity? How can research change how we think about our hobbies and interests?

        • Writing Genre: Argument

        • Knowledge Strands: Economics and Opportunity, Science and Technology

    • Grade 8:  Trust

      • Unit 1: In Brands We Trust

        • Essential Questions: What does it mean for a company or consumer to be ethical? Why is trust important when it comes to sustainability? What are the greater impacts of our consumption habits?

        • Writing Genre: Argument

        • Knowledge Strands: Environment and Sustainability, Economics and Opportunity 

      • Unit 2: Mischief Makers

        • Essential Questions: What makes a trickster a trickster? How do tricksters use trust and deception? What can we learn from trickster tales?

        • Writing Genre: Narrative

        • Knowledge Strands: Art and Aesthetics, Conflict and Change

      • Unit 3: Fragments of Truth

        • Essential Questions: What factors contribute to justice? How does a jury strengthen trust in the justice system? Why is the presumption of innocence essential to a fair trial?

        • Writing Genre: Informative

        • Knowledge Strands: Civics and Governance, Conflict and Change

      • Unit 4: Burning Questions About Power

        • Essential Questions: What do dystopian settings say about society and trust? What are the consequences of prioritizing convenience and instant gratification? Why is it important to preserve and pursue knowledge?

        • Writing Genre: Argument

        • Knowledge Strands: Science and Technology, Civics and Governance 

      • Unit 5: The Past, Present, and Future of Information

        • Essential Questions: How can skepticism be beneficial or harmful when engaging with information? How does innovation impact the spread of information? What role do ethics and trust play in informative sharing?

        • Writing Genre: Informative

        • Knowledge Strands: Conflict and Change, Science and Technology

• Text set organization provides opportunities for students to address facets of the same topic or theme over an extended period (e.g., a unit, module), enabling the development of deeper knowledge. Text sets cohesively build knowledge across various topics in social studies (including history), science, the arts, and literature, exposing students to academic vocabulary, content knowledge, and complex syntax.

  • Each unit in the program is organized around a unit title and Essential Questions that guide learning and connect all instructional tasks. The program is built around Knowledge Strands. The Program Guide explains that students revisit the program’s knowledge strands multiple times across Grades 6–8 through different unit topics, genres, activities, and tasks. These strands are explored through varied contexts, including literature, history, science and technology, media, and social issues, allowing students to examine related ideas from different perspectives. According to the Program Guide, intentionally revisiting and expanding these strands across units and grade levels supports students in building cumulative knowledge, strengthening academic vocabulary, making connections across disciplines and time, and developing a deeper comprehension of increasingly complex texts. 

  • The Program Guide explains that each unit is organized around meaningful, knowledge-rich topics, with several instructional anchor points designed to support students in building and deepening knowledge across texts and lessons. Each unit includes three essential questions that encourage students to draw on prior knowledge, explore complex ideas, and refine their thinking as they encounter new information. Reading lessons include learning purposes that connect individual texts to the unit’s essential questions and emphasize the relationship between literacy skills and content knowledge. As students read, discuss, write, and research, they develop knowledge statements that capture key understandings from each text and can be applied beyond the individual reading. Students compare their own collaboratively developed knowledge statements with teacher-provided statements, providing opportunities to refine their understanding. Essential questions and knowledge statements are revisited through cross-text discussions, research, and writing, allowing students to make connections across texts and develop a deeper understanding of the unit topic over time. Independent reading and End-of-Unit Assessments provide additional opportunities for students to extend, synthesize, and reflect on their developing knowledge. The Program Guide also explains that each unit is designed as a cohesive learning sequence in which different lesson types build on one another to support knowledge building, literacy skill development, and application of learning. Introduction lessons establish the unit topic and essential questions, while Reading lessons develop students’ knowledge and comprehension through engagement with complex texts. Writing lessons provide opportunities to study mentor texts and apply writing skills, Discussion lessons support the synthesis of ideas across texts and sources, and Research lessons develop skills in preparation for an extended research project. Mid-Unit Assessments and Extension lessons monitor student progress and provide targeted support or enrichment, while End-of-Unit Assessments and Extensions allow students to demonstrate and apply their learning. The Program Guide also emphasizes that lessons have clear instructional purposes and use consistent routines to build student independence. Students make connections across unit texts, research, and independent reading to develop knowledge over time. Embedded formative assessments enable teachers to monitor understanding and provide feedback, while alignment between daily instruction and unit assessments prepares students to demonstrate their learning through meaningful tasks connected to authentic purposes and audiences. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 1, students study the unit In Brands We Trust with the essential questions, “What does it mean for a company or consumer to be ethical? Why is trust important when it comes to sustainability? What are the greater impacts of our consumption habits?” Through various lesson types, including reading, writing, and discussion lessons, students examine the fashion industry and its global impact. Through a collection of poetry and nonfiction texts, students explore the environment and personal impacts of overconsumption. Throughout the unit, students also consider ethics and sustainability. At the end of the unit, they draft a longer argumentative piece in which they present a claim about who is responsible for increasing sustainability in the fashion industry.

The questions, tasks, and assignments in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2g. The materials provide frequent opportunities for students to make meaning of texts through text-based questions and tasks that require responses in varied formats, including annotation, discussion, and writing. Throughout Reading lessons, students engage closely with texts by taking notes, discussing ideas with peers, responding to questions, and writing about their understanding using textual evidence. Students also closely read and reread complex portions of texts to deepen their analysis by examining important words and phrases, considering text structure and author’s craft, tracing the development of ideas, and gathering supporting evidence. Across lessons, students engage in collaborative discussions, partner activities, independent analysis, and text-based written responses. 

• Materials provide opportunities to support students in making meaning of the texts being studied through text-based questions and tasks that require students to answer in varying formats (e.g., speaking, writing, etc.). 

  • Throughout the Inquiry by Design program, materials include different types of lessons, such as Reading, Discussion, and Writing. During Reading lessons, students engage with the text by annotating, discussing, and sometimes writing short responses. This supports students in making meaning of the texts being studied. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 3, Lesson 6, students read pages 41-84 of American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang. As students read, they take notes on “the plot and impact of words and images.” After reading, students participate in a turn and talk on the question “What text evidence suggests Danny feels differently than his mother bout Chin-Kee’s arrival?” In the next portion of the lesson, students read pages 53-84 independently. As they read, they annotate, analyzing “how Yang develops and differentiates different characters’ perspectives toward identity.” In the next part of the lesson, students participate in a Think-write-pair-share activity where they answer the question “How do Yang’s illustrations convey a contrast in how the Monkey King sees himself and how Tze-Yo-Tzuh perceives him?” Afterward, students share with the whole class. At the end of the lesson, the teacher leads students in the wrap-up. At the end of this wrap-up, teachers ask the closing question: “Who do you think acts more pretentious when they first meet: the Monkey King or the Dragon King? Why?” 

• Materials include text-based questions and tasks that require students to closely read and/or re-read complex parts of texts to deepen their analysis and understanding. 

  • During Reading lessons in the program, students have opportunities to return to complex sections of the text, explore important words and phrases, consider how the text is organized and the author’s choices, follow how ideas develop, and collect supporting evidence across repeated readings.

    • In Grade 8, Unit 4, Lesson 22, students read pages 83-92 of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. During the Try section of the lesson, students read independently and take notes to “analyze the impact of dramatic irony.”Afterward, students work in pairs to respond to questions. These questions require students to reread specific sections of the text to deepen their understanding. The questions are: 

      • “How do the parlor wall scenes on pages 84-85 create dramatic irony?

      • How does Clara’s reaction to Montag’s reading of ‘Dover Beach’ impact the mood?

      • How does the dialogue from Faber impact the mood of the scene?”

    After reading and re-reading with partners, students write a response to the question “How does the use of dramatic irony help to develop the theme?” They must use their notes to reference details from the text in their responses. 

The analysis opportunities in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2h. The materials provide opportunities for students to analyze key ideas and details, craft and structure, and the integration of knowledge and ideas within individual texts and across multiple texts. Throughout Reading lessons, students closely examine texts to identify and analyze key ideas, themes, and supporting details, considering how these elements contribute to meaning. Students also analyze authors’ choices related to craft and structure, including point of view, language, and text organization, to deepen their understanding of texts. Additionally, students engage in tasks that require them to integrate knowledge and ideas within and across texts, including comparing how different texts and media present information and develop ideas. Across units, students apply these analytical skills to multiple texts through close reading, annotation, collaborative discussion, and text-based written responses, allowing them to make connections, synthesize information, and deepen their understanding of texts and topics. 

• Materials provide opportunities for students to analyze key ideas and details (according to grade-level standards) within individual texts and across multiple texts to support students in making meaning.

  • In each unit, students have opportunities to analyze key ideas and details within texts through Reading lessons. In each unit, students have opportunities to analyze key ideas and details across texts. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 4, Lesson 6, students read pages 39-57 of Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri. In the Try section of the lesson, students independently read pages 48-57 and take notes on “how Nayeri introduces a theme.” After reading, students engage in a Think-pair-share where they discuss the question “What theme is introduced by Nayeri’s choice to place the memory of the river next to the reflection on immigrating to America?” 

• Materials provide opportunities for students to analyze craft and structure (according to grade-level standards) within individual texts and across multiple texts to support students in making meaning.

  • In each unit, students have opportunities to analyze craft and structure within texts through Reading lessons. In each unit, students have opportunities to analyze craft and structure across texts. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 1, students read paragraphs 22-51 of “Reina Madrid” by RJ Palacio. In the Try section of the lesson, students read paragraphs 24-51 in small groups as they “question the author” and “pay particular attention to the narrator’s point of view in their questioning.” After reading, students write a response to the question “How does the narrative point of view in paragraphs 45-50 help the reader understand Reina’s and her mother’s relationship?”

• Materials provide opportunities for students to analyze the integration of knowledge and ideas (according to grade-level standards) within individual texts and across multiple texts to support students in deepening their understanding on a topic.

  • In each unit, students have opportunities to analyze the integration of knowledge and ideas within and across texts through Reading Lessons.

    • In Grade 8, Unit 1, Lesson 15, students re-consider the text they read in the previous lesson, “Fast Fashion and the Uyghur Genocide” by the US House Select Committee, and re-watch the video “Are Shein and Temu ‘problematic’ due to forced labor?” In the Try section of the lesson, students revisit their notes on the text from the previous lesson, this time considering “how the report presents information.” Then, students rewatch the video they watched for the first time in the previous lesson. This time, they “evaluate how it presents information.” After reading and watching, students write a response to the question “What are the advantages and disadvantages of presenting information about the fast fashion industry in a report versus a video?” 

The evidence-based discussion opportunities in the Inquiry by Design materials meet expectations for indicator 2j. The program provides frequent opportunities for students to engage in collaborative conversations about texts and topics and to incorporate textual evidence into their discussions. Throughout each unit, students participate in shorter discussions during Reading lessons and extended conversations during Discussing lessons, using protocols such as Fishbowls, Inside/Outside Circles, and Socratic Seminars. Students are prompted to draw on their notes and annotations and reference evidence and details from the texts as they develop and support their ideas. Discussion activities also explicitly teach and provide opportunities for students to practice skills that support intellectual discourse, including listening and responding to others’ ideas, asking for clarification, expressing differing perspectives, and building on peers’ contributions.

• Materials provide opportunities for students to engage in collaborative conversations about the text being read, which require them to utilize, apply, and incorporate evidence from texts and/or sources. Materials provide opportunities for students to consider others’ perspectives and engage in intellectual discourse about texts and topics they are reading.

  • Throughout the Inquiry by Design units, students have many opportunities to engage in collaborative conversations about the texts they read. In each unit, students participate in discussions in Reading lessons and Discussion lessons. While Reading lessons include shorter bursts of discourse, Discussion lessons require students to engage in longer bursts of discussion through fishbowls, inside/outside circles, and socratic seminars. As students discuss, they reference evidence and details from the texts under study. In Discussion activities, students learn and practice key discussion skills that require them to reference each other’s ideas. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 3, Lesson 7, students read the poem “Acoustics Test” by Camisha L. Jones. After reading the poem, students annotate it for figurative language. Next, students engage in a Think-pair-share activity in which they discuss the question, “How does Jones use metaphors to convey meaning in the poem?” The Teacher Guide prompts teachers to “remind students to use their notes and to reference details from the text in their discussion.”

    • In Grade 8, Unit 5, Lesson 9,  students participate in a Socratic seminar during a Discussion lesson to the prompt “How do innovations in media and technology affect the way people determine what is true and believable?” As they discuss, students must consider others’ perspectives as they engage in intellectual discourse about the texts they’ve read so far in the unit. The Teacher Guide includes sentence stems that teachers should provide students to ensure this happens. These include:

      • “Can you clarify what you mean when you said _____?

      • I see it differently because _____.

      • I’d like to add on to what _____ said by _____.”

The instruction on independent word-learning strategies and key vocabulary words in Inquiry by Design materials meets expectations for indicator 2k. The program includes structured, explicit vocabulary instruction that supports students in learning key vocabulary and developing independent word-learning strategies within the texts they read. Vocabulary instruction prioritizes high-utility Tier 2 and Tier 3 words that are important for understanding unit topics and building knowledge, selecting words for their importance to comprehension, richness of meaning, and usefulness across reading, writing, and discussion. The Program Guide outlines consistent vocabulary routines, including direct instruction, context clues, multiple meanings, morphology, and connotation, and provides step-by-step guidance for implementing these routines. Throughout lessons, students apply word-learning strategies, record vocabulary in trackers, and encounter and use key vocabulary multiple times before, during, and after reading. Vocabulary is also intentionally revisited across lessons and texts within a unit, providing students with repeated opportunities to deepen their understanding and apply words in different contexts. Lesson overviews identify vocabulary that is explicitly taught or reviewed, and teachers are encouraged to reinforce words throughout instruction and through classroom vocabulary anchor charts. Additional resources, including a Glossary of Academic and Literary Terms, further support vocabulary development, while embedded assessments allow teachers and students to monitor vocabulary knowledge and growth throughout each unit.

• Materials include structured and explicit practices for introducing key vocabulary words and independent word-learning strategies within the context of the texts (analyzing morphemes, etymology, word maps, and discussion of word relationships/shades of meaning, dictionary skills, context clues). Attention is paid to vocabulary essential to understanding the text and high-utility academic words. Materials provide multiple exposures to key vocabulary within (i.e., before, during, after reading) and across texts.

  • The Program Guide includes a Vocabulary subheading in the Prepare to Teach section. The guide states that vocabulary instruction in Inquiry by Design is intentional, structured, and recursive, supporting both comprehension and long-term language development. Instruction emphasizes high-leverage Tier 2 words that are useful across texts and content areas, as well as Tier 3 words that are important for understanding unit topics and building knowledge. Vocabulary is selected based on its importance to comprehension, richness of meaning, and usefulness across reading, writing, and discussion, with students encountering and applying words multiple times and in varied contexts throughout each unit. Lessons use consistent, research-based routines that include direct instruction, context clues, word relationships, morphology, and connotation. Lesson overviews identify unit vocabulary and indicate when words are explicitly taught or reviewed, while teachers are encouraged to reinforce vocabulary during instruction and through a classroom vocabulary anchor chart. Vocabulary assessment is also embedded throughout the program, including pre- and post-assessment through a vocabulary knowledge rating scale, discussion, evaluation of vocabulary use in writing tasks, and teacher observation of students’ vocabulary trackers. 

  • The Resources section of the Program Guide includes a Glossary of Academic and Literary Terms for teachers to reference and use with students. Additionally, the Resources section provides a list and explanation of all the vocabulary routines used in the program, including: Direct Instruction, Context Clues, Multiple Meanings, Morphology, and Connotations. These lists outline each step of the routine to help teachers implement it in lessons. 

  • Throughout lessons, teachers introduce students to vocabulary that they will need to access the texts. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 2, Lesson 12, students read “The Reckoning” by Judith Heuman with Kristin Joiner. In the Teach section of the lesson, teachers introduce students to the word advocate before students read. The Teacher Guide provides guidance for how to explicitly teach the word. This guidance states

      • “Explain that many words have more than one meaning depending on their part of speech, and learning them helps to better understand texts.

      • Teach the following vocabulary word and prompt students to record information in their trackers.

        • Word: advocate

        • Pronunciation: ad-vuh-kit

        • Part of speech 1: noun

        • Definition 1: someone who speaks in support of a person or cause

        • Example sentence 1: Cesar Chavez was an advocate for the rights of migrant farm workers in California.

        • Pronunciation 2: ad-vuh-keyt

        • Part of speech 2: verb

        • Definition 2: to support or argue in favor of a person or cause

        • Example sentence 2: John Lewis believed that every American should advocate for civil rights.

      • Remind students that when the suffix -y is added to a base word, it means “the state, quality, or practice of” whatever the base word is.

      • Ask students to apply their understanding of the word advocate to a related word: What does the word advocacy mean?

        • Listen for: the practice of speaking out in support of a person or cause.

      • Check: Can advocacy substantially impact positive change? Why or why not?”

      In their reading, students encounter the word advocate. At the end of the lesson, during the Wrap-up portion, teachers pose the closing question: “What issue or cause would you urge your government representatives to advocate for?” In the same lesson, before students read, teachers review the word empowering from a previous lesson. The Teacher Guide provides the following guidance: 

      • “Remind students of the definition of empowering, which they learned earlier in the unit: giving power, confidence, or authority.

      • Check: How has learning about the experiences of people with disabilities through the texts and videos helped you understand what it means to feel empowered?

      • Listen for:

        • turning frustration into action

        • not giving up when systems resist change

        • people feel stronger by coming together”

  • Throughout lessons, teachers explicitly teach independent-word learning strategies such as context clues and morphology. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 5, Lesson 8, students read “How Stanley Kubrick Staged the Moon Landing” by Rich Cohen. In the Teach section of the lesson, teachers introduce students to the words profound and inconsistencies using the context clues strategy before students read. The Teacher Guide provides guidance for how to explicitly teach the word. This guidance states

      • Teach the following vocabulary words using context clues. Prompt students to record information in their trackers.

      • For each of the words below, have students locate the words in their student readers, read the surrounding sentences, and annotate for context clues.

      • In the margins, students should record a prediction of each word’s meaning based on the context clues they identified.

      • Teach each word’s meaning.

        • Word: profound

        • Pronunciation: pruh-found

        • Location: paragraph 6

        • Part of speech: adjective

        • Definition: having a deep or thorough understanding or effect

        • Example sentence: Watching videos of dogs greet their owners after being separated brings me profound happiness.

        • Word: inconsistencies

        • Pronunciation: in-kuhn-sis-tuhn-seez

        • Location: paragraph 9

        • Part of speech: noun

        • Definition: instances of contradictions

        • Example sentence: The detective looked for inconsistencies between the witness statements to figure out what really happened the night of the robbery.”

        In their reading, students encounter the word. 

The opportunities for students to practice independent word-learning strategies and newly taught vocabulary words in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2l. The program provides opportunities for students to use independent word-learning strategies to determine the meanings of challenging and unfamiliar words. Students learn and apply strategies such as using context clues and analyzing morphology, including prefixes, suffixes, and roots. A Morphology Resource provides students with a reference tool they can use while reading and annotating texts to analyze word parts and infer meaning independently. Vocabulary instruction also includes opportunities for students to apply newly learned strategies to related or unfamiliar words. In addition, students regularly use and revisit academic, literary, and content-specific vocabulary in varied contexts throughout each unit. Unit vocabulary is introduced through a vocabulary rating scale and then revisited in questions, discussions, and other lesson activities connected to the texts and topics under study. Academic and literary terms are explicitly introduced and subsequently applied as students analyze texts, discuss their ideas, and respond in writing. The program also includes a Glossary of Academic and Literary Terms to support students’ continued use and understanding of this vocabulary.

• Materials include opportunities for students to use independent word-learning strategies to understand the meaning of challenging words  (inferring from context, using morphological or etymological awareness). 

  • The Program Guide includes a Morphology Resource in the Resources section. This resource is designed to be “a reference tool designed to support students in analysis as they work to determine the meanings of unfamiliar words. It includes commonly used prefixes, suffixes, and roots, along with definitions and examples, to help students analyze how words are constructed and infer meaning.” Students can use this resource to determine the meanings of unfamiliar words while annotating texts. 

  • During lessons, teachers introduce vocabulary words and strategies prior to student reading. At the end of the teaching cycle, students have the opportunity to apply the skill to identify the meaning of the vocabulary words they will need during the reading. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 2, Lesson 16, students learn the words culture and tradition before reading. After learning the definitions, teachers introduce the suffixes -al and -ally and their meanings. Teachers use the words cultural and culturally as examples of how the word culture changes meaning when you add those suffixes. Afterward, students turn and talk with a partner to determine the meanings of the words traditional and traditionally. 

• Materials include opportunities for students to use academic and content-specific vocabulary in various contexts. Practice opportunities incorporate review of previously learned words based on their connection to the topic of study.

  • At the beginning of each unit, students preview the unit vocabulary and use a vocabulary rating scale to assess their familiarity with each word. These words are then revisited throughout the unit. Throughout lessons, teachers ask questions about the meanings of these words, often in the Activate and Wrap-up sections. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 3, Lesson 2, students preview the unit vocabulary words and use a rating scale to assess their familiarity with each word. This unit’s vocabulary words are authentically, stereotypes, impudence, despise, subtleties, transform, pretension, fervently, tangible, and dismantled. In subsequent lessons, students return to these words in the Wrap-up portion of lessons as they answer questions that use them. In Lesson 3, students consider the essential question “Why do we embrace or transform parts of identity?” They generate knowledge statements using the text American Born Chinese (pages 1-40) by Gene Luen Yang. Then, they answer the closing question, “Do you agree with Jin’s decision to transform part of himself at his new school? Why or why not?” In Lesson 8, teachers explicitly teach the word tangible. Afterward, they ask students, “How does tangible relate to the essential question: How do our relationships with others affect our identity?” In lesson 9, teachers prompt students to turn and talk with a partner on the following question during the Activate portion of the lesson: “What tangible ways do we see Jin feeling pressure to fit in by the middle of the story?” In Lesson 20, students consider the essential question after reading American Born Chinese (pages 199-233). Then, they answer the closing question, “Do you think it’s important to always be our authentic selves? Why or why not?” 

  • The Resources section of the Program Guide includes a Glossary of Academic and Literary Terms for teachers to reference and use with students.

  • Throughout each unit, teachers teach or review literary and academic terms with students. These terms are then relevant to the lesson’s learning.

    • In Grade 8, Unit 1, Lesson 4, students learn the academic term analogy before reading “Ready to Wear” by Dana Thomas. Teachers introduce the term with the definition and an example. Then, they read a portion of the text to students and check their understanding by asking the turn and talk question, “What is being compared in the analogy? What is the effect?” Later in the lesson, students write a response to the question “How does Thomas use the pyramid analogy to develop a central idea about the fashion industry?” In Lesson 13, students read “The Ethical Clothing Manufacturers Behind Successful Eco Brands” by Ashley Hague. During the Analyze connections between ideas section of the lesson, students answer the questions: “How does Hague’s analogy of ethicality as a spectrum fit with the earlier true or false question about being ethical? What does Hague’s use of the analogy of the spectrum communicate to the ‘consumer activist’?” 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 2, Lesson 11, students learn the literary term dramatic irony before reading “The Story of Prometheus” by James Baldwin. Teachers introduce the term with the definition and an example. Then, students engage in a turn and talk on the question “When Jupiter discovers what Prometheus has done, how might the reader’s knowledge create tension or suspense?” Teachers reiterate that the gap between what readers know and what Jupiter knows is dramatic irony. Later in the lesson, students examine the dramatic irony in the text. At the end of the lesson, students write a response to the prompt “How does dramatic irony in this part of the story create suspense?”

The explicit instruction for teaching sentence composition in Inquiry by Design meets expectations for indicator 2m. The program includes explicit sentence-composition instruction embedded within Reading and Writing lessons and connected to the texts, topics, and writing students engage with throughout each unit. Sentence-level instruction addresses skills such as varying sentence structures, combining and connecting ideas through transitions and conjunctions, using active and passive voice to achieve particular purposes and styles, and elaborating ideas through structures such as noun phrases. Teacher guidance includes explicit definitions and explanations, models and examples, opportunities for students to analyze how sentence structures function, and guided practice applying these skills. Students then apply sentence-level skills in their own writing, with relevant criteria from writing rubrics used to assess their work. The materials also provide opportunities for students to examine exemplar sentences from core and mentor texts. Students analyze elements such as sentence structure, word choice, syntax, and language patterns to consider how authors use language to develop meaning and then use these sentences as models to support their own reading and writing.

• Materials include explicit instruction in sentence-composition skills (use of punctuation, sentence elaboration, sentence combining using cohesive ties, sentence fluency), embedded in what students are studying throughout the unit. Materials utilize exemplar sentences from core and mentor texts that contain clear, varied, and rich examples of sentence structure.

  • The Program Guide states that “Sentence-level instruction is embedded within writing lessons to strengthen clarity, style, and precision. Students learn how to expand ideas, vary sentence structure, use transitions effectively, and apply grammar conventions in meaningful contexts rather than in isolated drill practice. Integrating evidence-based writing practices along with knowledge building and rigorous engagement with complex texts ensures that writing instruction is accessible, purposeful, and effective for all learners.” 

  • Each unit includes several dedicated Writing lessons. These lessons include explicit instruction and practice on a writing skill embedded in the topic and/or texts that students learn about and read throughout the unit. In the context of other skills, these lessons also focus on sentence-level writing. Teacher guidance includes clear definitions and explanations of sentence-level concepts, models, and examples that demonstrate how those concepts function in writing, as well as prompts for students to take notes and apply the concepts to the texts they are reading. The Teacher Guide also provides checks for understanding, anticipated student responses, and guidance for monitoring to help teachers assess students’ understanding and application of sentence-level skills.

    • In Grade 7, Unit 4, Lesson 17, students engage in a Writing lesson titled “Writing About Resilience.” In the Teach portion of the lesson, teachers focus on the informative writing genre and on organizing ideas. Within this section, teachers teach students to use varied transition structures. The Teacher Guide provides the following guidance

      • “Tell students that informative and analytical writing uses a variety of sentence structures to connect ideas smoothly and show how they relate. This means combining ideas using transitions within sentences, not just between paragraphs.

      • Define transition structures and prompt students to take short notes: Transition structures help connect ideas by showing relationships like cause/effect, contrast, or elaboration. These transitions can appear:

        • Between sentences

          • Example: However, Nayeri returns to the memory later.

        • Within compound sentences

          • Nayeri shifts between memories, and each one reveals a new layer of his identity.

        • Within complex sentences

          • Although the story jumps in time, the themes remain consistent.

      • Provide examples:

        • Nayeri tells stories out of order; however, they are connected by emotional truth.

        • Because he sees storytelling as survival, he returns to painful memories.

        • The structure is fragmented, yet it reflects how memory works.

        • While the folktales seem unrelated at first, they eventually deepen the reader’s understanding of Daniel’s past.

      • Explain that these sentence types are essential for writers because they show relationships between claims, reasons, and textual evidence while improving clarity and engagement.

      • Prompt students to record notes and examples for varied transition structures as they continue reading throughout the unit.”

      In the next part of instruction, teachers teach students about correlative conjunctions to emphasize relationships in sentences. The Teacher Guide includes the following guidance:

      • “Tell students that another way that writers show a strong connection between two ideas is by using correlative conjunctions.

    • Instruct students to take short notes on correlative conjunctions.

    • Explain that correlative conjunctions are pairs of words that work together to join ideas and show how those ideas are related. They help writers clarify relationships, emphasize similarities or differences, and create variety in sentence structure. Common pairs include:

      • both / and

      • either / or

      • neither / nor

      • not only / but also

      • whether / or

    • Direct students to the first sentence in paragraph 23 of ‘Our Stories, Ourselves.’ Read the sentence aloud and prompt students to underline the correlative conjunctions (either / or).

    • Explain that correlative conjunctions are useful when explaining multiple causes, emotions, or themes in complex writing. In this unit, they help students express how storytelling, memory, and identity are often linked in overlapping ways.

    • Prompt students to record notes and examples for correlative conjunctions as they continue reading throughout the unit.”

    In the Apply section of the lesson, students prepare to write and start writing their informative text. The Teacher’s Edition prompts teachers to “Use the Connections and Organization criteria of the Informative Writing Rubric to assess students’ writing.”

    • In Grade 8, Unit 3, Lesson 14, students engage in a Writing Lesson titled “Writing About False Memories.” In the Teach portion of the lesson, teachers focus on the informative writing genre and using transitions. The Teacher Guide provides the following guidance

      • “Direct students to take short notes on the use of transitions.

      • Define: Transitions are words or phrases that help the reader understand the relationship between ideas. Writers also use transition phrases to summarize or conclude their explanations clearly. There are different types of transitions, depending on the writer’s purpose:

        • To show logical relationships: therefore, as a result, for this reason, that’s because

        • To compare or contrast: however, on the other hand, similarly

        • To add or elaborate: in fact, in addition, for example, such as, for instance

        • To summarize or conclude: in conclusion, overall, to summarize, in essence

      • Direct students to “We All Have False Memories” and read aloud paragraph 3.

      • Ask a student to summarize the paragraph in their own words.

      • Ask students whether the next paragraph introduces a new idea and how they know.

      • Listen for: No, “in fact” indicates the writer is giving extra information about the idea in paragraph 3.

      • Direct students to skim over the text in pairs and highlight as many transitional words and phrases as they can.

      • Monitor: Circulate to ensure students’ ability to identify transitions and describe their function.

      • As students finish, point out that Goodyer originally wrote this article for a magazine. Tell students that magazine articles tend to have an informal tone; that is why it’s acceptable for Goodyer to use the transitions ‘and’ or ‘but’ at the beginning of sentences. Explain that in more formal writing like academic writing, writers tend to avoid using ‘and’ or ‘but’ to start sentences.”

      In the next part of the instruction, teachers teach students to use the passive voice to establish and maintain a formal style in informative writing. The Teacher Guide includes the following guidance:

      • “Remind students that in active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action and in passive voice, the subject receives the action.

      • Check: In your trickster narratives, which voice did you aim for: active or passive? Why?

      • Listen for: Active voice, because narrative writing should focus on action and who is doing the action.

      • Direct students to take short notes on the use of passive voice.

      • Define: In the passive voice, the object of the sentence becomes the subject. The action is performed on the subject, often by an unnamed or less important agent.

      • Tell students that writers of informative texts often use the passive voice when they want to highlight what is being done rather than who is doing it. This is especially common in writing that focuses on systems, processes, or outcomes, rather than individual actors.

      • Provide the structure:

        • Object + form of ‘to be’ + past participle (+ agent, optional)

      • Provide an example and label the parts of the example:

        • Example: Jurors are selected from the community.

          • Object: Jurors

          • Form of ‘to be’: are

          • Past participle: selected

          • Agent: the community

      • Tell students that the passive voice can help maintain a formal tone and keep attention on what is done, which is useful when writing about systems like the justice process.

      • Direct students to the first sentence in paragraph 10. Tell students to work in pairs to rewrite the sentence in passive voice.

      • Look for: False memories aren’t created immediately out of the blue.”

      In the Apply section of the lesson, students prepare to write and start writing their informative text. The Teacher’s Edition prompts teachers to “Use the Connections and Style criteria of the Informatvie Writing Rubric to assess students’ writing.”

  • Through some Reading and Writing lessons, students examine exemplar sentences from core and mentor texts to understand how authors use language to develop meaning. Students analyze elements such as sentence structure, word choice, syntax, and language patterns and consider how these choices contribute to the author’s craft. Students then use these sentences as models to support their own reading and writing.

    • In Grade 6, Unit 5, Lesson 5, students read “The Legacy of Rachel Carson” by Jade Ryerson. In the Teach section, students learn about noun phrases. The Teacher Guide provides the following guidance, 

      • “Tell students that authors use noun phrases to clearly describe the people, places, or ideas that they write about.

      • Prompt students to record notes and examples for precise noun phrases.

      • Provide a definition: Noun phrases give more detail about a person, place, or idea by adding words to the noun. These are often used to clearly show what the writing will be about.

      • Direct students to the first sentence of the introduction for ‘The Legacy of Rachel Carson.’

      • Prompt students to underline the nouns in the first sentence:

        • ‘Rachel Louise Carson was a biologist, writer, and environmental activist.’

      • Direct students to circle environmental and explain that ‘environmental activist’ is a noun phrase.

      • Ask: How does adding environmental to activist influence our understanding?

        • Listen for: It clarifies the type of activist she was.

      • Tell students that using noun phrases in their argument writing gives their writing voice more authority by clarifying the details about the topic.”

The sentence composition opportunities in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2n. The program provides frequent opportunities for students to practice and apply sentence-composition skills as they write about the texts they study. Throughout Reading and Writing lessons, students respond to text-based prompts while applying specific sentence-level skills. Teacher guidance prompts students to incorporate these skills into their written responses as they analyze texts and develop their ideas. Writing lessons also provide opportunities for students to examine and revise their own writing, focusing on sentence composition, including adding details, varying sentence structures, and improving clarity and style. Additionally, students have opportunities to adapt their language to the purpose and audience of their writing. Writing rubrics reinforce these expectations by asking students to consider their use of linking words, phrases, and clauses to clarify relationships among ideas and to maintain an appropriate and consistent style.

• Materials include opportunities for students to write sentences about the texts under study while practicing and applying sentence composition skills. 

  • In every unit, students have opportunities to write sentences about the texts under study while practicing sentence composition skills in Reading and Writing lessons. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 4, Lesson 10, students read The Watsons Go to Birmingham (chapter 4) by Christopher Paul Curtis. In the Teach section of the lesson, students learn about expanded noun phrases and appositives. In the Try section of the lesson, students write a response to the prompt “On pages 62-62, Kenny says ‘I wished I just could have gone the rest of the year with one glove.’ What is the significance of that statement, and how does it show a change in how Kenny thinks about Byron?” Before releasing students to write, the Teacher Guide includes guidance to “Remind students to use an appositive in their response to clarify an idea or describe a character.” 

• Materials include opportunities for students to practice and apply sentence composition skills by examining their own writing.

  • In every unit, students have opportunities to practice and apply sentence-composition skills while examining and revising their own writing during Writing Lessons. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 1, Lesson 18, students participate in a Writing lesson titled “Writing About Choices.” In the Teach section of the lesson, students focus on narrative writing and learn about descriptive details and sensory language. They also learn about using commas to separate coordinate adjectives. In the Apply section of the lesson, students apply their learning by revising their narratives, which they began in previous lessons. The prompt states that students should “Revise a narrative about an alternate conclusion to ‘Amigo Brothers,’ improving the pacing and descriptive language to further develop events and characters.” The Teacher Guide provides the following guidance on what students should focus on: “Explain that for this revision, students will be focusing on adding descriptive details, sensory language, and varied sentence openings.” 

• Materials include opportunities for students to adapt their language based on the intended audience and purpose. 

  • Students have opportunities to practice adapting their language to the intended audience and purpose in some Writing lessons. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 4, Lesson 19, students participate in a Writing Lesson titled “Writing About the Importance of Books.” In the Apply section of the lesson, teachers prompt students to “Review the Connections and Style criteria of the Argument Writing Rubric.” The Connections section of the rubric for proficient states, “Linking words, phrases, and clauses connect ideas and clarify relationships.” For developing, it states, “Some linking words, phrases, or clauses; connections may be unclear, inconsistent, or basic.” For beginning, it states, “Few or no linking words; relationships between ideas unclear or missing.” The Style section of the rubric for proficient states “Consistent formal style.” For developing it states, “Formal style is inconsistent; tone or voice may shift inappropriately.” For beginning, it states, “Informal or consistent style throughout.” To do well on these rubric rows, students must consider their intended audience to ensure clarity and a formal writing style throughout. 

The on-demand and process writing opportunities in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2o. The program includes a mix of grade-appropriate on-demand and process writing opportunities. Throughout Reading and Writing lessons, students complete on-demand responses that range from shorter text-based writing to multiparagraph responses, and Mid-Unit Assessments provide additional opportunities for on-demand writing. Students engage in process writing through End-of-Unit Assessments, where they plan, draft, and revise extended pieces of writing. Writing opportunities are connected to the purpose, genre, and topics of the texts students read within each unit, with students applying techniques and understandings developed through reading instruction to their own writing. While the materials provide process writing across argumentative, informative/explanatory, and narrative genres, the distribution of these opportunities does not reflect the distribution indicated by the standards; however, this information is contextual and does not factor into the overall rating.

• Materials include a mix of grade-appropriate on-demand and process writing.

  • Inquiry by Design offers students various grade-appropriate opportunities to engage in on-demand writing activities. These activities are present in Reading and Writing lessons throughout the program. Students also have the opportunity to engage in on-demand writing on each unit’s Mid-Unit Assessment. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 4, Lesson 9, students read Everything Sad Is Untrue pages 76-86 by Daniel Nayeri. At the end of this lesson, students write an on-demand response to the prompt “How does this section of Everything Sad Is Untrue develop a theme about the relationship between stories and lessons?” In Lesson 17, students engage in a Writing lesson titled “Writing About Resilience.”At the end of the lesson, students write a multiparagraph response to the prompt “Write an informative text that explains a common theme in Everything Sad Is Untrue and the poem ‘Renewal from the Fall.’” 

  • At the end of units, students have the opportunity to engage in process-based writing through the End-of-Unit Assessment. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 1, students write an argumentative essay as the End-of-Unit Assessment to the prompt “Write a multi-paragraph argument making a claim about who is the most responsible for increasing sustainability in the fashion industry: companies or consumers. Use evidence from multiple texts to support your claim and address counterclaims.” 

• Materials do not reflect the distribution indicated by the standards for process writing (6-8 35/35/30 persuade/explain/convey experience). (The information below is presented as contextual evidence only and is not factored into the overall score or rating.)

  • The process writing distribution in the Inquiry by Design program is as follows:

    • Grade 6: 20/60/20 persuade/explain/convey experience

    • Grade 7: 20/60/20 persuade/explain/convey experience

    • Grade 8: 40/40/20 persuade/explain/convey experience

  • Inquiry by Design materials do not reflect the distribution indicated by the standards across process writing opportunities in grades 6, 7, and 8. 

• Writing opportunities are appropriately aligned to the purpose, genre, and/or topic of the unit’s reading. 

  • Reading and Writing lessons in each unit provide students with opportunities to write in response to the unit’s reading and sometimes the unit’s genre focus. Additionally, each End-of-Unit Assessment is directly related to the unit’s purpose, genre, and/or topic of study. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 1, the writing genre focus in writing lessons is narrative writing. Through reading lessons, students analyze several narrative techniques such as structure, story elements, and figurative language. In Lesson 8, students engage in a Writing lesson titled “Writing About Choices.” In this lesson, students “Write a short narrative introducing a time when you disagreed with a choice someone made. Use the beginning of ‘The Difficult Path’ for inspiration on how to introduce characters, setting, and narrator’s point of view, and how to introduce characters with dialogue.” In Lesson 11, students finish this narrative. In Lessons 16 and 17, students engage in a Mid-Unit Assessment, students “Write a short narrative that provides an alternate conclusion to ‘Amigo Brothers’ and that is consistent with your understanding of the characters.” In Lesson 18, they engage in a Writing lesson titled “Writing About Choices” where they revise these narratives, “improving the pacing and descriptive language to further develop events and characters.” In Lessons 25-27, for the End-of-Unit Assessment, students write a narrative about “a choice you made that has influenced your identity.” To complete that task, students plan, draft, and revise their narratives.

The opportunities for students to practice the writing processes using evidence-based strategies in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2q. The program provides multiple opportunities for students to engage in the writing process, including planning, drafting, revising, and editing. For each End-of-Unit Assessment, students plan their writing by developing and organizing ideas, create a draft based on their plan, and revise and edit their work using grade-appropriate strategies. Revision opportunities include reviewing rubric criteria, annotating drafts to identify areas for improvement, participating in peer review, and using peer feedback to make revisions. The materials also provide some opportunities for students to use technology to produce and publish writing, particularly through research presentations and End-of-Unit Extension projects in which students create and present products such as visual projects, mini-documentaries, and podcasts.

• Materials include multiple opportunities for students to plan writing (e.g., with graphic organizers).

  • Students have opportunities to plan their writing for each End-of-Unit Assessment. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 2, students write a narrative. In Lesson 23, students plan their narratives. First, they brainstorm their ideas for the prompt. Next, they plan their characters, setting, and events for the narrative. Afterward, students plan their narrative introductions and finally, their narrative conclusions. 

• Materials include multiple opportunities for students to draft their writing. 

  • Students have opportunities to draft their writing for each End-of-Unit Assessment. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 3, students write an argument. In Lesson 25, students write their arguments and create their first drafts. In this lesson, students use their plan from the previous lesson to draft their arguments without interruption. 

• Materials include multiple opportunities for students to revise and edit their writing with grade-appropriate strategies and tools. 

  • Students have opportunities to revise and edit their writing for each End-of-Unit Assessment. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 3, students write an informative text. In Lesson 27, students revise their informative texts. Teachers review the focus areas for revision with students: the Connections, Language, and Grammar and Punctuation sections of the End-of-Unit Assessment Rubric. Afterward, students annotate their informative texts for revision, underlining or highlighting parts of their paragraphs that they believe might benefit from edits based on the focus areas. In the next part of the lesson, students engage in peer review. During this activity, students work in pairs, exchanging their writing samples, and “take notes on what they notice and wonder related to the areas of focus.” Then, students share feedback with their partners, and each takes notes. At the end of the lesson, students revise their informative texts using the notes from their partner’s feedback. 

• Materials include some opportunities for students to use technology to produce and publish writing. 

  • In some units, students engage in drafting research presentations or in End-of-Unit Extension activities that require them to use technology to produce and publish writing.

    • In Grade 6, Unit 2, students engage in End-of-Unit Extension activities in Lessons 27 through 30. As the End-of-Unit Assessment, students write narratives. In the Unit Extension lessons, students use these narratives to create story projects in one of the following formats: Story Maps (visual representations), Science of Story Telling (mini-documentaries), or Stories that Connect Us (podcast episodes). Students use technology to complete these projects. In Lesson 30, students present their projects. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 5, students complete research and write and present research presentations. In Lessons 33 through 36, students create their research presentations after collecting all their research in earlier lessons. In Lesson 33, students draft their presentations. In Lessons 34 and 35, students finalize and rehearse their presentations. In Lesson 36, students revise their research presentations. Later in lessons 37 through 41, students present their research. During this process, students use technology to draft, publish, and present their research presentations. 

The evidence-based writing opportunities in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2r. The program provides frequent writing opportunities that require students to closely analyze texts, develop claims and ideas, and support their responses with textual evidence. Throughout Reading and Writing lessons, students complete written responses in the Apply section that require them to analyze what texts state explicitly, draw inferences, examine authors’ choices, and develop claims supported by evidence from one or more texts. Teacher guidance regularly directs students to reference their notes, identify relevant details, and incorporate or underline textual evidence in their responses. Students also complete extended writing tasks as part of End-of-Unit Assessments, in which they plan, draft, and revise multi-paragraph pieces that require analysis and evidence from multiple texts. Across these writing opportunities, students use close reading and analysis of texts and sources to select relevant evidence and develop and support their ideas and claims.

• Materials provide writing opportunities that require students to cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Materials provide writing opportunities focused on students’ analyses and claims, which are developed by reading closely and working with texts and sources to provide supporting evidence.

  • The program includes many writing opportunities that require students to cite evidence and analyze texts closely, primarily found in the Apply section of both Reading and Writing lessons throughout units. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 4, Lesson 11, students read “Supple Cord” by Naomi Shihab Nye. After reading, students engage in the Apply section of the lesson where they write a response to the prompt “How does the symbol of the soft cord develop a theme about siblings?” The Teacher Guide includes directions to “Direct students to underline evidence from the text in their written response.” To successfully complete the prompt, students must cite evidence and draw accurate inferences from the text. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 5, Lesson 7, students read “ We’ve Got More Money Swirling Around…” by Sam Wolfson and “Want to Enjoy Music More?” by Denise Lu. After reading, students engage in the Apply section of the lesson where they write a response to the prompt “How does each author’s selection of evidence influence the reader’s perception of the topic?” The Teacher Guide includes directions to “Remind students to use their notes and to reference details from the text in their response.” To successfully answer the prompt, students must closely read sections of the text and identify the type of evidence used in each. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 4, Lesson 9, students engage in a Writing lesson. After instruction, students engage in the Apply section of the lesson, where they write a response to the prompt “Ray Bradbury said, ‘You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.’ Write an argument agreeing or disagreeing with Bradbury’s statement, using evidence from ‘The Librarian and the Robot’ and ‘Harrison Bergeron’ to support your claim.” 

  • The program includes End-of-Unit Assessments, where students complete a longer piece of writing at the end of each unit. For these writing activities, students cite and analyze textual evidence. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 1, Lessons 26 through 28, students plan, write, and revise an argument as the End-of-Unit assessment to the prompt “Write a multiparagraph argument making a claim about who is responsible for increasing sustainability in the fashion industry: companies or consumers. Use evidence from multiple texts to support your claims and address counterclaims.” 

The explicit instruction of research skills in Inquiry by Design meets expectations for indicator 2s. The program provides explicit instruction in research skills and opportunities for students to apply these skills through shorter research projects throughout the school year and a sustained research project at the end of the year. In Units 1–4, students complete one Research lesson per unit that provides explicit instruction and opportunities to practice skills such as evaluating source credibility, analyzing information and data, developing research questions, and gathering evidence from multiple sources. These shorter research projects allow students to develop and apply research skills while building knowledge of unit topics. Research instruction continues in Unit 5, where students engage in a sustained research project that requires them to investigate different aspects of a topic using multiple sources. Throughout the unit, students receive explicit instruction and guided practice in developing and refining research questions, identifying and researching subtopics, locating and evaluating credible sources, analyzing information, and synthesizing their findings into a final research presentation. Although each grade level includes only one extended research project, the shorter research projects in Units 1–4 and the more extensive instruction and application in Unit 5 provide students with recurring opportunities to develop and apply grade-level research skills across the school year.

• Materials include research projects to build research skills that lead to mastery of the grade-level standards. Materials include explicit instruction of research skills that encourage students to develop knowledge of a topic by confronting and analyzing different aspects of a topic using multiple texts and source materials.

  • In each grade level, the materials include one research project in Unit 5 at the end of the school year. In Units 1–4, the materials include one research lesson per unit that provides explicit instruction in research skills. This instruction, along with additional research instruction in Unit 5, supports students in completing the end-of-year research project. Each research lesson in the unit serves as an additional, shorter research project that provides students with instruction and practice on research skills. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 1, Lesson 24,  students engage in a Research lesson titled “Researching About Heroes.” In the Teach section of the lesson, teachers first introduce research rules. They go over the following rules:

      • “Stay focused

      • Keep track 

      • Avoid plagiarism

      • Ask for help”

      Next, teachers teach students how to determine the credibility of a source. The lesson plan provides instructional guidance. This guidance states:

      • “Explain that to help strengthen their research, students will learn how to determine whether a source they’re gathering information from is credible.

      • Define credible: trustworthy or factual.

      • Display and read aloud the steps for determining whether a source is credible:

        • Consider the author: Who wrote the text? Consider the author’s education and profession to determine whether they are qualified to write about this topic.

        • Consider the date: When was it published? For your research on a young, real-life hero, the more recent, the better.

        • Consider the purpose: Why was this article written? Consider if the author is trying to persuade, inform, entertain, or sell a product or service.

        • Double check: Is there another website or book that confirms the information in this source? Strong sources often indicate where they found their information.

      • Explain how information from individual blogs or social media sites requires a second source to verify the information because these sites are often places where people share their opinions.

      • Share an example of a credible source. Model identifying it as a credible source.

        • Choose a site that fits the criteria above. Walk students through details on the website (author, date, links to sources, etc.) that meet the criteria.

        • For contrast, present a non-credible source that does not meet the criteria.

      • Prompt students to turn and talk: What differences do you notice between these two sites?

      • Check: Why do you think it’s important to determine whether a source is credible?”

      Afterward, students practice this skill in the Apply section of the lesson, where they research “a young, real-life hero and determine what makes them a hero.” 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 5, students complete a research project culminating in research presentations at the end of the unit. Throughout this unit, students engage in several research lessons. For this project, students work in partners to “complete a shared final research project on a self-generated question that explores a specific example of information sharing from the past, present, or future.” In Research lessons throughout the unit, students learn and practice the skills that they will need for the project. It should be noted that this is the only longer research project included in the materials for the grade level. Likewise, in grades 6 and 7, only one research project is available for students in Unit 5. 

      • In Lesson 7, students engage in a Research lesson titled “Researching Data.” After reviewing source credibility with students, teachers teach students how to analyze data to narrow their research. The lesson plan provides guidance with the following model: 

        • “Display the bar graph ‘Daily hours spent with digital media in the United States.’

        • Think aloud as you model how to analyze data.

          • Say: I notice the data range takes place over ten years and shows an increase in the amount of time adults spent with digital media. I also notice phones became a more popular way to engage with digital media. I wonder if this has anything to do with smartphones becoming more popular.

        • Tell students that analyzing data can also help surface additional curiosities.

        • Identify additional research questions based on the data:

          • When did smartphones become a more popular phone choice?

          • Say: I also wonder if the introduction of apps on smartphones led to an increase in hours spent with digital media.

          • Question: How did the introduction of apps on smartphones change user behavior?

        • Check: How can data in research help distinguish between facts and opinions?”

        Afterward, students practice the skill in the Apply section of the lesson, using their research tracker to “find data that shows how people’s beliefs in the news and media have evolved over the last 10-20 years.” 

      • In Lesson 17, students engage in a Research lesson titled “Researching Ethics and Trust in Information Sharing.” In this lesson, students start by drafting a research question to the prompt “Develop and research a question related to ethics, trusts, and information sharing.” The Teacher Guide includes the following teacher guidance: 

        • “Remind students to consider questions and stems that will support deeper thinking and stronger research, such as:

          • How has ____?

          • In what ways has ____?

          • Why did ___?

          • How doesn’t?

        • Prompt students to share their research question with a partner and provide each other feedback based on the following criteria:

          • Is the question specific and focused?

          • Is there a straightforward answer to the question? If so, is there a way to broaden it?

          • Does the question require evidence to answer it?”

        Afterward, students revise their questions based on the feedback. 

      • In Lesson 23, students engage in a Research lesson titled “Writing Final Research Question.” In this lesson, students draft and test research questions for their final projects. The Teacher Guide includes the following guidance:

        • “Review the elements of a strong, effective research question:

          • Specific and focused

          • No simple, straightforward answer

          • Invites extended research

          • Sparks personal curiosity

        • Explain that students will connect their research question to one of the unit’s essential questions:

          • How can skepticism be beneficial or harmful when engaging with information?

          • How does innovation impact the spread of information?

          • What role do ethics and trust play in information sharing?

        • Direct students to draft at least two potential research questions with their partners that explore a specific example of information sharing from the past, present, or future that focuses on skepticism, innovation, or ethics and trust.

        • Prompt each student to test their research questions by conducting a short, initial search.

        • Tell students to consider the following questions when determining whether or not their question is strong enough to sustain an entire project:

          • Do your search terms yield enough credible articles?

          • Are the articles exploring different information or consistently repeating the same information?”

        Afterward, students select their final research questions. 

      • In Lessons 29, 31, and 32, students engage in lessons titled “Researching Information Sharing.” In these lessons, students research subtopics and continue researching information (including finding sources). The Teacher Guide provides guidance for facilitating these lessons with students. In Lessons 32 through 36, students draft, finalize, rehearse, and revise their final research presentations. In Lessons 37 through 41, students present their research as the unit’s End-of-Unit Assessment. 

The opportunities for students to apply research skills to develop knowledge of a topic in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2t. The program provides opportunities for students to conduct research, gather information from multiple print and digital sources, use search terms, evaluate source credibility, track source information, and draw evidence from literary and informational texts to support analysis and research. In Units 1–4, students apply specific research skills through brief research activities, while Unit 5 includes a more extensive research project in which students complete the research process, including developing and refining research questions, generating additional questions and search terms, gathering information from multiple sources, and documenting sources. Each grade level includes one extended research project in Unit 5 and one brief research lesson per unit in Units 1–4. Together, these experiences provide multiple opportunities for students to practice and apply research skills to build knowledge across the school year.

• Materials include opportunities for students to conduct short research projects to answer a question, drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions for further research and investigation.

  • In each grade level, materials include one longer research project in Unit 5 at the end of the school year. For this project, students complete all steps of the research process. While this one project is available at each grade level, it is the only extensive research project or research activity that students complete throughout the school year. In Units 1-4, the materials include one research lesson in which students learn specific research skills and apply them to very short research projects. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 5, students complete a research project where they “develop an argument related to a debatable topic within a hobby or interest of choice that includes a clear claim, well-organized reasoning with evidence, and acknowledgment of a counterclaim.” Throughout this unit, students engage in several research lessons to practice skills for this project. In Lesson 23, teachers review with students how to write research questions. Then, students prepare to conduct research by drafting research questions for their project. They draft several research questions, and teachers remind students “that they will turn their additional research questions into effective search terms.” 

• Materials provide opportunities for students to gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, use search terms effectively, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

  • The materials provide opportunities for students to gather relevant information from multiple sources, use search terms effectively, and assess the credibility and accuracy of each source through the Research project in Unit 5, and some of the singular research lessons in Units 1 through 4. 

    • In Grade 6, Unit 3, Lesson 18, students participate in a research lesson titled “Researching Assistive Technology.” After teachers review source credibility with students and teach them how to track their sources, students apply the skills to the prompt “What are two examples of assistive technology? Include purpose, benefits, and potential limitations.” To complete the prompt, students must research. They create a five-column note catcher where they track the:

      • Type of assistive technology

      • Purpose

      • Benefits

      • Limitations 

      • Source information

      Teachers provide students with search term options for their research, including

      • “Examples of assistive technology

      • [Type of assistive technology] + purpose

      • [Type of assistive technology] + benefits

      • [Type of assistive technology] + limitations”

    • In Grade 8, Unit 5, students complete a research project where they “complete a shared final research project with a partner on a self-generated question that explores a specific example of information sharing from the past, present, or future.” In Lesson 33, students begin drafting their presentations after completing all their research. As they draft their presentations, students create “a bibliography: one page of sources used to create the presentation” using all the sources they’ve tracked and used throughout the project. 

• Materials provide opportunities for students to draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

  • The materials provide opportunities for students to draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research through the Research project in Unit 5 and some of the singular research lessons in Units 1 through 4. 

    • In Grade 8, Unit 3, Lesson 22, students engage in a Research lesson titled “Researching the Teenage Brain.” In the Apply section of the lesson, students complete research to answer the question “How does the brain change during the teenage years, and how do these changes affect how teens think, feel, or act?” At the end of the lesson, teachers ask students to consider “What connections do you see between Jin’s behavior in American Born Chinese and your research?” 

The formative assessments and teacher guidance on formative assessments in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2u. The program includes frequent formative assessments and guidance to help teachers monitor student understanding and make instructional adjustments based on assessment results. Throughout lessons, students demonstrate their understanding through text-dependent questions, discussions, annotations, written responses, and reflection activities. Embedded Check questions and prompts, along with Listen/Look For guidance, help teachers assess student progress toward lesson objectives and identify areas requiring additional support. Each unit also includes Assessment Guidance in the Teacher Guide Appendix, with rubrics and performance-level descriptors for evaluating Text Responses and Discussions. Accompanying tables provide instructional next steps to reinforce or extend specific skills based on students’ demonstrated needs. Although these recommendations are not always tied to the specific texts and tasks in individual lessons, they provide actionable strategies to address identified learning needs. Mid-Unit Assessments offer additional opportunities to evaluate student progress, with answer keys, rubrics, and guidance for using assessment results to differentiate subsequent instruction. Based on student performance, teachers group students into Building and Support, Strengthen and Refine, or Enrich and Extend pathways, with fully developed instructional activities and facilitation guidance provided for each group in the Mid-Unit Extension lessons. Together, these resources support teachers in identifying students’ current levels of understanding, providing targeted feedback, and adjusting instruction to promote continued progress.

• Materials include formative assessments and support for the teacher in determining students’ current skills/level of understanding. Materials include guidance that supports the teacher in making instructional adjustments to increase student progress.

  • Throughout lessons, the program provides several formative assessments that teachers can use to assess student learning. Each Teacher Guide provides the following guidance on formative assessments in the Unit Overview section: “Formative questions and prompts are designed to help you check for understanding in real time. You can identify these questions/prompts by the label ‘Check’ for in-lesson assessment and the bolded text response question/prompt for end-of-lesson assessment. Student responses to these questions give you critical insight into their progress toward the lesson’s Student Learning Outcome and Lesson Objective. Use these responses to guide your instructional decisions and provide targeted feedback.” The Program Guide states that formative assessments may include the following: “oral or written responses to text-dependent questions, discussion using text evidence, annotations and note-taking, observation, quick writes,” and “wrap up tasks with essential questions and knowledge statements.” Teachers receive “Listen/Look For” guidance within lessons to help them evaluate student responses. 

    • In Grade 7, Unit 5, Lesson 3, students read “We’ve Got More Money Swirling Around…” paragraphs 1-9 by Sam Wolfson. During the Teach section of the lesson, teachers read aloud some of the text and then pause for a “Check: How does Wolfson use Sundin’s experience in the opening paragraph?” The Teacher Guide includes guidance on what to listen for in student responses. Students learn the vocabulary words revenue and investing. Afterward, teachers are prompted to “Check: If a school club earned extra revenue from a fundraiser, what cause or charity would you recommend the club investing that revenue in? Why?” Later, during the Try section of the lesson, students read more of the text independently, using the annotation routine. This section includes a “Check: Refer to paragraph 5: What does Wolfson claim is the reason ‘middle-of-the-road acts’ have seen such success, and what does that suggest about the music industry?” The Teacher Guide includes guidance on what to listen for in student responses. 

  • For each unit, the Teacher Guide includes an Appendix with an Assessment Guidance section that provides teachers with tools for evaluating student performance on formative assessments and using the results to inform subsequent instruction. For Text Responses and Discussion, the materials include rubrics with performance-level descriptors that help teachers identify students’ strengths and areas for improvement. Accompanying tables provide instructional next steps based on students’ performance, including strategies to reinforce or extend specific reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. Although these recommendations are not always tied to the specific texts and tasks in individual lessons, they provide teachers with actionable guidance to address identified student needs. The Mid-Unit Assessment guidance includes answer keys, rubrics, and directions for using assessment results to group students into Building and Support, Strengthen and Refine, or Enrich and Extend pathways for the subsequent Mid-Unit Extension lesson. Together, these resources provide teachers with guidance for interpreting formative assessment results, identifying areas for additional support or enrichment, and making instructional decisions that respond to students’ demonstrated needs.

    • In Grade 8, Unit 2, the Appendix includes an Assessment Guidance section with teacher guidance on the following formative assessments: Text Responses, Discussion, and the Mid-Unit Assessments. 

      • Students write many text responses throughout the unit. The Responding to Text Responses section of the Appendix includes two charts. The first is a table for supporting students, while the second is a rubric. The directions state, “Use the Text Response Rubric to assess student text responses in each lesson and then use the table below to support students with their text responses.” Each includes a Proficient, Developing, and Beginning rating. The text response rubric includes two foci: “Response answers the question” and “Response includes text evidence,” each with descriptors. For example, for a Developing score on the Response includes text evidence part of the rubric, guidance states, “Includes some evidence from the text, but it may be vague, only partially relevant, or loosely connected to the answer.” The table includes guidance for “Supporting students who are “proficient, developing, [or] advanced” in “providing a response that answers the question” and “providing a responses that includes text evidence.” For example, for students who score developing on “providing a response that includes text evidence,” the guidance states to “provide practice in selecting the strongest evidence among several options.” It should be noted that there is no guidance in any individual lesson on how to do this within the content of those lessons. 

      • Students engage in Discussions for lessons 13 and 22 of this unit. The Responding to Text Discussion section of the Appendix includes three charts. The first is a table for supporting students, while the other two are lesson-specific rubrics. The directions state, ”Use the Discussion Rubrics for Lessons 13 and 22 to assess students’ progress toward speaking and listening skills and then use the table below to pinpoint specific discussion skills to reinforce or extend in future lessons.” Each includes a Proficient, Developing, and Beginning rating. The discussion rubric for lesson 22 includes two criteria: “engagement” and “perspectives” with descriptors for each. For example for a Developing score on the engagement part of rubric, guidance states “partially prepared; provides limited or loosely related evidence.” The table includes guidance for “Supporting students who are proficient, developing, [or] advanced” in “preparation, collegiality, [and] engagement.” For example, for students who score developing on “preparation,” the guidance states to “give pre-discussion checklists to ensu=re preparation.” It should be noted that there is no guidance in any individual lesson on how to do this within the content of those lessons. 

      • Students engage in a Mid-Unit Assessment in lesson 14 of this unit. The Responding to Mid-Unit Assessment section of the Appendix includes an answer key, a rubric for the narrative students write, and a chart on preparing for the Mid-Unit Extension lesson (lesson 15 of the unit). The directions state, “Use the answer key to evaluate multiple-choice questions and the Mid-Unit Assessment Rubric to evaluate written responses. Use this data to divide students into three groups for the Mid-Unit Extension lesson (Lesson 15) according to the table below, keeping in mind a holistic view of each student’s needs and their progress in reading and writing.” The table helps teachers determine how to group students for the Mid-Unit Reflection lesson. For Mid-Unit Extension lesson plans, teachers should use student data to decide how to group students or how to facilitate this lesson. Students can fall into one of three categories based on their assessment performance: Building and Support, Strengthen and Refine, or Enrich and Extend. The lesson plan includes guidance on facilitating instruction and practice for each of the three groups. For each group, the lesson plan includes a fully developed 30-minute Try section, with complete facilitation guidance for teachers. 

The culminating/summative assessments in Inquiry by Design meet expectations for indicator 2v. The program includes an End-of-Unit Assessment for each unit that aligns with its content and provides students with opportunities to demonstrate the knowledge and literacy skills developed throughout the unit. These assessments generally culminate in an extended piece of writing across varying genres, while Unit 5 culminates in a research project and presentation. Students draw on unit texts and knowledge, integrating reading, writing, speaking, and listening as they develop, revise, discuss, and present their work. Instruction throughout each unit intentionally prepares students for these assessments through Reading, Writing, Discussion, and Research lessons that build relevant content knowledge and provide practice with the skills students are expected to demonstrate. Writing lesson Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs), which teachers can reference in each Unit Overview, are aligned to the expectations of the End-of-Unit Assessment and build toward the culminating task. The materials also provide guidance for evaluating student performance through standards-aligned End-of-Unit Assessment rubrics, scoring criteria, and model responses or answer keys. These resources support consistent evaluation of student work and identification of areas of strength and need.

• Culminating tasks/summative assessments are evident in each unit/module and align to the unit’s/module’s topic or theme. Culminating tasks/summative assessments provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate the knowledge and skills acquired throughout the unit/module while integrating multiple literacy skills (reading, writing, speaking, listening).

  • In each unit, students complete an End-of-Unit Assessment that requires them to produce a longer piece of writing across various genres. In Unit 5, this task is a research project and a presentation. These End-of-Unit Assessments require students to apply knowledge developed throughout the unit, use textual evidence, and demonstrate their understanding through reading, writing, speaking, and listening tasks aligned to the unit’s literacy skills and content.

    • In Grade 6, Unit 3, students engage in a unit titled Wired for Connection.

      • For the End-of-Unit Assessment, students write a multiparagraph informative text “Explaining the benefits and limitations of assistive technology. Using evidence from at least two texts from the unit, students will write an informative essay with well-organized ideas supported by relevant evidence. This culminating task allows students to demonstrate their knowledge about assistive technology while developing aspects of informative writing, such as introducing a topic clearly, organizing ideas logically, and connecting ideas with appropriate transitions.” Throughout this task, students integrate their reading, writing (while drafting and editing), and speaking and listening skills as they engage in peer review.

    • In Grade 7, Unit 5, students complete a unit titled Artists, Athletes, and Gamers.

      • For the End-of-Unit Assessment, students complete and present a research presentation based on their research project, where they “develop an argument related to a debatable topic within a hobby or interest of choice that includes a clear claim, well-organized reasoning with evidence, and acknowledgment of a counterclaim. Students will present their argument and research in a final presentation that is well-organized and coherent, highlighting key ideas and using multimedia and visual elements to clarify information and support understanding. This culminating task allows students to demonstrate their knowledge about research while developing aspects of argument writing, such as crafting a precise claim with evidence, organizing ideas logically, and using transitions to connect evidence and reasoning effectively.” Throughout this task, students integrate their reading and writing skills as they draft and edit their writing, and their speaking and listening skills as they rehearse and present to the class.

• Materials provide opportunities to support students in gaining the knowledge and skills needed to complete the culminating tasks/summative assessments.

  • Throughout each unit, students have opportunities to build the knowledge and skills needed to complete the End-of-Unit Assessment. Lessons provide instruction and practice with unit content and literacy skills through activities such as analyzing texts and models, participating in discussions, and completing reading, writing, speaking, and listening tasks aligned to the skills assessed at the end of the unit. Writing lesson Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) also use language aligned to the End-of-Unit Assessment SLOs, helping connect ongoing instruction and practice to assessment expectations. Teachers can easily reference these SLOs in each Unit Overview to understand how instruction across the unit prepares students for the End-of-Unit Assessment.

    • In Grade 6, Unit 4, students complete the unit, Strength in Our Stories, with the essential questions “How does the purpose for sharing a story or message shape the way we tell it? How do family bonds influence us? How can responses to tragedy inspire change?” The About the Unit information in the Unit Overview states, 

      • “Strength in Our Stories invites students to explore how storytelling, family bonds, and responses to tragedy shape our understanding of ourselves and the world. Centered on The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963, the unit follows the Watson family as they navigate personal challenges against the backdrop of historical events. Supporting texts—including essays from children who lost parents on 9/11, reflections on the Birmingham church bombing, and poems about family connections—deepen students’ understanding of how people respond to loss and injustice. Students consider how the story’s purpose shapes its telling, how family relationships influence resilience, and how acts of courage and reflection can inspire change. Through close reading, discussion, and analysis, students examine the human capacity to endure and respond to tragedy. The unit culminates in a multi-paragraph informative task where students use multiple texts to explain how tragedy can impact individuals.”

      • Through 26 Reading lessons, students develop the unit and content knowledge and reading skills that they will need to answer the End-of-Unit prompt.

      • Through three Discussion lessons, students discuss and deepen their understanding of the key texts in the unit. 

      • Students engage in five Writing lessons throughout the unit before the End-of-Unit Assessment. Through these lessons, students learn the skills they need to complete the End-of-Unit Assessment of writing an informative essay. The Unit Overview presents the SLOs for these lessons:

        • Lesson 5: “Develop a topic with relevant facts, definitions, examples and details.”

        • Lesson 12: “Introduce and develop a topic using organized ideas and transitions to connect ideas.” 

        • Lessons 20-21 (Mid-Unit Assessment and Extension): “Write an informative text that introduces and organizes a topic clearly, develops ideas with relevant facts and details, and uses transitions to show relationships among ideas.” 

        • Lesson 23: “Introduce a topic using organized ideas and transitions to connect ideas.”

      For the End-of-Unit Assessment, the SLO is: “Write an informative text that introduces and develops a topic with relevant details, includes appropriate transitions and precise language in a formal style, and concludes to support the information presented.”

• Materials include guidance that supports the teacher in determining and evaluating student performance on the culminating tasks/summative assessments in the program. 

  • The materials provide guidance for teachers on evaluating and interpreting student performance on End-of-Unit Assessments. Rubrics with scoring criteria and model responses/answer keys support teachers in consistently assessing student work, identifying areas of strength and need, and using assessment results to inform instructional decisions. These rubrics and answer keys can be found in the Appendix in each unit’s Teacher Guide.

    • Each rubric includes a rating scale with four ratings across several criteria: Advanced, Proficient, Developing, and Beginning

    • For the final written product, the answer key consists of a model response. The guidance for using this model response states, “The example extended response should not be used to set the bar for proficiency; rather, it is intended to illustrate how the rubric criteria might look when fully developed in writing.” 

  • The Program Guide states that “Each unit includes a full set of standards-aligned rubrics located in the appendix of the teacher guide. These rubrics are intentionally aligned to lesson objectives, writing genres, and assessment tasks so that students are practicing and receiving feedback on the same criteria they will later be assessed on. By tightly aligning rubrics, lesson objectives, and instructional next steps, the program ensures that assessment meaningfully informs teaching and learning.” The Genre Writing Rubric can be used formatively during each unit’s writing lessons. The End-of-Assessment Rubric “builds on the genre writing rubric with an additional ‘Advanced’ category to reflect demonstration of student work that exceeds grade-level expectations in the end-of-unit assessment.”