5th Grade - Gateway 1

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for anchor texts being of publishable quality and worthy of especially careful reading and consider a range of student interests.

The texts in both Literature and Science and Social Studies are of publishable quality, many are written by well-known authors, and many are also part of well-known series. The texts are culturally diverse and contain strong academic vocabulary. The texts contain engaging pictures, and the content is written in a manner that is engaging for students.

Examples in Literature include:

• In Unit 1, students read Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman, which is a text that brings together numerous cultural perspectives to create something beautiful in their community.
• In Unit 2, students read The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis, which has won numerous awards and has been published across the world in 17 different languages. The knowledge demands and cultural themes make it of publishable quality.
• In Unit 3, students read Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez, which has won numerous awards, such as the Pura Belpre Award. It is a timely story that has historical connections between the Native American displacement and migrant struggles in America.
• In Unit 4, students read the Newberry Award winning text, One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia, which also won the Coretta Scott King Award.
• In Unit 5, students read the Newberry Award winning text, Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George. Students also read the Newberry Award winner Hatchet by Gary Paulsen and Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry.
• In Unit 6, students read the Newberry Award winning text, A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle, which addresses themes of conformity and is of high-interest to students.

Examples from sections identified as Science and Social Studies include:

• In Unit 1, students read Food Chains and Food Webs by Kira Freed, which contains strong academic content and vocabulary.
• In Unit 2, students read La Causa: The Migrant Farmworkers’ Story by Dana Catharine de Ruiz and Richard Larios, which is a visually appealing text that is of high interest to students.
• In Unit 3, students read several texts including Witnesses to Freedom: Young People who Fought for Civil Rights by Belinda Rochelle and Freedom’s Children: Young Civil Rights Activities Tell Their Own Stories by Ellen S. Levine, which contain strong academic content and vocabulary and are age-appropriate.
• In Unit 4, students read The Mighty Mars Rovers: The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity by Elizabeth Rusch, which contains colorful pictures, strong academic vocabulary, and is of high interest.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials reflecting the distribution of text types and genres required by the standards at each grade levelThe materials include a mix of informational and literary texts. There is a wide array of informational and literary text integrated throughout every unit. Additional supplementary texts are included, resulting in a wide distribution of genres and text types as required by the standards, including articles, historical fiction, mythology, folktales, poetry, audio interviews, and songs. The majority of the literary texts are found in the Literature curriculum, and the majority of the informational texts are found in the Science and Social Studies curriculum.

The following are examples of literary text found within the instructional materials:

• Literature, Unit 1: Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
• Literature, Unit 2: The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis
• Literature, Unit 3: Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez
• Literature, Unit 4: “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou
• Literature, Unit 5: Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
• Literature, Unit 6: A Wrinkle in Time: The Graphic Novel by Hope Larson and Madeleine L’Engle

The following are examples of informational text found within the instructional materials:

• Science and Social Studies, Unit 1: “Losing Africa's Lions” by Michelle Bruner
• Science and Social Studies, Unit 2: La Causa: The Migrant Farmworkers’ Story by Dana Catharine de Ruiz and Richard Larios
• Literature, Unit 2: I am Malala: How One Girl Stood up for Education and Changed the World by Malala Yousafzai and Patricia McCormick
• Science and Social Studies, Unit 3: Witnesses to Freedom: Young People Who Fought for Civil Rights by Belinda Rochelle
• Science and Social Studies, Unit 4: The Mighty Mars Rovers: The Incredible Adventures of SPirit and Opportunity by Elizabeth Rusch
• Literature, Unit 4: Panter Newspaper - Vol. 3. No. 1, 1969 - part 2

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for texts having the appropriate level of complexity for the grade according to quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis, and relationship to their associated student task. The majority of the texts are the appropriate quantitative measure. Texts that fall outside of the quantitative band have qualitative features and/or tasks that bring them to the appropriate level for students to access the text.

Examples of texts that fall within the appropriate quantitative band with appropriate qualitative measures and reader and task include:

• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 3, students read several texts that fall within the appropriate grade level band including Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom: My Story of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March by Lynda Blackmon Lowery (L780), Selma, Lord, Selma: Girlhood Memories of the Civil Rights Day by Frank Sikora (L830) and Freedom’s Children: Young Civil Rights Activitists Tell Their Own Stories by Ellen S. Levine (L760). The quantitative and qualitative components of the texts in this unit ensure that scholars are exposed to informational texts with a varying range of text-complexity features and demands. All of the texts in this unit have moderately complex knowledge demands, but all of the texts also include carefully curated illustrations, graphics, and page layouts to support the complexity, though they often add information that is not otherwise conveyed in the text.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 4, students read The Mighty Mars Rovers: The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity by Elizabeth Rusch, which has a Lexile of 950. The text structure, illustrations and graphics, vocabulary, sentence structure, and content knowledge make the text worthy of study. The text features are essential for understanding the content, given the moderately complex text structure and page layout.
• In Literature, Unit 4, students read One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia, which has a Lexile of 750. The appropriate Lexile, along with the moderately complex knowledge demands and vocabulary/sentence structure support the text’s placement at this point in Grade 5.
• In Literature, Unit 6, students read A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle which has a Lexile of 740. The text has complex, archaic sentence structure and vocabulary. While comprehending the text requires a strong grasp of using context to figure out the meaning of unknown words, the plot and themes of the story are both simple and easy for students to access, making the text appropriate in Grade 5.

One example of a text that is above the appropriate Lexile band but has appropriate qualitative measures and reader and task is Witnesses to Freedom: Young People who Fought for Civil Rights by Belinda Rochelle. Found in Science and Social Studies, Unit 3, students read , this text has a Lexile of 1040, though the qualitative features make the it accessible and appropriate for students in Grade 5.

One example of a text falls below the appropriate Lexile band but has an appropriate qualitative measure and reader and task is The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis. Found in Literature, Unit 2, this text has a Lexile of 630, which is in the 2-3 grade band. However, the complex knowledge demands suggest the text is more appropriate in the 4-5 grade band. Additionally, many of the themes are more complex for elementary school readers' experience, including such themes as women’s rights, warfare, and self-reliance.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials supporting students’ increasing literacy skills over the course of the school year. (Series of texts should be at a variety of complexity levels appropriate for the grade band.)

Texts are at a variety of complexity levels appropriate for the grade band. Skills build upon one another in units and across the year. Texts require deeper analysis throughout the year and themes become more complex in the texts. Questions increase within the depth of knowledge: requiring inferences, analysis, and synthesis throughout the year. Examples include:

• In Literature, Unit 1, students learn how to quote accurately from the text and how to determine a theme of the story. Another focus of the unit is to establish expectations for annotation, discussion, and vocabulary.
• In Literature, Unit 3, students learn how to paraphrase portions of a text and determine what situations call for paraphrasing versus quoting directly from the text. Students summarize both longer and shorter sections of a text by including key components of a summary.
• In Literature, Unit 6, students spend time on author’s craft as a way to develop tone and emotions, particularly the use of sentence structure and syntax. As this is the culminating unit of the year, students review characterization, theme, context clues, and plot. For example, in Lesson 1, students are asked how the author characterizes Meg.

Informational writing focus correction areas are identified in the unit overviews. They show clear progression and increase in demands on student performance. These include:

• In Unit 1, students provide of variety of text evidence, include headings, to logically group ideas and brainstorm to show command of organizational structure.
• In Unit 2, students group supporting ideas and relevant evidence in paragraph sections.
• In Unit 3, students use transition words, phrases, and clauses to connect evidence.
• In Unit 4, students establish strong voice using multiple craft techniques and revise and strengthen writing by integrating information from more than one text.

Writing projects from the Science and Social Studies units also show an increase in the demands of students throughout the year. For example:

• In Unit 1, students explain how their model shows the movement of energy in a food web.
• In Unit 2, students describe the characteristics of an influential leader by drawing on multiple print and digital sources to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. This writing prompt requires multiple skills and draws on information from multiple texts. Students respond to the writing prompt on how the events from the March to Selma illustrate the characteristics of youth involvement in the civil rights movement as a whole. Students use multiple texts along with evidence from the texts and draw conclusions based on the texts. Students defend and support their conclusions in writing.
• In Unit 4, the writing prompt requires students to integrate information from throughout the unit and build on information from a text. Students write the foreword of the text, The Mighty Mars Rovers, using the same style and format as the author.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria that anchor texts and series of texts connected to them are accompanied by a text complexity analysis and rationale for purpose and placement in the grade level.

The program materials in each unit in Literature and Science and Social Studies contain a text complexity analysis that includes quantitative measure, qualitative measure, and a rationale for including the text. The text complexity analysis is accessible from the Unit Overview.

In Literature, each unit contain a quantitative and qualitative analysis, as well as a reader and task with a description for why the text is appropriate, such as:

• In Unit 1, students read Seedfolks, which has a Lexile of 710. The program states that the qualitative measure explains that the complex levels of meaning and text structure make the lower Lexile text appropriate in this grade. The plot of the story is unconventional and moderately complex. Themes for the entire novel are nuanced and developed over the course of the entire novel, which requires a deeper analysis.
• In Unit 2, The Breadwinner has a Lexile of 630, but the qualitative analysis states that the complex knowledge demands makes the text more appropriate for this grade.
• In Unit 3, Return to Sender has a Lexile of 890 and the qualitative demands, particularly the complex knowledge demands and text structures, make this an appropriate text according to the program.
• In Unit 4, with a Lexile of 750, the core text, One Crazy Summer, is appropriate and the program states that the qualitative measures, particularly the knowledge demands, vocabulary, and sentence structure make the text moderately complex.
• In Unit 5, Julie of the Wolves has a Lexile of 860 and is moderately complex due to its conventionality, vocabulary, and sentence structure. It uses dense, complex language, and contains a lot of figurative language. According to the program, the vocabulary is archaic, complex, and unfamiliar, and the sentence structure is very plain.

In Science and Social Studies most of the units contain a rationale with the quantitative and qualitative analysis, such as:

• In Unit 1, the text, Food Chains and Food Webs, does not have a Lexile or a rationale.
• In Unit 2, the core text, La Causa, The Migrant Farmworkers’ Story, does not have a Lexile; however, the program states that the text retells events in a chronological order, with straightforward vocabulary, and simple structure, making it appropriate in this unit.
• In Unit 3, there are numerous text with Lexiles ranging from 760 to 1040, but no rationale is provided.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria that most questions, tasks, and assignments are text dependent/specific, requiring students to engage with the text directly (drawing on textual evidence to support both what is explicit as well as valid inferences from the text).

Materials contain questions and tasks that require students to engage with the text directly and to draw on textual evidence to support their answers. At times students are asked to give the specific location of the text they returned to as they answered the questions. Each unit includes questions or activities in the Target Task and Key Questions section that require students to interact with the text. Questions asked include those which require both explicit answers and inferences from the text. The questions are specific to analyze the unit text and writing tasks are embedded through each unit with Target Tasks that include writing prompts in response to the text.

In Grade 5 Literature, examples of questions and tasks requiring the students to use evidence from the text include:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 12, after reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman students are asked: "Florence describes the people who started the Gibb Street garden as 'seedfolks'. Why? Even though Florence was unable to garden, she became deeply connected to the garden. Explain how and why. How did the changing seasons influence the garden? The community? Even though Florence didn't recognize the girl planting Lima beans, it made her feel alive. What does the girl represent? Why is she important to the garden and the community?"
• In Unit 2, Lesson 25, after reading I am Malala: How One Girl Stood up for Education and Changed the World by Malala Yousafzai and Patricia McCormick, students are asked: "At the end of the chapter Malala says, 'The Taliban shot me to try and silence me. Instead, the whole world was listening to my message now.' Explain the significance of this quote and what is how's about Malala."
• In Unit 3, Lesson 7, after reading Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez, the students are asked: "How does Tyler respond to his mother's suggestion that he go introduce himself to the girls? What causes him to finally change his mind? Summarize what happens when Tyler goes to visit the girls. Do they all have the same perspective about the visit? Why? Despite many obvious differences, Tyler and Mari are becoming friends. Agree or disagree? What 'big mystery' does Tyler's family reveal? How does he respond? Why?"
• In Unit 4, Lesson 3, after reading One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia, students are asked: "One Crazy Summer is told from Delphine's point of view. How does this include the way events and characters are described? What emotions are emphasized? Based on the first few chapter, what does Delphine want a reader to understand about her relationship with her sisters and Cecile?"

Similarly, in Grade 5 Science and Social Studies, lessons contain text-dependent questions and tasks after reading. Some examples include:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 3, after reading Food Chains and Food Webs by Kira Freed, students are asked: "The author states, 'Decomposers complete the food chain.' Explain how decomposers complete the food chain using details from the text and diagram."
• In Unit 2, Lesson 13, after reading La Causa: The Migrant Farmers’ Story, pages 37 - 47 by Dana Catharine de Ruiz and Richard Larios and the “National Farm Workers Association Rules for Pickets” article, students are asked: "What challenges did Dolores face when she tried to strike by herself? Why? Describe what happened with Dolores and the grower. Did they both have the same perspective on events? Why? On page 45, the author states, 'Dolores stood her ground.' What does this mean? What rules were in place for picketing? Why was each rule important?"
• In Unit 3, Lesson 7, after reading Freedom's Children: Young Civil Rights Activities Tell Their Own Stories by Ellen S. Levine, students are asked: "Explain the significance of the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Supreme Court case. How did Southern segregationists respond? Why?"

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for having sets of high-quality sequences of text-dependent/specific questions and tasks build to a culminating task that integrates skills (may be writing, speaking, or a combination).

Units throughout Literature and Science and Social Studies have sets of high quality sequences of text-dependent questions that build to a culminating task. It is often a multi-day writing project or a research project. In Literature, the tasks usually require students to write stories similar to what they read, though one project has them write a magazine article. Many Science and Social Studies units require students to complete a research project, including an essay and a presentation.

Examples of culminating tasks throughout Literature and Science and Social Studies include:

• In Literature, Unit 1, students imagine they are from the community in Seedfolks and write a chapter from their point of view.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 1, students pick another apex animal and write a research report describing why the population of the animal is declining. Students evaluate the different solutions that are currently in place. Lessons throughout the unit support this task such as in Lesson 14, where students describe what happens when a species in a food chain disappears.
• In Literature, Unit 2, students imagine that they have been hired as a writer for a magazine. Students pick a major theme of the unit and write a magazine article that teaches others around the world about the theme.
• In Literature, Unit 3, students debate if the Cruz family was treated fairly by stating a claim and supporting the claim with key details from the unit.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 3, students use what they know about nonviolent tactics and community organizations to create a plan for fighting injustice in the community. Questions throughout the unit support this task, such as in Lesson 3, students analyze the tactics the students in the section of the text use to fight back against segregation and oppression they faced.
• In Literature, Unit 4, students create a final version of the novel, One Crazy Summer, as told by a different character. This occurs in Lesson 35, which is a three-day project. Then Lesson 36, which is a two-day project, has students write Delphine’s back-to-school essay describing what she learned over the summer.
• In Literature, Unit 5, students write the next chapter of one of the stories from the unit by using concrete words and phrases and sensory details to convey experiences while drawing on characteristics of modern genres as a model for writing.
• In Literature, Unit 6, students write a story as if they are Meg, Calvin, or Charles from A Wrinkle in Time and are given an opportunity to tesser again. Students write about where they will go and what will happen.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials providing frequent opportunities and protocols for evidence-based discussions (small groups, peer-to-peer, whole class) that encourage the modeling and use of academic vocabulary and syntax.

Throughout the curriculum there are opportunities and protocols for evidence-based discussions. Each unit and lesson includes evidence-based Key Questions and Target Tasks that require teachers to use one of the evidence-based discussions. These questions and the opportunity to choose the protocol provides opportunities for students to take a closer look at the author’s craft, vocabulary, and syntax. There are Match Minis that are videos for teachers that demonstrate how to implement these protocols. It is important to note that because there are lesson frames, and not step-by-step scripts for each lessons, the teachers have to use their own discretion for when to introduce and use the various protocols.

In the Publisher’s Support Document for teachers, the strategies are explained and outlined in a step-by-step guide. Some lessons refer to these strategies and structures specifically, and other times, the teacher has to choose when and which one to use. In addition, some lessons remind the teacher to model the strategy prior to the lesson. Some of the instructional strategies discussed include:

• Turn and Talk: Low-risk oral language strategy that provides scaffolded opportunities for all students to formulate and build upon each other’s ideas.
• Stop and Jot: Gives students a chance to process individually and make sense of information before participating in a turn and talk, class discussion, or moving on with a lesson. (A sample lesson plan for teaching Stop and Jot is provided)
• Discussion: Rigorous discussion explicitly fosters habits that increase student thinking by challenging students to test out their own ideas, build on those of their peers, and ultimately lead a persuasive discussion. The length and format of a rigorous discussion can and should vary.

There is a Rigorous Discussion Guideline that provides steps and guidelines for preparing, leading, and following up after a discussion. A rubric is provided to help evaluate students’ discussion. Teachers are provided with various text consumption strategies that they can implement as they see fit. These strategies are read alouds, shared reading, partner reading, and small group reading.

Match Mini Protocols that illustrate various protocols include:

• Part 1: In-Class discussions
• Part 2: Protocols for classroom discussions. This assists the teacher with evidence-based discussions using the text-based questions and vocabulary.

Examples from the lesson frameworks include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 1, Lesson 8, after learning about the vocabulary term, "energy pyramid", one of the discussion questions is "How does the energy pyramid help a reader better understand how energy is transferred through a food chain?"
• In Literature, Unit 2, Lesson 17, students discuss what themes are present in The Breadwinner. They give examples of how different characters respond to the major themes.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 2, Lesson 15, the teacher leads a discussion about the boycott after reading the article, “Boycott Instructions-Delano Grapes/Schenley Liquors 1966,” and watching the video, “Chicano!-Struggle in the Fields.” Students use details from the letter, video, and boycott rules as a guide for facilitating this discussion.
• In Literature, Unit 4, Lesson 7, students watch the video, “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” and discuss what evidence from the video supports the claim that the Black Panther Party sought social justice for African Americans and other oppressed communities through a combination of nonviolent social action, education, and community programs.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials supporting students’ listening and speaking about what they are reading and researching (including presentation opportunities) with relevant follow-up questions and supports.

Materials support speaking and listening about the text through group learning activities and class discussion. There are questions around photographs and videos, as well as informational text features. Each lesson outline has a discussion, writing, project, and test section. The series of questions in the Key Questions section lend themselves to rich discussion about the text and issues in the text. The course summary specifically says that the majority of the class time is spent engaging with the text, either individually or as a class, annotating, writing, and discussing key themes and questions. Target Tasks are a central part of each daily lesson and offer opportunities for writing and discussion that both deepen students’ understanding of the content and build their writing and discussion skills. The Intellectual Prep for each unit specifies that discussions will be included throughout the lessons.

In Literature, there are many opportunities for students to practice their speaking and listening skills about what they are reading and researching. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 4, students discuss point of view and how Leona describes the vacant lot on page 25 and how her view influences the way the setting is described.
• In Unit 1, Lesson 6, before doing the mini-lesson on Seedfolks, the teacher helps students understand the Target Task question by discussing the question.
• In Unit 2, Lesson 9, while reading The Breadwinner, students debate if now that Parvanan is dressed like a boy, she is acting like the man of the family by analyzing details in the text that describe character and setting in depth.
• In Unit 3, Lesson 8, while reading Return to Sender, students discuss various quotes from the text, such as “Tyler hates to admit it, but after September 11, he’s a little scared of strangers from other countries who might be plotting to destroy the United States of America."
• In Unit 4, Lesson 11, students read two poems by Langston Hughes and then discuss the two poems by analyzing the poems and determining the author’s theme.
• In Unit 5, Lesson 10, while reading various poems, the students work in teams to analyze and explain figurative language found in the text. This requires both speaking and listening.

In Science and Social Studies, there are many opportunities for students to practice their speaking and listening skills about what they are reading and researching. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 5, students develop a model to describe the movement of matter in a food chain and present their project to the class.
• In Unit 1, Lesson 10, students articulate and explain how energy is transferred throughout the food web, using domain-specific vocabulary.
• In Unit 2, Lesson 15, students use a letter, a video, and boycott rules to discuss boycotts.
• In Unit 3, Lesson 7, students debate if the children in the text section would agree or disagree with the statement: “Their courage made a difference not only in each of their individual lives, but for all the others who have followed.”
• In Unit 3, Lesson 19, students synthesize everything that they read and learned about the Civil Rights Movement and use guiding questions to help frame the discussion.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials including a mix of on-demand and process writing (e.g. multiple drafts, revisions over time) and short, focused projects, incorporating digital resources where appropriate.

In the materials, the majority of lessons include on-demand writing, such as a Target Task that requires students to respond in writing to the text covered in the lesson. These tasks vary in type and require students to respond to print and video materials. The writing prompts in Science and Social Studies help students process the concepts that they have learned in the informational text. The Publisher’s Documents have guides for informational writing, narrative writing, and literary analysis. Guides provide writing protocols for teachers to use in instruction, along with explanations on implementing the structure within the lesson frames. Guides provide guidance on supporting students throughout the writing process while allowing for maximum response to student needs in the individual classrooms. The Unit Overviews identify skills that should be focused on in writing, and the Publisher’s Documents help teachers plan for addressing these skills in the lessons. The information for routines, procedures, and expectations is included in the Writing Focus Areas under Unit Prep, though not specified in each lesson.

Guidance for writing can be found in the Publisher’s Documents for each type of writing. Examples of guidance include the following:

• Guide to Informational Writing establishes the rationale for informational writing, which is that informational writing anchors lessons that are in Science and Social Studies. The informational writing is completed in response to a text, or a series of texts, in order to build and deepen students’ understanding of content. This guide includes protocols for process writing. The teacher uses the protocols within this document to provide practice in process writing throughout the year. Each step in the process is defined and explained in the document to provide support for the teacher.
• Guide to Narrative Writing explains that the anchor lessons will not be mastered in one lesson, and teachers will assess student writing and adjust lessons based on what they observe. The lessons should be customized based on the needs of the students, and teachers provide individualized feedback to students during the lessons.
• Guide to Literary Analysis includes common misconceptions and mistakes in literary analysis, such as excessive reliance on emotional understandings or mistaken beliefs.
• Implementing Daily writing practices is included in the Publisher’s Documents. This guide states that the lessons can be either one-day or multiple-day lessons depending on the teaching point.

On-demand writing is found in the majority of lessons. In Science and Social Studies, the writing prompts help students process the concepts in the informational texts that they read by sequencing, making comparisons, and summarizing. In the Literature units, daily writing activities include retellings and evidence-based responses about characters, setting, and plot. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Literature, Unit 1, Lesson 6, students describe how one person can impact a community. Students learn how to write a strong paragraph before answering this prompt.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 1, Lesson 11, students explain how the model shows the movement of energy in a food web.
• In Literature, Unit 2, Lesson 2, students describe the setting of the The Breadwinner.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 2, Lesson 6, students use details from the video and pictures to describe the conditions for farm workers in California.
• In Literature, Unit 3, Lesson 20, students respond to Mari from Return to Sender via a letter.
• In Literature Unit 3, Lesson 30, students explain how events from the March to Selma illustrate the characteristics of youth involvement in the Civil Rights Movement as a whole.
• In Literature, Unit 4, Lesson 22, students explain why the girls were taking a trip to San Francisco.
• In Literature, Unit 5, Lesson 14, students respond to the question, “What scenes does the author include to develop the theme of courage?”

Process writing is found throughout the curriculum. Many units have at least one type of extended writing activity with lessons that span more than one day, sometimes up to a week. Students are engaged in a small text-based writing project within the unit at times. There are culminating writing tasks found at the end of some units. A few of the extended writing tasks involve multiple versions or revisions of the assignment throughout the unit, with teacher notes about the states of the writing process. Examples include:

• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 1, Lessons 23-27, students write a research report describing why the population of lions in Africa is declining.
• In Literature Unit 2, Lesson 28, students choose a theme from the book,The Breadwinner, and write a magazine article that teaches others around the world about the theme. This is the culminating writing project for the unit, and students can work on it for up to four days in order to publish it by the end of the unit.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 2, Lesson 24, students conduct a short research project that uses several sources and create a presentation to share with the class.
• In Literature, Unit 3, Lesson 5 and 11, students rewrite Mari’s letters to the President. Students use feedback from Lesson 5 to improve their letter in Lesson 11. Explicit instruction is provided for the teacher to ensure students rewrite the letter in a more coherent, focused manner. Target focus correction areas for the teacher to monitor include the following: making a correct claim, selecting the most relevant text-based details, and paraphrasing accurately from the text.
• In Literature, Unit 4, Lesson 35, students create a final version of a novel they are writing by developing and strengthening writing as needed through revising, editing, or rewriting. Students write their own narrative journal throughout this unit, and, on this day, they focus on editing and revising their journal entries.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials providing opportunities for students to address different text types of writing that reflect the distribution required by the standards.

The materials cover a variety of text types that reflect the distribution required by the standard and also support mastery of the standards at each grade. The materials include opportunities for students to write narratives, informational, and opinion pieces, as well as a variety of literary analysis prompts.

Some examples of narrative writing lessons and prompts include:

• In Literature, Unit 1, Lesson 16, students pretend they lived in the community where Seedfolks takes place and they write a chapter from their own point of view.
• In Literature, Unit 2, Lesson 4, students rewrite sections of The Breadwinner from another character’s point of view by using descriptive details.
• In Literature, Unit 3, Lesson 27, students rewrite sections of Mari’s letter from another character’s point of view or write Papa’s response to Mari’s letter using the text, Return from Sender.
• In Literature, Unit 4, Lesson 4, students rewrite sections from One Crazy Summer from another character’s point of view. Students need to focus on effective literary techniques, descriptive details, and clear sequence.
• In Literature Unit 5, Lesson 21, students write the next chapter of one of the stories from the unit.

Informational writing prompts and lessons are found in both Literature and Science and Social Studies. Example include:

• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 1, Lesson 6, students explain how their model shows the movement of matter in a food chain.
• In Literature, Unit 2, Lesson 11, students explain a quote in the text, The Breadwinner.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 2, Lesson 2, students compare and contrast life on the grape farm with life in Yucca, specifically how the Chavez family was treated in each location, by accurately paraphrasing the text, La Causa: The Migrant Farmworkers’ Story.
• In Literature, Unit 3, Lesson 8, students explain Civil Disobedience and how it is different from breaking the law.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 3, Lesson 19, students have to use details from multiple texts to describe key tactics and strategies used during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. They have to explain which are most effective.

Opinion writing is found in Literature and Science and Social Studies, and include many writing prompts that involve literary analysis. Examples include:

• In Literature, Unit 1, Lesson 5, students read the statement that people’s actions can both positively and negatively impact the community. In writing, students have to agree or disagree with that statement and defend why.
• In Literature, Unit 2, Lesson 26, students explain whether or not Malala is an ordinary girl and defend their opinion using details from the text.
• In Science and Social Studies, Unit 2, Lesson 14, students defend whether the strike was successful or not by summarizing and paraphrasing key details from the text.
• In Literature, Unit 3, Lesson 13, students read the statement that all members of the family have equal amounts of hope and fear and have to agree or disagree with it.
• In Literature, Unit 5, Lesson 13, students describe how Brian’s figuring out food in Hatchet contribute to the theme of the excerpt.
• In Literature, Unit 4, Lesson 14, students share whether they think Delphine should have been allowed to read newspapers and why the newspapers were crucial for the success of the Black Panther Party.
• In Literature, Unit 5, Lesson 9, students explain whether or not they think Mafatu is courageous.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 5 meet the criteria for materials including frequent opportunities for evidence-based writing to support careful analyses, well-defended claims, and clear information appropriate for the grade level.

Materials include frequent opportunities for evidence-based writing. Some of the writing assignments include a close read of a particular piece of text and to use detailed evidence to support responses to writing prompts. Other writing assignments require students to compare two pieces of text and draw evidence from both to support claims. The Literary Analysis Rubric used to grade all of the writing supports the use of evidence-based writing. Explicit references to the text in the student’s writing yields more points on the rubric.

Examples of evidence-based writing opportunities in Literature include:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 13, the target task writing prompt is, “Describe the overall structure of Seedfolks. How do different events fit together to create the plot?”
• In Unit 2, Lesson 4, students rewrite sections of the book, The Breadwinner, from another character’s point of view, and they need to include details that show how the character feels and why.
• In Unit 3, Lesson 6, the target task writing prompt is to imagine that students are Mari and use what they know about how to clearly communicate ideas to rewrite Mari’s letter to her mother. Additional guidance is provided in the note section of the lesson frame including using Mari’s letter as a model and working with the students on improving it.
• In Unit 4, Lesson 11, the target task writing prompt asks students to determine a theme of each poem in “I, Too” and “Dream Variations." Students explain how the poet uses details and stanzas to develop the theme.
• In Unit 5, Lesson 3, students write a summary of an excerpt from Julie of the Wolves. They need to include how the characters in the story respond to the main challenges and determine a main theme of the excerpt.

Examples of evidence-based writing opportunities in Science and Social Studies include:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 18, the target task is to describe an African lion’s role in the Savannah ecosystem.
• In Unit 2, Lesson 2, students compare and contrast life on the grape farm with life in Yucca. Students have to paraphrase how the Chavez family was treated in each location and why. This lesson introduces the strategy of paraphrasing a text when reading.
• In Unit 3, Lesson 10, the target task writing prompt is, “How do the events of school integration, particularly by the Little Rock Nine, illustrate the characteristics of youth involvement in the Civil Rights Movement as a whole?”