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2023

Really Great Reading

Publisher
Really Great Reading
Subject
ELA
Grades
K-2
Report Release
08/20/2024
Review Tool Version
v2.0
Format
Supplemental: Foundational Skills Only

EdReports reviews of foundational skills supplements determine if a program meets, partially meets, or does not meet expectations for alignment to research-based practices and college and career ready standards. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.

Alignment (Gateway 1)
Meets Expectations

Materials must meet expectations for standards alignment in order to be reviewed for usability. This rating encompasses all grades covered in the program.

Usability (Gateway 2)
Meets Expectations
Key areas of interest

This score is the sum of all points available for all foundational skills components across all grades covered in the program.

The maximum available points depends on the review tool used and the number of grades covered.

Foundational Skills
196/198

This score represents an average across grade levels reviewed for: integrated reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language, and promotion of mastery of grade-level standards by the end of the year.

Building Knowledge
NC = Not Claimed. The publisher does not claim that this component is addressed in the materials.
NC
Our Review Process

Learn more about EdReports’ educator-led review process

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Note on review tool version

See the top of the page to confirm the review tool version used for this report:

Report for 2nd Grade

Alignment Summary

The materials for Grade 2 meet the expectations for alignment to research-based practices and standards for foundational skills instruction.

The materials do not contain elements of instruction that are based on the three-cueing system for teaching decoding. The materials provide a clear, evidence-based explanation for the order of the phonics scope and sequence, which is intentionally ordered from simpler to more complex skills. Phonics instruction is based on high utility patterns and common phonics generalizations. Instruction starts with closed syllables and ends with reading two- to four-syllable words with split vowels. The materials provide appropriate pacing of phonics skills, which are taught daily in 15-20 minute teacher-led whole group lessons, 20-30 minute daily small group sessions, and 30-40 minute independent practice time. Student practice activities include isolated practice, practice in sentences, and repeated reading of a decodable text. Lesson 5 of any given week reviews phonics skills introduced and practiced during Lessons 1-4. The materials include systematic and explicit instruction in phonics with repeated teacher modeling. The materials contain spelling rules and generalizations aligned to the phonics scope and sequence, and these generalizations are taught in conjunction with reading words that follow these rules. The materials contain decodable texts with phonics aligned to the phonics scope and sequence. The decodable texts begin in Unit 1, with one every week until the final unit.

The materials include opportunities for systematic and explicit instruction of Heart Words (high-frequency words) with a consistent, explicit instructional routine. Online teacher guidance and lesson plans provide instructions for teachers on how to model reading and spelling Heart Words and in connecting phonemes to graphemes. The materials provide videos on the explicit instruction of Heart Words with connections of phonemes to the graphemes. There are five Heart Words taught each week for Units 1-20. The materials provide opportunities for students to read high-frequency words in isolation through the Heart Word Magic Videos and practice activities, including Look, Think, Say!, Pop-Up, 3-Up, and Read a Row. The materials provide decodable texts containing high-frequency words, which provide opportunities for students to read the words in context. The students have a template to write Heart Words and to mark the irregularly spelled part of the word. The materials provide opportunities for explicit instruction in syllable types and routines for decoding and encoding with opportunities to apply learning. There is also explicit instruction involving morpheme analysis, with inflectional endings and suffixes.

The materials include systematic instruction in oral reading fluency. The instructional routine includes the teacher modeling fluent reading, discussing how to address punctuation when reading, and strategies to address accuracy. The consistent fluency routine to develop oral reading fluency is used with phrases, sentences, decodable passages, and decodable texts. Practice opportunities for oral reading fluency are provided through decodable passages, phrases, and sentences in student workbooks. Guidance for Positive Corrective Feedback is provided within mini-lesson resources and in the appendices. The materials include systematic assessment opportunities through reading the passages and tracking accuracy. The materials contain multiple assessment opportunities with cold 1-minute reads of decodable texts corresponding to each unit, which includes a consistent routine that tracks students’ accuracy.

2nd Grade
Alignment (Gateway 1)
Meets Expectations
Gateway 2

Usability

20/22
0
10
19
22
Usability (Gateway 2)
Meets Expectations
Overview of Gateway 1

Alignment to Research-Based Practices and Standards for Foundation Skills Instruction

Criterion 1.1: Phonics (Decoding and Encoding)

32/32

Materials emphasize explicit, systematic instruction of research-based and/or evidence-based phonics.

The materials do not contain elements of instruction that are based on the three-cueing system for teaching decoding. The materials provide a clear, evidence-based explanation for the order of the phonics scope and sequence, which is intentionally ordered from simpler to more complex skills. Phonics instruction is based on high utility patterns and common phonics generalizations. Instruction starts with closed syllables and ends with reading two- to four-syllable words with split vowels. The materials provide appropriate pacing of phonics skills, which are taught daily in 15-20 minute teacher-led whole group lessons, 20-30 minute daily small group sessions, and 30-40 minute independent practice time. Student practice activities include isolated practice, practice in sentences, and repeated reading of a decodable text. Lesson 5 of any given week reviews phonics skills introduced and practiced during Lessons 1-4. The materials include systematic and explicit instruction in phonics with repeated teacher modeling. The materials contain spelling rules and generalizations aligned to the phonics scope and sequence, and these generalizations are taught in conjunction with reading words that follow these rules. The materials contain decodable texts with phonics aligned to the phonics scope and sequence. The decodable texts begin in Unit 1, with one every week until the final unit. The phonics skill is taught on Day 3, and the decodable text is used on Days 4 and 5. Students have opportunities to practice with the decodable text in Practice-to-Mastery and Small Group Instruction. The majority of repeated rereadings occur during small-group instruction. The materials regularly and systematically provide a variety of assessments over the course of the school year where students’ progress in phonics can be measured.

Indicator 1G
04/04

Scope and sequence clearly delineate an intentional sequence in which phonics skills are to be taught, with a clear evidence-based explanation for the order of the sequence.

The materials provide a clear, evidence-based explanation for the order of the phonics scope and sequence, which is intentionally ordered from simpler to more complex skills. Phonics instruction is based on high utility patterns and common phonics generalizations. Instruction starts with closed syllables and ends with reading two- to four-syllable words with split vowels. 

Materials contain a clear evidence-based explanation for the expected sequence for teaching phonics skills. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Research, in the article, “Bringing Research to Practice with Foundational Reading Skills Instruction for Beginning Readers,” under “Phonics,” the article states, “The scope and sequences for Countdown, Blast Foundations, and HD Word progress from simpler to more difficult concepts. Students begin by learning short vowel sounds and the closed syllable spelling pattern and gradually progresses to more challenging long vowel sounds and the multiple spellings of those sounds. By the end of HD Word’s scope and sequence, students as young as second grade have been explicitly taught to decode all six syllable types, including spellings of the short, long, r-controlled, and variant vowel sounds; prefixes and suffixes; and other functional word parts.”

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Research, in the article “Notes on Our Scope and Sequence,” on page 2, the article states: “Our phonics sequence moves from the most frequent and most predictable to the exceptions. Our scope, when considered across all programs, intentionally teaches approximately 97% of teachable, predictable patterns in the English code. Most students can leverage this comprehensive investigation of the lexicon and generalize the rest of the English Code. In order to give students a solid foundation for reading any text they may encounter throughout life, we concentrate instructional time on the more common spellings and choose not to divert precious instructional time to rare/obscure spellings.”

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, it states students move from simple concepts to more complex concepts about word structure. By Unit 14, students are reading multisyllabic words, and then by the final units, students are reading even more difficult words. On pg. xx it states that the research is based on information from Hannah, Hodges, Fry, and Kearns. 

Materials clearly delineate a scope and sequence with a cohesive, intentional sequence of phonics instruction, from simpler to more complex skills, and practice to build toward the application of skills. The scope and sequence is as follows:

  • Unit 1 

    • Reading Single-Syllable Closed Syllable Words

    • Reading Single-Syllable Closed Syllable Words with Digraphs

  • Unit 2

    • Reading Single-Syllable Closed Syllable Words with Two-Sound Blends and Digraph Blends

  • Unit 3

    • Reading Single-Syllable Closed Syllable Words with Trigraphs and Three-Sound Blends

  • Unit 4

    • Reading Two- and Three-Syllable Words with Closed Syllables

  • Unit 5

    • Reading Single-Syllable Open Syllable Words

    • Reading Two- and Three-Syllable Words with Closed and Open Syllables

  • Unit 6

    • Schwa in Two-, Three-, and Four- Syllable Words with Closed and Open Syllables

  • Unit 7

    • Reading Single-Syllable VCE Words

    • Reading Two-, Three-, and Four- Syllable Words with Closed, Open, and VCE Syllables

  • Unit 8

    • Reading Two-Syllable Words with VCE Spelling Schwa

    • Reading Two-, Three-, and Four- Syllable Words with Closed, Open, and VCE Syllables (with and without schwa)

  • Unit 9

    • Most Common Vowel Team Spellings: Long a (ai, ay), long e (ee, ea), long i (igh), and long o (ow, oa)

  • Unit 10

    • Less Common Vowel Team Spellings: Long e (ie, ey)

    • Cumulative Review of Vowel Team Spellings (Long Vowels)

  • Unit 11

    • Reading 1-3 Syllable Words with /or/ spelled or and /ar/ spelled ar.

  • Unit 12

    • Reading 1-3 Syllable Words with /or/ spelled or, our, ore, oor, and oar.

    • Reading 1-3 Syllable Words with /ār/ spelled ar, are, air, and ear.

  • Unit 13

    • Reading 1-3 Syllable Words with /er/ spelled er, ir, ur, and ear

  • Unit 14

    • Reading Two-, Three-, and Four-Syllable Words with /er/ spelled ar and or

    • Cumulative Review of 2-4 Syllable Words with r-controlled vowel phonemes /ar/, /or/, and /er/

  • Unit 15

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with /ōō/ spelled oo, u-3, and ew

  • Unit 16

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with /oi/ spelled oi and oy 

  • Unit 17

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with /ou/ spelled ou and ow

  • Unit 18

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with /ŏŏ/ spelled oo and u

  • Unit 19

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with /aw/ spelled au and aw

  • Unit 20

    • Cumulative Review of 1-4 Syllable Words with Other Vowel Phonemes: /ōō/, /oi/, /ou/, /ŏŏ/, and /aw/

  • Unit 21

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with Chunks: –ang, -ing, -ong, -ung, -ank, -ink, -onk, -unk

  • Unit 22 

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Consonant -le

  • Unit 23

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Latin Chunks -tion, -sion, -ture

    • Additional Latin Chunks: -cial, -tial, -cious, -tious 

  • Unit 24

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with Hard and Soft c and g

  • Unit 25

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Consonant Suffixes: -s, -less, -ness, -ment, -ful, -ly

  • Unit 26

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Vowel Suffixes: -es, -ing, -er, -est, -ous, -y, -able, -ible

  • Unit 27

    • 1-1-1 Doubling Rule in Two-, Three-, and Four-Syllable Words

    • Three Sounds of Suffix -ed in One-, Two-, Three-, and Four-Syllable Words

  • Unit 28

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Prefixes: dis-, con-, un-, im-, in-

  • Unit 29

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Prefixes: re-, pre-, pro-

  • Unit 30

    • Cumulative Review of Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Suffixes and Prefixes

  • Unit 31

    • Reading 1-4 Syllable Words with Closed Syllable Exceptions: ost, old, ild, ind, olt

  • Unit 32

    • Reading 2-4 Syllable Words with Split Vowels

Phonics instruction is based in high utility patterns and/or specific phonics generalizations. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 10, Lesson 3, in the activity Reading Words with Less Common Vowel Team Spellings of Long e (ie, ey), students read one-, two-, and three-syllable words with the long e vowel sound spelled with two less common vowel teams: ie and ey

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 15, students work on single-syllable words with /oo/ spelled oo, u, u-e, and ew. Then, by Unit 19, students work on single-syllable words with au and aw

In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 21, students work on reading single-syllable words with chunks ang, ing, ong, ung, ank, ink, onk, and unk.

Indicator 1H
04/04

Materials are absent of the three-cueing system.

The materials do not contain elements of instruction that are based on the three-cueing system for teaching decoding.

Indicator 1I
04/04

Materials, questions, and tasks provide reasonable pacing where phonics (decoding and encoding) skills are taught one at a time and allot time where phonics skills are practiced to automaticity, with cumulative review.

The materials provide appropriate pacing of phonics skills, which are taught daily in 15-20 minute teacher-led whole group lessons, 20-30 minute daily small group sessions, and 30-40 minute independent practice time. Student practice activities include isolated practice, practice in sentences, and repeated reading of a decodable text. Lesson 5 of any given week reviews phonics skills introduced and practiced during Lessons 1-4. Unit 25 provides a cumulative review of phonics skills as well.   

Materials include reasonable pacing of newly taught phonics skills. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • Students generally spend a week on phonics skills, with frequent cumulative reviews. For example:

    • In Units 1-4, students learn and practice one- to three-syllable words with closed syllables, including digraphs and trigraphs. 

    • In Units 5-8, students learn and practice one- to four-syllable words with open and closed syllables. 

    • In Units 9-10, students learn and practice common vowel teams. 

    • In Units 11-14, students learn one- to four-syllable words with r-controlled vowels. 

    • In Units 15-20, students learn and practice one- to four-syllable words with additional vowel teams.

    • In Units 21-24, students learn and practice one- to four-syllable words with chunks and hard and soft g and c

    • In Units 25-30, students learn and practice words with prefixes and suffixes. 

The lesson plan design allots time to include sufficient student practice to work towards automaticity. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide Unit 5 Lesson 5, Day 2, students have five-10 minutes during whole group instruction to practice closed and open syllables in one-, two-, and three-syllable words, 20-30 minutes in small groups, and 30-40 minutes during independent practice weekly practicing phonics skills. Students practice the skill by completing the Detective Work routine, practicing proper pronunciation of each syllable, and reading words in isolation. They complete a word sort and read phrases and sentences with a controlled set of high-frequency and grapheme-phoneme combinations. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, Lesson 3, students practice reading two-, three-, and four-syllable words with r-controlled vowel phoneme /er/ spelled or and ar. The lesson plan includes five-10 minutes to practice spelling words, five-10 minutes to practice reading the decodable “Earth Day,” and an additional five-10 minutes to practice spelling words. On Days 4 and 5, students again practice reading the same decodable text during scaffolded and independent practice. Students also continue to practice spelling words through individual practice and dictation routines. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 18, Lesson 3, the teacher introduces phonemes spelled oo and u. Throughout the week, students complete a word sort, build words, and read a decodable.

Materials contain distributed, cumulative, and interleaved opportunities for students to practice and review all previously learned grade-level phonics. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, students read two and three-syllable words with closed syllables in Unit 4. They have a cumulative review of this phonics skill in Units 5 and 6. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, Lesson 5, students review two- to four-syllable words with /ar/, /or/, and /er/ r-controlled vowel spellings. Students are introduced to /or/and /ar/ spellings in Unit 11 and review /or/ in Unit 12. Students are introduced to /er/ in Unit 13.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide Book 3, Unit 30, students review reading words with suffixes and prefixes. Suffixes and prefixes are individually introduced in Units 25, 28, 29.

Indicator 1J
04/04

Materials include systematic and explicit phonics instruction with repeated teacher modeling.

The materials include systematic and explicit instruction in phonics with repeated teacher modeling. Lessons provide explicit instruction in blending and segmenting words using consistent routines. In addition, the materials include phrases and sentences that the teacher can use for dictation. The appendix provides guidance to teachers on providing corrective feedback to students. 

Materials contain explicit instructions for systematic and repeated teacher modeling of newly-taught phonics patterns. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Distinguish long and short vowels when reading regularly spelled one-syllable words.

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 7, Lesson 3, the teacher reviews the Vowel-Consonant-e syllable and clarifies that the vowel sound is long with this syllable type. Then, students participate in a word sort, sorting words into three groups: closed, open, or vowel-consonant-e.

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 12, Lesson 3, the teacher explains to students that they will sort words into three columns: long vowel, short vowel, and r-controlled. The teacher displays the word block and explains that it is a closed syllable because it has only one vowel letter with consonant letters after it. 

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide Book 2, Unit 18, Lesson 3, the teacher displays the word brook and reminds students that the letter tile oo is one since they work together to spell one phoneme. The teacher says that this is a “vowel team” syllable type. The teacher then displays the word bush and explains that even though this looks like a closed syllable with a short u sound, the letter u can also spell other phonemes such as oo in book and ooze.

  • Know spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams.

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 9, Lesson 3, the teacher reviews what a vowel team is, specifically the vowel teams ai and ay. Students practice analyzing vowel teams, pronunciations, and spellings for the words main and play.

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 10, Lesson 3, the teacher asks students what a vowel team is. The teacher reviews the four vowel teams the students have previously learned that spell the long /e/ sound: ee, ea, ie, and ey. The teacher introduces a new vowel team, ie, for the long /e/ like in the word thief

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 15, Lesson 4, the teacher reviews the vowel teams for /oo/: oo, ew like in the words boot and stew. The students locate the vowel teams in words and identify the phoneme that the vowel team is representing in the word pursue

  • Decode regularly spelled two-syllable words with long vowels.

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 5, Lesson 4, the teacher plays the animation of closed and open syllables and explains that when looking at a multisyllabic word, students should look at the vowels to help them read the word. Then, students should ask if the vowels are together or apart. Then, the teacher discusses what a closed syllable is, if a syllable with only one vowel letter at the end of the syllable is an open or closed syllable, and whether an open syllable vowel is long or short. 

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 7, Lesson 4, the teacher presents the word recognize and guides students to analyze the word by asking, “Are the vowel letters together or apart? (apart) Do you see a vowel-consonant-e? (yes) Which two vowel letters work together in the vowel-consonant-e pattern? (i and e).” The teacher continues to guide students in finding the vowel spellings in the word and breaking the word into syllables. Using SyllaBoards, the teacher adds the vowels and ize to the boards, and then guides students to read the syllables and the word as a whole. Words in this activity include contribute, extreme, capitalize, envelope, consistent, zero, athletic, and disrespectful. 

    • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 10, Lesson 3, the teacher utilizes gradual release to model decoding two-syllable words with vowel teams, like in the word kidney. The students decode keyhole, briefly, retrieve, and baloney

Lessons include blending and segmenting practice using structured, consistent blending routines with teacher modeling. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Lesson 3, the teacher says, “Watch and listen as I build the word clutch. The little boy will clutch the toy tightly so he will not lose it. Clutch.” The teacher stretches (segments) the phonemes /k/ /l/ /ŭ/ /ch/ and displays one color tile on the board for each phoneme. Then, the teacher clicks to spell each phoneme by placing a letter tile below each color tile while saying the phoneme. The teacher practices with students using the same routine on the word bridge. Then, students stretch and blend sounds to read the words pledge, stitch, nudge, and snatch.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 15, Lesson 3, the teacher tells students they will dissect a word together. The teacher walks students through the words, putting their letter tiles on the tile boards for the word broom. The teacher reminds the students that oo is a vowel team that spells /oo/ as in ooze.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 21, Lesson 4, students read two-, three-, and four-syllable words with -ng and -nk chunks. The teacher breaks the words into syllables and uses Touch and Say to segment each syllable and blend the words together. Words to read include overthinker, songbook, and Thanksgiving.

Lessons include dictation of words and sentences using the newly taught phonics pattern(s). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the Dictation Sentences and Routine explains what dictation sentences are and the kind of words in the sentences. On page 4 of this document, teachers are provided with clear, step-by-step directions on how to introduce the sentence, dictate the sentence, dictate high-frequency words, and guide students in self-assessments. The materials provide three dictation sentences for each unit for Units 1-33.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 5 Planner, in the Practice to Mastery section, on Day 1, the teacher delivers whole-group dictation with Unit 4’s concepts using the dictation routines from the Dictation Sentences and Routine resource in the Online Supply Room.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 24, Lesson 3, during the You Do part of the lesson, the teacher dictates words including glance, clog, gist, cringle, and stage.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 31, Lesson 3, the teacher tells students they will dictate words one at a time, and the students will build each word. The words students build include wild, jolt, blind, most, and gold.  

Materials include teacher guidance for corrective feedback when needed for students.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Lesson 3, students spell words with blends and trigraphs. Students hold up their boards so the teacher can check the spelling of each word and provide Positive Error Correction as needed. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 10, Lesson 3, the guidance states, “Some students may answer ‘yes’ to the question, ‘Do we see a vowel-consonant-e?’ for the word retrieve due to the letters eve in this word. If students believe there is a vowel-consonant-e, use Positive Error Correction to guide them to the correct syllabication. Say, ‘You are right; it does look like there could be a vowel-consonant-e in this word. However, the second e is part of the vowel team ie, so it cannot also be part of a vowel-consonant-e spelling.’ You should also explain that when students see an e immediately after the letter v at the end of a word, as in the word retrieve or believe, the e should not be counted as a vowel spelling because it does not spell a vowel sound. This silent e prevents the word from ending in the letter v because no English words end in the letter v.”

Indicator 1K
04/04

Materials include frequent practice opportunities for students to decode and encode words that consist of common and newly-taught sound and spelling patterns.

The materials include opportunities for students to decode phonetically spelled words in lessons throughout the units. Decoding practice focuses on both automaticity and accuracy. In addition, students have opportunities to encode in each unit, which involves segmenting sounds using sound-spelling patterns. Encoding routines include using letter tiles to build words.

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to decode words with taught phonics patterns. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 11, Lesson 4, students practice decoding northeast, sarcastic, cardinal, and exporting by touching each syllable on their individual boards and sweeping under the word to blend and read each word.

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 17, Lesson 3, students decode the words scowl, pound, sprout, grouch, and gown. After building the words, students use Touch and Say to read them. 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide Book 3, Unit 22, Lesson 4, students practice reading words with consonant -le, including probable, comfortable, unstable, and incredible.

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to encode words with taught phonics patterns. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Lesson 3, students build the words smitch, and, the, edge using word tiles.

  • In the HD Teacher Guide Book 2, Unit 13, Lesson 3, students individually build turn, first, search, slurp, perch using letter tiles.

  • In the HD Teacher Guide Book 3, Unit 21, Lesson 3, students individually build twang, wink, dunk, clink, bank using letter tiles.

Student-guided practice and independent practice of blending sounds using the sound-spelling pattern(s) is varied and frequent. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide Book 2, Unit 15, Lesson 4, the teacher models building (encoding) and reading (decoding) moist in the I Do part of the lesson. Then, during the We Do Portion, play is built (encoding) and read (decoding). Lastly, students practice reading broil, coy, Troy, join, and foil.

  • In the HD Teacher Guide Book 2, Unit 19, Lesson 4, students practice accurately reading and spelling single-syllable words with /aw/ spelled aw and au. The teacher models reading the word automatic. Then, the teacher and students read awkwardly, and students practice independently reading the words drawback, auditory, authorize, sawdust. 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide Book 3, Unit 27, Lesson 4, the teacher models reading the word comprehended during the I Do portion of the lesson and daydreamed during the We Do portion. Students practice reading the words documented, fussed, developed, and surrounded. 

Materials provide opportunities for students to engage in word-level decoding practice focused on accuracy and automaticity. Examples include, but are not limited to the following: 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 18, Lesson 3, the lesson objective is to “accurately read and spell single-syllable words.” Students use a Touch and Say routine to read words shrug, pull, and Ruth after building the words. 

  • In the HD Online Supply Room, Unit 25, Lesson 5, students do a warm read of Unit 23 decodable passage “Erosion” and track their accuracy on a tracking chart.

Indicator 1L
04/04

Spelling rules and generalizations are taught one at a time at a reasonable pace. Spelling words and generalizations are practiced to automaticity.

The materials contain spelling rules and generalizations aligned to the phonics scope and sequence, and these generalizations are taught in conjunction with reading words that follow these rules. There are in-depth explanations of how words follow these generalizations, and students have sufficient opportunities to practice these rules. The weekly spelling lists correspond to these rules or generalizations. Students also have the opportunity to practice spelling words with various activities, including building words with letter tiles, and in small-group spelling practice on Lesson 5 each week during the “Spell It!” routine. 

Spelling rules and generalizations are aligned to the phonics scope and sequence. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 1, students learn single-syllable closed-syllable words and single-syllable closed-syllable words with digraphs. The spelling words for Unit 1 are single-syllable words that have closed syllables and short vowels and feature the digraphs ch, wh, th, sh, ck, ph. The words include dish, than, chop, such, rush, which, bath, this, kick, sock.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 5, the phonics skill focuses on reading single-syllable open-syllable words. Students practice spelling open-syllable nonsense words with letter tiles. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 15, Lessons 1 and 2, students read one- to four-syllable words with /ōō/ spelled oo, u, u-e, and ew. The spelling words include one- and two-syllable words that feature the sound /ōō/ as in ooze: oo, u, u_e and ew: grew, super, include, unscrew, sooner, flute, truth, boost, salute, and cartoon.

Materials include explanations for spelling of specific words or spelling rules. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 21, Lesson 3, the materials state, “In previous units, we learned how to read words with two different chunks. These chunks almost always spell the same sounds. We learned that the chunk all spells the sound/awl/, and we learned that the chunk ing spells the sound /ing/. Whenever we see these chunks in words, we can be pretty sure of the sounds they are going to spell. In this lesson, we will learn about more chunks that consistently spell the same sounds. These are chunks in which a vowel letter is followed by the letters ng or nk.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 27, Lesson 3, students learn the 1-1-1 Doubling Rule. Students learn that the first 1 in the rule means “one syllable,” the second 1 stands for “only one vowel,” and the third one stands for “only one consonant directly after the vowel.” They learn vowel suffixes are subject to the 1-1-1 Doubling Rule, and when a vowel suffix is added, the consonant at the end of the word is doubled, and the vowel sound in the base word will be short. Students practice this rule with the words swimmer, admitting, defender, stoppable, steepest, jagged, scratches, saddest, creamy, forgettable, hopping, hoping, programmer, babysitting, slimmest, inflammable.

Students have sufficient opportunities to practice spelling rules and generalizations. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 4, students have various opportunities to practice spelling skills in Practice to Mastery and Small Group Instruction. On Day 3 of Practice to Mastery, students are introduced to the spelling words, and on Day 5, they practice spelling words with various templates. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 22, Lesson 3, students learn how to spell two-syllable words with the Consonant-le pattern. Students practice spelling the word bundle using SyllaBoards in guided practice. Then, students practice four words independently.

Indicator 1M
04/04

Materials include decodable texts with phonics aligned to the program’s scope and sequence and opportunities for students to use decodables for multiple readings.

The materials contain decodable texts with phonics aligned to the phonics scope and sequence. The decodable texts begin in Unit 1, with one every week until the final unit. The phonics skill is taught on Day 3, and the decodable text is used on Days 4 and 5. Students have opportunities to practice with the decodable text in Practice-to-Mastery and Small Group Instruction. The majority of repeated rereadings occur during small-group instruction. 

Decodable texts contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 1, Lessons 1 and 2, the focus is on single-syllable closed syllable words and single-syllable closed syllable words with digraphs. The Unit 1 decodable passage “Thad?” features single-syllable words with closed syllables, short vowels, and digraphs such as ch, wh, th, sh, ck, and ph. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 15, Lessons 1 and 2, students engage with one- to four-syllable words with /ōō/ spelled oo, u, u-e, and ew. The Unit 15 decodable passage “Superhero Ruth” features two- to four-syllable words that have the /ōō/ sound spelled oo, u, u-e, and ew. 

  • In The HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 22, students focus on the phonics skill of reading two- to four-syllable words with consonant -le. The decodable text the students read for the unit is “Unbelievable Comeback.” It states the passage targets two- to four-syllable words with consonant -le. 

  • In The HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 31, the scope and sequence states students work on reading one- to four-syllable words with closed syllables with exceptions ost, old, ild, ind, and olt. Students read the decodable passage “Lighting Bolt,” which is aligned with the phonics skill. 

Materials include detailed lesson plans for repeated readings of decodable texts to address acquisition of phonics skills. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 9, Lesson 3, during small-group instruction, students read the decodable passage “Chimpanzee Display.” In Lesson 4, in Practice to Mastery, the teacher and students do a scaffolded reading of “Chimpanzee Display,” and then later in small-group, students practice reading “Chimpanzee Display” again. In Lesson 5, in Practice to Mastery, the teacher and students use the Unit 9 Decodable Passage Fluency Routine. The following week in Unit 10, Lesson 1, students review “Chimpanzee Display” in small group settings. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide Book, Book 2, Unit 17, Lesson 3, students read the decodable passage “Robots” as a cold read during small group instruction. In Lesson 4, students reread the text with a scaffolded read. Students also have the opportunity to read the decodable text in small groups. In Lesson 5, students read the decodable text during Practice to Mastery instructional time and small groups. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide Book, Book 2, Unit 22, Lesson 3, students read the decodable passage “Trick or Treat” as a cold read during small group instruction. In Lesson 4, students read the decodable passage with a scaffolded read. In Lesson 5, students read the decodable text in Practice to Mastery instructional time and in small groups. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 24, in Lesson 3, during small-group instruction, students complete a cold read of the decodable passage “The Challenge.” In Lesson 4, in Practice to Mastery, the teacher and students do a scaffolded reading of the text, and later, in small groups, students practice reading “The Challenge” again. In Lesson 5, in Practice to Mastery, the teacher and students use the Fluency Routine to read “The Challenge.” The following week in Unit 25, Lesson 1, students review “The Challenge” in small group settings. 

Reading practice occurs in decodable texts (i.e., an absence of predictable texts) until students can accurately decode single syllable words. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, HD Word Passages, the HD Word Decodable Passages (with Fluency Instruction) resource contains the decodable passages for the units in HD Word along with a scaffolded decodable passage reading lesson plan to use with the current unit’s decodable passage. The passages include:

    • Unit 1: “Thad?” 

    • Unit 2: “The Bad Trick” 

    • Unit 3: “Fudge” 

    • Unit 4: “Basketball Contest” 

    • Unit 5: “Secret Robot”

    • Unit 6: “Fossil Quest” 

    • Unit 7: “Wake-Up Plan” 

    • Unit 8: “The Lost Necklace”

    • Unit 9: “Chimpanzee Display” 

    • Unit 10: “Ollie Meets a Beast” 

    • Unit 11: “Win a Trip!”

    • Unit 12: “Daily Forecast”

    • Unit 13: “The Perfect Quirky Dessert” 

    • Unit 14: “Earth Day” 

    • Unit 15: “Superhero Ruth”

    • Unit 16: “Poison Dart Frog” 

    • Unit 17: “Sunflowers” 

    • Unit 18: “Bigfoot?” 

    • Unit 19: “Aubrey’s Autograph” 

    • Unit 20: “Cinquain Poetry”

    • Unit 21: “The Greedy Angler” 

    • Unit 22: “Unbelievable Comeback” 

    • Unit 23: “Erosion” 

    • Unit 24: “The Challenge” 

    • Unit 25: “Fearless” 

    • Unit 26: “Bestseller!”

    • Unit 27: “Prizewinner” 

    • Unit 28:” Incomplete Report” 

    • Unit 29: “Superhero Propeller” 

    • Unit 30:” Unlikely Suspect”

    • Unit 31: “Lightning Bolt”

    • Unit 32: “Dear Diary”

Indicator 1N
04/04

Materials regularly and systematically offer assessment opportunities that measure student progress of phonics in- and out-of-context (as indicated by the program scope and sequence).

The materials regularly and systematically provide a variety of assessments over the course of the school year where students’ progress in phonics can be measured. The Reading Playground, an online tool, has assessment opportunities for each lesson in a game format for the students. There is a resource that gives the teacher additional support on additional resources to utilize with students based on the assessment data from the Reading Playground, including how to reteach and provide practice opportunities. Teachers and students are provided with information on students’ skill levels and mastery and understanding of phonics skills. Instructional materials provide teachers with suggestions for reteaching based on the results of assessments.

Materials regularly and systematically provide a variety of assessment opportunities over the course of the year to demonstrate students’ progress toward mastery and independence in phonics. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessments and Grouping, the Diagnostic Decoding Surveys resource states, “The Diagnostic Decoding Surveys enable one-on-one assessment of phonics skills for struggling readers from the middle of first grade through adulthood. The surveys are efficient and easy to administer. For emerging readers or students with decoding weaknesses, the surveys can be used to identify which skills have already been mastered and which are weak.” The resource includes “three parallel, equally difficult versions” of the BOY, MOY, and EOY Beginning Decoding Surveys and Advanced Decoding Surveys assessments.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessments and Grouping, the Recommended Assessment Timeline and Flowcharts resource outlines the assessments that should be given over the year and the timeline in which they should be given. Assessments are to be given in the Fall, Winter, and Spring, and intervention assessment timelines are also provided. Really Great Reading’s Recommended Assessment Timeline for Tier I: provides the following information for Fall Benchmark: Really Great Reading’s Recommended Assessment Timeline for Tier I: Fall Benchmark includes HD Word Beginning of Program Baseline Assessment in the HD Word Reading Playground (with 1:1 oral decoding), Beginning Decoding Survey Beginning of Year (Form A) and Grade Level Oral Reading Fluency Measure, and Optional Sight Word Survey: 2nd Grade.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 2, Lesson 5, the students have a few different assessment opportunities. During the activity, Detective Word-Read It! students read a row of words individually. Students read phrases and sentences found in the Student Workbook on page 16. Students complete games in the Reading Playground at the end of the unit. The guidance from the teacher guide is for the teacher to use the data from the Reading Playground to assess and drive instruction for students.  

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Day 5, students complete a spelling word assessment with single-syllable closed-syllable words with trigraphs and 3-sound blends. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, Lesson 5, during the activity Detective Word-Read It!, students read a row of words individually. Students read phrases and sentences found in the Student Workbook on page 86. Students complete games in the Reading Playground at the end of the unit.  

Assessment materials provide teachers and students with information concerning students’ current skills/level of understanding of phonics. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessments and Grouping, there is a Recommended Assessment Timeline and Flowchart resource that outlines how to use the results of assessments given over the course of the year. For example, if students score as Severe Decoding Deficit or Emerging Level at the middle of the year, the resource states, “If a student‘s Decoding Level is Severe Decoding Deficit or Emerging and they read a lot of words sound by sound, please administer the Phonological Awareness Survey (previously part of the Pre-Decoding Surveys) and enter the results into the Grouping Matrix to better understand the student’s underlying pre-decoding skills.” 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground, Formative Assessments in the Reading Playground, the materials provide a guided tour of the formative assessments supported on the Teacher Dashboard for the Reading Playground. There is also a link entitled “HD Word Formative Assessment Guide.” The resource provides a chart with information for each unit that includes benchmark scores for each proficiency level

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground, Progress Monitoring Check-ins, Progress Monitoring Student Pages resource has 10 progress monitoring check-ins to use 1-on-1 with students. Progress Monitoring 1 is for Units 1-3. Students decode the words flick, blush, shrug, hunch, scratch, and splotch. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessment and Grouping, Grouping Matrix Decoding Levels, information is provided about how The Grouping Matrix places students into one of eight decoding levels. For example, if students score Moderately Below Expectations or Moderate Decoding Deficits, the materials state, “This student has some good basic decoding skills but has skill areas that are moderately below the criterion-referenced benchmarks for their grade and phase of year. Weaknesses with oral reading fluency, accuracy, and rate may be a factor. Please see the Student Scores report to determine the specific gaps.” 

Materials support teachers with instructional suggestions for assessment-based steps to help students to progress toward mastery in phonics. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessments and Grouping, the Intervention Flowcharts resource explains how to administer timed Oral Reading Fluency passages and the Beginning Decoding Survey at the beginning of the year, analyze the results of the assessments, and how to plan for interventions based on the results (grouping students, teaching students, progress monitoring, and adjusting instruction as needed).

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Recommended Intervention Flowchart states that if students on the decoding survey are slightly below expectations, the teacher should continue teaching HD Word starting with Unit 1, Lesson 1, using the Foundations Student Workbook, and using formative assessments to continue to gather student data.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground, Formative Assessments in the Reading Playground, provides a guided tour of the formative assessments supports on the Teacher Dashboard for the Reading Playground. There is also a link entitled “HD Word Formative Assessment Guide.” The resource provides a chart with information for each unit that includes the following instructional recommendations, including lesson review and practice, workbook pages, and reading playground activities. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, HD Word Overview, page xi, it states that if students are not proficient in the Beginning Decoding Survey, they should start with the alternative scope and sequence for a slower review of single-syllable conventions such as closed syllables, digraphs, trigraphs, and consonant blends. 

Criterion 1.2: Word Recognition and Word Analysis

12/12

Materials and instruction support students in learning and practicing regularly and irregularly spelled high-frequency words.

The materials include opportunities for systematic and explicit instruction of Heart Words (high-frequency words) with a consistent, explicit instructional routine. Online teacher guidance and lesson plans provide instructions for teachers on how to model reading and spelling Heart Words and in connecting phonemes to graphemes. The materials provide videos on the explicit instruction of Heart Words with connections of phonemes to the graphemes. There are five Heart Words taught each week for Units 1-20. The materials provide opportunities for students to read high-frequency words in isolation through the Heart Word Magic Videos and practice activities, including Look, Think, Say!, Pop-Up, 3-Up, and Read a Row. The materials provide decodable texts containing high-frequency words, which provide opportunities for students to read the words in context. The students have a template to write Heart Words and to mark the irregularly spelled part of the word. The materials provide opportunities for explicit instruction in syllable types and routines for decoding and encoding with opportunities to apply learning. There is also explicit instruction involving morpheme analysis, with inflectional endings and suffixes. The materials provide regular assessment opportunities, both formative and summative, at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. The materials also include a Sight Word Assessment to be given at the beginning, middle, and end of the year.

Indicator 1O
02/02

Materials include explicit instruction in identifying the regularly spelled part and the temporarily irregularly spelled part of words. High-frequency word instruction includes spiraling review.

The materials include opportunities for systematic and explicit instruction of Heart Words (high-frequency words) with a consistent, explicit instructional routine. Online teacher guidance and lesson plans provide instructions for teachers on how to model reading and spelling Heart Words and in connecting phonemes to graphemes. The materials provide videos on the explicit instruction of Heart Words with connections of phonemes to the graphemes. There are five Heart Words taught each week for Units 1-20.

Materials include systematic and explicit instruction of high-frequency words with an explicit and consistent instructional routine. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Heart Word Magic, HD Word Heart Word Magic Cards, there are word cards for all words instructed each week. The word cards for each unit can be distributed to students after the initial instruction on Day 1 of the unit. The format of the cards matches the format students see in the Heart Word Magic videos. Hearts appear above the tricky parts of the Heart Words. If a sound-spelling has not yet been taught, it is marked with a heart. Colored tiles represent expected sound-spelling correspondence. The word is given in a contextual decodable phrase or a sentence.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Appendix A, page 492, the teacher uses the Look, Think, Say! routine to explicitly teach high-frequency and Heart Words. Teachers use the Heart Word generator to pick words and then follow the routine. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Heart Word Magic, Heart Word Magic Spelling, a document contains teacher directions for an activity for students to phoneme-grapheme map the Heart Words. Materials include explicit instruction for the words said, have, from, the. There is also a template to use with the Heart Words with dots for the phonemes, boxes for the graphemes, and a heart about each grapheme to be colored in when the student identifies the irregular or tricky part of the Heart Word. This script is similar to the explanation found on the Heart Word Magic Videos. The script for said includes: 

    • This is the word said 

    • Said rhymes with head and bed 

    • Said has three sounds (teacher fills in three dots while saying the sounds /s/ /e/ /d/)

    • Touch the dots and say the say the sounds (/s/ /e/ /d/) blend together and say the word said  

    • The first sound I hear in said is /s/, the next sound I hear is /e/, and finally I hear the /d/

    • We all know that /s/ is spelled with the letter s and /d/ is spelled with the letter d. Now let’s take a look at the letters that are spelling /e/. It is not an e that is spelling /e/, it is ai. That is the part we must know by heart. Let’s touch and say together…

    • Now, let’s review the word said

  • In HD Word Online, Teacher Presentation Tool, Unit Planner and Resources, Unit 11, Lesson 1, the Heart Words listed for this unit are start, far, or, wash, and into. In the Unit 11 Planner, the materials state, “Teach Unit 11 Heart Words with the Heart Word Generator and Heart Word Magic resources. HD Word provides a high-frequency word scope and sequence or the teacher can choose any high-frequency words that correlate with their standards or curriculum.”  

  • In HD Word Online, Heart Word Magic, Heart Word Magic Library, there are video links for some Heart Words in the HD Word program. Each video explains the pronunciation and tricky parts of the given word. The videos are consistent in their layout and are explicit in instruction. 

Materials include teacher modeling of the spelling and reading of high-frequency words that includes connecting the phonemes to the graphemes. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Heart Word Magic, Full HWF Library, there are Heart Word Magic videos. The videos deliver animated instruction on the target Heart Words. In the video about the word who, the teacher tells students that they need to think about the parts of the word they know and what parts they need to know by heart. The teacher tells students who has two sounds, /h/ /ew/, and tells students they need to remember both sounds by heart. The teacher tells students the first sound, /h/, is the first part they have to learn by heart and that the letters wh spell the sound /h/ in who. The teacher moves on to the second part of the word /ew/, telling students they have to learn that by heart, too. The teacher then tells students the letter o spells the sound /ew/ in who

Materials include a sufficient quantity of high-frequency words for students to make reading progress. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Heart Word Magic, HD Word Heart Words, a resource lists the heart words for each unit in HD Word. The words are:

    • Unit 1: pick, small, fall, wish, much 

    • Unit 2: best, its, which, drink, some 

    • Unit 3: done, laugh, read, want, off 

    • Unit 4: upon, bring, sing, goes, long 

    • Unit 5: why, try, myself, open, funny

    • Unit 6: seven, once, from, they, there

    • Unit 7: use, those, these, made, gave 

    • Unit 8: warm, again, been, who, five 

    • Unit 9: grow, keep, light, clean, show

    • Unit 10: own, sleep, green, away, right

    • Unit 11: start, far, or, wash, into

    • Unit 12: carry, your, before, does, eight

    • Unit 13: hurt, never, better, first, after 

    • Unit 14: work, any, buy, walk, were 

    • Unit 15: going, only, over, every, under 

    • Unit 16: together, today, don’t know, cold

    • Unit 17: around, about, would, found, round

    • Unit 18: full, pull, could, put, very

    • Unit 19: draw, always, both, hold, saw 

    • Unit 20: many, their, write, because, hold

    • Units 21-33: review and practice any previously taught words or other high-frequency words your students would benefit from 

Indicator 1P
02/02

Instructional opportunities are frequently built into the materials for students to practice and gain decoding automaticity of high-frequency words.

The materials provide opportunities for students to read high-frequency words in isolation through the Heart Word Magic Videos and practice activities, including Look, Think, Say!, Pop-Up, 3-Up, and Read a Row. The materials provide decodable texts containing high-frequency words, which provide opportunities for students to read the words in context. The students have a template to write Heart Words and to mark the irregularly spelled part of the word. The units contain dictation sentences that include Heart Words. Materials also include sentences containing Heart Words previously taught.

Students practice decoding high-frequency words in isolation. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 5, the Unit Planner states that on Day 1, in Small Group Instruction, students should practice high-frequency words as necessary using Heart Word Magic activities. The planner also states that on Day 2 in Practice to Mastery, students should practice Heart Words with the Heart Word Magic templates. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 19, the Heart Words students read include: draw, always, both, hold, and saw. The decodable passage that students read contains the word holds.

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to decode high-frequency words in context. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 7, Lesson 5, students read phrases and sentences that include Heart Words from Unit 7: use, those, these, made, and gave. These words are in several phrases and sentences.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 13, Lesson 5, students read phrases and sentences that include Heart Words hurt, first, and after. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 18, Lesson 5, the students read phrases and sentences. The phrases are: could ask to use my new sketchbook, crook took my pocketbook full of cash, and my best camera.

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to encode high-frequency words in tasks, such as sentences, in order to promote automaticity of high-frequency words. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In Countdown Online, Heart Word Magic, Heart Word Magic Dissect a Word, the PDF document provides suggested directions for the teacher in guiding students to spell Heart Words. The materials state that the activity allows students to practice dissecting Heart Words (high-frequency words) with irregular letter-sound relationships by listening to the individual phonemes in a word and then filling in the corresponding spellings. Students fill in a heart above the irregular part of the word that must be learned “by heart” and write that tricky part again.

  • In HD Word Online, Teacher Presentation Tool, Unit 18, Lesson 5, students write the dictated sentence: My pocketbook is full of cash, which contains the Heart Word full.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Unit 28, Instructional Resources, materials include three dictation sentences that students write that include the Heart Word any.

Indicator 1Q
04/04

Materials include explicit instruction in syllabication and morpheme analysis and provide students with practice opportunities to apply learning.

The materials provide opportunities for explicit instruction in syllable types and routines for decoding and encoding with opportunities to apply learning. There is also explicit instruction involving morpheme analysis, with inflectional endings and suffixes. Students have opportunities to practice word analysis skills over the course of the year.

Materials contain explicit instruction of syllable types and syllable division that promote decoding and encoding of words. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 11, Lesson 3, the teacher introduces r-controlled syllables as an r-controlled vowel phoneme. The teacher models with storm, telling students it contains a vowel followed by an r, making it an r-controlled syllable.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 13, Lesson 3, the teacher models the division of two-, three-, and four-syllable words. The teacher guides students through a routine to divide words into syllables with the words programmer, babysitting, slimmest, and inflammable. 

Materials contain explicit instruction in morpheme analysis to decode unfamiliar words. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 25, Lesson 3-4, the teacher models the division of words with the Latin chunks -tion, -sion, and -ture. The teacher guides students through syllable division and reading of words with these Latin chunks.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 26, Lesson 3, the teacher tells students they will practice what they have already learned. Then, the teacher tells students why some suffixes are called vowel suffixes. The teacher then reviews -es, -ing, -er, -est, -ous, and -y

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 27, Lesson 5, the teacher models the analysis of the word detailed to determine the number of syllables in the base/root word and how the addition of -ed adds a syllable. The teacher and students practice with the suffix -y

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 28, Lesson 5, the teacher states students have learned five prefixes and demonstrates underlining the prefix in the word uneven. The teacher points out the prefix un-, says /un/ and is spelled u-n. Then, the teacher reads each syllable individually and the word as a whole. Students repeat the process for uneven and other words with prefix un-. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 29, Lesson 3, the teacher reminds students what they learned in the last unit. The teacher shows the animation video to teach some additional prefixes, then asks students where prefixes are found in words and tells them how to pronounce the prefixes re-, pre-, and pro-

Multiple and varied opportunities are provided over the course of the year for students to learn, practice, and apply word analysis strategies. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 9, Lesson 3, the teacher guides students through reading two- and three-syllable words with long a and long e vowel teams. The teacher models with the word repeat. Through guided practice, the teacher and students determine the vowel spellings and divide the word playfulness into syllables. Students continue to practice the routine independently with the following words: weekday, explaining, reveal, and sunscreen.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 28, Lesson 5, students practice reading a row of words with prefixes and check their classmates’ reading by listening for accuracy or errors. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 29, Lesson 3, the teacher displays the word joyous. The teacher reminds students that the suffix -ous says /ihs/. The teacher then asks students if they see the suffix at the end of the word. The teacher asks students what sounds are spelled by the suffix -est

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, in Units 25, 26, and 27, students work on suffixes, and in Units 28, 29, and 30, students work on prefixes. In Unit 28, Lesson 3, students study prefixes with two-syllable words. 

Indicator 1R
04/04

Materials regularly and systematically offer assessment opportunities that measure student progress of word recognition and analysis (as indicated by the program scope and sequence).

The materials provide regular assessment opportunities, both formative and summative, at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. The materials also include a Sight Word Assessment to be given at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. The materials provide the teacher with instructional suggestions for assessment-based steps to help students progress toward mastery in word recognition and word analysis.

Materials regularly and systematically provide a variety of assessment opportunities over the course of the year to demonstrate students’ progress toward mastery and independence of word recognition and analysis. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground, Teacher Resources, there are Sight Word Surveys. The directions say to give the sight word assessment to all Grade 2 students who you suspect are not making progress. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 20, Lesson 3, students do a word sort to determine if the word has a prefix, suffix, or both. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 28, Lesson 4, the teacher checks student work building words syllable by syllable. Words students build include disconnected, impolite, incredible, and unlikely. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 29, Lesson 3, students do a word sort for words with prefixes and no prefixes. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground, Assessment Guide Unit 5, Games 1-3 assess students’ knowledge of closed versus open syllable types, knowledge of syllable type, and correct syllable division.  

Assessment materials provide the teacher and students with information concerning students’ current skills/level of understanding of word recognition and word analysis. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Teacher Resources, Assessments and Grouping, Diagnostic Decoding Surveys, the materials indicate when data uploads to the Grouping Matrix, students will be placed in one of eight groups and will include instructional recommendations when appropriate. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Word Benchmark Scores, Unit 6, Game 2 states if students get greater than 80%, they are nearing proficiency, 60-79% means students need additional practice, and 59% or lower means students need re-teaching.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Word Benchmark Scores, in Unit 28, it states if students score greater than 80%, students are nearing proficiency, 60-79% means students need additional practice, and students who score 59% or lower need re-teaching.

Materials support the teacher with instructional suggestions for assessment-based steps to help students to progress toward mastery in word recognition and word analysis. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Teacher Resources, Assessments and Grouping, Diagnostic Decoding Surveys, the materials indicate when data uploads to the grouping matrix, students will be placed in one of eight groups and will include instructional recommendations when appropriate. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Word Benchmark Scores, it states if students score less than 59%, the teacher should teach Unit 25, Lesson 4, consonant suffixes in longer words animation, and address Games 2 and 3. The teacher can review Lesson 4, and have students do student workbook 2, page 43, word hunt for practice. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Word Benchmark Scores, for Unit 26, if students get between 60-79%, the practice is suggested for students to review vowel suffixes in longer words in Unit 26, Lesson 4. The students are to do the sentence hunt and all Games in Unit 26 and have students complete 2, page 51, in their workbook.

Criterion 1.3: Fluency

12/12

Materials provide systematic and explicit instruction and practice in fluency by mid-to-late 1st and 2nd grade. Materials for 2nd grade fluency practice should vary (decodables and grade-level texts).

The materials include systematic instruction in oral reading fluency. The instructional routine includes the teacher modeling fluent reading, discussing how to address punctuation when reading, and strategies to address accuracy. The consistent fluency routine to develop oral reading fluency is used with phrases, sentences, decodable passages, and decodable texts. The materials include varied opportunities throughout the program over the course of the year for students to work on reading with automaticity and prosody. Practice opportunities for oral reading fluency are provided through decodable passages, phrases, and sentences in student workbooks. Guidance for Positive Corrective Feedback is provided within mini-lesson resources and in the appendices. The materials include systematic assessment opportunities through reading the passages and tracking accuracy. The materials contain multiple assessment opportunities with cold 1-minute reads of decodable texts corresponding to each unit, which includes a consistent routine that tracks students’ accuracy.

Indicator 1S
04/04

Instructional opportunities are built into the materials for systematic, evidence-based, explicit instruction in oral reading fluency.

The materials include systematic instruction in oral reading fluency. The instructional routine includes the teacher modeling fluent reading, discussing how to address punctuation when reading, and strategies to address accuracy. The consistent fluency routine to develop oral reading fluency is used with phrases, sentences, decodable passages, and decodable texts. 

Materials include frequent opportunities for explicit, systematic instruction in rate, accuracy, and prosody using grade-level decodable connected text. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, HD Word Decodable Passages, page xvii, provides the Decodable Passage Fluency Routine for all decodable passages and texts. The routine includes the teacher modeling fluency and prosody by reading the decodable passage first, making a mistake and reading in a monotone voice, and then talking about the mistake and rereading the entire passage correctly to model fluent reading with accuracy and prosody.

  • The HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, HD Word Decodable Passages, page xvii, includes a routine instructing students to read smoothly and quickly with a focus on accuracy over rate, watching for punctuation when reading, and silently reading and previewing the passage before reading aloud.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 1, Lesson 3, materials instruct the teacher to use the Oral Reading Fluency routine to read the decodable passage “Thad?” Instructions for the Oral Reading Fluency routine are contained in the HD Word Decodable Resource. The routine includes the teacher modeling reading each passage fluently with accuracy and prosody before reading with students and before students read independently. 

  • The HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 24, Lesson 1, focuses on the Oral Reading Fluency Routine, with the teacher activating prior knowledge of students and previewing words in the text. The teacher points out and reads words. Then, students read the decodable passage “Popcorn.”

Materials provide opportunities for students to hear fluent reading of grade-level text by a model reader. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, HD Word Passages, pg. vii, the teacher is prompted to read as many times as needed for students to hear a fluent reader. The teacher tells students they want to match their reading to sound like theirs. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 11, Lesson 4, materials instruct the teacher to use the Oral Reading Fluency routine to read the decodable passage “Win a Trip!”. Instructions for the fluency routine are contained in the HD Word Decodable Resource. The routine includes the teacher modeling each passage fluently with accuracy and prosody before reading with students and before students read independently.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 12, Lesson 1, materials include an Oral Reading Fluency routine for the teacher to use, including activating prior knowledge and previewing words in the text, and the teacher modeling fluent reading of the text. 

  • The HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 25, Lesson 1, focuses on the Oral Reading Fluency routine, where the teacher models reading fluently before the students read the decodable passages. Then, students read the decodable passage “Paul Bunyan.”

  • In The HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 27, Lesson 5, materials instruct the teacher to use the Oral Reading Fluency routine to read the decodable passage “Prizewinner,” which includes teacher modeling the fluent reading of the passage.

Materials include a variety of resources for explicit instruction in oral reading fluency. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Scope and Sequence, Units 2-33 start with three one-minute timed oral readings. Students record their accuracy percentage and WCPM with a goal of 98% accuracy or better.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, HD Word Passages, page ix, it tells the teacher to do the Oral Reading Fluency routine. The teacher explicitly models reading fluently, and then students read the passages provided in HD Word Passages. 

  • In The HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Lesson 5, in the Phrases (Foundation Only) and Sentences to Read, after the teacher models fluent reading, students read the phrases and sentences provided. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 15, Lesson 5, it tells the teacher to have students practice reading phrases in the Student Workbook on page 94. The teacher calls on individual students to read phrases and other students are the checkers who listen for accuracy. 

Indicator 1T
04/04

Varied and frequent opportunities are built into the materials for students to engage in supported practice to gain automaticity and prosody beginning in mid-Grade 1 and through Grade 2 (once accuracy is secure).

The materials include varied opportunities throughout the program over the course of the year for students to work on reading with automaticity and prosody. Practice opportunities for oral reading fluency are provided through decodable passages, phrases, and sentences in student workbooks. Guidance for Positive Corrective Feedback is provided within mini-lesson resources and in the appendices. 

Varied, frequent opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to gain automaticity and prosody. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 8, Lesson 3, students practice reading the decodable “The Last Necklace” on Day 3 during small group instruction. On Day 4 and Day 5, students reread the decodable text. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 12, Lesson 1, students practice reading “Stingrays,” “Baseball,” and “The Nazca Lines” in the Student Workbook in triads. Students take turns reading the text as two students record the reader’s errors and calculate the accuracy percentage and WCPM. This process continues as each reader practices reading with the goal of 98% Accuracy.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, Lesson 5, students read sentences focused on accuracy. 

Materials provide practice opportunities for oral reading fluency in a variety of settings (e.g., repeated readings, dyad or partner reading, continuous reading). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 13, Lesson 4, students reread the decodable passage “The Perfect Quirky Dessert” from Lesson 3. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, Lesson 1, students reread and review the Unit 13 decodable passage “The Perfect Quirky Desert” during small group instruction. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 21, Lesson 1, Units 21-23, students complete an Oral Reading Fluency procedure with three readers reading aloud for one minute. In Lesson 2, students complete a second reading of the Lesson 1 passage. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 23, Lesson 1, materials state the teacher can have students partner read during this time instead so that all students have an opportunity to read with a partner who can mark any errors. There are detailed directions in the Appendix on page 490. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 30, Lesson 2, students read the decodable passage “Amelia Earhart,” listening to a partner read, checking their accuracy, and then partners switch roles.

Materials include guidance and corrective feedback suggestions to the teacher for supporting students’ gains in oral reading fluency. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Appendices, the teacher uses a three-step process for Positive Error Correction if the reader misses a word a second time. Students who are Checkers are prompted to use Touch & Say to read the word chorally. The teacher prompts readers to independently use Touch & Say. Lastly, the reader is to use Touch & Say to reread the entire phrase, and the Checkers provide positive reinforcement by congratulating the reader. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 2, Lesson 5, there is a box reminding the teacher to use Positive Error Correction for the Phrases and Sentences. In Unit 1, Lesson 5, the materials provide more information, which states that if a student misses a word twice, the teacher chorally reads the word with the student and then has the student reread the phrase correctly.

Indicator 1U
04/04

Materials regularly and systematically offer assessment opportunities that measure student progress in oral reading fluency (as indicated by the program scope and sequence).

The materials include systematic assessment opportunities through reading the passages and tracking accuracy. The materials contain multiple assessment opportunities with cold 1-minute reads of decodable texts corresponding to each unit, which includes a consistent routine that tracks students’ accuracy. Materials include suggestions for instructional adjustments to help students progress toward mastery in oral reading fluency. The materials provide general guidance for students and teachers on progress toward mastery of oral reading fluency.

Multiple assessment opportunities are provided regularly and systematically over the course of the year for students to demonstrate progress toward mastery and independence of oral reading fluency. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Recommended Assessment Timeline it is recommended that students have opportunities to be evaluated in Oral Reading Fluency six times a year. The six assessments include fall, mid-fall, winter, mid-winter, spring, and late spring progress monitoring.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 24, Lesson 3, students complete a cold read of “The Challenge” for 1 minute. The teacher marks the errors, and the student’s progress is measured through a warm read on Day 5. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 29, Lesson 3, students complete a cold read of the decodable passage “Superhero Propeller.” The Fluency routine for each cold read indicates teachers time students for a one-minute oral reading fluency assessment and document the number of correct words per minute and accuracy on a fluency tracker.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 10, Lesson 5, it states when the students complete a unit the teacher should assign Progress Monitoring 3 to evaluate students’ instruction. 

Assessment materials provide the teacher and students with information about students’ current skills/level of understanding of oral reading fluency. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The HD Word Online, Supply Room, page vi, states that on the correct per-minute chart for oral reading, the teacher calculates the number of words read per minute minus the number of mistakes or miscues, which equals the correct words per minute. 

  • The HD Student Workbook, Book 1, Unit 2, pages 8 and 9, provides a checklist for marking oral reading errors that include words that are misread, words left out, words left out, words added, skipped lines, and self-correction. Students use the tracking chart to record accuracy and WCPM. This routine provides information for both students and the teacher.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Student Workbook, page 11, the student keeps track of the Oral Reading accuracy, and words correct per minute during the Oral Reading Fluency part of the lesson. 

Materials support the teacher with instructional adjustments to help students make progress toward mastery in oral reading fluency. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, HD Word Decodable Passages, page xvi, provides a Normed Benchmark Fluency table. Materials indicate students who score ten or more words below the rate for the 50th percentile on an average of two cold readings may need additional support. 

  • The HD Word Online, Teacher Supply Room, Teacher Resources, Assessments and Grouping, Intervention Flowcharts indicate teachers enter data from timed Oral Reading Fluency passages into the Grouping Matrix to determine growth. If students do not show growth, continue Blast and review short vowels and closed syllables. If students show some growth, continue HD Word or Blast but do not change programs, and if students are at or above expectations, continue HD Word instruction. 

  • In HD Word Online, Teacher Supply Room, Teacher Resources, it states that if a student is demonstrating severe decoding deficits or emerging and they are reading a lot of words sound by sound, the teacher should administer the Phonological Awareness Survey or the Pre-Decoding Survey to determine what is going on. Then, the materials suggest the teacher enter the results into the Grouping Matrix to understand the pre-decoding problem. 

  • In HD Word Online, Teacher Supply Room, Teacher Resources, it is suggested that if the student struggles with initial or final consonant sounds, the teacher should administer the LKS, Letter Knowledge Survey. The teacher should then enter the results into the Grouping Matrix to better understand the student’s letter knowledge. 

Overview of Gateway 2

Usability

The materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation, including a Table of Contents sectioned by Unit, Lesson, and Appendix. There are three teacher guides provided for the HD Word materials. The online materials in the Supply Room contain additional resources and instructional materials for teachers to utilize. The HD Word materials provide detailed examples of the foundational skill concepts for the teacher within the Teacher Guide lesson plans, Appendices, and Supply Room resources. The materials include a research-based lesson plan design that provides whole group and small group instructional minutes that support practice to mastery. Lesson pacing is designed to be completed within a year. The materials provide an alignment document for formative and summative assessments and an extensive alignment document for all foundational skills tasks. 

The materials provide support for multilingual learners through instructional videos, an alternative scope and sequence, crosslinguistic lessons, and recommendations and tips for using, accommodating, and delivering curriculum components. General statements regarding MLL learners and instructional strategies or supports can be found in the Unit Planners and the Introduction and Appendices of the Teacher Guides; however, resources are limited to Spanish-speaking students. There are missed opportunities for MLL resources in other languages. The materials provide guidance to the teacher for scaffolding and adapting lessons found in the Supply Room and in the Teacher Guides, with supports embedded within the lessons or in the margins. The Teacher Guide contains a Differentiation Option that includes information for scaffolding and adapting lessons to support students who read, write, speak, or listen below grade level.

The materials include thirty-two passages, which are utilized throughout the units. The passages do not make reference to physical, cultural, or linguistic characteristics. The portrayal of animals is nondescript. The HD Word Online decodable passages frequently identify characters by name with the absence of pronouns. There is an absence of visual pictures to accompany the text. The materials include a Spanish Supports Scope and Sequence, which provides cross-linguistic referencing between English and Spanish. A Cross-linguistic Alphabet Letter Cards User Guide is also provided, which contains cognates that list shared and unshared graphemes and phonemes between English and Spanish; however, additional guidance on how to draw upon students’ home language other than Spanish is absent from the program. In addition, the materials do not include resources for students who speak a dialect different than Standard classroom English. It is important to note that the English Language Teacher Supports Guide states, “We will be periodically adding more languages throughout the school year.” 

The materials integrate technology with interactive tools. Materials include presentation tools for daily lessons. Materials also include digital resources for students to review articulation and phoneme motions. Materials include a tool called the Letter-Sound Generator that can be customized to meet the needs of specific students. The materials also contain digital technology and interactive tools such as data collection tools, which can be found online through the Supply Room, Grouping Matrix, and Reading Playground. Students can use interactive resources on the Reading Playground or through daily lessons presented by the teacher. The materials contain clear and consistent formats that do not distract focus from the intended objective or concept. The predictable layout of teacher materials occurs within lessons and across each unit. Each book contains an overview, scope and sequence, unit planners, and appendices. The organization of each unit and lesson supports student understanding of topics, text, and/or concepts. The teacher presentation slides are colorful and relay information supporting students’ skill practice. The materials include a Supply Room with teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology.

Criterion 2.1: Guidance for Implementation

14/14

Materials are accompanied by information that provides the teacher with guidance for implementation of daily lessons and information to enhance teacher knowledge of foundational skills.

The materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation, including a Table of Contents sectioned by Unit, Lesson, and Appendix. There are three teacher guides provided for the HD Word materials. The online materials in the Supply Room contain additional resources and instructional materials for teachers to utilize. The HD Word materials provide detailed examples of the foundational skill concepts for the teacher within the Teacher Guide lesson plans, Appendices, and Supply Room resources. The materials include a research-based lesson plan design that provides whole group and small group instructional minutes that support practice to mastery. Lesson pacing is designed to be completed within a year. The materials provide an alignment document for formative and summative assessments and an extensive alignment document for all foundational skills tasks. 

Indicator 2A
04/04

Materials provide teacher guidance with useful annotations and suggestions for how to enact the student materials and ancillary materials to support students' literacy development.

The materials provide a well-defined teacher resource for content presentation, including a Table of Contents sectioned by Unit, Lesson, and Appendix. There are three teacher guides provided for the HD Wordmaterials. The Introductory and Appendix sections are well organized to display the content for easy navigation. In addition, each unit begins with a Unit Planner that outlines the parts of the lesson, time limits, instructional resources, and more. The Introduction, Appendix, and Lesson materials provide detailed information and instructional routines that help teachers implement all foundational skills content effectively. The online materials in the Supply Room contain additional resources and instructional materials for teachers to utilize.

Materials provide a well-defined, teacher resource for content presentation. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, each unit has a planner in the beginning. The Planner outlines each section of the lesson plan, which skills will be evaluated, and the amount of time that a teacher should spend on each section. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Introduction, the Unit Structure of HD Word resource provides the structure for the units, which is 33 Units with five daily lessons. There is guidance for the amount of time the lessons will take and the structure of the daily lessons. The resource also explains the lesson design, which includes concepts, materials, objectives, what you need to know, HD Word online, teacher notes, I Do, We Do, You Do, unit planner guidance, and student workbooks. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Introduction, the Items in the Supply Room of HD Word Online resource lists the sections and resources found in the Supply Room with the online resource. The supply room has teacher resources, instructional resources, Reading Playground, EL Resources, Vocabulary, and Heart Word Magic.  

The teacher resource contains detailed information and instructional routines that help the teacher to effectively implement all foundational skills content (i.e., alphabetic knowledge, phonemic awareness, phonics, irregularly spelled words, word analysis). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 2, Lesson 1 introduces the oral reading procedures. The section of the lesson called What You Need to Know details the purpose of oral reading lessons, an overview of the procedure, data tracking resources, error marking, and information about the oral reading passages.  

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews the Oral Reading procedure with students. The teacher says, “in the previous unit, we learned about the Oral Reading procedure we will complete in every unit. In our Oral Reading procedure, three Readers will read text aloud while the rest of the class acts as Checkers to record the readers’ errors, or ‘misreads.’ This will help the Readers read more accurately. We also learned how the Checkers will mark the Reader’s misreads as he or she reads. Today, we will complete the Oral Reading procedure for all three Readers. We will also learn how the Readers will calculate their Words Correct per Minute (WCPM) and Accuracy Percentages and how they will record those scores on their Tracking Charts.”

  • In HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 4, Lesson 3, in the activity Reading Two-Syllable Words with Closed Syllables, What You Need to Know, the teacher guidance provides information for the teacher on syllables including types of syllables, rules for closed syllables, and how to read multisyllabic words.

Indicator 2B
04/04

Materials contain full, adult-level explanations and examples of the foundational skills concepts included in the program so teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject, as necessary.

The materials contain detailed, adult-level explanations of foundational skills concepts. The HD Word materials provide detailed examples of the foundational skill concepts for the teacher within the Teacher Guide lesson plans, Appendices, and Supply Room resources.

Complete, detailed adult-level explanations are provided for each foundational skill taught at the grade level. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Appendix, there is a definition for diphthong, which explains it has two parts and the position of the mouth changes as a diphthong is articulated. Materials explain they are also called “glides”  or “gliding vowels” because the mouth glides from one part of the vowel sound directly into another. 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Appendix, a short vowel is defined as a vowel sound produced with a little tension in the vocal cords, also called “lax.” It also explains the five short vowels in English: /a/, /e/, /i/, /o/, /u/. 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 4, Lesson 3, What You Need to Know, there is an explanation of syllables, which includes, “A syllable is a unit of spoken language organized around a vowel phoneme. Every syllable has a vowel sound. Most syllables have one or more consonant phonemes, but this is not necessary. There are six syllable types: closed, open, vowel-consonant-e, vowel team, r-controlled vowel, and consonant-le.”

Detailed examples of the grade-level foundational skill concepts are provided for the teacher. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 2, Lesson 3, materials explain consonant blends for the teacher with examples. It includes, “Bl and nd in the word blend are 2-sound consonant blends” and “Scr in scrap and -mpt in the word prompt are 3-sound consonant blends.”

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 5, Lesson 3, What You Need to Know, there is a definition of open syllables and examples provided. It includes, “An open syllable is a syllable that ends in a single vowel letter. Some examples are me, pilot, and open.” 

  • In the HD Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 8, Lesson 3, in What You Need to Know, there are reminders about schwa, including, “The most common sound for schwa is /uh/ as in zebra. The vowel phoneme in the second syllable in zebra has less energy than a typical vowel sound and is articulated similarly to the short u phoneme. The sound is /ih/ as in bonnet. The vowel phoneme in the second syllable in bonnet has less energy than a typical vowel sound and is articulated similarly to the short i phoneme.”

Indicator 2C
04/04

Foundational skills lessons are well-designed and take into account effective lesson structure and pacing. Content can reasonably be completed within a regular school year, and the pacing allows for maximum student understanding.

The materials include a research-based lesson plan design that provides whole group and small group instructional minutes that support practice to mastery. Lesson pacing is designed to be completed within a year. The lesson plan design consistently follows an I Do, We Do, You Do lesson structure. The planner for each unit follows a structured weekly routine and indicates the amount of time for explicit instruction, practice to mastery, small group instruction, and independent practice.

Lesson plans utilize effective, research-based lesson plan design for early literacy instruction. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the “Really Great Reading Instructional Block” document states that it is based on a 90-minute reading block that was influenced by research with the National Research Council (1998). 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the “Really Great Reading Instructional Block” document states that the instructional block should integrate principles from Gough and Tunmer’s Simple View of Reading model (1986) and Scarborough’s Reading Rope (2001), while also incorporating the National Reading Panel (2000). 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Research and Timing for Blast Instruction, it indicates a portion of the reading block design stems from Shanahan (2019) and Reading Rockets’ recommendation to enhance comprehension through building vocabulary and practicing writing.

  • In the HD Word Online, Teacher Supply Room, Research, the Notes on Scope and Sequence indicates that the design for early literacy is based on an English word-level statistical analysis to determine the most teachable and predictable patterns in the English Code.

  • In the HD Word Online, Teacher Supply Room, Research, the Notes on Scope and Sequence explains that 97% of teachable and predictable patterns are taught by the end of second grade. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Introduction, pg. viii, there is a section on high-frequency words that states Heart Words are taken from the Dolch 220 list developed by Edward William Doch, Ph.D, published in the 1948 book, Problems in Reading.

The effective lesson design structure includes both whole group and small group instruction. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Unit 6, Day 1 begins with 15-20 minutes of whole group instruction, five-10 minutes of whole group practice to mastery, and 10-20 minutes of small group instruction. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 3, Lesson 3, the teacher spends 15-20 minutes teaching the phonics concept to the whole group. Support is provided for students for 10-20 minutes of small group time as students work on a cold read with the decodable passage, “Lunch at the Mall.” Then, students use the Unit 3, Spell It! template for five-10 minutes of practice.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, the Unit 14 Planner allocates 15-20 minutes to direct instruction for oral reading, phonemic awareness, phonics concepts, and student practice in a whole group and 10-20 minutes daily for small group instruction.

The pacing of each component of daily lesson plans is clear and appropriate. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Research and Timing for HD Word Instruction, provides a sample lesson plan using Unit 5, Lesson 1, which includes:

    • 1 minute review Oral Reading procedure

    • 12 minutes complete Oral Reading procedure

    • 4 minutes investigate the text

    • 5 minutes Heart Word instruction

    • 5-10 minutes Practice to Mastery whole group

    • 20-30 minutes small group instruction

    • 30-40 minutes independent practice over the course of the week 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 18, Planner for the Lesson 1-5 lesson plan includes 15-20 minutes of daily instruction, five-10 minutes of pratice to mastery daily, 10-20 minutes of small group instruction, and 30-40 minutes of independent practice over the course of the week. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 28, Planner Lesson 1-5, the lesson plan includes 15-20 minutes of daily instruction, 5-10 minutes of pratice to mastery daily, 10-20 minutes of small group instruction, and 30-40 minutes of independent practice over the course of the week. 

The suggested amount of time and expectations for maximum student understanding of all foundational skills content (i.e., phonics, irregularly spelled words, word analysis, fluency) can reasonably be completed in one school year and should not require modifications. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, the Introduction states HD Word can be completed in 33 weeks, and there are 33 units. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1 states students are immersed in 75-100 weekly minutes of explicit teacher-led foundational skills instruction.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1 states that completion of all 33 HD Word units enables students to read decodable and grade-level text fluently. Each unit provides 15-20 daily direct instruction and 10-20 teacher-led small group instruction.

For those materials on the borderline (e.g., approximately 130 days on the low end or 200 days on the high end), evidence clearly explains how students would be able to master ALL the grade-level foundational skills standards within one school year. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The HD Word Teacher Guides include 33 Units, with five lessons for each unit, for a total of 165 days of instruction.

Indicator 2D
02/02

Materials include publisher-produced alignment documentation of the standards addressed by specific questions, tasks, and assessments and assessment materials clearly denote which standards are being emphasized.

The materials provide an alignment document for formative and summative assessments and an extensive alignment document for all foundational skills tasks. The Beginning, Middle, and End of Year Program Assessment document outlines the standards alignment to baseline and summative assessment items. Game Mapping provides alignment of formative assessments in Reading Playground to skills aligned to the grade-level standards, as well as the practice and review activities. Foundational Skills lessons and review activities are noted in the Program Assessment document. 

Materials include denotations of the foundational skills standards being assessed in the formative assessments. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, HD Game Word Mapping, Unit 2, in Games 1 and 2 they assess digraphs and blends through Reading Playground Games Digraph or two sound blends, and Digraph Blend vs. two-sound blends which align to standard RF.2.3.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, HD Game Word Mapping, Unit 11, Game 1 assesses identifying graphemes and vowel spellings with the Reading Playground Games Segmenting Sounds, which aligns with standard RF.2.3.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Benchmark Score Document, students are assessed on single-syllable closed syllable words with digraph blends with Games 1 and 2, which align to standards RF 2.3, 3.3, 4.3, and 5.3.

Materials include denotations of foundational skills standards being assessed in the summative assessments. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Summative Assessment Content and Standards Alignment, Game 9, students are assessed on multisyllabic words with closed and open syllables, which is aligned to standards RF.2.3, RF.2.3.a, RF.3.3, RF.4.3, and RF.5.3.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Beginning, Middle, and End of Year Program Assessments, Mid Interval Assessment Content and Standards Alignment, indicates Game 11 assesses understanding of syllable types and standards alignment indicates RF.2.3, RF.2.3.a, RF.3.3, RF.4.3, and RF.5.3.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Summative Assessment Content and Standards Alignment, Game 15, students are assessed on two- and three-syllable words with r-controlled and other vowels. The skills are aligned to standards RF.2.3 and RF.2.3c. 

Alignment documentation is provided for all tasks, questions, and assessment items. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Materials include various alignment documentation for all tasks, questions, and assessment items. For example: 

    • The HD Game Mapping document provides alignment information for tasks and questions. In Unit 14, Game 1, students work on vowel sort /or/, /ar/, and /er/. The document states that the tasks are aligned with standards RF.2.3, RF.3.3, RF.4.3, and RF.5.3.

    • The HD Word Formative Assessment Guide provides alignment to assessment items. Unit 1, Game 1 indicates alignment with RF.2.3, RF.3.3.c, RF.4.3.a, and RF.5.3.a.

Alignment documentation contains specific foundational skills standards correlated to specific lessons. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Online, Supply Room, Unit 10, Lesson 3, students read two-, three-, and four syllable words with additional vowel team spellings for long e and review previously learned concepts such as closed syllables with short vowel sounds, open syllables and VCe words with long vowel sounds. The Standards Alignment for this lesson indicates it is aligned to standards RF.2.3 and RF.2.3c.

  • In the HD Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground Formative Assessments, Unit 22, Lesson 3, students read two-syllable words with consonant -le. The Standards Alignment for this lesson indicates it is aligned to standards RF.2.3.f, RF.3.3c, RF.4.3a, and RF.5.3a.

Indicator 2E
Read

Materials contain strategies for informing all stakeholders, including students, parents, or caregivers about the foundational skills program and suggestions for how they can help support student progress and achievement.

The materials include resources to inform all stakeholders about foundational skills included in the program, including explanations of educational terminology used in the program. Several online documents and resources provide stakeholders with strategies and activities for practicing print concepts, phonemic awareness, phonics, word recognition, and fluency at home. Stakeholder resources provide definitions of academic terminology, examples of activities, website links, and home letters. The HD Word home connection website includes video demonstrations about understanding syllable types and reading longer words. 

Materials contain jargon-free resources and processes to inform all stakeholders about foundational skills taught at school. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the Home Connection includes a letter that explains the program and the phonics within the program and explains that the students study the relationship between letters and sounds. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the Home Connection explains the concept of decodable passages. It provides information on what a decodable is and how families can be connected to the learning by requesting a copy of decodable passages from the teacher. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Home Connection, there are links for families to learn more about engaging in Letter Tile Free Play, student practice activities for Heart Words, an explanation of decodable passages, and a link to the Home Connection Webpage with additional activities and videos.

Materials provide stakeholders with strategies and activities for practicing print concepts, phonemic awareness, phonics, word recognition, and fluency that will support students in progress toward and achievement of grade-level foundational skills standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Home Connection, there are links for families to use at home to support their children in literacy. These links include information for reading longer words with closed syllables, reading longer words with other syllable types, and heart word magic. 

  • In HD Online, Supply Room, Home Connection, includes a document that can be shared with families that contains the procedure for using letter tiles and some examples.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the Home Connection provides a teacher-led video regarding syllable types and explains longer, or multisyllabic words, with a demonstration of how to practice with students at home. 

Criterion 2.2: Student Supports

06/08

The program includes materials designed for each child’s regular and active participation in grade-level/grade-band/series content.

The materials provide support for multilingual learners through instructional videos, an alternative scope and sequence, crosslinguistic lessons, and recommendations and tips for using, accommodating, and delivering curriculum components. General statements regarding MLL learners and instructional strategies or supports can be found in the Unit Planners and the Introduction and Appendices of the Teacher Guides; however, resources are limited to Spanish-speaking students. There are missed opportunities for MLL resources in other languages. The materials provide guidance to the teacher for scaffolding and adapting lessons found in the Supply Room and in the Teacher Guides, with supports embedded within the lessons or in the margins. The Teacher Guide contains a Differentiation Option that includes information for scaffolding and adapting lessons to support students who read, write, speak, or listen below grade level.

The materials include thirty-two passages, which are utilized throughout the units. The passages do not make reference to physical, cultural, or linguistic characteristics. The portrayal of animals is nondescript. The HD Word Online decodable passages frequently identify characters by name with the absence of pronouns. There is an absence of visual pictures to accompany the text. The materials include a Spanish Supports Scope and Sequence, which provides cross-linguistic referencing between English and Spanish. A Cross-linguistic Alphabet Letter Cards User Guide is also provided, which contains cognates that list shared and unshared graphemes and phonemes between English and Spanish; however, additional guidance on how to draw upon students’ home language other than Spanish is absent from the program. In addition, the materials do not include resources for students who speak a dialect different than Standard classroom English. It is important to note that the English Language Teacher Supports Guide states, “We will be periodically adding more languages throughout the school year.” 

Indicator 2F
02/04

Materials provide strategies and supports for students who read, write, and/or speak in a language other than English to meet or exceed grade-level standards to regularly participate in learning English language arts and literacy.

The materials provide support for multilingual learners through instructional videos, an alternative scope and sequence, crosslinguistic lessons, and recommendations and tips for using, accommodating, and delivering curriculum components. General statements regarding MLL learners and instructional strategies or supports can be found in the Unit Planners and the Introduction and Appendices of the Teacher Guides; however, resources are limited to Spanish-speaking students. There are missed opportunities for MLL resources in other languages.

Materials provide support, such as embedded language and content scaffolds, for multilingual learner (MLL) students. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, EL Resources, Student Resources, there are several instructional resources for students, including an EL Strategies Anchor Chart in English, an EL Strategies Anchor Chart in Español, a Crosslinguistic Alphabet Cards User Guide, Crosslinguistic Alphabet Cards Español, and English Picture Vocabulary Cards.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, EL Resources, Spanish Articulation Videos, there are several instructional videos in Spanish on different consonants, vowels, digraph sounds, and schwa.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, EL Resources, Home Resources, there are instructional resources for the teacher to send home with students. Some of these resources include a Spanish Parent Crash Course, HD Word Tier 1 Parent Letter in Spanish, and Ways to Support Your EL Child in both English and Spanish. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room,  EL Resources, Scope and Sequence for Spanish Supports, there are EL Instructional Routine videos in Spanish for finger stretching, Look, Think, Say!, Phrases to Read, and Sentences to Read.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room,  EL Resources, Scope and Sequence for Spanish Supports, All Programs and Recommendations, it recommends that instead of having EL learners read the oral fluency passages, educators should instead have them read decodable passages.

General statements about multilingual learner (MLL) students or strategies are noted at the beginning of a unit or at one place in the teacher edition. Teacher guidance is also provided for implementation of MLL instruction throughout the lessons. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 6, the Unit Planner outlines Spanish Resources.

    • Day 1- Crosslinguistic Alphabet Cards

    • Day  2 - Schwa Articulation in Espanol video; Heart Word Magic Spelling Template Spanish Supports

    • Day 3 - Multisyllabic Words Spanish Animation; Multisyllabic Words in Espanol Animation 

    • Day 5 - Reading Playground Spanish Supports

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 12, Planner, Resources for ELs, the planner gives the following directions for each day:

    • Day 2 -

      • /or/ as in Fork articulation video

      • /âr/ as in Care articulation video

    • Days 3 - 4 - Use the visual supports found in the EL/Espanol Resources menu to facilitate comprehension in Lesson 3 and Lesson 4

    • Day 5 - Reading Playground Unit 12 Visual Supports

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, Lesson 3, students are taught to read two-, three-, and four-syllable words. In the margin of the page, the teacher is prompted with the following supports:

    • “Use the visual supports found in the EL/Espanol Resources menu to facilitate comprehension in Lesson 3 and Lesson 4.”

    • “Show the /er/ Spelled or and ar in Espanol Animation.

Indicator 2G
04/04

Materials provide strategies and supports for students in special populations to work with grade-level content and to meet or exceed grade-level standards that will support their regular and active participation in learning English language arts and literacy.

The materials provide opportunities for small group instruction daily in a 25-30 minute small group block. The materials provide guidance to the teacher for scaffolding and adapting lessons found in the Supply Room and in the Teacher Guides, with supports embedded within the lessons or in the margins. The Teacher Guide contains a Differentiation Option that includes information for scaffolding and adapting lessons to support students who read, write, speak, or listen below grade level.

Materials provide opportunities for small group reteaching. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 4, the following guidance is found in the small group instruction area on the Unit Planner: 

    • Day 1 - Review decodable passage from previous unit, additional high-frequency word practice as necessary using Heart Word Magic activities

    • Day 2 - Use additional examples from the Teacher Guide with your small group

    • Day 3 - Unit 4 decodable passage “Basketball Contest” cold read, Unit 4 Spelling Words practice using the Spell It! Template

    • Day 4 - Unit 4 decodable passage “Basketball Contest” practice read, Unit 4 spelling words practice, Unit 4 challenge words practice using Syllaboards

    • Day 5 - Unit 4 decodable passage “Basketball Contest” warm read, Unit 4 spelling words practice and (optional) test, Unit 4 dictation sentences

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 14, the following guidance is found in the small group instruction area on the Unit Planner: 

    • Day 1 - Review Unit 13 decodable passage, additional high-frequency word practice as necessary using Heart Word Magic activities 

    • Day 2 - Use additional examples from the Teacher Guide with your small group

    • Day 3 - Unit 14 decodable passage “Earth Day” cold read, Unit 14 Spelling Words practice using the Spell It! Template

    • Day 4 - Unit 14 decodable passage “Earth Day” practice read, Unit 14 spelling words practice, Unit 14 challenge words practice using Syllaboards

    • Day 5 - Unit 14 decodable passage “Earth Day” warm read, Unit 14 spelling words practice, and (optional) test, Unit 14 dictation sentences  

Materials provide guidance to the teacher for scaffolding and adapting lessons and activities to support students who read, write, speak, or listen below grade level in extensive opportunities to learn grade-level foundational skills standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Differentiation Resources, the teacher is prompted to use alternative finger-stretching procedures to support students based on their abilities. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 20, Lesson 2, in the margin of the book, there is a box that states, “Remember to review and use motions for each of the ‘other’ vowel phonemes. The motions are detailed in Lesson 2 of Units 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19. These motions are recommended for all students, particularly for those at the Foundations level.”

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 16, Lesson 2, in the margin of the book, there is a box that states, “Three different challenge levels are provided for this activity. Students should practice at the highest level at which they are capable. Levels increase in difficulty as students are given less information about the phoneme they are asked to substitute. The Challenging level gives students the name of the phoneme and the sound itself (as in, change the long o, /ō/, to other vowel /oi/). The More Challenging level gives students the name of the phoneme without the actual sound (as in, change the long a to /oi/). Students must first determine the long a sound and then substitute /oi/ for long a. The Most Challenging level takes it one step further, asking students to change the vowel sound to a new sound without being told the original sound (as in, change the vowel sound to /oi/).

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 1, Appendix B, Differentiation Strategies, this resource provides strategies for students who are struggling to: 

    • Spell the consonant sounds correctly during Build a Word

    • Spell the vowel sounds correctly during Build a Word

    • Blend the sounds to pronounce the word during Build a Word 

    • Read the High-Frequency words automatically and accurately

    • Substitute or delete phonemes accurately in the phoneme manipulation activities

  • In the HD Word Online Resources, Supply Room, Differentiation Resources, there are resources that support students who read, write, speak, and listen below grade level. The following resources are available: 

    • Really Great Reading for Students with Dyslexia

    • HD Word for Students with Special Needs

    • Really Great Reading for English Language Learners

    • Phonics Suite Small Group Instruction

Indicator 2H
Read

Materials provide a balance of images or information about people, representing various demographic and physical characteristics.

The materials include thirty-two passages, which are utilized throughout the units. The passages do not make reference to physical, cultural, or linguistic characteristics. The portrayal of animals is nondescript. The HD Word Online decodable passages frequently identify characters by name with the absence of pronouns. There is an absence of visual pictures to accompany the text.

Decodable and connected texts depict individuals with different or varying cultures, genders, races, ethnicities, linguistic backgrounds, abilities, and other characteristics. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, HD Word Decodable Passages, the first six texts reference male characters, one non-gender story, and one that references both female and male. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, HD Word Decodable Passages, there are 16 references to males, 10 to females, five that reference both, and 11 that reference neither.

Decodable and connected texts balance positive portrayals of different or varying characteristics. Materials avoid stereotypes or language that might be offensive to a particular group. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The decodable texts mostly avoid stereotypes or language that might be offensive to a particular group. Passages with images are mostly of objects related to the story or animals, and little depiction of various demographic and physical characteristics exists.

Indicator 2I
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Materials provide guidance to encourage teachers to draw upon student home language to facilitate learning.

The materials include a Spanish Supports Scope and Sequence, which provides cross-linguistic referencing between English and Spanish. A Cross-linguistic Alphabet Letter Cards User Guide is also provided, which contains cognates that list shared and unshared graphemes and phonemes between English and Spanish; however, additional guidance on how to draw upon students’ home language other than Spanish is absent from the program. In addition, the materials do not include resources for students who speak a dialect different than Standard classroom English. It is important to note that the English Language Teacher Supports Guide states, “We will be periodically adding more languages throughout the school year.” 

Materials include a contrastive analysis document establishing cognates in more than one language (e.g., Spanish, French, Mandarin, German). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The program only includes a contrastive analysis document in Spanish. The resources in the program include:

    • A language reference column in each unit that highlights the differences and similarities between English and Spanish that are useful to be aware of when teaching emerging bilingual students. Shared traits between the two languages are emphasized through cross-linguistic referencing. 

    • The Cross-linguistic Alphabet Letter Cards User Guide explains shared letters and cognates and lists shared and unshared graphemes and phonemes between English and Spanish. 

Materials include a contrastive analysis document with a description of morphemes based in more than one language. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • No evidence was found.

Materials provide support for speakers of English language varieties. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • No evidence was found.

General statements about speakers of English language varieties or strategies are noted at the beginning of a unit or at one place in the teacher edition are then implemented by the materials throughout the lessons. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • No evidence was found.

Criterion 2.3: Intentional Design

Read

The program includes a visual design that is engaging and references or integrates digital technology, when applicable, with guidance for teachers.

The materials integrate technology with interactive tools. Materials include presentation tools for daily lessons. Materials also include digital resources for students to review articulation and phoneme motions. Materials include a tool called the Letter-Sound Generator that can be customized to meet the needs of specific students. The materials also contain digital technology and interactive tools such as data collection tools, which can be found online through the Supply Room, Grouping Matrix, and Reading Playground. Students can use interactive resources on the Reading Playground or through daily lessons presented by the teacher. The materials contain clear and consistent formats that do not distract focus from the intended objective or concept. The predictable layout of teacher materials occurs within lessons and across each unit. Each book contains an overview, scope and sequence, unit planners, and appendices. The organization of each unit and lesson supports student understanding of topics, text, and/or concepts. The teacher presentation slides are colorful and relay information supporting students’ skill practice. The materials include a Supply Room with teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology.

Indicator 2J
Read

Materials integrate technology such as interactive tools, virtual manipulatives/objects, and/or dynamic software in ways that engage students in the grade-level/series standards, when applicable.

The materials integrate technology with interactive tools. Materials include presentation tools for daily lessons. Materials also include digital resources for students to review articulation and phoneme motions. Materials include a tool called the Letter-Sound Generator that can be customized to meet the needs of specific students. The materials also contain digital technology and interactive tools such as data collection tools, which can be found online through the Supply Room, Grouping Matrix, and Reading Playground. Students can use interactive resources on the Reading Playground or through daily lessons presented by the teacher. 

Digital technology and interactive tools, such as data collection tools, simulations, and/or modeling tools are available to students. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessments and Grouping, the Grouping Matrix is a student data management system that groups students according to the type and depth of their decoding strengths and weaknesses.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Assessments and Grouping, the ePanels resource allows the teacher to choose the grade for the assessment, assessment tool, and form. This resource displays each part of the assessment digitally instead of printing a student copy. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, Interactive Resources, the Letter-Tile Freeplay allows the student to build words by using computerized tiles with letters, consonant blends, prefixes, suffixes, and chunks.

  • In HD Word Online, Reading Playground, there are interactive games for students to play that reinforce key concepts. Unit 3 has nine games that students play to reinforce the key concepts. The games provide modeling, directions, and immediate feedback for students. 

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Interactive Resources, the Sound-Spelling resource has a basic vowel valley, basic consonant canyon, advanced vowel valley, and advanced consonant canyon. This resource displays sound spelling cards that represent a phoneme. When the teacher clicks on the card, an articulation picture is displayed with a mouth articulating how to pronounce the sound and sound-spelling examples. 

Digital tools support student engagement in foundational skills. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, the Articulation Videos model all consonant sounds, short and long vowel sounds, digraphs, r-controlled vowel sounds, and other vowel sounds.

Digital materials can be customized for local use (i.e., student and/or community interests). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Reading Playground, in the diagnostic and assessment programs, teachers can input their students’ names in the assessments and administer assessments to students to ascertain their reading level and mastery of skills.

  • In HD Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, Interactive Resources, Letter-Sound Generator, the teacher has the option to choose which three-letter sounds to practice.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Interactive Resources, Heart Word Generator includes digital technology that provides opportunities for teachers to customize the Heart Words that students are learning. Teachers can customize the choosing five-10 words that specific students are working on and use the customized lesson with specific groups of students. 

Indicator 2K
Read

The visual design (whether in print or digital) is not distracting or chaotic, but supports students in engaging thoughtfully with the subject.

The materials contain clear and consistent formats that do not distract focus from the intended objective or concept. The predictable layout of teacher materials occurs within lessons and across each unit. Each book contains an overview, scope and sequence, unit planners, and appendices. The organization of each unit and lesson supports student understanding of topics, text, and/or concepts. The teacher presentation slides are colorful and relay information supporting students’ skill practice. 

Images, graphics, and models support student learning and engagement without being visually distracting. Images, graphics, and models clearly communicate information or support student understanding of topics, texts, or concepts. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Foundations, Book 3, Unit 28, Phonics Concept 1, Lesson 3, a video on prefixes is provided. It begins with the word, context, and then it is broken into two parts, con and text, with clear white boxes around the text.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, the Vowel Sound Animation video for other vowel sounds /oi/ names the sound, provides images, and moves to reinforce the sound. 

  • In the HD Word Foundations, Student Workbook, Book 2, Units 21-33, passages include words to preview and passages that indicate the number of words per line. The passages are designed for three readers, and they are indicated as Reader 1, 2, or 3. 

Teacher and student materials are consistent in layout and structure across lessons/modules/units. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, there is a header with icons that are represented in the Unit 10 Planner. Teacher materials and student materials are noted, objectives are clearly stated, and teachers are provided with background information needed for effective instruction. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 12, Lesson 1, the title is listed at the top of the page with a Unit Planner box, objectives, and teacher and student materials. It also contains a section on what teachers need to know. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, Book 3, Unit 22, each lesson begins with an objective, a What You Need to Know section, and a section labeled Start Teaching that contains the lesson’s focus, such as consonant-le syllables.

Organizational features (Table of Contents, glossary, index, internal references, table headers, captions, etc.) in the materials are clear, accurate, and error-free. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, the Table of Contents numbers each unit and labels each lesson and skill taught in the lesson clearly.

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, the Scope and Sequence provides an outline of each lesson that includes the objective, the activities for phonemic awareness and phonics, as well as student practice that is free of errors. 

  • In the HD Word Teacher Guide, each unit has a protruding tab to navigate to the unit directly. The unit pages begin with an overview planner outlining each day of instruction and are clearly labeled with minutes for each section, the name of activities, and visual icons for computer, small group instruction, or direct instruction. 

Indicator 2L
Read

Materials provide teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology to support and enhance student learning, when applicable.

The materials include a Supply Room with teacher guidance for the use of embedded technology. The digital technology provides opportunities for the teacher and students to collaborate through various instructional videos, animations, and other guiding resources. The resources ensure that both teacher and student participate and engage in the instructional learning and tasks.

Teacher guidance is provided for the use of embedded technology to support and enhance student learning, when applicable.

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Instructional Resources, Letter Tile Freeplay, materials include guidance for the use of the interactive tool. The tool allows teachers or students to choose to control this tool with touch, track pad, or a mouse. The user can build words with letter tiles, advanced vowels, prefixes/suffixes, and Syllaboards. There are options to mark on the tiles and change the vowel color.  

  • In HD Word Online, Supply Room, Reading Playground, Whole Class Activities, Reading Playgrounds Build a Word Online, this resource provides the steps for the teacher to start a live Build a Word Online (BAWO) activity session with the class in the Reading Playground. The teacher models how to build a word with interactive letter tiles, and then the students participate with the teacher to build a word with the tiles online.