1st Grade - Gateway 1

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1a.

The materials include high-quality anchor texts that are worthy of careful reading. The texts consider a range of student interests, contain rich language, and engage students. The materials include texts that are culturally diverse with multi-dimensional characters. The images and illustrations extend the meaning of the text and support academic vocabulary. 

Anchor texts are of high quality and consider a range of student interests, are well-crafted, content-rich, and engage students at their grade level. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 2, students listen to Alicia’s Happy Day by Meg Starr, a well-crafted realistic fiction story with rich language. The text features a Latinx neighborhood and includes beautiful portraits of the characters.

• In Unit 3, Week 3, students listen to Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein, which is a New York Times bestseller and won the Randolph Caldecott Medal in 2011. The story provides humor for students and incorporates fairy tales that students may be familiar with in a novel way. 

• In Unit 4, Week 1, students engage in the shared read of the folktale “Snail and Frog Race” (author not cited). The illustrations are visually appealing and support the meaning of the text. 

• In Unit 6, Week 5, students listen to Happy Birthday, U.S.A.! (author not cited), a nonfiction article from Time for Kids. The photos support the text and build students’ knowledge of the unit’s topic.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1b.

The materials reflect the distribution of text types and genres required by the standards. Materials include a variety of genres, including biographies, realistic fiction, fables, and how-to texts. Overall there are 65 literary texts and 70 informational texts, reflecting the 50/50 split required by the standards. The genres and text types are varied and include a mix of informational and literary texts. 

Materials reflect the distribution of text types/genres required by the grade-level standards. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Students listen to and read several fantasy texts such as “Six Kids” (author not cited) in Unit 1, Week 2, and The Three Little Dassies by Jan Brett in Unit 2, Week 2. 

• Students listen to and read several biographies such as The Story of Martin Luther King Jr, by Johnny Ray Moore in Unit 2, Week 4, and “The Story of a Robot Inventor” (author not cited) in Unit 5, Week 3. 

• Students listen to and read several realistic fiction stories such as Whistle for Willie by Ezra Jack Keats in Unit 5, Week 4 and Rain School by James Rumford in Unit 6, Week 3. 

• Students listen to and read several folktales including “The Monkey’s Fiddle” by Courtney A. Martin in Unit 1, Week 5, and The Great Big Gigantic Turnip, a Russian folktale in Unit 3, Week 2. 

• Students listen to several dramas including The Big Yuca Plant by Magaly Morales and “Time to Plant” (author not cited) in Unit 3, Week 2.

• Students listen to and read some how-to books including, “Shake! Strike! Strum!” (author not cited), in Unit 5, Week 4 and “Making Paper Shapes” (author not cited) in Unit 6, Week 4. 

• Students listen to and read several informational social studies texts such as Long Ago and Now by Minda Novek in Unit 3, Week 4 and “Be a Volunteer!” (author not cited) in Unit 6, Week 1.

Materials reflect a 50/50 balance of informational and literary texts. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the materials, there are 135 texts. There are 65 literary texts, which make up 48% of all texts in the program, and 70 informational texts, which make up 52% of all texts.  

• In Unit 1, there are 25 texts, with 48% being literary and 52% being informational.

• In Unit 2, there are 25 texts, with 44% being literary and 56% being informational.

• In Unit 3, there are 25 texts, with 56% being literary and 44% being informational.

• In Unit 4, there are 20 texts, with 35% being literary and 65% being informational.

• In Unit 5, there are 20 texts, with 55% being literary and 45% being informational.

• In Unit 6, there are 20 texts, with 50% being literary and 50% being informational.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1d.

Throughout the year, the complexity of the texts increases, which supports students’ literacy growth over time. At the beginning of the year, the quantitative range of texts is 30L–820L; by the end of the year, the range increases to 320L–950L. There is a slight increase in the qualitative complexity. For example, in Unit 1, 18 of the 25 texts are slightly complex, six are moderately complex, and one is very complex. By the end of the year, eight of the 20 texts are slightly complex, 11 of the 20 texts are moderately complex, and one is very complex. While the complexity of the associated tasks ranges from slightly complex to moderately complex throughout the year, students are expected to show increased independence as the year progresses. The Teacher Edition provides suggestions for teacher prompts and appropriate scaffolds to build background knowledge and facilitate depth of knowledge.

The complexity of anchor texts students read provides an opportunity for students’ literacy skills to increase across the year, encompassing an entire year’s worth of growth. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, the quantitative measures range from 30L–820L, and the qualitative features range from slightly complex (18 texts) to very complex (one text). Some of the associated tasks are not complex. For example, in Unit 1, Week 4, students listen to Games Long Ago (author not cited), which has a Lexile of 620L, but the task requires students to discuss how the games in the text are the same as or different from the games they play with their friends. In Unit 1, Week 1, Lesson 1, students are introduced to retelling during the text The School Year will be the Best! by Kay Winters. The teacher models retelling sections while reading aloud and then models retelling the entire selection of the story at the end of the story. Students then practice retelling a page or two with a partner. 

• In Unit 3, the quantitative measures range from 270L–770L with 16 slightly complex texts and two very complex texts. Many of the tasks are appropriately complex. For example, in Unit 3, Week 1, students listen to Measuring Time (author not cited), which has a Lexile of 630L. One task requires students to discuss how clocks, days, months, years, calendars, and seasons help people measure time. Retelling remains the same in Unit 3 as in previous units. For example, in Unit 3, Week 1, Lesson 1, while listening to the story Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein, the teacher continues to pause to retell portions of the selection by telling events correctly. The students also practice retelling a page or two with a partner. 

• In Unit 5, the quantitative measures remain relatively the same, with texts ranging from 210L–730L. Eight of the texts are slightly complex, and two are very complex. The associated tasks continue to be mostly complex. For example, in Unit 5, Week 2, students listen to Why the Sun and Moon are in the Sky (author not cited), which has a Lexile of 730L. One of the tasks requires students to discuss what they see in the sky based on what happens in the story.

• In Unit 6, the quantitative measures increase slightly with Lexiles ranging from 320L–950L, but the qualitative features remain relatively the same with eight slightly complex texts and one very complex text. The associated tasks remain appropriately complex. For example, in Unit 6, Week 3, students listen to “Paul Bunyan and the Popcorn Blizzard” (author not cited), which has a Lexile of 850L. One of the tasks is for students to discuss how weather affects the characters in the story. 

As texts become more complex, appropriate scaffolds and/or materials are provided in Teacher Edition (i.e., spending more time on texts, more questions, repeated readings). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the Teacher’s Manual, boxes are included throughout the units to help teachers make complex texts accessible to students. The Access Complex Text boxes include scaffolded instruction for seven elements that may make a text complex. 

• In the Teacher’s Manual, the materials indicate to the teacher when to use the Scaffolded Shared Read routine, though the routine remains the same throughout the year. 

• The Close Reading Routine remains the same throughout the year to help students access complex texts, though students are expected to show more independence as the year progresses. The routine begins with reading the text, identifying important ideas and details, and retelling. Then students reread and discuss craft and structure. Lastly, students make text-to-text connections and engage in a Show Your Knowledge task.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1e.

The materials provide opportunities for students to engage in a variety of texts including a range of topics and diverse cultures and opinions. Units are organized around three text sets. Set 1 covers weeks one and two, Set 2 covers weeks three and four, and Set 3 is completed in week five. Each two-week cycle is focused on a genre study with an essential question. During small group instruction, students complete independent work, including self-selected reading tasks. Resources in the Teacher Tools section provide recommendations for allotting additional time for daily independent reading, an independent reading log, sample lesson plans, and a  parent letter. Teacher resources provide instruction to help students develop skills to monitor learning and check progress. Throughout each week, students read and listen to literature big books, anchor texts, decodables, leveled readers, and shared reading. Students engage with literary and informational texts, including fantasy, drama, realistic fiction, how-to books, and biographical texts. The program includes a clear routine for independent reading with accountability. 

Instructional materials clearly identify opportunities and support for students to engage in reading a variety of texts. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 3, students read the Anchor Text, Flip by Ezra R. Ranaka, a fantasy text. Students also read and listen to two fantasy texts in the Literature Big Book and the Reading/Writing Companion and two informational texts in the Literature Anthology and Interactive Read Aloud. 

• In Unit 2, students read a variety of texts including narrative poetry, realistic fiction, biography, fantasy, folktale, and informational texts. For example, in Week 2, the anchor text is 3 Little Daisies by Jan Brett, a fantasy text.

• In Unit 3, Week 2, students read the paired selection, “How Plants Grow” (author not cited), an informational text. Students also read and listen to a folktale, an informational text, two plays, and realistic fiction in this unit. 

• In Unit 4, students read a variety of texts, including poetry, folktales, fantasy, opinion pieces, and informational texts. For example, in Week 4, the paired text is “Meet the Insects” (author not cited), an informational science text. 

• In Unit 6, Week 4, students read the paired selection, “Making Paper Shapes” (author not cited), a how-to text. Students also read and listen to several informational and realistic fiction texts. 

Instructional materials clearly identify opportunities and support for students to engage in a volume of reading. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, students engage with an Interactive Read Aloud, a Paired Selection, the Literature Big Book, Shared Reads, and an Anchor text each week. There are six weeks of lessons, for a total of 30 lessons and 24 texts. Additional texts in Unit 1 include independent reading and read-alouds and additional texts that are of the same genre at various levels. 

• In Unit 5, there are a total of 19 texts spanning 30 lessons, and each week students read or listen to the Interactive Read Aloud, Shared Read, Paired Selection, and Anchor Text. Additional texts include independent reading and read-alouds, as well as a bibliography for additional texts for students to interact with from this unit. 

• In Unit 6, students read and listen to interactive Read Alouds, paired selections, and an Anchor Text each week for a total of 6 weeks spanning 30 lessons. Additional texts are available for read-alouds and independent reading that align with the topics and genres in this unit. 

There is sufficient teacher guidance to foster independence for all readers.(eg. Proposed schedule, racking system for independent reading, independent reading procedures are included in the lessons.) Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The Instructional Routines Handbook includes routines for independent reading and recommends 10–20 minutes a day for Grade 1 students. It suggests that independent reading be a part of the center rotation. The Handbook also prompts teachers to teach the routine so students can choose books and read independently while the teacher works with small groups. 

• The Independent Reading Routine, found in the Instructional Routines Handbook, includes selecting a book that is interesting, reading the book during independent reading time, recording what they read on the provided reading log at the end of each session, sharing opinions of the text with a friend or writing a review when finished with a book, and beginning again. 

• The Instructional Routines Handbook includes a list of resources to support independent reading. These include independent reading selections in the Literature Anthology, TIME for Kids online digital articles, leveled readers, and classroom library trade books with online lessons and activities for each text. 

• The Instructional Routines Handbook includes a procedure for conferencing around independent reading. The procedure is not specific but gives information such as, “Make a positive observation about the student’s reading or book choice” and “Regularly conferring with students about their independent reading is a great way to informally assess their progress, model social-emotional learning skills, build your classroom culture, and instill habits of learning.” 

• Independent reading guidance is also found in the Differentiated Instruction section of the units. The guidelines are relatively similar across each unit and level. For example, the guidance includes helping students pick an appropriate text and having them read for a specific amount of time.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1f.

Throughout the materials, students have many opportunities to engage with text-dependent and text-specific questions both during and after reading. During Shared Reading, Interactive Read Alouds, and Anchor Texts, the teacher pauses to ask students text-dependent questions to help students better comprehend the text. Students also have the opportunity to answer questions after reading during the lessons. Students complete written responses and engage in small group and partner discussions. Scaffolds are provided, such as graphic organizers and charts, to help students complete text-specific tasks like identifying the sequence of events or analyzing the author’s purpose. Materials also begin to teach students to provide textual evidence to support their responses. 

Text-specific and text-dependent questions and tasks support students in making meaning of the core understandings of the text being studied. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 3, Lesson 3, the teacher rereads Cool Dog, School Dog by Deborah Heiligman and stops throughout to ask questions such as, “How does the author use language to help us understand the focus of the story?” and “How do the illustrations help us visualize what is happening with Tinka in the classroom?” 

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Lesson 2, students read “Good Job, Ben” (author not cited) during shared reading. The teacher asks text-specific questions like, “Who helps Mom and Ben cross? How?” and “Who helps Jet?”

• In Unit 3, Week 2, Lesson 2, students reread the play “Time to Plant” (author not cited). The teacher models analyzing the dialogue in the play. The students are then asked to describe what they learned about Mike from his dialogue and add the information to the graphic organizer. After, students work with the teacher to write down the sequence of events from the story. The teacher supports students by asking, “What is the next main event?” 

• In Unit 4, Week 3, Lesson 1, students read “Go Wild!” (author not cited) during shared reading. The teacher has children ask questions they have about the text and read to find the answers. The teacher also has partners talk about the big cat and asks, “How does it hunt?” After reading, partners discuss what the animals in the selection eat in the wild.

• In Unit 5, Week 1, Lesson 3, students listen to the anchor text, A Lost Button, by Arnold Lobel. While reading, the teacher asks questions such as, “How does the author show that Frog is a good friend?” and “How does the author help you understand how Toad is a good friend?” After reading, students work with partners to discuss how Frog and Toad categorize and classify the buttons in the story. 

• In Unit 6, Week 3, Lesson 1, students read “Wrapped in Ice” (author not cited) during shared reading. After reading, the teacher engages in Modeled Writing. The teacher asks, “How do people in the town react to the weather during the story?” 

Teacher materials provide support for planning and implementation of text-based questions and tasks. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The Teacher Resources include graphic organizers that will help students answer text-specific questions. For example, one graphic organizer is a ten events cause and effect graphic organizer. There is also a character, setting, and events graphic organizer. For example, in Unit 2, Week 1, Lesson 2, students reread “Good Job, Ben!” (author not cited) and fill in a graphic organizer to study the characteristics of realistic fiction. Students use the graphic organizer to determine what could be real and what could really happen. In Unit 4, Week 3, Lesson 2, students reread “Go Wild!” (author not cited) and use information from the text to complete a graphic organizer that lists the animals and how they find their food. 

• In the margin of the Shared Reading texts throughout the materials, there are questions to help students find evidence to answer text-specific questions. For example, in Unit 3, Week 3, students read “Life at Home” (author not cited). After reading one page, students are prompted to talk about helping out at home long ago and today and discuss which is easier. 

• The Instructional Routines Handbook includes a Finding Text Evidence Routine. First, the teacher explains the routine and what text evidence means. Then the teacher models locating text evidence. The teacher then engages in guided practice with the students before they work independently or in small groups to identify and cite text evidence.

• The Instructional Routines Handbook includes a Response to the Text Routine to help students answer rigorous questions about the text. The routine includes reading the question and talking about it with a partner before going back into the selection of the text, rereading, and finding evidence to support thoughts and ideas. Students then use a graphic organizer to record their responses.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1g.

There are several protocols to support students in their speaking and listening. The Instructional Routines Handbook includes a detailed section on Collaborative Conversations, a broad protocol for speaking and listening, including what it looks like, why teachers should do it, the research to support it, and the criteria for success.  Throughout the program, students engage in various Collaborative Conversations such as “Turn and Talk,” “Ask and Answer Questions,” and “Add New Ideas.” The program also includes brief and practical reminders about being an active listener. Students are also provided with support by orally retelling stories throughout the entire program. 

Materials provide varied protocols to support students’ developing speaking and listening skills across the whole year’s scope of instructional materials. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In the Instructional Routines Handbook, there is a protocol called Collaborative Conversations, which are “rich, structured conversations around grade-level topics and texts.” Collaborative conversations occur at the beginning of the week when the essential question is introduced, every time students engage in the Close Reading Routine, during guided and independent practice, when students respond to texts they are reading, and when students write about text.

• One Collaborative Conversation is “Turn and Talk.” The protocol includes modeling the routine and sentence stems. 

• Students also engage in the “Add New Ideas” Collaborative Conversation protocol, where students engage in partner, small-group, and whole-group discussions and stay on topic, connect their own idea to the comments of others, and respond to comments and ideas.

• “Ask and Answer Questions” is another Collaborative Conversation protocol, which encourages students to ask questions about ideas they do not understand, give others a chance to think after asking a question, and write down questions they want to ask the teacher for the whole class. 

• “In the Take Turns Talking” protocol, students are encouraged to take turns talking and not speaking over others, raise their hand if they want to speak, and ask others to share their ideas and opinions. 

• Throughout the Teacher Edition, there are Collaborative Conversation boxes with reminders to support evidence-based discussions. Some of these reminders include “always look at the speaker,” “respect others by not interrupting them,” and “repeat others’ ideas to check understanding.” 

• Students engage in retelling a story after each time they listen or read it. The routine for this includes introducing students to concept of retelling by displaying the Interactive Read Aloud cards, using the retell questions to guide children to recall the basic events and contents of the text; using words like beginning, middle, and end to help guide students’ retelling; and asking higher-level questions that prompt students to summarize story concepts. 

• There are Oral Language Sentence Frames to support students in expressing information and ideas, asking and answering questions, persuading others, evaluating language choices, and engaging in dialogue. For example, for expressing information and ideas, the frame is, “In the story, ______ did _____. I learned ______ about _____.” 

Speaking and listening instruction includes facilitation, monitoring, and instructional support for teachers. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The Collaborative Conversation Routine begins with the teacher introducing the topic they will discuss and then reviewing any relevant guidelines to support student participation. Then the teacher gives specific information on what students should be doing, such as how much time they have to discuss, who they are talking with (i.e., partner, small group, whole group), and what the teacher expects them to do as a result of the conversation (i.e., take notes, write a reflection, share with the larger group). Then the teacher monitors student conversations and provides corrective feedback if necessary. To close out the conversation and routine, the teacher highlights positive behaviors and contributions. 

• There is a Collaborative Conversations logo in the Teacher’s Edition each time a Collaborative Conversation is recommended. There is instructional support on the “Talk About It” page at the start of each genre study or week and on the Peer Conferencing pages.

• In the Instructional Routines Handbook, there is a section that explains what successful Collaborative Conversations look like including “able to make statements and ask questions related to the focus.” 

• In the Instructional Routines Handbook, there are additional strategies for teaching collaborative conversations, including role-playing a collaborative conversation to model the routine. There are also sentence starters such as “I’m wondering” and “Can you point to text evidence that shows?” 

• There is a Collaborative Conversations Video to help with the facilitation. The handbook suggests that the teacher stop at certain points to ask students what they notice the students in the video doing and to discuss how the teacher helps the group review the rules. At the end of the video, the teacher asks the students again what they notice the children doing and what they could be doing better.

• In the Instructional Routines Handbook, there is an anchor chart for the teacher to display on “How to Have a Collaborative Conversation.”

• The Instructional Routines Handbook includes information on how to provide corrective feedback to students during collaborative conversations. This includes pointing out what students are doing right, redirecting discussions that may have gotten off track by suggesting statements or questions that will refocus the discussion and encouraging students to build on one another’s exchanges. 

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1h.

Students have opportunities to engage in various speaking and listening activities about what they read and listened to throughout the program. Students engage in Collaborative Conversations, which have agreed-upon rules for discussions and presentations. Students also self-evaluate their presentation skills. When presenting, students present to a partner, small groups, and the entire class. 

Students have multiple opportunities over the school year to demonstrate what they are reading through varied speaking and listening opportunities. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The materials provide a Speaking and Listening expectation checklist. For example, in Unit 4, the expectations include, “I listened carefully to my classmates. I paid attention to the tone of my piece. I spoke loudly and clearly. I used complete sentences.” 

• In Unit 3, Week 4, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews how to listen actively. The reminders include “Always look at the speaker, respect others by not interrupting them, and repeat others’ ideas to check understanding.” 

• The Instructional Routines Handbook outlines expectations for listening to a presentation. This includes listening actively, thinking about the presentation, and sharing feedback with the presenter. 

• The Instructional Routines Handbook outlines expectations for Collaborative Conversations. A video shows students how to participate and engage in a group discussion.  

• Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 2, the Reading/Writing Companion has students talk about characters for a fantasy story and then draw ideas for the characters and their actions. 

• In Unit 5, Week 4, Lesson 4, students create a presentation after completing an experiment on sound. They can either present their findings by creating a video showing the experiment, creating a graph, or writing a report. 

Speaking and listening work requires students to utilize, apply, and incorporate evidence from texts and/or sources. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Build on others' talk in conversations by responding to the comments of others through multiple exchanges. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 1, the materials provide support for Collaborative Conversations. As students engage with a partner, they are reminded to repeat others’ ideas to check to understand. 

• Ask questions to clear up any confusion about the topics and texts under discussion. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 4, Lesson 1, during the read-aloud of Friends All Around by Miela Ford, the teacher reads and models asking and answering questions while reading. Then the teacher has the students ask questions before the read-aloud begins and look for answers as they listen. 

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Lesson 4, students write about the anchor text and present their writing to a peer. The peer asks questions about the writing. 

• Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 3, Lesson 3, students listen to the anchor text, Flip, by Ezra Tanaka. The teacher stops to ask questions about details in the story, such as, “What are the girl and Flip doing? Why does the girl tell Flip to be good?” and “Why did Miss Black change her mind about Flip?” 

• In Unit 4, Week 2, Lesson 2, students read and listen to “Animals Working Together” (author not cited). The teacher reminds students to ask questions before, during, and after reading. The teacher models asking a question and models looking for the answer. Then the teacher continues reading and pauses and asks students, “What question do you have about dolphins?”

• Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to gather additional information or clarify something that is not understood. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 4, Week 5, students ask questions about a peer’s writing. Students share their final drafts with a peer. The students can ask and answer questions about each other’s work. 

• In Unit 5, Week 3, Lesson 1, the teacher reviews the turn and talk routine before partners discuss the question, “How would you describe one of Tomotaka Tahahaskis’ intentions?” after reading “The Story of a Robot Inventor” (author not cited). Students hold up a speech bubble that says, “Can you say that in a different way?” when they need the student to provide additional information. 

• Describe people, places, things, and events with relevant details, expressing ideas and feelings clearly. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 2, Week 5, students are introduced to a map. With a partner, students discuss how the map can help them. 

• In Unit 3, Week 2, Lesson 3, the teacher reads aloud The Big Yuca Planti by Magaly Morales. The teacher explains what the order of events is and then, while reading aloud, stops to write down the events. The teacher asks questions such as, “Think about what has already happened. What main event happens next?” and takes students’ oral responses and writes them on an anchor chart. 

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1i.

Materials contain numerous opportunities for students to engage in grade-appropriate writing that includes both on-demand and process writing. On-demand writing occurs throughout the year while students are reading since questions are asked in the margin of texts to support comprehension and after reading in the Reading/Writing Companion. Each unit also has two extended writing projects that span anywhere from ten lessons to 20 lessons. Each writing project walks students through the steps of the writing process with explicit lessons and includes opportunities for revising and editing. The Extended Writing section includes digital resources, like models, graphic organizers, and videos, to enhance instruction. 

Materials include on-demand writing opportunities that cover a year’s worth of instruction. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 2, Lesson 1, after students read the Shared Reading text, “Six Kids” (author not cited), students write about what they do for fun with friends after the teacher models how to write in response to the question, “What do the six kids do?” 

• In Unit 3, Week 3, Lesson 3, students read The Gingerbread Man by Wiley Blevins. Students write a new ending to the story as if the Gingerbread Man had chosen to go around the lake.  

• In Unit 4, Week 1, Lesson 2, students engage in interactive writing after listening to “A Team of Fish” (author not cited). The prompt asks, “In your opinion, what are some good and bad things about being a little fish?” Students share the pen to respond to the prompt as a class on the anchor chart.

• In Unit 6, Week 1, Lesson 2, students engage in interactive writing after listening to “Super Tools” (author not cited). The prompt says, “Write a letter from the writing tools to Lucy at the end of the story.” Students share the pen to respond to the prompt as a class on the anchor chart. 

Materials include process writing opportunities that cover a year’s worth of instruction. Opportunities for students to revise and edit are provided. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, students write a personal narrative about an important event in their lives. Students spend two weeks on this writing opportunity. The suggested pacing includes one day for looking at examples, one day for planning, three days for drafting, three days for revising and editing, and two days for publishing. 

• In Unit 3, students write a nonfiction text over ten days. They begin by analyzing a model text, then plan and draft in the first week. In the second week, students revise and edit for three days before publishing. 

• In Unit 4, Week 1, students answer the prompt “Which Animal team do you think is most interesting? Why?” after reading Animal Teams by Rachel Mann. Students review their writing with partners in Lesson 4, taking notes about what they like most, questions they have for the author, and additional ideas the author could include. Students then revise their work and edit, checking to make sure they spell high-frequency words correctly and have correct capitalization and end punctuation.

• In Unit 6, Week 1, students answer the prompt, “Imagine that the farmer wouldn’t give the ducks a diving board. Write a letter he might receive from the animals after he says no” after reading Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin. Students review their writing with partners in Lesson 4, taking notes about what they like most, questions they have for the author, and additional ideas the author could include. Students then revise their work and edit, checking to make sure they spell high-frequency words correctly and have correct capitalization and end punctuation.

Materials include digital resources where appropriate. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, some digital resources include digital copies of the writer’s checklist and videos to support students on how to give presentations. 

• In Unit 3, when students are ready to write their final draft of their expository text, the materials suggest that teachers “guide them to explore a variety of digital tools to produce and publish their writing. You may want to have children complete the online keyboarding activity.”

• In Unit 5, to support students with editing and revising, there is a digital copy of the writer’s checklist and proofreading marks. 

• In Unit 6, Week 1, Lesson 4, students write a final draft and present it to a partner, then share their final draft with the class. It is suggested that children be recorded as they share so they can self-evaluate.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1j.

Throughout the program, students have the opportunity to engage in opinion, informative, and narrative writing. Students complete a total of 40 process writing pieces during the six units. Teachers are provided with a bank of mini lessons to choose from to provide direct instruction based on students’ individual needs. Students have opportunities to write in multiple text types within each unit.

Materials provide multiple opportunities across the school year for students to learn, practice, and apply different genres/modes/types of writing that reflect the distribution required by the standards. For example: 

• Percentage or number of opportunities for opinion writing:

  • 20% of the process writing opportunities are opinion writing. Opinion writing takes place in Units 2–6. 

• Percentage or number of opportunities for informative/explanatory writing:

  • 48% of the process writing opportunities are informative writing. Informative writing takes place in all six units. 

• Percentage or number of opportunities for narrative writing:

  • 32% of the process writing opportunities are narrative writing. Narrative writing takes place in all six units. 

• Explicit instruction in opinion writing:

  • The Unit 6 materials include several mini-lessons to help teachers provide explicit instruction on opinion writing. Lessons include how to include a main idea, how to include reasons based on a source, how to incorporate descriptive words, and how to add a concluding statement.

• Explicit instruction in informative/explanatory writing:

  • The Unit 3 materials include several mini-lessons to help teachers provide direct instruction in expository writing. Some of these lessons include how to focus on a topic, how to include facts based on a source, how to include text features, and how to write a concluding statement.

• Explicit instruction in narrative writing: 

  • The Unit 1 materials include several mini-lessons to help the teacher provide direct instruction in narrative writing. These lessons include how to focus on a topic, how to include relative details, how to write with a sequence of events, and how to provide a concluding statement. 

Different genres/modes/types of writing are distributed throughout the school year. For example: 

• Students have opportunities to engage in opinion writing. 

  • Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or name the book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply a reason for the opinion, and provide some sense of closure.

• In Unit 6, Week 5, students learn how to write an opinion piece over the course of two weeks. Students choose a helper job they might like to have and include at least two reasons for their opinion.

• Students have opportunities to engage in informative/explanatory writing. For example: 

  • Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.

• In Unit 3, Week 5, students engage in the writing process to write an expository text over two weeks. Students can choose any topic they want to write about. The teacher models selecting a topic and supplying details about the topic. 

• Students have opportunities to engage in narrative writing. For example: 

  • Write narratives in which they recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure.

    • In Unit 2, Week 5, students engage in the writing process to write a fantasy story over two weeks. Students focus on including characters. In the revision lessons, students learn how to include concluding statements. 

Where appropriate, writing opportunities are connected to texts and/or text sets (either as prompts, models, anchors, or supports). For example: 

• In Unit 4, Week 2, after listening to the anchor text Animal Teams by Charlotte Milner, students write about which animal team they think is most interesting. 

• In Unit 5, Week 4, students read the shared text, “Now, What’s That Sound?” (author not cited), and write about the problem and solution. 

• In Unit 6, students use the text “Be a Volunteer” (author not cited) to discuss helpers and write their opinion of what helper they want to be.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria of Indicator 1k.

Throughout the program, students have the opportunity to learn and apply evidence-based writing. Students have the opportunity to watch the teacher model thinking about and collecting evidence prior to doing it independently. Students have opportunities to write paragraphs about texts they listen to and read. During direct instruction, the teacher often tells students where to find the evidence and asks guiding questions to help students use evidence effectively in their response. 

Materials provide frequent opportunities across the school year for students to learn, practice, and apply writing using evidence. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 4, Lesson 3, students listen to the text Friends by Nina Crews and respond to the question, “Why is Pam a good friend to Jill?” Directions state that the teacher tells students to find clues in the text and photographs to help them respond to the prompt. 

• In Unit 2, Week 2, Lesson 3, after reading “The Pigs, the Wolf, and the Mud'' by Ellen Tarlow, students respond to the prompt, “Should the pigs be worried that the wolf will come back to them? Why or why not? Use text evidence.” Students turn and talk with a partner, and then the teacher prompts students to find text evidence. The teacher directs students to a specific page and then asks guiding questions to help students locate the text evidence. 

• In Unit 3, Week 2, Lesson 2, students reread “Time to Plant” (author not cited). The teacher begins modeling by rereading and discussing a character and what the dialogue teaches us. Then the teacher writes, and students practice independently about another character in the story. 

• In Unit 5, Week 5, Lesson 2, after rereading “The Joy of a Ship” (author not cited), students write down each subheading in the nonfiction text and then write down information from that heading. The teacher begins by modeling with the first heading, and students complete the rest with a partner. 

Writing opportunities are focused around students’ recall of information to develop opinions from reading closely and working with evidence from texts and sources. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Week 3, Lesson 2, students reread “A Pig for Cliff” (author not cited) and talk with a partner about the characters, setting, and events, then write down what they discussed. 

• In Unit 3, Week 4, Lesson 2, students respond to the question, “Based on ‘Life at Home,’ do you think home life is better now, or was it better in the past? Why?” Students use evidence from the text to answer the question. The teacher helps guide the students to find evidence. 

• In Unit 4, Week 2, Lesson 3, after reading “Animal Teams” by Rachel Mann, students write about the most interesting animal in the text and explain why using text evidence. 

• In Unit 5, Week 2, Lesson 2, after reading “A Bird Named Fern” (author not cited), students answer the question, “How does the author show that Fern is curious?” The teacher guides students to find text evidence to respond to the prompt. 

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1l.

Materials provide opportunities for the teacher to teach most grammar standards explicitly. Instructional materials provide explicit instruction and application for students to print many upper and lowercase letters and address specific grammar concepts (ex: nouns, verbs, adjectives, use of commas, types of sentences) through teacher-led grammar lessons throughout the program. Guided practice is also included as part of the instructional plan. The materials also include multiple opportunities for students to practice new skills independently. Students have opportunities over the course of the year to apply newly learned skills both in and out of context. 

Materials include explicit instruction of all grammar and conventions standards for the grade level. For example:

• Print all upper- and lowercase letters.

  • In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher models writing uppercase and lowercase letters Ee using online Handwriting models. Students practice writing Ee using their Practice Book.

  • In Unit 2, Week 2, Day 1, the teacher displays the Sound-Spelling Card for umbrella. The teacher models writing the letter u using the provided handwriting models. Students practice connecting the letter u to the sound /u/ by writing it. 

  • In Unit 3, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher teaches uppercase and lowercase letters Dd using the online Handwriting models. The teacher models writing the letters, and students practice using Practice Book page 168. 

• Use common, proper, and possessive nouns.

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 1, the teacher explains that a common noun names a person, place, or thing and begins with a lowercase letter. In contrast, a proper noun names a particular person, pet, place, or thing and begins with a capital letter. The teacher displays the sentence, “Seth had a Drum and My dog Bing runs fast.” The teacher points out that Seth and Bing are proper nouns, and drum and dog are common nouns. The teacher reads sentences to students, and students identify the proper nouns and the common nouns. Students generate sentences with common and proper nouns. 

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Day 5, the teacher reviews what possessive nouns are and how they are used. The teacher writes sentences on the board and asks students to identify the possessive noun. The teacher asks students how they know if a word is a possessive noun. The teacher writes sentences missing a possessive noun, and students work in pairs to complete each sentence with a possessive noun. The teacher reminds students that writers add an apostrophe followed by the letter s to form a singular possessive noun and an apostrophe after the s to form a plural possessive noun. The teacher presents students with sentences, and students fix the sentence by adding an apostrophe to show possession. 

• Use singular and plural nouns with matching verbs in basic sentences (e.g., He hops; We hop).

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Day 1, the teacher reviews that a verb is an action word and explains that a present-tense verb tells about an action happening now. The teacher displays and reads: “Spike hikes up the hill.” The teacher states, “When a present-tense verb tells about one noun, it ends in -s.” Then displays the sentences: “Jan and Dave wipe off the plates. I ride my bike. You ride your bike.” The teacher explains when a present-tense verb tells about more than one noun, like Jan and Dave, it does not end in -s. When the naming word is I or you, the present tense verb does not end in -s. The teacher provides practice and writes and reads aloud these sentences to guide students to identify present-tense verbs and explain why they do or do not have an -s at the end.

    • They swim in the lake. (swim; they is more than one)

    • Ike thumps the drum. (thumps; Ike is one)

    • The kids wave on the bus. (wave; kids is more than one)

  • Use personal, possessive, and indefinite pronouns (e.g., I, me, my; they, them, their, anyone, everything).

• In Unit 6, Week 2, Day 1, the teacher reviews that pronouns are words that replace nouns and explains that a possessive pronoun shows who or what has or owns something. Some possessive pronouns are used before nouns. The teacher displays the following sentences: “My house is blue. Your mother just called. His coat is too small. Julie lost her tooth. The jar lost its lid. Gran stayed at our house. They put their spelling tests in the basket.”

• In Unit 6, Week 4, Day 2, the teacher reminds students that a pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun and that if the noun being replaced comes after a verb or preposition, such as for, at, or, with, to, or between, we use the pronouns me, you, him, her, it, us, and them. The teacher displays and reads sentences, highlights the pronouns, and explains which pronouns are used and why. The teacher presents students with several sentence frames, and students fill in the blanks with the appropriate pronoun.

• Use verbs to convey a sense of past, present, and future (e.g., Yesterday I walked home; Today I walk home; Tomorrow I will walk home).

  • In Unit 3, Week 2, Day 2, the teacher reminds students that present-tense verbs tell about an action that is happening right now and that present-tense verbs tell about one noun, it ends in -s. When it tells about more than one noun or I or you, it does not end in -s. The teacher reads and writes sample sentences, “Jane hides in the bush” and “Nate eats lunch.” Partners circle each verb. Students change the sentences to use the word(s) in parentheses (I, Nate, and Tess). 

  • In Unit 3, Week 3, Day 3, the teacher reminds students that past-tense verbs tell about an action that has already happened, and future-tense verbs tell about something that is going to happen. The teacher guides students to identify past-and future-tense verbs as they read sentences: “Yesterday Bob raced Lance down the track. I will brush my dog on Monday. I rested on a nics cot.” Students work in pairs to edit the past-tense sentences to future tense and the future-tense sentences to past tense.

• Use frequently occurring adjectives.

  • In Unit 5, Week 2, Day 1, the teacher tells the students an adjective is a word that describes a noun and explains that adjectives tell number, color, size, or shape. They also tell how things look, sound, feel, smell, or taste. The teacher displays the following sentences: “A big crow floated in the sky. I feel the hot sun on my face.” The teacher explains that big and hot are adjectives and points out that big describes size and hot tells how something feels. The teacher displays and reads aloud these sentences and has partners work together to identify the adjectives.

  • In Unit 5, Week 3, Day 1, the teacher tells students we add -er to most adjectives to compare two people, places, or things. We add -est to most adjectives to compare three or more people, places, or things. The teacher displays the following sentences: “Curt is a fast runner. Sheena is a faster runner than Curt. Jen is the fastest runner of all!” The teacher explains that faster and fastest are adjectives that compare: “Circle the -er and -est endings, and point out that faster is comparing two people, and fastest is comparing three people.” The teacher writes and reads aloud the sentences and has students identify the adjectives that compare.

• Use frequently occurring conjunctions (e.g., and, but, or, so, because).

  • In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher tells students that two complete sentences can be joined together with a joining word and explains that the words and, but, and or are used to put two sentences together, separated by a comma. The teacher displays these sentences: “You march to the top of the hill. You look for the barn. You march to the top of the hill, and you look for the barn. Walk by the lake. Do not go in the water. Walk by the lake, but do not go in the water.” The teacher circles the joining words and explains to students the difference in meanings of and, but, and or. The teacher writes the sentences below and reads them aloud, having students identify the joining word.

  • In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 4, the teacher reviews that so and because are used to join two sentences when there is a cause and effect. The teacher guides students to identify the joining words in sentences presented. The teacher displays sentences, and students complete sentences using so or because. Students work with partners to generate questions orally with so and because. 

• Use determiners (e.g., articles, demonstratives).

  • In Unit 5, Week 4, Day 1, the teacher tells the students the words a and an are special adjectives called articles. The teacher displays the following sentences:  “A hound sniffs the ground. An ape grabbed my cap!” The teacher explains that we use a before a word that begins with a consonant sound (a hound). We use an before a word that begins with a vowel sound (an ape). The teacher writes the sentences and reads them aloud, then has the students identify the articles.

• Use frequently occurring prepositions (e.g., during, beyond, toward).

  • In Unit 5, Week 5, Day 1, the teacher displays the following sentence: “The brown mole is in the ground.” The teacher explains that the word in connects the words the brown mole is and the phrase that tells where the mole is—the ground. The teacher explains that a preposition helps tell where something or someone is or when something is happening: “A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition and ends with a noun or pronoun.” The teacher displays and reads these sentences and then prompts students to reread them with the teacher chorally. The teacher has partners identify the preposition in each sentence.

• Produce and expand complete simple and compound declarative, interrogative, imperative, and exclamatory sentences in response to prompts.

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 1, the teacher says: “A statement is a sentence that tells something.” Display this statement: “The cat plays with a ball.” The teacher points out that it begins with a capital letter and ends with a period. The teacher says: “A question asks something and ends with a question mark.” The teacher displays and reads these sentences: “Rob can hop. Can Rob hop?” The teacher identifies the statement and question and points out the word order. The teacher displays and reads sentences aloud and guides students to add proper punctuation. 

  • In Unit 1, Week 4, Day 1, the teacher says: “An exclamation shows strong feeling or excitement and ends with an exclamation mark.” The teacher says, “Rob can hop!” Teacher reads it with enthusiasm. Then says: “A command can end with an exclamation mark too. A command tells someone to do something.” And reads: “Hop with Rob! Say: An interjection is a word or group of words that expresses feeling. Add: Wow! Rob can hop! Teacher says: The word wow shows surprise.” The teacher displays and reads sentences and guides students to add proper punctuation. 

  • In Unit 1, Week 4, Day 3, the teacher reminds students that an exclamation expresses “a strong feeling and ends with an exclamation mark. A command can end with an exclamation mark too.” The teacher writes sentences on the board, and students identify which punctuation mark they would put at the end of the sentence. Students write one sentence expressing strong feelings, one interjection, and one command about how friends play together. 

• Capitalize dates and names of people.

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Lesson 3, the teacher reminds students that a proper noun always begins with a capital letter. The teacher displays the sentence, “My cat Dot likes to play,” and points out the proper noun and the common noun. The teacher presents two sentences for students to correct capitalization of the first letter and names of people. 

  • In Unit 5, Week 3, Day 3, the teacher asks students to say the days of the week and explains that the days of the week are proper nouns. Students say the months of the year, and the teacher tells students months are also proper nouns. The teacher reminds students that proper nouns begin with a capital letter. The teacher prompts students to identify the days of the week and months of the year in sentences and rewrite the words with correct capitalization. 

• Use end punctuation for sentences.

  • In Unit 1, Week 1, Day 2, the teacher reminds students that a sentence is a group of words that tells a whole and begins with an uppercase letter called a capital letter. It ends with a punctuation mark called a period. The materials direct teachers to write the following sentences: “Max ran to the cat. The van can go.” The teacher reads the sentences aloud and guides students to see that these are complete sentences because they each tell a whole idea. The teacher has a volunteer point to the capital letters and periods and writes each group of words asking students: “Is this a sentence? Why or why not?” and “Pam has a pal. A map.” The teacher guides students to identify the complete sentence. Once students identify the complete sentence, they copy it, starting with a capital letter and ending with a period.

  • In Unit 4, Week 2, Day 4, the teacher reminds students that each sentence begins with a capital letter and ends with a period, question mark, or exclamation mark. The teacher displays sentences with capitalization and punctuation errors, and students work with a partner to fix each sentence. 

• Use commas in dates and to separate single words in a series.

  • In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 5, the teacher reminds students that when there are three or more nouns in a list, a comma is used after each noun except for the last one. The teacher writes the following sentences and reads each aloud. The teacher has the students fix the following sentences: “Gran set hot dogs, ribs and ham on the grill. (Gran set hot dogs, ribs, and ham on the grill.) Bev uses bricks blocks and clips to make a deck. (Bev uses bricks, blocks, and clips to make a deck.) Mom grins at Mack Todd, and Bill. (Mom grins at Mack, Todd, and Bill).”

  • In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 5, the teacher reminds students that in a date, commas separate the day and date number and the date number and the year. The teacher writes and reads aloud two sentences, and students correct the comma usage in the sentences: “Dave got a new bike on Friday March 27, 20____; We are going to France on Thursday, June 30 20___.”

• Use conventional spelling for words with common spelling patterns and for frequently occurring irregular words.

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Day 3, the teacher displays index cards for -end, -ast, and -ink and blends sounds with students. The teacher holds up the Spelling Word card for lend, pronounces each sound, and blends the sounds. The students identify which category the word fits under. Students say and spell words with -end, -ast, and -ink. 

  • In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 2, the teacher displays the online Spelling Word Cards. The teacher has students read each word, listening for /är/. Using the cards with the endings -art, -arn, and -arm, the teacher creates a three-column chart. The teacher models sorting part, darn, and charm. The teacher says each word and pronounces the sounds, then asks students to spell each word. The teacher asks students to sort and place each Spelling Word Card in the column with the word containing the same ar spelling pattern. 

• Spell untaught words phonetically, drawing on phonemic awareness and spelling conventions.

  • In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 2, the teacher models with the Spelling Word Cards for the week. Students read each word, listening for the /ar/. The teacher creates a 3-column chart with -art, -arn, and -arm and models sorting part, darn, and charm, saying each word, and pronouncing the sounds. Students spell each word after the teacher pronounces it. Students sort and place their Spelling Word Cards in the column of the spelling pattern they match. Students chorally spell the word to check its placement.

Materials include authentic opportunities for students to demonstrate application of skills in context, including applying grammar and convention skills to writing.  For example:

• In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 5, students revise their response to the prompt about Nells’ Books by Miriam Cohen:  “extend the story to tell what Nell might do next.” In their revisions, they confirm that they have organized their story with a beginning, middle, and end, as well as ensuring they have ended sentences with a punctuation mark and used common and proper nouns correctly. 

• In Unit 5, Week 3, Day 4, the teacher rereads the prompt about Thomas Edison, Inventor by David Al Adler: “What Makes Edison a Good inventor?” The teacher guides students to review the online proofreading marks and edit their writing to spell high-frequency words and capitalize proper nouns appropriately correctly. 

• In Unit 5, Week 4, Day 1, the teacher reviews a page from the selection “Shake! Strike! Strum!” and points out the author’s use of words that provide precise detail. The teacher points out that the author added a preposition to make the directions more clear. Students return to their writing to edit and proofread for appropriate use of articles and prepositions.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1n.i.

Materials provide teachers with systematic and explicit instruction in phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, and phonics. The lessons within the materials often use an I do, We do, You do sequence. Lessons provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade-level phonics pattern. The lessons also provide modeling using a variety of materials, including songs, photo cards, sound cards, word lists, decodable books, and practice books. 

Materials provide the teacher with systematic, explicit modeling for instruction in syllables, sounds (phonemes), and spoken words. For example:

• Distinguish long from short vowel sounds in spoken single-syllable words:

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Day 2, the teacher shows students how to categorize words by contrasting long and short vowel sounds. The teacher says three words–rain, pail, and mat–and tells students two words have the long a sound while mat has the short a sound, so mat does not belong. 

  • In Unit 4, Week 3, Day 1, the teacher tells students they can categorize words by whether they have short or long vowel sounds. The teacher models using the words bait, cake, and hand and asks students which word doesn’t belong. Students practice identifying the word that is not in the same category as the other words. 

• Orally produce single-syllable words by blending sounds (phonemes), including consonant blends:

  • In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 5, the teacher guides students in reviewing how to blend phonemes to form words. Students listen as the teacher says a group of sounds, then students blend these sounds to form a word: /r/ /o/ /z/, /b/ /r/ o/ /k/, /f/ /u/n/, /n/ /o/t/

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Day 5, the teacher models blending phonemes to form new words. The teacher models saying sounds and blending them together. Students practice with the following words: chain, wait, stay, grains, planes, fate, vase, and brands.

• Isolate and pronounce initial, medial vowel, and final sounds (phonemes) in spoken single-syllable words:

  • In Unit 1, Week 2, Day 1, the teacher models placing markers on the Response Board to represent sounds. The teacher says, “I’m going to put one marker in each box as I say each sound. Then I will blend the sounds to form a word.” The teacher places a marker for each sound spoken: “/p/ /i/ /k/. This word has three sounds: /p/ /i/ /k/. Listen as I blend these sounds to form a word: /piiik/, pick. The word is pick. Let’s do some together.” The teacher places a marker for each sound they hear. They say one sound at a time, then blend the initial, medial, and final sounds to say a word. 

  • In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 2, the teacher tells students to listen for the middle sound in a word. The teacher models identifying the middle sound in the word set. Students practice isolating phonemes and identifying the medial sounds in the following words: men, fell, list, red, map, fed, hot, head, wreck, sit, get, bath, leg, beg, and tot. 

• Segment spoken single-syllable words into their complete sequence of individual sounds (phonemes):

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 5, the teacher reviews segmenting phonemes in words. The teacher says the word, students say the word, and students say each sound in the word. Words to segment include lap, slap, clap, class, cliff, lip, flip, and clip. 

  • In Unit 6, Week 4, Day 2, the teacher has students listen as they say the word strap. The teacher asks students, “How many sounds are in the word strap, and which sounds are they?” The teacher continues to model with words: scroll, shred, and throw. The teacher guides students in segmenting words into their complete sequence of sounds, and then students segment independently. 

Materials provide the teacher with examples for instruction in syllables, sounds (phonemes), and spoken words called for in grade-level standards. For example:

• In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 2, the teacher is provided with scripting and modeling in the lesson. The teacher writes and reads aloud the word cabin. The teacher says the word slowly, clapping for each syllable, then has the students repeat the process. The teacher points out that cabin has two syllables, or word parts, and draws a line between the two syllables: cab/in. The teacher explains that when a syllable ends in a consonant and has one vowel, the vowel sound is usually short. The teacher tells students that cab ends with b and has one vowel letter, so the vowel sound in cab is /a/, the short a sound. 

• In Unit 4, Week 5, Day 3, the lesson provides modeling and scripting in the lesson. Students listen as the teacher says the sounds in a word: /s/ /i/ /t/ /e/. The teacher blends the sounds together and says the word: /sssiiiteee/. The students and teacher say the word together: city. Students practice blending phonemes. The teacher says some words, sound by sound, and blends the sounds together. Practice words include: /f//e/ /l/ /z/, /c/ /r/ /e/ /k/ /s/, /t/ /r/ /e/ /t/.

Materials contain explicit instructions for systematic and repeated teacher modeling of all grade-level phonics standards. For example:

• Know the spelling-sound correspondences for common consonant digraphs:

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 1, the teacher models and displays the humb Sound-Spelling Card. The teacher provides students both sounds of /th/ using thank and them. The teacher models writing the letters th using the handwriting models provided. The teacher says, “This is the Thumb Sound-Spelling Card. The beginning sound of the word thumb is /th/. The /th/ sound is spelled with the letters th. This is the sound at the beginning of the word thumb. Listen: thumb. I’ll say /th/ as I write the letters t and h several times.” The teacher repeats the procedure for digraphs sh and -ng. The teacher uses the shell and sing Sound-Spelling Cards. The teacher has the students practice connecting the letters t and h to the sound /th/ by writing them: “Say /th/ as I write t and h. Students write the letters t and h five times as they say /th/.” The students repeat the practice for sh and -ng.

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher displays the Sound Spelling Card cheese, pointing to the letters ch. The teacher asks, “What are the letters? What are the sounds? What is the word?” 

• Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words:

  • In Unit 3, Week 2, Lesson 5, Teachers Guide, the teacher has children read and say the words: like, bite, smile, shine, and while. The teacher has students follow the word-building routine with Word-Building Cards to build: side, tide, tile, mile, pile, pipe, pip, rip, ripe, gripe, wipe, wise, rise, ride, rid, hid, hide. Word Automaticity Helps children practice word automaticity. Display decodable words and point to each word as children chorally read. Students then read the words in the decodable reader “A Fine Plant” and “Plants Take Time to Grow.”

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Lesson 2, Teacher Guide, the teacher has children read and say the words: paint, tray, and April. The teacher has students follow the word-building routine with Word Building Cards to build: nail, pay, wait, sway, hay, tail, clay, waist, and snail. The teacher displays decodable words and points to each word as students chorally read. Students then read the words in the decodable reader “Snail Mail.”

• Know final -e and common vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds:

  • In Unit 3, Week 2, Day 1, the teacher displays the five Sound-Spelling Cards. The teacher tells students that long i is spelled i_e using ride and bike. The teacher introduces the long i sound. The teacher models using the word rid with a short i and adding an e to the end of the word to say ride. The teacher tells students, “the letters i and e act together to make the long i sound.” Students practice connecting the letters i_e to the long i sound to write and read words. 

  • In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 1, the teacher displays the boat Sound-Spelling Card and teaches the /ō/ spelled o_e, using hop and hope. The teacher models writing the word hop and adding an e to make hope. The teacher says, “This is the Boat Sound-Spelling Card. The sound is /ō /. Today we will learn one of the spellings for /ō/. Look at this word: hop. This word has the /o/ sound. I’ll add an e to the end. The letters o and e act together to make the long o sound: /ō/. Listen: /hōp/, hope. I’ll say /ō/ as I write the letters o_e several times.” The teacher repeats with the Cube and Tree Sound-Spelling Cards. 

• Use knowledge that every syllable must have a vowel sound to determine the number of syllables in a printed word:

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 3, the teacher models reading closed-syllable words. The teacher tells students to draw a line between two syllables and that when a syllable ends in a consonant and one vowel, the vowel sound is usually short. The teacher models reading the word rabbit. Students divide thinking, pocket and finish into syllables and identify the vowel in each syllable. Students determine if the vowel is long or short and read the word. 

  • In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 2, the teacher models reading CVCe Syllables. The teacher writes and reads aloud awake. Students identify how many syllables are in the word, and the teacher draws a line between the syllables. The teacher underlines a and e in wake and reminds students that the letters a_e work together to make the long a sound. The teacher repeats the process with the word explode. Students practice reading the words bathrobe, inside, cupcake, awoke, and complete by dividing the word into syllables. 

• Decode two-syllable words following basic patterns by breaking the words into syllables:

  • In Unit 5, Week 5, Day 2, the teacher writes and reads aloud table and simple. The teacher says each word, clapping for each syllable, and students repeat. The teacher draws a line between syllables: ta/ble, sim/ple. The teacher explains that we see le at the end of a word, and there is a consonant before the letters, they make the sound /el/. The consonant plus le are all in the same final syllable. The teacher tells students this is called a final-stable syllable. The teacher helps students pronounce the final-stable syllables: ble (/bel/) and (/pel/). The teacher writes the following words: candle, apple, title, puddle, and marble. The teacher helps students divide each word into syllables and blend the syllables to read the words. Students then use each word in a sentence. 

  • In Unit 6, Week 2, Day 2, the teacher models reading words with vowel team syllables. The teacher writes and reads down, underlining the -ow. The teacher points out that ow acts as a team and stays together in the same syllable using the word downtown as an example. The teacher divides the word into syllables and blends the syllables to read the word. Students practice using the words rainbow, drawing, and boathouse by dividing each word into syllables, blending the syllables, and reading the words. 

• Read words with inflectional endings:

  • In Unit 3, Week 2, Day 2, the teacher writes and reads aloud the words bike and bikes, underlining the inflectional ending -s. The teacher tells students that adding -s to a noun makes the noun tell about more than one. The teacher models reading words with the -s ending using the words bite, bites, bike, bikes, hive, hives, case, and cases. The teacher writes the following words on the board, and students practice adding the -s ending and reading each word: dime, cape, kite, lake, vine, snake, and plate. 

  • In Unit 4, Week 4, Day 2, the teacher writes and reads aloud cry, cries, cried. The teacher underlines -y, -ies, and -ied and explains that when a word ends in y, you change the y to i before adding the -es or -ed endings. The teacher writes and reads aloud cry and crying and underlines -y, and -ing. The teacher explains that you do not change the y when you add -ing. For guided practice, the teacher writes the following words on the board: fry, try, dry, and spy, and has the students add -es, -ed, and -ing to each word and then use each word in a sentence.

  • In Unit 6, Week 1, Day 4, the teacher uses the Visual Vocabulary Cards to review demand and emergency. The teacher reminds students that words have different forms. The teacher explains that nouns have forms meaning “one” and “more than one,” and verbs have forms telling whether something is happening now or happened in the past. The teacher writes inflectional endings: -ed, -ing, -s, and -es. The teacher then reviews the definition of each. The teacher models using a two-column chart to add an ending to emergency. The teacher writes emergency, then writes emergencies in the next column. The teacher reads the words. The teacher points out that you change y to i before adding -es. The teacher discusses how the ending changed the meaning of emergency. 

• Lessons provide teachers with systematic and repeated instruction for students to hear, say, encode, and read each newly taught grade-level phonics pattern. For example:

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 5, the teacher writes the words selfish and ringing on the board and divides them into syllables. The teacher reads the words with the students. The teacher reminds students that when a syllable has only one vowel and ends with a consonant, the vowel sound is usually short and tells students this is called a closed syllable. The teacher asks students to explain why they are closed. Students are reminded that they may have two approximate sounds to read some multisyllabic words correctly. The teacher gives students the following words: dentist, wishing, mitten, rabbit, and thinking. The teacher has students work in pairs to write and spell the words. Partners divide the words and pronounce them. Students then write sentences with these words.

  • In Unit 3, Week 5, Day 2, the teacher writes and reads aloud: tag, tagged, and tagging and underlines the inflectional endings -ed and -ing. The teacher says, “We know we can add the endings -ed and -ing to verbs to change when something is happening. The ending -ed means the action happens in the past. The ending -ing means the action is happening right now, in the present. Note the double g in tagged and tagging.” The teacher explains that when a word has a short vowel and ends in a consonant, you double the consonant before adding -ed or -ing. The teacher says tag and tagged again and has the students listen for the /d/ sound at the end of tagged. The teacher writes and says stop and stopped and points out that the letters -ed can also stand for the /t/ sound, as in stopped. The teacher writes and says tag, tagging and points out that adding the letters -ing at the end of a word adds a syllable or word part. The teacher uses each word in a sentence. For guided practice, the teacher writes the following words on the board: fit, tap, clap, jog, and has the students add -ed and -ing to each word and then use each word in a sentence.

  • In Unit 4, Week 2, Day 1, the teacher teaches that long e can be spelled with the letter e and the vowel digraphs ee, ea, and ie using the words tree, she, meat, and field. Students practice connecting the letter e and the vowel digraphs ee, ea, and ie to the long e sound by writing the letter combinations. Students practice blending and reading words with the long e sound. 

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1n.ii.

Materials include a cohesive sequence of phonemic awareness instruction based on the expected hierarchy to build toward students’ application of the skills. Materials contain a clear, evidence-based explanation for the expected hierarchy for teaching phonological awareness skills. Materials include a variety of activities for phonological awareness with frequent opportunities for students to practice phonological awareness concepts on a daily and weekly basis throughout all of the units of study in the program. Materials provide ample opportunities for students to practice each new sound and sound pattern. 

Materials have a cohesive sequence of phonemic awareness instruction based on the expected hierarchy to build toward students’ application of the skills.

• In the Grade 1 Scope and Sequence, the Phonemic Awareness sequence is listed for each unit:

  • Smart Start: Phoneme Isolation, Phoneme Identity, Phoneme Blending, Phoneme Segmentation, Onset and Rime, Syllable Segmentation, Rhyme.

  • Unit 1: Phoneme Isolation, Phoneme Blending, Phoneme Segmentation, Phoneme Categorization, Phoneme Substitution, Phoneme Deletion, Contrast Vowel Sounds, Alliteration, Identify and Produce Rhyme.

  • Unit 2: Phoneme Blending, Phoneme Isolation, Phoneme Segmentation, Identify and Produce Rhyme, Phoneme Identity, Phoneme Segmentation, Phoneme Categorization, Phoneme Segmentation, Phoneme Addition.

  • Unit 3: Phoneme Identity, Phoneme Addition, Phoneme Substitution, Phoneme Blending, Phoneme Segmentation, Alliteration, Phoneme Deletion, Identify and Produce Rhyme.

  • Unit 4: Identify and Produce Rhyme, Phoneme Categorization, Phoneme Blending, Phoneme Segmentation, Phoneme Identity, Phoneme Segmentation, Contrast Vowel Sounds, Phoneme Substitution, Phoneme Addition.

  • Unit 5: Contrast Vowel Sounds, Phoneme Categorization, Phoneme Blending, Phoneme Segmentation, Identify and Produce Rhyme, Phoneme Substitution, Phoneme Deletion, Phoneme Addition.

  • Unit 6: Phoneme Identity, Phoneme Segmentation, Identify and Produce Rhyme, Syllable Deletion, Phoneme Substitution, Phoneme Categorization, Phoneme Reversal, Syllable Addition.

Materials contain a clear, evidence-based explanation for the expected hierarchy for teaching phonological awareness skills. 

• The Wonders Research Base Alignment Document, Phonological Awareness, page 44, addresses what phonological awareness is, why phonological awareness is important, who benefits from phonological awareness instruction, components of phonological awareness instruction, example phonological awareness milestones by grade, and research recommendations. 

• The Wonders Research Base Alignment Document, Phonological Awareness section includes research citations from Gillon (2017), NICHHD (2000), Lonigan, Burgess, & Anthony (2000), Armbruster, Lehr, & Osborn (2003), Gillon (2017), Perfetti (2017), Torgesen, et al. (1997), Lerner & Lonigan (2016), Coleman & Pimentel (2011), National Early Literacy Panel (2008), Bryant & Goswami (2016), Armbruster (2010), Branum-Martin, Tao, & Garnaat (2015), Cisero & Royer (1995), Lin, Cheng, & Wang (2018), Chard & Dickson (1999), Shaywitz & Shaywitz (2016), Wanzek, Wexler, Vaughn, & Ciullo (2010).

Materials include a variety of activities for phonological awareness. 

• In Unit 1, Week 1, Day 3, after the teacher models using markers on the Response Board to represent sounds, students place a marker on their boards for each sound they hear. After placing markers, students blend the sounds to say the word. The teacher provides corrective feedback as needed.

• In Unit 4, Week 5, Day 1, students practice categorizing phonemes by long and short vowel sounds by telling the teacher which word does not belong and why using the practice words; keys, beet, mess; rail, paid, jazz; hat, bake, shave; and bug, mute, flute. The teacher provides corrective feedback as needed.

• In Unit 6, Week 3, Day 5, students learn how to add a sound to the beginning of a word to make a new word by adding /b/ to at to create the word bat. The teacher provides guided practice by having children add initial sounds to words to form new words. The teacher guides practice and provides corrective feedback. Practice words include tick, /t/ ick; stick, /s/ tick; clap, /k/ lap; and flap /f/ lap. 

There are frequent opportunities for students to practice phonological awareness. 

• In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 3, the teacher shows students how to orally substitute initial phonemes. The teacher says pig, then changes the /p to /f/ to make a new word, fig. The teacher has students say the word fig with them. Students practice creating new words by substituting initial phonemes. Practice sets include jig, pig, dig, fig; fit, flit, slit; and slip, flip, clip. 

• In Unit 2, Week 3, Day 1, the teacher models and says, “Listen as I say three words: mud, cub, fun. I hear the same sound in the middle of mud, cub, and fun. Listen: /muuud/, /kuuub/, /fuuun/. The middle sound is /u/.” Students practice listening to three words and identifying the same sound in a group of words. Practice sets include sub, yum, fuss; bus, nut, huff; yes, fell, bed; back, can, dash; hot, log, sock; play, fake, and mate. 

Materials provide ample opportunities for students to practice each new sound and sound pattern.

• Distinguish long from short vowel sounds in spoken single-syllable words.

  • In Unit 3, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher says three words and tells students one sound will be the same in all three words: late, make, and gave. The teacher tells the students the middle sound is /a/, long a. Students say the sound with the teacher: /aaa/. Students practice identifying the middle sound in words. Students listen as the teacher says three words and tells the teacher the middle sound they hear in all three words. 

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Day 2, the teacher shows students how to categorize words by contrasting long and short vowel sounds. Students practice categorizing phonemes by contrasting long and short vowel sounds. The teacher says three words, and students identify which word does not belong and identify why. 

• Orally produce single-syllable words by blending sounds (phonemes), including consonant blends.

  • In Unit 1, week 2, Day 1, the teacher tells students they will put a marker in each box as they say a sound and then blend the sounds to form a word. The teacher models with the word pick, /p/ /i/ /k/. The teacher then has students listen as they blend the sounds to form the word /p/ /i/ /c/, pick. 

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 3, Teacher Edition, students listen as the teacher says the sounds in shell, /sh/ /e/ /l/. The teacher then blends the sounds and says shell. The teacher repeats this routine with additional words. Students then blend the sounds to say the word thin. Students continue the routine with practice words. 

• Isolate and pronounce initial, medial vowel, and final sounds (phonemes) in spoken single-syllable words.

  •  In Unit 1, Week 1, Day 4, students listen carefully as the teacher says: /mmmaaat/, mat. Students share what sound they hear in the middle of the word. Students practice isolating medial vowel phonemes. Students say the sound they hear in the middle of each word the teacher says. Students practice isolating the sounds in the remaining words: sat, sit, lap, lip, ran, mad, map, mop, big, and bag.

  • In Unit 1, Week 2, Day 5, the teacher models segmenting phonemes in words. The teacher says each sound in the word. Students segment the following words: it, add, sit, list, him, bug, bat, pack, sick, mitt.

• Segment spoken single-syllable words into their complete sequence of individual sounds (phonemes).

  • In Unit 2, Week 5, Day 1, the teacher models using the Response Board to show students how to segment a word into individual phonemes. The teacher has students listen as they say chin and segment it, telling students /ch/ is the first sound, /i/ is the middle sound, and /n/ is the last sound. Students practice segmenting words and place a marker in a box for each sound they hear and tell how many sounds they hear in each word. 

  • In Unit 4, Week 4, Day 4, the teacher models segmenting words into individual phonemes. The teacher has students listen as they say light and segment it telling students /l/ /i/ /t/. For guided practice, the teacher and students segment words into sounds together, and the teacher provides corrective feedback as needed.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1n.iii.

Materials provide students with systematic and explicit instruction in phonics. The Teacher Edition shares weekly and daily phonics lessons throughout ten units of study and includes a variety of methods to promote students’ practice of grade-level phonics. The methods and materials used to teach phonics include Sound-Spelling cards, Photo cards, Response boards, Word building letters, Practice Books, Videos, and decodable readers. There is a clear research-based scope and sequence of phonics skills presented throughout the program. The materials clearly delineate a scope and sequence with a cohesive, intentional sequence of phonics instruction and practice to build toward the application of skills. Materials also include Leveled Readers, which may distract from the use of decodable readers, as small group lessons include the use of Leveled Readers. 

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to decode (phonemes, onset and rime, and/or syllables) phonetically spelled words. 

• Know the spelling-sound correspondences for common consonant digraphs.

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 1, students read and build words with digraphs th, sh. Students use the Word-Building Cards to build the words shop and than. Students identify and read words with consonant digraphs in the decodable reader, “Dash Has a Wish” and “Help in a Flash.”

  • In Unit 2, Week 5, Day 1, students read and build words with digraphs wh, ch, ph. Students read words from rows 2-7 in Phonics Practice Activity. Some words include whiz, chop, much, pitch, and graph. 

• Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words.

  • In Unit 1, Week 4, Day 1, students use Word-Building Cards p, o, and t, blend the sounds, and say the word pot. Students read the “Bob Is a Fun Pal” and “Dog and Fox” decodable books and decode one-syllable words with /o/ in connected text.

  • In Unit 3, Week 1, Day 3, students use Word Building Cards to make and decode words with the long /a/ sound. Students read the decodable reader “Dave Was Late” to practice decoding one-syllable words long /a/ words in connected text. 

• Know final -e and common vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds.

  • In Unit 3, Week 1, Day 4, students use Word Building Cards to make and decode words with long a: a_e. Students review that long a sound can be represented by the letters a_e and practice changing sounds to make new words. Students practice building, dictating, and color coding the a_e pattern in the words pave, pale, tale, tame, same, shame, lake, and flake on their response boards. 

  • In Unit 3, Week 2, Day 1, students review the five Sound-Spelling Cards, including the / ī/ spelled i_e using ride and bike. Students practice connecting the letters i_e to the sound /ī/ by writing rid and bit and adding an e to the end to make ride and bite. 

• Use knowledge that every syllable must have a vowel sound to determine the number of syllables in a printed word.

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 2, students write and read the word cabin, clapping for each syllable. Students identify that cabin has two syllables, or word parts, and draws a line between the two syllables: cab/in. The teacher explains that when a syllable ends in a consonant and has one vowel, the vowel sound is usually short and explains what a closed syllable is. Students divide the words napkin, dentist, mitten, rabbit, picnic, helping, and wishing into syllables and read the words.

  • In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 4, students review CVCe syllables and listen for the vowel sound in each syllable. Students work in pairs to count and divide the syllables in the words excite, escape, reptile, and hopeful. 

• Decode two-syllable words following basic patterns by breaking the words into syllables.

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 5, students read the word pocket and divide it into syllables. Students identify the vowel sounds and explain why the syllables are closed syllables. Students practice writing and reading more words with closed syllables, such as basket, finish, helping, fishing, and jumping. 

  • In Unit 5, week 5, Day 2, students read aloud the word middle and clap to divide the word into syllables. Students draw a line between the syllables and learn that when they see the consonant plus le at the end of a word, it is a final-stable syllable. Students divide and read the words little, uncle, eagle, fable, and jungle and practice dividing two-syllable words into syllables in the online activity.

• Read words with inflectional endings.

  • In Unit 5, Week 4, Day 3, students practice blending and reading words with inflectional endings -er and -est. Students blend and read sharp, sharper, sharpest, slow, slower, slowest, safe, safer, safest, mad, madder, and maddest.

  • In Unit 6, Week 4, Day 3, students practice blending and reading words with inflectional endings -ed and -ing. Students blend and read scratch, scratching, scratched, knit, knitted, knitting, spruce, spruced, and sprucing. 

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to read complete words by saying the entire word as a unit using newly taught phonics skills. 

• In Unit 1, Week 2, Day 4, students build and read words with short i. Students build and read the words: sit, six, fix, fin, win, pin, pill, will, hill, and him. 

• In Unit 4, Week 5, Day 2,  students build and read words with long e: y and ey. Students build and read the words: luck, lick, stick, sticky, icky, picky, pick, Rick, rock, and rocky.

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to decode words in a sentence.

• In Unit 1, Week 4, Day 1, students read the decodable books “Bob Is a Fun Pal” and “Dog and Fox” and read words with the short /o/ sound.

• In Unit 5, week 5, Day 4, the students read “Joy’s Birdhouse” and “Beavers Make Noise” and read words with diphthongs oi and oy. 

Lessons provide students with frequent opportunities to build/manipulate/spell and encode words using common and newly-taught sound and spelling patterns.

• In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 2, students use Word-Building Cards to build, manipulate, read, and write words with /ar/ spelled ar, including the words: sharp, shark, park, part, cart, chart, charm, harm, farm, far, bar, car, scar, and scarf. 

• In Unit 6, Week 3, Day 2, students use Word-Building Cards to build, manipulate, read, and write words with silent letters: wr, kn, gn, including the words: wrong, gnome, knob, wrist, knock, wrap, sign, knee, and wrench.

Materials contain a variety of methods to promote students’ practice of previously taught grade-level phonics.

• In Grade 1, the teacher uses variety of  methods to explicitly teach and opportunities to practice phonics skills. The methods and materials to teach phonics include:

  • Sound-spelling cards

  • Photo cards

  • Response boards

  • Word building letters

  • Practice books

  • Videos

Materials clearly delineate a scope and sequence with a cohesive, intentional sequence of phonics instruction and practice to build toward application of skills.

• In Wonders “Grade 1 Foundational Skills Scope and Sequence,” the Phonics scope and sequence includes:

  • Smart Start: Identifying and Blending letters.

  • Unit 1: Short a, short i, beginning consonant blends; short o; beginning consonant blends and s-blends.

  • Unit 2: Short e spelled e and ea; Short u; ending consonant blends: st, sk, mp, nd, nk, nt; consonant digraphs sh, th -ng; consonant digraphs wh, ph, ch, trigraphs -tch.

  • Unit 3: Long a spelled a_e; long i spelled i_e; soft c, soft g, dge, long o spelled o_e, long u spelled u_e; long e spellede_e variant vowel spellings with digraphs oo, u.

  • Unit 4: long a spelled a, ai, ay; long e spelled e, ee, ea, ie; long o spelled o, oa, ow, oe; long i spelled i, igh, y, ie; long e spelled y, ey

  • Unit 5: r controlled Vowels: or, ir, ur, er, ore, oar; Diphthongs ou, ow, oi, oy.

  • Unit 6: variant vowel spellings oo, ou, u_e, ew, iu, ue, u, au, aw, a, augh, ai; silent letters wr, kn, gn; three-letter consonant blends: scr, spl, spr, str, thr, shr; r controlled vowels air, are, ear.

Materials have a clear research-based explanation for the order of the phonics sequence. 

• In the Wonders Research Base Alignment document, the materials include information to address: What is phonics? What is systematic and explicit phonics? Why is phonics instruction important? Who benefits from Phonics Instruction? Example Phonics Milestones by Grade level; Research recommendations and Wonders alignment. 

• In the Wonders  Research Base Alignment document, research cited includes Duff & Clarke, 2011; McGuinnes, 2004; NICHHD, 2000, pp. 2-11; Treiman, 2018, Ehri, Nunes, Stahl, & Willows, 2001; Stuebing, et al., 2008; Henbest & Apel, 2017; International Literacy Association, 2018; White, 2017; Berninger, Abbott, Nagy, & Carlisle, 2009; Suggate, 2010; National Literacy Panel, 2006; Slavin et al., 2011.

• In the Research Base Alignment document in the Wonders program, phonics instruction teaches students to convert letters into sounds and blend sounds to form recognizable words. The sequence of phonics instruction in Grade 1 progresses into more sophisticated sound-spelling patterns and more complex words, including multi-syllabic words.

Materials provide sufficient opportunities for students to develop orthographic and phonological processing.

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 1, students use the Egg Sound-Spelling Card to say /e/ spelled e. Students practice writing the letter e using the handwriting models provided and practice connecting the letter e to the sound /e/ by saying the sound and writing the letter e. 

• In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 1, students use the Star Sound-Spelling Card and write /ar/ spelled ar. Students practice writing the letters ar using the handwriting models provided and practice connecting the letters ar to the sound /ar/ by saying and writing the letters ar.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1o, 

Materials include frequent, adequate lessons and tasks/questions about the organization of print concepts. Students have opportunities to identify text structures and text features. Students have opportunities to learn concepts of print, text features, and structures through whole-group shared reading, paired reading, and differentiated small-group reading.

Materials include frequent, adequate lessons and tasks/questions about the organization of print concepts (e.g., recognizing features of a sentence).

• Recognize the distinguishing features of a sentence (e.g., first word, capitalization, ending punctuation).

  • In Unit 0, Week 1, Day 4, students name each capital letter in the sentence. The teacher tells students that sentences ask questions and use a question mark for ending punctuation. The students circle the initial capital letters and underline the end punctuation. The teacher tells students that spaces separate words in a sentence. Students circle the spaces between the words.

  • In Unit 1, Week 2, Day 3, the teacher reiterates that sentences always end with a punctuation mark and sentences end with a period. The teacher writes and reads the following sentences: “I can pat the cat, and Sam ran down a hill” and has students correct them, making sure they end with a period. 

Students have frequent and adequate opportunities to identify text structures (e.g., main idea and details, sequence of events, problem and solution, compare and contrast, cause and effect).

• In Unit 3, Week 1, Day 2, students practice identifying the important events and adding them to the beginning, middle, and end sections of the anchor chart. The teacher tells students, “Events are the most important things that happen in a story. Events take place in the beginning, middle, and end of the story. We read the text to find the most important events.”

• In Unit 4, Week 3, Day 2, students practice finding the main idea of the selection and identify the topic for the graphic organizer. The teacher shares the important details about the identified topic and adds the details to the graphic organizer. Students find the relevant details on the next two pages of the text and tell why the details are important. 

• In Unit 5, Week 4, Day 2, the teacher uses the Problem and Solution anchor chart and tells students, “A problem is something a person wants to solve, change, or find out. Events can happen that help a person try and solve the problem. The way a person finally solves a problem is called the solution.” The teacher models identifying the problem in the text and adds it to the chart. Students talk about how the character(s) solve the problem as the teacher asks, “What do they do?” The teacher adds the other steps Gilbert and Marta take to solve the problem, adding to the graphic organizer. 

Materials include frequent and adequate lessons and activities about text features (e.g., title, byline, headings, table of contents, glossary, pictures, illustrations).

• In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 4,  students use nonfiction selections to find facts and details. The teacher reminds students they have learned that the photographs and illustrations in nonfiction include important details. The teacher tells students that photographs and illustrations often have labels, words, or phrases that name the things in them. The teacher displays the Online Teaching Chart for Text Features: Labels. The teacher tells students, “The labels help us understand what the photographs show.” The teacher points to the cook’s hat and apron and reads the labels, “tall hat and apron.” Students look for labels when continuing to read. 

• In Unit 2, Week 2, Day 4, students look for captions as they read nonfiction selections. The teacher reminds students that informational text often has photographs, and these photographs often have captions—short descriptions giving information about the photograph. The teacher displays the Online Teaching Chart for Text Features: Captions and reads the first caption: Tall buildings are called skyscrapers. The teacher says, “This caption gives information about the photograph. The caption tells us what the buildings in the photograph are called. This is information that we could not learn from the photograph itself.”

• In Unit 3, Week 1, Day 4,  students look for bold print in nonfiction selections they read. The teacher reminds students that they can use nonfiction texts to find facts about time. The teacher models identifying bold print in the text, telling students that the word is darker than the other words and that the “author may have put the word night in bold print to show us it is the most important idea of the illustrations and the text.” The teacher and students read the text under the first illustration, and the teacher guides students to identify the word in bold print, asking, “Why did the author put this word in bold print? What is the most important idea?” 

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1p.

Materials provide multiple opportunities over the course of the year for students to purposefully read on-level text during interactive read-alouds, shared reading, and differentiated instruction lessons. Multiple opportunities are provided in materials for students to demonstrate sufficient accuracy, rate, and expression in oral reading. Materials include systematic and explicit instruction of irregularly spelled words and include a sufficient quantity of new grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words to support students’ development of automaticity. 

Multiple opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to purposefully read on-level text.

• Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.

  • In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 1, students read the text, Schools Then and Now (author not cited). The teacher provides the purpose for reading: “Let’s read to see how schools were the same and different long ago and now.” Students read the text independently or with a partner. Students complete a graphic organizer to determine how schools today are alike, different, and the same as schools long ago. 

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Day 3,  students read the text, Plop! (author not cited). The teacher sets a purpose for reading: “Read to find out about the animals in the story.” Students read the text independently or with a partner, placing sticky notes next to difficult words. 

  • In Unit 6, Week 1, Day 1,  students read the text, “Maria Mouse’s Good Idea” (author not cited). The teacher reads the essential question: “How can we work together to make our lives better?” The teacher models reading-aloud and completes a theme chart. Students read the text and work in pairs to discuss how the animals in the story work together to make their lives better. 

Materials support students’ development of automaticity and accuracy of grade-level decodable words over the course of the year.

• In Unit 2, Week 2, Day 4, students review the high-frequency words: could, live, one, then, and three and the short letter u sound. Students read the decodable readers, “Can You Stop Bug?” and “It’s Up to Us.” Students reread the decodable readers with a partner, focusing on automaticity, accuracy, and rate. 

• In Unit 4, Week 2, Day 4,  students read words with long e: e, ee, ea, ie and the high-frequency words: because, blue, into, or, other, and small. Students read the decodable readers, “The Green Eel” and “Clean Up the Team” with a partner, focusing on automaticity, accuracy, and rate. 

• In Unit 6, Week 1, Day 1, students read words with variant vowel /u/ and read the decodable readers “Rooster and Goose” and “Choose a Room” with a partner, focusing on accuracy, automaticity, and expression. 

Multiple opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to demonstrate sufficient accuracy, rate, and expression in oral reading with on-level text and decodable words.

• Read grade-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.

  • In Unit 4, Week 5, Day 5, the teacher models reading with expression using the Shared Reading text, From Puppy to Guide Dog (author not cited).. Students read aloud a few pages of the Shared Reading text, focusing on letting their voices rise and fall as they read out loud to show the meaning of what they are reading. Partners reread, working on intonation and fluency. 

  • In Unit 5, Week 2, Day 5, the teacher models reading with rate and expression using the Shared Reading text, A Bird Named Fern (author not cited). Students read aloud a few pages of the Shared Reading text, focusing on exclamation marks and reading for fluency. Partners reread the pages and meet with the teacher for oral reading fluency progress monitoring to demonstrate reading with accuracy, rate, and expression.

  • In Unit 6, Week 5, Day 5, the teacher models reading with rate and expression using the Shared Reading Text, Share the Harvest and Give Thanks (author not cited). Students read aloud a few pages of the Shared Reading text, focusing on pausing briefly when coming to a comma and reading for fluency. Partners reread the pages and meet with the teacher for oral reading fluency progress monitoring to demonstrate reading with accuracy, rate, and expression.

Materials provide opportunities for students to hear fluent reading of grade-level text by a model reader.

• In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 1, students listen as the teacher models fluent reading of the grade-level text Pet Show (author not cited) with accuracy, rate, and expression.

• In Unit 5, Week 3, Day 2, students listen as the teacher models fluent reading of the grade-level text The Sun Queen (author not cited) with accuracy, rate, and expression.

Materials include systematic and explicit instruction of irregularly spelled words.

• In Unit 1, Week 1, Day 3, the teacher guides students to read each high-frequency word: does, not, school, and what. The teacher models using the Read/Spell/Write routine and points out irregularities in sound-spellings, such as the /ä/ sound for a in what. 

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 3, the teacher guides students to read each high-frequency word: again, help, new, there, and use. The teacher models using the Read/Spell/Write it routine and points out irregularities in sound-spellings, such as the u_e spelling for the long u in use. 

Students have opportunities to practice and read irregularly spelled words in isolation. 

• Recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words.

  • In Unit 4, Week 1, Day 3, students use High-Frequency Word Cards to practice reading the words: about, animal, carry eight, give, and our. 

  • In Unit 6, Week 1, Day 3, students use High-frequency Word Cards to practice reading the words: answer, brought, busy, door, enough, and eyes.

Materials include a sufficient quantity of new grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words for students to make reading progress.

• High-frequency words covered in grade 1 include:

  • Smart Start: Review of the following words: a, can, do, go, has, the, I, like, to, you, this, is, my, look, little, where, here, play, the, we, one, me, she, with, for, and, have, said, see, was

  • Unit 1: does, not, school, what, down, out, up, very, be, come, good, pull, fun, make, they, too, jump, move, run, two

  • Unit 2: again, help, new, there, use, could, live, one, then, three, eat, no, of, under, who, all, call, day, her, want, around, by, many, place, walk

  • Unit 3: away, now, some, today, way, why, green, grow, pretty, should, together, water, any, from, happy, once, so, upon, ago, boy, girl, how, old, people, after, buy, done, every, soon, work

  • Unit 4: about, animal, carry, eight, give, our, because, blue, into, or, other, small, find, food, more, over, start, warm, caught, flew, know, laugh, listen, were, found, hard, near, woman, would, write

  • Unit 5: four, large, none, only, put, round, another, climb, full, great, poor, through, began, better, guess, learn, right, sure, color, early, instead, nothing, oh, thought, above, build, fall, knew, money, toward

  • Unit 6: answer, brought, busy, door, enough, eyes, brother, father, friend, love, mother, picture, been, children, month, question, their, year, before, front, heard, push, tomorrow, your, favorite, few, gone, surprise, wonder, young

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1q.

Materials provide frequent opportunities for students to read high-frequency words in connected text and tasks. Lessons and activities provide students with opportunities to learn grade-level word recognition and analysis skills while encoding in context and decoding words in connected text and tasks. The scope and sequence provides direct correlations of the phonics, high-frequency words, and spelling lessons linking to the decodable text opportunities providing students with immediate opportunities for the application of skills and concepts taught. 

Materials support students’ development learn grade-level word recognition and analysis skills (e.g. spelling-sound correspondences of digraphs, decode one-syllable words, syllable and vowel relationship, decode two-syllable words, read words with inflectional endings) in connected text and tasks.

• Know the spelling-sound correspondences for common consonant digraphs.

  • In Unit 2, Week 3, Day 1, students read and build words with consonant digraphs and ending blends by reading the decodable reader “In a Land of Grass” and “Stomp and Romp.”

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 3, the teacher displays Word-Building Cards s, t, i, n, and g and models blending the sounds. The teacher models and students practice blending the letter sounds to read each word: /sh/, /i/, /p/; /shiiip/, ship. Students read the connected text, sounding out the decodable words. 

• Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words.

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 1, the teacher reviews high-frequency words, the letter l in consonant blends, and how to blend one-syllable words like new and pet. Students read “A Pig for Cliff” (author not cited) to practice decoding regularly spelled one-syllable words in context. 

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 5, students blend Words with th, sh, -ng, using the decodable reader. Students decode regularly spelled one-syllable words and review the high-frequency words all, call, day, her, and want and the consonant digraphs th, sh, -ng.

• Know final –e and common vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds.

  • In Unit 3, Week 2, Day 1, students build and read words with long i: i_e and read the decodable readers “A Fine Plant” and “Plants Take Time to Grow.”

  • In Phonics/Word Study Intervention, BLM 61, after students read words with final e (o_e), they read sentences with final e (o_e), including “The roses are red. We rode home on our bikes. What shape is a globe? The note is under the stone.” 

• Use knowledge that every syllable must have a vowel sound to determine the number of syllables in a printed word.

  • In Unit 4, Week 3, Day 4, students complete Practice Book page 286 by reading sentences with open syllables aloud and circling the open syllable in each sentence. Students use circled words to write their own sentences. ​​

  • In Phonics/Word Study Intervention, Section 9, Lesson 108, the teacher reminds students that every syllable has a vowel. The teacher introduces closed syllables and models reading words with closed syllables. Students read closed-syllable words in isolation and in sentences. Sentences include: “Mom got the picnic basket. This melon is rotten. We can visit my pet rabbit. There is a lemon in the salad.” 

• Decode two-syllable words following basic patterns by breaking the words into syllables.

  • In Unit 5, Week 5, Day 4, students read final stable syllables as they complete Practice Book page 412. Students read words and sentences with words with final stable syllables. 

  • In Unit 6, Week 2, students read vowel team syllable words as they complete Practice Book page 448. Students read words and sentences with words with vowel team syllables.

• Read words with inflectional endings.

  • In Unit 4, Week 4, Day 4, students read words with inflectional endings -es, -ed, and -ing. Students practice reading additional words and sentences with inflectional endings as they complete Practice Book page 304.

  • In Unit 6, Week 4, Day 4, students review words with inflectional endings -ed and -ing. Students practice reading words with inflectional endings -ed and -ing in isolation and in sentences as they complete Practice Book page 484.

Materials provide frequent opportunities to read irregularly spelled words in connected text and tasks.

• Recognize and read grade-level appropriate irregularly spelled words.

  • In Unit 3, Week 5, Day 1, the teacher uses the Read/Spell/Write routine to teach the high-frequency words: after, every, buy, soon, done, work. Students read the following sentences and identify the high-frequency words in connected text and blend the decodable words: “We can play after school. What did you buy? When will the food be done? Every kid got a book. We can go home soon. This is so much work!”

  • In Unit 5, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher uses the Read/Spell/Write routine to teach the high-frequency words: four, large, none, only, put, and round. Students read sentences using the high-frequency words in connected texts. For the remaining words, the teacher is directed to point out sound-spellings students have already learned, as well as any irregular sound spellings, such as the /u/ sound spelled o_e in the word none.

Lessons and activities provide students many opportunities to learn grade-level word recognition and analysis skills while encoding (writing) in context and decoding words (reading) in connected text and tasks.

• In Unit 2, Week 1, Day 1, the teacher uses the Read/Spell/Write routine to teach the high-frequency words again, there, help, use, new. Students use the Read/Spell/ Write routine to write the words five times to practice encoding. Students read the following sentences and identify the high-frequency words in connected text and blend the decodable words: “Rex fell down again. Can you help fix this mess? Will you help the new kid? There is my red pen! Tell Ben to use a net.” 

• In Unit 6, Week 4, Day 4, the teacher uses the Read/Spell/Write routine to teach three-letter blends. Students use the Read/Spell/ Write routine to write the words five times to practice encoding. Students read the decodable reader “A Thrilling Dance” to practice decoding words with three-letter blends in connected text. 

Materials include decodable texts that contain grade-level phonics skills aligned to the program’s scope and sequence.

• In Unit 2, Week 5, Day 1, students build and read words with -ch, -tch, wh, ph. Students read the decodable readers, “A Map Match,” “A Fun Chest,” “Phil and Steph Get Lost,” and “Maps and Graphs.”

• In Unit 4, Week 4, Day 1, students build and read words with long i: i, y, igh, ie. Students read the decodable readers, “Jay Takes Flight,” “Be Kind to Bugs,” “Why Hope Flies,” and “Glowing Bugs Fly By.”

Materials include decodable texts that contain grade-level high-frequency/ irregularly spelled words aligned to the program’s scope and sequence.

• In Unit 2, Week 2, Day 4, students read the decodable texts “Can Bud Stop Bug?” and “It’s Up to Us.” The decodable texts include the high-frequency words could, live, one, then, and three, which are part of the week’s high-frequency word lessons and are in the scope and sequence. Students identify the high-frequency words within the text and read for accuracy and fluency.

• In Unit 4, Week 4, Day 1, students read the decodable texts “Jay Takes Flight,” “Be Kind to Bugs,” “Why Hope Flies,” and “Glowing Bugs Fly By.” Students identify the high-frequency words caught, flew, know, laugh, listen, and were that the teacher introduces in the high-frequency word lesson for the week and that are listed in the scope and sequence.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1r.

Materials include ongoing and frequent assessments to determine students’ mastery of foundational skills. Assessments include unit tests, diagnostic assessments, progress monitoring assessments, and lesson assessments. The skills tested are outlined for each assessment, along with suggested responses to guide teachers in scoring. The Assessment Handbook guides teachers’ use of the assessment data by giving key recommendations on how to use the data to group students, provide intervention for students, and reteach skills for students as appropriate. 

Multiple assessment opportunities are provided over the course of the year in core materials for students to demonstrate progress toward mastery and independence of foundational skills.

• Materials include assessment opportunities that measure student progress of print concepts. 

  • In Unit 0, Week 1, Day 2, teachers are advised to enter observational data related to concepts of print directionality into the My Notes section to track progress.

• Materials include assessment opportunities that measure student progress of phonological awareness. 

  • The Fluency Assessment Book includes phoneme segmentation fluency assessment. The teacher says a word, and the student responds with the sounds heard in the word. The student receives a point for each correct part of the word. Data is entered into the My Notes section to track progress.

  • In the Assessment Handbook, Phonemic Awareness Assessments, the materials include information on phonological awareness subtests (K-1) and phonemic awareness subtests (K-3):

    • Phonological Awareness Subtests (K-1): This section consists of 5 subtests. A score of 4 or higher on each 5-item assessment/section indicates proficiency with the skill: Recognizing rhyming words, producing rhyming words, segmenting and counting syllables, blending syllables, and blending and segmenting onset and rimes.

    • Phonemic Awareness Subtests (K-3): This section consists of 9 subtests. A score of 4 or higher on each 5-item assessment/section indicates proficiency with the skill: count phonemes, isolate and pronounce phonemes, match phonemes, blend phonemes to produce words, segment words into phonemes, CORE phoneme deletion test, add phonemes to make new words, substitute phonemes to make new words, distinguish long from short vowels.

  • In Progress Monitoring Assessments, Unit 1, Week 1, Phonological/Phonemic Awareness, the teacher says, “Look at number 8. I will say a word in parts: /k/ /a/ /t/. What word do you make when you blend these sounds together? Listen to these answer choices: cup, cap, cat. Fill in the bubble next to the picture that has the same sounds as /k/ /a/ /t/.” Data is entered into the My Notes section to track progress.

• Materials include assessment opportunities that measure student progress of phonics and decoding. 

  • In Grade 1 Benchmark Assessments, Overview, the materials include two benchmark assessments. Benchmark Assessment 1 focuses on skills taught in Units 1-3, and Benchmark Assessment 2 focuses on the entire year. Each Benchmark assessment includes six multiple-choice items assessing phonics. Data is entered into the My Notes section to track progress.

  • In Progress Monitoring Assessments, Unit 1, Week 1, Phonics, the teacher says, “Look at Number 11. I will say the name of the picture: rat. Read the three answer choices. Then fill in the bubble next to the word that names the picture.” Data is entered into the My Notes section to track progress.

• Materials include assessment opportunities that measure student progress of word recognition and analysis.

  • In Grade 1 Benchmark Assessments, Overview, the materials include two benchmark assessments. Benchmark Assessment 1 focuses on skills taught in Units 1-3, and Benchmark Assessment 2 focuses on the entire year. Each Benchmark assessment includes five multiple-choice items assessing high-frequency words, five multiple-choice questions assessing vocabulary, and four multiple-choice questions assessing structural analysis. Data is entered into the My Notes section to track progress.

  • The Fluency Assessment Book includes a sight word fluency assessment. Students are given a list of words. The teacher asks the student to read as many of the words on the list as possible in one minute. Students receive a point for each correct word. Data is entered into the My Notes section to track progress.

• Materials include assessment opportunities that measure student progress of fluency. 

  • The Fluency Assessment Book includes oral reading fluency assessments. Students are asked to read a passage aloud. The teacher records the words read correctly and determines the accuracy percentage by taking the words correct per minute divided by the total words read. The teacher also notes prosody by indicating phrasing, pace, syntax, self-correction, and intonation.

  • The Informal Reading Inventory (IRI), found in the Placement and Diagnostic Assessment booklet, is used by the teacher to assess reading fluency and accuracy to get a reading level and diagnostic reading data. The IRI (Informal Reading Inventory) is used as needed by the teacher to get data on fluency and accuracy and to determine current reading levels.

Assessment materials provide teachers and students with information of students’ current skills/level of understanding.

• The Progress Monitoring Assessments component offers the opportunity to monitor students’ progress in a steady and structured manner while providing formative assessment data. As students complete each week, they are assessed on their understanding of key instructional content. The results of the assessments can be used to inform subsequent instruction and to provide a status of current achievement in relation to students’ progress through the curriculum. Each assessment is administered once the instruction for the specific week is completed. 

• The Informal Reading Inventory (IRI), found in the Placement and Diagnostic Assessment booklet, is used by the teacher to assess reading fluency and accuracy to get a reading level and diagnostic reading data. It is an individually-administered diagnostic tool that assesses a student’s reading comprehension and accuracy. The IRI measures three reading levels: independent, instructional, and frustration. On the teacher recording sheet, there is a table for each oral reading passage to help identify the student’s reading level. This level is based on a combined score of comprehension points and word recognition errors. 

Materials support teachers with instructional adjustments to help students make progress toward mastery in foundational skills.

• The Assessment Handbook: Using Assessment to Guide Instruction booklet, pages 36-48, provides teachers guidance on how to use the assessment screening data to make instructional adjustments for students. The handbook provides suggestions for teachers on how to:

  • Group students for instruction

  • Address student strengths and weaknesses on skill development

  • Modify instruction

  • Review and Reteach concepts

  • How to interpret, guide and use assessments data to guide instruction for students

  • How to give feedback as a means of assessment

• In every unit, week, and day, there are Small Group Differentiated Instruction lessons for students placed in Approaching Level, On Level, and Beyond Level and English Language Learners for phonemic awareness, phonics, and high-frequency words.

The materials reviewed for Grade 1 meet the criteria for 1s.

Materials provide ample support for speakers of languages other than English, special populations, and students beyond their current grade level to learn, use strategies, and receive support to meet or exceed grade-level standards. The materials include lessons with differentiated instruction options for students approaching grade level, at grade level, beyond grade level, and English Language learners. Differentiated instruction addresses phonemic awareness, phonics, high-frequency words, comprehension, and writing. Decodable readers are also included to support the varying needs and levels of students. Within the Differentiated Instruction lessons in the Teacher Edition are lessons specifically identified for English language learners. These lessons intentionally foster oral language and background knowledge before having students engage in reading text, using phonological awareness and phonics skills and writing. The teacher is cued to use visuals, gestures, modeling, and questioning to support student learning. 

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.

• The Wonders K-6 Instructional Routines Handbook describes several ways that teachers can give MLLs multiple opportunities to speak in the classroom that will “motivate English language learners to participate in class discussions and build oral proficiency. These basic teaching strategies will encourage whole class and small group discussions for all English language learners.” They include repetition, elaboration, wait time, etc.

• The Wonders K-6 Instructional Routines Handbook provides a chart that supplies sentence frames so that MLLs can participate more fully in Collaborative Conversations: “The chart provides prompt and response frames that will help students at different language proficiency levels interact with each other in meaningful ways in partner, small group, and class discussions.” 

• The Wonders K-6 Instructional Routines Handbook supports teachers to see first language as an asset: “These English language learners are not ‘blank slates.’ Their oral language proficiency and literacy in their first languages can be used to facilitate literacy development in English. Systematic, explicit, and appropriately scaffolded instruction and sufficient time help English language learners attain English proficiency and meet high standards in core academic subjects.”

• The materials include a separate Language Transfers Handbook, which provides cross-linguistic transfer analysis to help teachers understand the language of the learners: “The Sounds and Phonics and the Grammar Transfers Charts in the Language Transfer Handbook, are designed to help you anticipate possible transfer errors in pronouncing or perceiving English sounds, and in speaking and writing in standard English.”

• The materials include poems, rhymes, or songs. Each is connected to the theme of the week. A visual chart is provided, as is an audiotrack. For example, in Unit 3, Week 3, the grammar segment uses a song, “Then and Now,” to reinforce the idea of past and present.

Materials provide strategies and supports for students in special populations to work with grade-level foundational skills and to meet or exceed grade-level standards.

• In Unit 1, Week 2, Day 1, the lesson plan includes an option for differentiation to support Approaching Level students. One section addresses phonological awareness and recognizing alliteration. The teacher explains to students that they will listen for words that begin with the same sound. The teacher models identifying words that begin with the same sound. The teacher says words and helps students to recognize that two of the words start with the same sound. Students repeat the alliteration routine with additional short i words. 

• In Unit 3, Week 4, Day 1, the lesson plan includes an option for differentiation to support Approaching Level students. One section addresses phonics, focusing on connecting long o, u, and e to o_e, u_e, and e_e. The teacher displays word-building cards o_e by tracing the letters and saying the letters and sounds, repeating with u_e and e_e. The students trace the lowercase o_e with the teacher while saying the sounds. Students connect the letters o_e to the long o sound by tracing o_e with their fingers while saying the long o sound. Students trace the paper, writing the letters o_e while saying long o. The teacher provides feedback as needed. The teacher connects the spellings with their respective long vowel sounds throughout the week. 

Materials regularly provide extensions and/or advanced opportunities to engage with foundational skills at greater depth for students who read, write, speak, and/or listen above grade level.

• In Unit 1, Week 4, Day 3, the lesson plan includes an option for differentiation to support Beyond Level students. The Teacher reads the title and the author and illustrator’s names after students have pointed to them. Students preview the title page and photographs. Students then discuss what they predict the book will be about. Students then create questions about the text based on looking at the cover and hearing/reading the title. 

• In Unit 6, Week 1, Day 4, the lesson plan includes an option for differentiation to support Beyond Level students. The lesson includes a leveled reader using the paired read Peter Seeger. Students preview the title page, and the teacher prompts students to identify the genre. The teacher follows the compare texts direction in the leveled reader. After reading, partners discuss the information in “Pete Seeger” and Beware of the Lion! (authors not cited). The teacher asks students to make connections by comparing and contrasting how characters help others in each selection. The teacher helps students build knowledge by making connections. Students talk about and write about the text.