Kindergarten - Gateway 1

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectations that anchor texts (including read aloud texts in K-2 and shared reading texts in Grade 2 used to build knowledge and vocabulary) are of publishable quality and worthy of especially careful reading/listening and consider a range of student interests. Anchor texts and text sets encompass multiple themes and integrate content areas such as social studies and science. Texts can be examined multiple times for multiple purposes and are used to expand big ideas, build academic vocabulary, and facilitate access to future texts while building toward independent grade level reading. Anchor texts are read aloud throughout the materials beginning in Unit 1 continuing through Unit 6.

Some samples of anchor texts that support the high-quality expectations of this indicator include:

Unit 1: Living Together: This is Home

• In Module A, students are read Where is Home Little Pip? by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman. This text is children’s literature and is classified as a picture book. This text takes place along the Antarctic shore, where the main character becomes lost and tries to find her way back home. The main character encounters friendly animals who guide her along the journey figuring out her way home. The book offers opportunities to build vocabulary and foundational reading skills such as rhyming.
• In Module B, students are read Life in a Pond by Carol K. Lindeen. This text is classified as informational and is supported with illustrations. This text builds scientific knowledge of plants and animals that live in ponds and offers opportunities to build rich vocabulary.

Unit 2: Understanding Then and Now

• In Module A, students are read The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. The Little House received the Randolph Caldecott Medal in 1943. This text is children’s literature and is classified as a picture book. This text has rich vocabulary and appealing illustrations to help students understand point-of-view.
• In Module B, students are read Farming: Then and Now by Charles R. Smith Jr. and illustrated by Jessika Von Innerebner. This text is classified as historical nonfiction and is supported with illustrations. This historical text exposes students to a history lesson in farming by explaining things that take place on a farm then and now. For example, students learn how to milk a cow or shear a sheep. The text uses challenging vocabulary to explain the differences in farming in the past compared to challenges in farming in the present.

Unit 3: Predicting Change

• In Module A, students are read Come on, Rain by Karen Hesse. This text is classified as poetry. This Newbery Medal author uses figurative, exquisite language to help paint a mental picture. This story encompasses language from the past but uses pictures to scaffold the meaning of the language.
• In Module B, students are read What will the Weather Be? by Lynda Dewitt and illustrated by Carolyn Croll. This text is classified as scientific nonfiction and is supported with illustrations. The text uses meteorology terms to explain how and why the weather is so difficult to predict.

Unit 4: Learning about Each Other and the World

• In Module A, students are read I Love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor Ada and illustrated by Elivia Savadier. This text was recognized as being on the Américas commended list in 2002. It is children’s literature and is classified as a picture book. This story provides rich vocabulary in both Spanish and English while portraying the similarities of two different cultures.
• Module B, students are read Making Music by Cameron Macintosh. This text is classified as children’s literature. This book uses pictures and rich vocabulary to describe how music is made around the world.

Unit 5: Knowing About Patterns and Structures

• In Module A, students are read The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle. This text is classified as nonfiction and is supported with illustrations. This story describes a single seed’s journey into the life cycle of a plant. The story has colorful pictures which help deepen young learners’ understanding of content vocabulary. The text conveys the importance of perseverance.
• In Module B, students are read Plant Patterns by Nathan Olson. This text is classified as non-fiction. This text is a scientific book, taking students through patterns found in plants. Through the use of vibrant rich photographs, students learn extensive vocabulary.

Unit 6: Exploring Communities

• In Module A, students are read On the Town: A Community Adventure by Judith Casely. This text is children’s literature and is classified as a picture book. This text uses pictures to explain the different vocabulary that guide students through a social studies explanation on different parts of a community.
• In Module B, students are read A Neighborhood Walk City by Peggy Pancella. This text is children’s literature and is classified as a picture book. This text has rich language and academic vocabulary, appealing illustrations, and complex characters.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectations for reflecting the distribution of text types and genres required by the standards. There is a balance of literature and informational text and also a variety of text types. The text sets in Kindergarten include literary picture books, poetry, scientific nonfiction, and historical nonfiction.

In Unit 1, Living Together: This is Home texts include:

• Module A:
  • Anchor Text - Where is Home, Little Pip? by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman. (Literary Text, Narrative Picture book)
  • Supporting Text - A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle. (Literary Text, Narrative Picture book)

• Module B:
  • Anchor Text - Life in a Pond by Carol K Lindeen.(Informational Text)
  • Supporting Text - A Bed for the Winter by Karen Wallace. (Informational Text)
• Poems:
  • “Sea Creatures” by Meisch Goldish
  • “Ducks Quack Me Up” by Charles Ghigna
  • “Daddy Fell Into the Pond” by Alfred Noyes
  • “Deer Mouse” by Aileen Fisher

In Unit 2, Understanding Then and Now texts include:

• Module A:
  • Anchor Text - The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. (Literary Text, Narrative Picture book)
  • Supporting Text - Four Seasons Make a Year by Anne Rockwell. (Literary Text, Narrative Picture book)
• Module B:
  • Anchor Text - Farming Then and Now by Charles R. Smith Jr. and illustrated by Jessika Von Innerebner. (Informational Text)
  • Supporting Text - The Old Things by Diana Noonan. (Informational Text)
• Poems:
  • “Houses” by Aileen Fisher
  • “Seasons of the Year” by Meisch Goldish
  • “Grandpa’s Stories” by Langston Hughes
  • Children of Long Ago by Lessie Jones Little

In Unit 3, Predicting Change texts include:

• Module A:
  • Anchor Text - Come On, Rain! by Karen Hesse. (Poetry)
  • Supporting Text - The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. (Literary Text, Narrative Picture book)
• Module B:
  • Anchor Text - What Will the Weather Be? by Lynda Dewitt and illustrated by Carolyn Croll. (Scientific Informational Text)
  • Supporting Text - Weather Words and What They Mean by Gail Gibbons. (Informational Text)
• Poems:
  • “Spring Rain” by Marchette Chute
  • “Listen” by Margaret Hillert
  • “Weather Together” by Lillian M. Fisher
  • “Weather” by Meisch Goldish

In Unit 4, the theme is Learning About Each Other and the World. Unit texts include:

• Module A:
  • Anchor Text - I Love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor Ada and illustrated by Elivia Savadier. (Literary Text, Narrative, Picture book)
  • Supporting Text - Apple Pie 4th of July by Janet S. Wong. (Literary Text, Narrative Picture book)
• Module B:
  • Anchor Text - Making Music by Cameron Macintosh. (Informational Text)
  • Supporting Text - Clothes in Many Cultures by Heather Adamson. (Historical Nonfiction Informational Text)
• Poems:
  • “Grandmas and Grandpas” by Mary Ann Hoberman
  • “The Crayon Box That Talked” by Shane DeRolf
  • “It’s a Small World” by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman
  • “Kids” by Bobbi Katz

In Unit 5, Knowing About Patterns and Structures texts include:

• Module A:
  • Anchor Text - The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle.(Literary Text, Narrative, Picture book)
  • Supporting Text - Jack’s Garden by Henry Cole. (Literary Text, Narrative, Picture Book)
• Module B:
  • Anchor Text - Plant Patterns by Nathan Olson. (Scientific Non Fiction Informational Text)
  • Supporting Text - Swirl by Swirl by Joyce Sidman. (Nonfiction Informational Text supported as a picture book)
• Poems:
  • “The Seed” by Aileen Fisher
  • “Green” Plants by Meisch Goldish
  • “Rainbow” by Meisch Goldish
  • “Zigzag” by Loris Lesynski

In Unit 6, Exploring Communities texts include:

• Module A:
  • Anchor Text - On the Town: A Community Adventure by Judith Casely. (Literary Text, Narrative. Picture book)
  • Supporting Text - Places in my Neighborhood by Shelly Lyons. (Literary Text, Narrative, Picture book)
• Module B:
  • Anchor Text - Neighborhood Walk: City by Peggy Pancella. (Nonfiction Informational Text)
  • Supporting Text - While I Am Sleeping by Malaika Rose Stanley. (Nonfiction Informational Text)
• Poems:
  • “This is My Community” by Carlos Elliot
  • “Our Block” by Lois Lenski
  • “Sing a Song of Cities” by Lee Bennett Hopkins
  • “Skyscraper” by Dennis Lee
  • “Manhattan Lullaby” by Norma Farber

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectations for texts having the appropriate level of complexity for this grade according to quantitative and qualitative analysis and relationship to their associated student task(s).Texts in Kindergarten are read aloud to students and fall in the lexile level range of 310-740 as provided in Appendix A of the Common Core State Standards. The reader and task outlined in the Teacher Guides complexity rubrics provide rationale for texts being of high complexity levels.

Examples of texts that support appropriate complexity include but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Module A, students are read the literary text Where is Home Little Pip? by Karma Wilson and Jane Champman. The text has a quantitative measure of 510 Lexile. This text has multiple levels of meaning, both literal and figurative, of “finding home and “home is where the heart is.” There is some conversational dialog, a mix of simple and complex sentences, alliteration, onomatopoeia, and content area vocabulary. This text is chronological fiction told from the third person point of view; the text appears in fonts of different sizes and is curved. The reader and task suggestions are to share images of different homes, discuss the meaning of the word home as a place where people or animals live, brainstorm a list of animals and where they live, invite the students to create illustrations of the characters in the story, and work with a partner to use their illustrations to retell the story.
• In Unit 1, Module B students are read the informational text Life in a Pond by Carol K Lindeen. The text has a quantitative measure of 310 Lexile. This text has an accessible concept (relationships in an ecosystem) and is organized in four subsections. There are topic specific terms which are defined and reinforced with photographs. This text includes a glossary, resources, and index. The vocabulary includes several specific terms included in the glossary and general specific vocabulary that is reinforced through photographs. The reader and task suggestions include to discuss with the students what a pond is, where they will find a pond, and what plants and animals they might see near the pond. Students will reread the text with the teacher and identify relationships among the plants, animals, and elements in a pond. Sentence starters such as “Plants need sunlight and pond (water) to grow”, and Animals such as frogs and ducks eat pond (insects).”
• Unit 2, Module A, students are read the literary text The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. The text has a quantitative measure of 890 Lexile. This text has an accessible concept and is conventional in structure with sequential events over the passage of time. Setting is described in a way that appeals to the senses and has repeating words and phrases. The reader and task suggestions include to discuss with children what life is like in the city and how it might be different than life in the country. The teacher points out that the area where they live was once, a long time ago, more like the country. Students then identify the changes that take place in the landscape surrounding the little house as time passes and describe the impact of these changes.
• Unit 2, Module B, students are read students are read the informational text Farming, Then and Now by Charles R. Smith Jr. and illustrated by Jessika Von Innerebner. The text has a quantitative measure of 600 Lexile. This text has an accessible concept (farm life in the past and present) and is structured with compare and contrast features guided by fictional characters and non-fiction text features such as headings, tables, and a glossary. Most of the sentences are compound with a few simple sentences. The vocabulary is challenging while the character comments on facts throughout the text. The reader and task suggestions include inviting the students to brainstorm a list of they know about farms. The students then create a venn diagram to compare and contrast farms in the past and the present. Students should use evidence from the text to support their ideas.
• In Unit 3, Module A, students are read the literary text Come on, Rain by Karen Hesse. The text has a quantitative measure of 780 Lexile. This text has an accessible theme with multicultural aspects along with weather. The structure is conventional to a narrative with advanced vocabulary throughout and poetic images. The text has a clear sequence of events. The reader and task suggestions include having students share how they felt on a very hot day and how a lack of rain might affect people and plants. Students then list words from the text that describe people and plants before and after the rain. Then students have discussions based on what effects the rain has on the neighborhood.
• In Unit 3, Module B, students are read the informational text What will the Weather Be? By Lynda Dewitt and illustrated by Carolyn Croll. The text has a quantitative measure of 500 Lexile. This text is complex focusing on how weather forecasting is made possible and which tools are used. This is a conventional narrative that provides context for detailed technical information about weather. The vocabulary is content specific and complex. Pictures support the text along with diagrams. The reader and task suggestions include asking students what they know about weather forecasts, then having the students name different types of weather. The students then review the vocabulary from the text and practice using them in sentences correctly. The teacher provides sentence frames for the students.
• In Unit 4, Module A, students are read the literary text I Love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor Ada and illustrated by Elivia Savadier. The text has a quantitative measure of 510 Lexile. This text is accessible in theme with multicultural concepts. The text includes repeated compare and contrast patterns of events, and Spanish words and phrases, some of which are defined. The reader and task suggestions include asking the children to describe activities they do with different family members. The students then identify how these activities might be similar and different. The teacher rereads the text with the students stopping to identify how the activities the narrator experiences with her grandma and grandpa are both similar and different to the experiences she experiences with her abuelita and abuelito. The students then explain why the narrator loves both Saturdays and domingos and what she can learn from her diverse cultural background.
• In Unit 4, Module B, students are read the informational text Making Music by Cameron Macintosh. The text has a quantitative measure of 390 Lexile. This text has an accessible concept, is an informational text with a clear main idea and supporting details that includes tables, headings, photographs, captions, etc. The text has many simple sentences and some complex, the vocabulary is concept-related. The reader and task suggestions include walking through the text and pointing out the text features such as headings, table of contents, labels and glossary. The teacher explains the purpose of the text features and how to use them. Students then draw a fact they learned from the text and share their work in a small group.
• In Unit 5, Module A, students are read the literary text The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle.The text has a quantitative measure of 400 Lexile. This text has an accessible theme concerning how plants grow, sequencing, and mostly short simple sentences with on-level vocabulary. The reader and task suggestions include discussing what a seed is and ensuring that students understand what plants contain seeds and that this is what new plants grow from. The students then identify, with the help of the teacher, the challenges a seed faces when becoming a plant.
• In Unit 5, Module B, students read students are read the informational text Plant Patterns by Nathan Olson. The text has a quantitative measure of 740 Lexile. This text has accessible concept concerning how plants show different patterns. Colorful photographs and descriptive labels support the text and sentences range from simple to complex. The vocabulary is topic specific and appropriate. The reader and task suggestions include discussing with the students the meaning of the word pattern and then asking students to name other patterns they have seen. The students then describe the pattern discussed on each page and decide whether it is a color or shape pattern.
• In Unit 6, Module A, students are read the literary text On the Town, A Community Adventure by Judith Casely. The text has a quantitative measure of 570 Lexile. This text has the theme of community which is accessible and the structure is conventional for a narrative. Dialogue throughout is mixed into simple, compound, and complex sentences with some topic-specific vocabulary. The reader and task suggestions include discussing with students the meaning of community and asking them to name some people and places they have in their community. Students then draw and label one place they visit in their community. A class book can be made.
• In Unit 6, Module B, students are read the informational text A Neighborhood Walk City by Peggy Pancella. The text has a quantitative measure of 620 Lexile. This text addresses the concept of city communities which is accessible and organized by topics with headings. The photographs and captions reinforce the concepts. The text has mostly simple sentences with topic specific terms. The reader and task suggestions include having students discuss how a city community might be different than other communities. Students describe their day-to-day activities while living in the city. Students then reread the text with the teacher and then retell details about the city life that they learned in the text.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectation that materials support students’ increasing literacy skills over the course of the school year through increasingly complex text to develop independence of grade-level skills. In the Kindergarten materials, the reading of texts is done by the teacher through a rich read-aloud text. With the reader and task considerations, the read-aloud texts fall within all areas of text complexity and increase students’ comprehension skills throughout the school year.

Some examples that demonstrate supporting students’ increasing literacy skills include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 1, Module A, the teacher reads aloud the literary narrative text Where is Home, Little Pip by Karma Wilson. This text is quantitatively measured as a 520L. The qualitative measures include multiple levels of meaning. The text is chronological fiction told from the third person perspective, and the dialogue is conversational. The teacher reads aloud the text while students use the illustrations and their verbal responses to teacher asked questions to help them build their comprehension and vocabulary. The text is appropriate for beginning of the year Kindergarten students as the text provides challenging content based on a theme.
• In Unit 2, Module A, the anchor text The Little House is lexiled at an 890L. The text in Unit 2, Module B is Farming Then and Now is lexiled at 600L. Both texts show a range of conventional narrative structure and informational text show a range of genres. Students are asked to sequence the events, and state a reason using a picture to create a valid opinion statement. The texts in both of the units and the complexity of the words or phrases increases slightly. In addition, the sentence length and word count increase in difficulty from Unit 1 to Unit 2, showing the depth and complexity working toward Standard 10.
• In Unit 3, Module A, students listen to the teacher read aloud, Come On, Rain! by Karen Hesse. This picture book written in poetry form has a quantitative measure of 780L. This is the first time poetry is read to students. Qualitatively, this text has complex vocabulary. Students clarify the meaning of unknown words with frequent advanced vocabulary throughout the text. In addition, the text has poetic images throughout it, which show a range in complexity from that of the first two units. The students are asked to: describe events, add details to characters and define characters’ reactions in the story. These student tasks show the increasing rigor behind what students are being asked to do with the read aloud text.
• In Unit 4, Module B, a supporting text, Clothes in Many Cultures by Heather Adamson, has a lower Lexile (520) than previous texts; however, the students are now hearing and seeing a historical informational text. The lessons about this text focus on main idea and details, text features, and words and phrases. The teacher support materials include graphic organizers to help scaffold student understanding of the text.
• In Unit 6, Module B, Neighborhood Walk: City by Peggy Pancella, students are seeing and hearing an informational text with headings, subheadings and captions to help reinforce the text’s concepts. The texts in Unit 6 are a bit more complex based on the quantitative measures being at a 570-620 lexile level. The average sentence length and word frequency also increased in Unit 6. The texts are more complex in this unit based on the qualitative measures: while still being conventional in structure there are places in dialogue, first- person narration, rhyme and repetition, along with synonyms and short verb phrases. The tasks in this unit are more complex since students are asked to create something from what they have learned from the texts.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectation that the anchor texts and series of connected texts are accompanied by a text complexity analysis and rationale for educational purpose and placement in the grade level.

The anchor texts and supporting texts have a “Text Complexity Rubric” located on page TR52- TR55 under the Teacher Resources section of the Teacher Guide. The Text Complexity Rubric covers quantitative, qualitative, and reader and task measures. Quantitative metrics are provided for each anchor text in four categories: Lexile level, average sentence length, word frequency and page or word count. Qualitative measures are provided for each anchor text and supporting text in four categories: levels of meaning, structure, language conventionality and clarity, and theme and knowledge demands. Metrics provided for qualitative measures are in list form. Reader and Task Suggestions are in narrative form and provide teachers with suggestions for preparing all students to read the text as well as leveled tasks. For example, on page XVIII in the teacher's guide the teacher will find what makes the text for Farming Then and Now Challenging with a qualitative chart and scaffolded strategies page to help young learners access a complex text. Below is an example of the Qualitative Measures Chart:

• Levels of Meaning: fictional time travelers used as means for examining actual past- and present farming methods: theme of change developed through changes on a farm.
• Structure: past and present farming methods in then-and now format for comparison: clear connections between past and present; in text boxes, speech bubbles, and sidebars, photographs supporting written text.
• Language Conventionality and Clarity: challenging academic and domain-specific vocabulary, some in context clues to meaning and a glossary, time-related words, comparison words, simple and complex sentences.

Part two of the chart has a breakdown of how to support students needs in overcoming the challenges of the texts based on the Scaffolded Strategies Handbook to support: English Language Learners, struggling readers, and accelerated readers. Below is an example of a Reader and Task Suggestion Chart based on the Text Complexity Rubrics found in the Teacher Resource Guide on pages TR 52- 55.

• Preparing to Read the Text “Come On, Rain” on pg TR 52. Have children share how they felt on a very hot day. Discuss how lack of rain might affect people and plants.
• Leveled Tasks:Have children list words from the text that describe people and plants before the rain and after the rain. Clarify meanings of any words that are unfamiliar. Then discuss, based on these words, what effects the rain has on the neighborhood.

At the beginning of each Module, teachers are provided with a Lexile and genre reminder about the upcoming text set. Lexiles and genres are listed for the anchor text and supporting texts. Lexiles are provided for the Sleuth texts and the Leveled Text Library. Within each unit and module, the texts are focused on a theme, which provides some rationale as to why the text was chosen.

The instructional materials for Kindergarten meet the expectations of anchor and supporting texts providing opportunities for students to engage in a range and volume of reading to achieve grade level reading proficiency. The instructional materials provide opportunities for students to engage in a range and volume of reading, and there are supports to build students’ comprehension of grade level texts in various shared read-alouds. Students also have access to leveled readers which provided leveled support to help build kindergarten grade level reading proficiency. In addition, there are on grade-level trade books and text selections, grade level small group “Sleuth” selections, independent reading books, and a student reader and I Can Read Selections at students’ reading levels.

Additionally, the program includes eTexts which includes all of the Teacher Guides, Anchor Texts, Supporting Texts, Leveled Readers, Scaffolding Resources, Games, Performance Based Assessment, and Foundational Skills lessons used in center based learning.

The Teacher Guide is laid out with a routines section under Teacher Resources on page TR1 which provides a list of all the years spiraled routines for the students to partake in to help foster comprehension and reading fluency. The routines include Think- Pair- Share, Whole Class Discussion, Small Group Discussion, Read Alouds, Shared Reading, Independent Reading, Text Club, and Informational and Literary Benchmark Vocabulary Routines.

Structures are built within the day to provide students with opportunities to practice silent and oral reading. Each day students engage in independent reading with a specific focus including building stamina and becoming independent readers. In addition, small group instruction each day either focuses on vocabulary, fluency, critical thinking or comprehension. Comprehension and vocabulary instruction dominates the small group instruction, but the few fluency lessons focus on a specific aspect of fluency such as phrasing, expression, and pacing. Students hear and see the teacher model reading the text and then practice using the same text. For example:

• In Module A, Unit 1, students select a text to read. The teacher announces that the two focus points are engagement and identity and comprehension. The teacher guides the students in applying the reading analysis lesson to their self-selected text. “We learned about the roles of authors and illustrators in telling stories. As you go through your book, mark the author’s and illustrator’s names with sticky notes. Think about how they help tell the story.” Students record in their daily reading log by drawing a picture or dictating or writing a word.

A scaffolded strategies handbook is also provided, which gives teachers additional ways to teach the concepts to struggling learners and English language learners. In addition, throughout the teacher’s guide there are "if/then" sections which provide the teachers with concrete things to do when students do not understand the concept.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectations of most questions, tasks, and assignments being text-based, requiring students to engage with the text directly. Students draw on textual evidence to support both what is explicit as well as valid inferences from the text using classroom conversation to help scaffold what the text is saying.

Explicit question examples include:

• "What is the temperature like in fall? What does the text say? (Unit 2, Module A, Lesson 8, Four Seasons Make a Year)
• “What is a color pattern?” (Unit 5, Module B, Plant Patterns)
• "Where do Charlie, Papa, and Mama go first? What does Papa buy Mama?” Students will use the think pair routine to help them discuss where in the text the answer is found. (Unit 6, Module A, Lesson 6, On the Town: A Community Adventure)

Implicit question examples include:

• "Why do you think the plants on page 17 are named cattails?” (Unit 1, Module B, Life in a Pond)
• “Look at the headings on page 34, 40, 44, 50. How do these text features help you understand the text?” (Unit 4, Module B, Lesson 7, Clothes in Many Cultures)
• "What opinion do you think the author has about the pizza parlor? Why?” (Unit 6, Module A, Lesson 6, On the Town: A Community Adventure)

Many lessons have a Reading Analysis section where students are working toward a specific standard and engage in either whole class or small group work to complete a task involving the text. The majority of lessons have a turn and talk after the students read, which requires the students to discuss something from the text.

Most questions require students to engage with the text by referring back to the text for evidence or examining the text for author’s craft. For example, in Unit 1, Module B, Lesson 7, students must go back into the text, Life in a Pond, to answer the question, “Where does the dormouse live at the beginning of the text?” Also, in Unit 3, Module B, Lesson 11, students compare and contrast the two texts What Will the Weather Be? and Weather Words and complete a venn diagram based on the text using the Small Group Discussion Routine.

Each lesson has small group options which include opportunities for students to answer text-based questions. For example, some options are extensions of the Close Reading or Reading Analysis sections. In Unit 4, Module B, students are read the text Clothes in Many Cultures. Students will draw one kind of traditional clothing from the text and then they will draw a picture of a traditional piece of clothing that they now wear in real life. Children will dictate and/or write their ideas on a sheet of paper by answering the following questions that require them to go back into the text to find the answers: How do traditional clothes of both groups of people look alike? How do they look different?

All lessons have a Close Reading section that includes 3-4 text-based questions. For example, in Unit 2, Module B, Lesson 3 examples include:

• How were the cows milked one hundred years ago? How do you know that? Let's read the sentence where you found that aloud together.
• How are cows milked today? How do you know that?
• Why do machines make milking cows faster?

Additional materials that support students engaging with the text include:

• In the Sleuth close reading materials, there is a gather evidence section for each close read which requires students to find evidence from the text.
• The Reader's and Writer's Notebook provides evidence-based questions.
• The Baseline Assessment also includes evidence-based questions.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectations of materials containing sets of high-quality sequences of text-based questions and activities that build to a culminating task. Every module offers a culminating task (performance-based assessment) where students write, draw, or dictate to address a prompt. Many of the performance assessments at the end of each module and unit require the students to use evidence from the text they have read. The lessons and questions leading up to the task offer support to complete the task.

For example, students are asked to use the text from the lessons is in Unit 2, Module A, to create a simple personal narrative about something they did when they were younger that they do differently now. The students draw “Then I…”and Now I…” pictures to show a difference in how they do something. Second, they dictate or write about the two events using the sentence starters, “Then I…” and “Now I…”. There is a reproducible page to distribute to students as well. Lastly, there is a review and revise portion and a shared writing to complete the assessment.

Text-based questions and activities lead up to the following culminating tasks are included in the instructional materials:

• Unit 1, Module A: Write about an Animal- Students choose an animal from one of the selections. They tell about an animal and its home.
• Unit 1, Module B: Write about a Special Home- Students choose one animal or plant from Life in a Pond or A Bed for the winter. Tell something about the animal’s or plant’s home.
• Unit 2, Module A: Write about Changes Narrative- Create a simple narrative. Tell about something you did when you were younger that you do differently now.
• Unit 2, Module B: Write about Life on a Farm Opinion- Children state an opinion about whether they would like to live on a farm.
• Unit 3, Module A: Create a Story Narrative- Children write a story about the main character in Come On Rain! And what she might do in a snowstorm.
• Unit 3, Module B: Predict the Weather, Informative/Explanatory Task- Children pretend that they are weather forecasters. They use what they learned from What the Weather Be? and Weather Words and What They Mean to write a simple weather forecast.
• Unit 4, Module A: Write About a Day With My Friend: Narrative Task- Children pretend they are friends with the main character in either I love Saturdays y Domingos or Apple Pie for the 4th of July. They draw, dictate, or write a simple narrative telling about a day they spend together.
• Unit 4, Module B: Write Questions and Answers, Informative/Explanatory Task- Children think of two questions about the selections Making Music and Clothes in Many Cultures. They use evidence from the texts to answer the questions.
• Unit 5, Module A: Write About My Favorite Task-Opinion Task- Children state an opinion about plants they like better, The Tiny Seed or Jack’s Garden.
• Unit 5, Module B: Create A Did You Know? Book ,Informative/Explanatory Task- Children research patterns in nature using Plant Patterns and Swirl by Swirl Spirals in Nature along with additional sources found during shared research. Children then write Did You Know? books about patterns in nature that include information learned from their research.
• Unit 6, Module A: Write a Book Review, Opinion Task- Children state and support an opinion about which selection they like better, On the Town: A Community Adventure or Places in My Neighborhood.
• Unit 6, Module B: Create A Travel Brochure, Opinion Task- Using information from the anchor and supporting texts and their own words and pictures, children create a travel brochure that convinces people to visit a big city.

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

Most lessons provide discussion protocols for turn and talks, whole group discussions, and small group discussions. There are opportunities in all of these routines for students to speak and listen about what they read. Collaborative routines are included in the daily lessons along with protocol explanations and discussion structures. This is found in the Teacher Resource section of the Teacher’s Guide.

Writing lessons provide opportunities for students to share their writing. For example, students think about the books they read, Neighborhood Walk: City and While I am Sleeping. Using information from the books and your own words and pictures to make a travel brochure. Students will share their brochures with their classmates by reading aloud the text and showing their visuals. Students listening in the audience will have a chance to ask the presenter questions (Unit 6, Module B, Performance Task).

In Sleuth, close reading materials, structures are included for students to gather evidence, ask questions regarding the text, use evidence to make a case, and prove their case to other students within their team, with all team members having a voice. At the end of each writing lesson, there are opportunities for students to share. For example, in Unit 2, Module A, Lesson 3, students are asked to answer questions from the read aloud School Buses Then and Now on page TR3 of the Teacher's Guide as students follow along. Student use text evidence to support their answers.

The Performance Based Assessments at the end of each module provide an opportunity for students to share their writing. For example, in Unit 3, Module B, students share their informative writing. The student presents their information as their forecast as if they are a real meteorologist would be pointing to their drawings as they tell about the weather. The audience members are encouraged to ask questions and provide feedback.

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

Explicit instruction guides students through the writing process, requiring them to analyze good writing models from the text sets they read. There are 6 Units and two Modules (A and B) within each unit. The 12 Lessons within each module focus on one type of writing. Each Module’s writing lessons are based on text(s) and offer a model for students as they write. On-demand writing occurs each day when students write to what they have read in various formats. Examples of writing include taking notes, short answer, or paragraph construction. Lessons are structured so that by the end of the Module, students have addressed all components of the writing process.

Each module is structured the same way regarding process and on-demand writing. Representative examples of process writing include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In Unit 2, Module A, Lesson 1, students practice a Narrative Writing Component: “Using the text as a model students are taught how to write a narrative. Students are instructed to dictate, or draw about the changes in the Little House experiences over time. Students are taught to understand that things that happened “then” happened in the past. That could mean yesterday or many years ago. Things that happen “now” are happening in the present. There is a chart for children to make documenting their ideas and comparing things in they did in the past to things that are doing in the present.”
• In Unit 5, Module B, Lesson 1, students work on an Informative Writing: “Students are reminded that sometimes they will be asked to write questions and answers about facts in an informational text they have read. Reminding them that they can find the answers to the questions they ask in the words and pictures in the text. Students are asked to draw or write to ask questions about the book. Then have them draw or write the answers to their questions using facts about key details from the book. Have them write one question on page 263 of their Reader’s Writer’s Journal.”
• In Unit 6, Module A, Lesson 6, students work on an Opinion Writing: “Students are reminded that sometimes writers write to tell their opinion, or how they think or feel about a topic. One kind of opinion is a book review when writers write about a book they read and state their opinion. Students are directed through a step by step process beginning with the choosing of a text, The Poky Little Puppy, recall details from the texts, form an opinion. Sentence instruction is provided for students that may need help organizing their opinion on paper so there are sentences stems available if the students need them.”

On-demand writing occurs across the yearlong materials. Examples of on-demand writing appear in each unit and typically provide practice with component skills as they build to a larger project. For example, their Performance Based Assessment at the end of each module allows for the opportunity for students to go back to the text, gather information, and synthesize the information into a written final project where they can draw, dictate, or write. Unit 2, Module B has a performance based assessment in which the students were asked to create an opinion piece based on their opinion about how it would be to live on a farm. Students revisit the text to discover how characters shared their opinions.

On demand writing for Kindergarten is spiraled throughout each unit and module. There is a daily/lesson specific writing routine, writing opportunities in phonics and vocabulary and students are asked to edit and revise only some of their pieces such as a narrative. If the teacher uses the Scaffolding guide, students are also given another opportunity to provide on demand writing through the scaffolding writing routine portion.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the criteria for providing opportunities for students to address different genres/modes of writing that reflect the distribution by the standards. Each lesson includes a writing lesson, and over the course of the school year, students engage with multiple genres and modes of writing. Writing rubrics that are aligned to the standards are provided for all types of writing in the Teacher's Guide.

Examples of writing prompts that address the different text types of writing and reflect the distribution required by the standards include:

• Unit 1, Module A, Narrative: Students write about animals homes by choosing an animal from Where is Home, Little Pip? or A House for Hermit Crab. Students tell about the animal and it’s home.
• Unit 1, Module B, Informative/Explanatory: Students select and animal or plant from one of the selections. Students explain the animal’s or plant’s home.
• Unit 2, Module A, Narrative: Students write about changes by creating a simple personal narrative about something they did when they were younger that they do differently now.
• Unit 2, Module B, Opinion: Students draw, dictate, or write an opinion comparing and contrasting two things in Farming Then and Now or The Old Things. Students compare the texts and write their opinion in the Writer’s Journal.
• Unit 3, Module A, Narrative: Students create a story about the main character in Come on, Rain! And what she might do in a snowstorm.
• Unit 3, Module B, Informational/Explanatory: Students pretend that they are weather forecasters. Students use what they learned from What Will the Weather Be? and Weather Words and What They Mean to write a simple weather forecast.
• Unit 4, Module A, Narrative: Students write about a day with a friend by pretending they are friends with the main character in either I Love Saturdays y domingos or Apple Pie 4th of July. Students draw, dictate, or write a simple narrative telling about a day they spend together.
• Unit 4, Module B, Informative/Explanatory: Students write questions and answers by thinking of two questions about the selections Making Music and Clothes in Many Cultures. Students use evidence from the texts to answer the questions.
• Unit 5, Module A, Opinion: Students state an opinion about which story about plants they like better, The Tiny Seed or Jack’s Garden.
• Unit 5, Module B, Informative/Explanatory: Students create a Did You Know? book by researching patterns in nature using Plant Patterns and Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature along with additional sources found during shared research. Students then write Did You Know? books about patterns in nature that include information learned from their research.
• Unit 6, Module A, Opinion: Students write a book review by stating and supporting an opinion about which selection they like better, On the Town: A Community Adventure or Places in My Neighborhood.
• Unit 6, Module B, Opinion: Students create a travel brochure using information from the anchor and supporting texts and their own words and pictures that convince people to visit a big city.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectations for the materials include regular opportunities for evidence-based writing to support recall of information, opinions with reasons, and relevant information appropriate for the grade level. Students are taught each day to carefully analyze and synthesize sources and defend claims as part of Whole Group Writing instruction. Each writing lesson focuses on a writing mode that is specified in the Common Core Standards. The Reading and Writing Journal (RWJ) frequently provides “Write in Response to Reading” prompts. Students are required to gather and use evidence from the text to support their responses.

Opportunities for evidence-based writing in the instructional materials include but are not limited to:

• In Unit 1, Lesson 2, Module A, students draw, dictate, or write a detail about an animal character from the text, including what the character looks like, what it does, or how it feels.
• In Unit 3, Module B, Lesson 1, students draw, dictate, or write questions about the book What Will the Weather Be? Then the students work with a partner to answer their questions.
• In Unit 4, Module A, Lesson 3, students dictate or write to narrate the events from Saturday or Sunday in I Love Saturdays y Domingos. Students write the sequence words from p. 181 of their Reader’s and Writer’s journal.
• In Unit 5, Module B, Lesson 10, the teacher reminds students of the main topic of Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature. Students choose a spread from the text and think about how the details in the text and in the pictures tell about the main topic. Students then dictate or write about the details in the text and pictures teach about spirals and write one comment in their Reader’s and Writer’s Journal. (Sentence frames are included: This shows how _____. This teaches me that _____.)
• In Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 2, students write their opinion about the text. Choosing a photograph and caption from the day’s text, they dictate or write their opinion about this part of the book. Next, they write their opinion in their Reader’s and Writer’s Journal.

Performance-Based Assessments (PBA) are assigned at the end of each module. These include writing projects where students use the anchor text and the major writing skill from the module in order to respond to questions to synthesize learning. These projects lead students to analyze and synthesize the texts they have read. For example, in the Unit 5, Module A, students state and support an opinion about which plant story (The Tiny Seed or Jack’s Garden) they preferred. Students state their opinion of the story and draw, dictate, or write at least two reasons to support their opinion.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet expectations for explicit instruction of the grammar and conventions standards as applied in increasingly sophisticated contexts, with opportunities for application both in and out of the context.

Grammar lessons align to the Kindergarten Common Core State Standards for Language including.

• In Unit 1, Module A, students are taught to identify uppercase and lowercase letters, capitalize first words in sentences, use the pronoun I, and recognize ending punctuations.
• In Unit 1, Module B, students are taught to identify nouns (animals, places, things, people), identify nouns for more than one, use verbs that tell about actions, question words, and produce complete sentences.
• In Unit 2, Module A, students are taught to identify and use verbs, produce complete sentences, use end punctuation, and use questions words.
• In Unit 2, Module B, students are taught to expand sentences and identify and use prepositions.
• In Unit 3, Module A, students are taught to write short sentences, capitalize names and first words in sentences, capitalize the pronoun I, identify and use present, past and future tenses of verbs, and complete sentences (subject and predicate).
• In Unit 3, Module B, students are taught to print short sentences, use prepositions and prepositional phrases, and expand sentences.
• In Unit 4, Module A, students are taught to write sentences (including exclamations), identify and use nouns and verbs, and capitalize the pronoun I.
• In Unit 4, Module B, students are taught to print sentences (including questions), produce complete sentences, expand sentences, use capitalization, and use ending punctuation.
• In Unit 5, Module A, students are taught to write sentences, use question words, capitalize the pronoun I, and produce sentences of their own.
• In Unit 5, Module B, students are taught to print sentences, use nouns for more than one, and use present, past and future tenses of verbs.
• In Unit 6, Module A, students are taught to write short sentences and produce complete sentences, use capitalization and ending punctuation, and expand sentences.
• In Unit 6, Module B, students are taught to print sentences, work with plural nouns, identify nouns and verbs in sentences, expand sentences, and use prepositional phrases.

Language and convention expectations are included in each writing rubric found within each Unit Module writing task to assess each student in language standards.

Grammar lessons require students to practice the skill in and out of context, for example:

• Unit 2, Module A, Lesson 11, the Teacher’s Guide states, “Students produce complete sentences. Teach and model a complete sentence. Remind them of what this means. Then apply by writing sentences.” Students write their own sentences using exclamation marks on a separate sheet of paper.
• Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 2, the Teacher’s Guide states,“Write the sentences on the board: Let's go downtown. Where is the subway? It is so noisy! We can walk instead. Remind children that we print upper and lowercase letters to write words that make sentences.” Students write their own sentences using uppercase letters, lowercase letters, and proper punctuation on a separate sheet of paper.

For each grammar lesson, there is additional practice in the Reader's and Writer's Journal. This practice may or may not be in context. The Reading/Writing Journal includes lessons specific to the conventions of writing and provides students with on-demand writing tasks.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet the expectation that materials, questions, and tasks directly teach foundational skills to build reading acquisition by providing systematic and explicit instruction in the alphabetic principle, letter-sound relationships, phonemic awareness, and phonological awareness (K-1), and phonics (K-2) that demonstrate a transparent and research-based progression with opportunities for application both in and out of context.

The instructional materials provide students with frequent opportunities to learn and understand phonemes. In the Foundational Skills tab section of each unit’s Teacher's Guides, phonemic awareness activities are on Day 1 and Day 3 of each week. For example:

• In Unit 1, Module B, Lesson 6: Phonemic Awareness: listen and say /m/ “What sound does moon begin with? Phonics: Students name the sound /m/ in a variety of words.
• In Unit 2, Module A, Lesson 1: Introduce the new sound of the initial and medial /a/. Listen carefully: /a/, say it with me /a/. The teacher displays the picture card alligator. Alligator begins with /a/. Display the picture card for a car. Cat has /a/ in the middle. What sound do you hear in the middle of the word cat? Students practice with the words: astronaut and apple explaining where they hear the /a/ sound either initially or in the middle.
• In Unit 3, Module B, Lesson 3: Phonemic Awareness: Display picture card and identify /f/. Students spell words with /f/.
• In Unit 6, Module A, Lesson 11: The teacher reviews with the students that they have learned the new sound /i/. Say it with me: /i/. The teacher displays the Picture Card kite. Kite has a long I sound in the middle. What sound does kite have in the middle? Continue with the picture card five. Students say the word five. The word five has the long I sound in the middle. We can make new words with the long I sound by changing the sounds in five. I will start. I will change the /f/ to a /d/: /d/ /i/ /v/ /e/, dive. Now let's change the /v/ in the middle to a /m/ in dime to /t/ /i/ /m/ /e/. What is the new word?
• In Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 11: Phonemic Awareness: Students review words with long and short vowel sounds. Phonics: Students write words with long and short vowel sounds. They are directed to point to the word with the specified vowel sound (ex. cap/cave- point to the word with short a).

Lessons and activities provide students opportunities to learn grade-level phonics skills while decoding words. The foundational skills tab section of the Teacher's Guides contain phonics activities for Day 1 and Day 3 of each week and decoding activities for Day 2 and Day 4 each week. Examples include the following:

• In Unit 3, Module B, Lesson 1: Students are introduced to the alphabet card Ff. The teacher discusses that fountain begins with /f/. Students point to the letter f in the word fountain. Then students point to the letters Ff on the card. The sound we are learning is the letter f. The names of these letters are uppercase F and lower case f. What is the sound of the letter? What is the name of the letters? Students practice singing the Phonics and Rhymes Chart 16, Four Funny Buddies. As students sing the song they point to the letter f.
• In Unit 5, Module B, Lesson 11: The teacher introduces a new sound. Listen carefully /y/, say it with me. Show picture card yak. Yak begins with /y/, yak. Continue with routine and picture cards yarn and yellow. Yes begins with /y/ and ends with /es/. Let’s put the /y/ sound with the ending sounds. Say /y/ /es/. What word did we say, yes? Continue with words yarn, year, what do these words begin with? Display the alphabet card Y. Display phonics and rhymes chart 30. Sing the song Yolla Yak, at the end of the routine students complete p. 284 in their Reader’s and Writer’s journal.

The sequence of phonics begins with letter recognition of the 26 letters (both uppercase and lowercase) in Unit 1, Module A and Unit 1, Module B. After learning the letters, phonics instruction begins in Unit 1, Module B with /m/ spelled Mm and /t/ spelled Tt. The first vowel sound is introduced in Unit 2, Module A with /a/ spelled Aa. Individual letter sounds are addressed through Unit 5. In Unit 6, other vowel sounds with common spellings such as ee, ea.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten partially meet expectations that materials, questions, and tasks provide explicit instruction for and regular practice to address the acquisition of print concepts, including alphabetic knowledge, directionality, and function (K-1), structures and features of text (1-2).

Materials include lessons for students to learn how to identify and produce letters. Lessons are not multimodal for Kindergarten students to learn to make the letters of the alphabet. Examples include:

• The progression of teaching and learning the letters of the alphabet is as follows:
  • Unit 1, Module A, Lessons 1-5 introduce Aa, Bb, Cc, Dd, Ee,
  • Unit 1, Module A, Lessons 6-10 introduce Ff, Gg, Hh, Ii, Jj, Kk, Ll, Mm, Nn.
  • Unit 1, Module A, Lessons 11-13 introduce Oo, Pp, Qq, Rr, Ss.
  • Unit 1, Module B, Lessons 1-5 introduce Tt, Uu, Vv, Ww, Xx, Yy, Zz.
• In Unit 1, Module A, Lesson 1- Introduce: Display the Alphabet Aa Card. Teacher points to and says “This is the uppercase letter A. What is this letter?” Teacher points and says “This is the lowercase letter a. What is this letter?” Use the alphabet cards to introduce the letters Bb and Cc. Practice: Display Phonics and Songs Rhymes Chart “A Bus Comes Along Every Day”. Point out how the letters make the words and words make the sentences. Have them point to the letters Aa, Bb, Cc. Students complete p. 1 in the Reader’s and Writer’s Journal. Apply: Display the Alphabet Cards for Aa, Bb, Cc. Have students write each letter on a piece of paper as you write it.
• In Unit 1, Module A, Lesson 4- Give students Student Reader K.1.1 At School, Teacher points to title and says “The title of the story is Cat and Dog At School. Point to the word Cat. Teacher says “This is the word Cat. This picture of a cat will help you read the word. Say the letters with me: c-a-t, cat. Repeat with Dog. Children will reread Cat and Dog At School to develop automaticity reading high-frequency words and identifying the letters, Aa, Bb, Cc, Dd, Ee.

Materials include frequent and adequate tasks and questions about the organization of print concepts (e.g. follow words left to right, spoken words correlates sequences of letters, letter spacing, upper-and lowercase letters). Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Module A, Lesson 2: Teachers explain that when we write letters, we write from left to right. They show children how to space the letters properly when writing them in a row. As students apply this, students are reminded to use proper left-to-right progression and proper spacing between letters. (p. 1.30)
• In Unit 3, Module A, Lesson 4, the teacher distributes Student Reader K.3.1 and points to the title of the book. The teacher explains the title of the book is on the cover and reads the title to the students. Then the teacher points to each word in the title and has the students read it with the teacher. The teacher points to each word as she reads the story, teaching students to track print left to right. Then, students preview the story, looking at the illustrations. The teacher calls out that in the story they will read words with the /b/ sound and spelling of b. Students then read the story in pairs switching readers after each page.

The Print Concept Routine is found on Page 278 of the Scaffolded Strategies Handbook:

• Parts of a Book:
  • Show the students how to hold a book, with the spine on the left and the cover showing. Point out and explain the title, author and illustrator’s name. Discuss how the illustrations go with the text. Page through the book, and show how the story continues. Point to the text on each page. The teacher then releases the students to practice holding the book correctly, finding the author, turning the pages, and pointing to the text on each page.
• Letters and Words:
  • Display text in a large format. Read aloud a sentence, point to each word while reading it. Then, frame one word with two fingers and read it aloud. Explain that it is a word, point out the spacing before and after the word, and count the letters. Students are then asked to point to other words on the page and to count to the letters within the words.
• Tracking Print:
  • As you read a book aloud, put your finger on the starting point in the text on each page. Show that you read from left to right by moving your finger along lines of a text. Use your finger to show how to sweep back from the end of a line to the beginning of another and how to find the beginning of a text on the next page. Then have students use their finger to show the correct movement as you read the text aloud again.

Other opportunities to practice print concepts include:

• Shared Reading Routine TR14-TR15: Step 3- Point out print conventions. Besides unlocking text meaning, this is an opportunity to model how text works. For example, reading from the top to bottom and left to right, navigating text features, and attending to punctuation.
• An example of a shared read comes from Unit 5, Module A, Lesson 9. The teacher distributes the student reader (Our Boat). Let’s read the title page together. Point to each word as the children read it with you. The author’s name is Maura Albrecht. The story was illustrated by Hector Borlasca. Have children preview the story looking at the illustration on each page. Remind students that we read words left to right beginning at the top of the page. Students work in pairs to read the story switching after each reader working on developing automaticity reading high frequency words and words that end with ks, /x/.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet expectations that instructional opportunities are frequently built into the materials for students to practice and gain decoding automaticity and sight-based recognition of high-frequency words. This includes reading fluency in oral reading beginning in mid-Grade 1 and through Grade 2.

Students have the opportunity to read and practice high-frequency words. Examples include:

• High frequency word instruction takes place during lessons 2, 7, and 12 of each module during Whole Group Time as a Foundational Skills Mini-Lesson. Plans for Instruction on high-frequency words are included in the Foundational Skills section of each Teacher’s Guide.
  • In Unit 1, Module A, Lesson 2, the teacher writes two high-frequency words: I and am. Students say and spell the words with and without the teacher. The teacher demonstrates the meaning of the high-frequency word in a sentence. Students are guided to use the high-frequency words in their own sentences.
  • In Unit 4, Module B, Lesson 7, the teacher writes three high-frequency words: here, go, and from. The students say and spell the words with and without the teacher. Students get to practice reading one of the high-frequency words in context in The Red Sleds, a text from Student Reader K.4.5.
  • In Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 11, the teacher displays the High-Frequency Word Cards for three, said, look and you. The teacher says “Some words we learn by remembering the letters.” Have the students say and spell each work, first with the teacher and then by themselves. Point to the letter h in have. “What is the letter and what is its sound?” Continue point out other familiar letter-sounds in the high-frequency words. Model using the words in sentences. Then guide students to say their own sentences using each of the words.

Materials provide students with multiple opportunities over the course of the year in core materials to purposefully read emergent-reader texts. Examples include:

• In Unit 1, Module A, Lessons 4-5, students read an emergent reader called Cat and Dog At School to develop automaticity in reading high-frequency words and identifying letters Aa, Bb, Cc, Dd, and Ee. Students reread the text for fluency practice.
• In Unit 2, Module B, Lessons 2-3, students read a text from the Student Reader K.2.4 called Winter Fun. Students read the title with the teacher. The teacher teaches the rebus words such as door, cold, snowballs, snowball, and snow. The students read book in pairs, switching readers after each page.
• In Unit 3, Module A, Lesson 12, students read Pam at Bat from the Student Reader K.3.3. Students read the text with the teacher as the teacher points to the words. Students are reminded to read words left to right, top to bottom, and page to page. Students read the story in pairs, switching readers after each page.
• In Unit 4, Module A, Lesson 12, students read from the Student Reader K.4.3, reading an emergent text called A Home for Flap. Students point to the title and read the title with the teacher. Students are reminded to read words left to right, top to bottom, and page to page. Students read the story in pairs, switching readers after each page.
• In Unit 5, Module B, Lesson 12, students read We Get Set from the Student Reader K.4.6. The teacher is directed to frame the word get on p. 2. Students find get on other pages. Students read the story in pairs, switching readers after each page.
• In Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 12, students read Where Do Animals Live? From the Student Reader K.6.6. Students read the title with the teacher and students read the text in pairs. Students reread the text to develop automaticity of high-frequency words and words with short and long vowels.

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

• Unit 1, Module B, Lesson 7, students are provided Student Reader K.1.5, Eat Together. The teacher writes Mom and says “This is the word Mom, Name the letters with me, m-o-m.” Repeat with talking, mixing, muffins, reading, mouse, eating, meatball, and mess. “Look for these words in the book we read today. There will be a picture above the word to help you read it.”
• Unit 3, Module A, Lesson 2, students are provided Student Reader K.3.1, The Baby Panda. The teacher writes zoo. “This is the word zoo. Name the letters with me: z-o-o.” Repeat with mom. “Look for these words in the book we read today. There will be a picture above the word to help you read it.”
• Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 12, students are provided Student Reader K.6.6, Where Do Animals Live? Have pairs read the story, switching readers after each page. Have students reread the story to develop automaticity reading high-frequency words and words with short and long vowel sounds.

The instructional materials reviewed for Kindergarten meet expectations that materials, questions, and tasks provide systematic and explicit instruction in and practice of word recognition and analysis skills in a research-based progression in connected text and tasks.

Materials support students’ development to learn grade-level word recognition and analysis skills in connected text and tasks. Materials also provide students frequent opportunities to read high-frequency words in connected text and tasks. For example:

• In Unit 1 Module A Lesson 1, students receive phonemic awareness instruction in rhyming words (word families -ap, -ig, etc.). Students practice saying words together as they listen to the middle and ending parts of the words. They identify which two of the three-word sets rhyme and say an additional words that rhymes with those two words.
  • Lesson 2 high-frequency words are part of instruction. Students are exposed to cards with the words, I and am. They are told that such words are learned by remembering the letters. Students respond by using the words in their own sentences.
  • Lesson 6 syllables are part of the instruction. Students are taught to clap words’ syllables while viewing picture cards (i.e., carrot, bus, crayon, bubble, duck).
• In Unit 3 Module B Lesson 1, students receive phonemic awareness instruction in isolating the initial sound of words with the /f/ sound. Students practice identifying words that begin with /f/, five, fingers, fort, fun, etc. When you hear a word that starts with the /f/ sound fan yourself.
  • Lesson 2 high-frequency words are part of instruction. Students are exposed to cards with the words, see, look, for. They are told that such words are learned by remembering the letters. Students respond by using the words in their own sentences.
  • Lesson 12 decoding is part of instruction. Students read student reader K.3.6 (Rob’s Dots). Children frame the word can on page 2, then look for the word can on other pages.
• Unit 6 Module A Lesson 1, students receive phonemic awareness instruction in long vowel /a/ sound. Students practice with the picture cards rake and lake. “What sound you you hear in the middle of rake? The vowel sound is /a/”. Continue with lake. Point to the picture that has the same vowel sound as rake.
  • Lesson 2 high-frequency words are part of instruction. Students are exposed to cards with the words, do little, with, what. They are told that such words are learned by remembering the letters. Students respond by using the words in their own sentences.
  • Lesson 6 phonics is part of instruction. Students are introduced to the ee, ea sounds. They practice with the leaf and queen picture card, then practice with the songs and rhymes chart (p.36) Quickly, Thump on the Mud. Students clap their hands when they hear a word with the long /e/ sound. Then students apply their skills by using letter tiles to make words with ee, ea.

Every lesson contains Small Group Options, Steps 1 and 2. Within Step 1, there is a Process and Strategy focus. Each lesson has one Process and one Strategy focus that is selected for that day’s lesson. Within the Strategy focus, there is a word recognition and decoding focus which is related to the Foundational Skills instruction time where children recognize high-frequency words and apply phonics strategies to decode new words. For example:

• In Unit 5, Module A, Lesson 7- Strategy and Focus is Decoding and Word Recognition: Guide children in recognizing and reading high- frequency words in their self-selected texts. Write the words yellow, green, blue, and for. Students go through the book looking for these words and marking them with a colored tab. Children can also log into Pearson Realize to find an Independent Reading Activity that is appropriate for the text they are reading.
• In Unit 6, Module B, Lesson 12, Teacher’s Guide p. 275 – Strategy Focus is Decoding and Word Recognition: Children point to several of the words they marked with tabs and read aloud the sentences in which the words appear. Children can also log into Pearson Realize and review with you the Independent Reading Activity they completed for their book. Further guidance can be found in the Independent Reading Routine on pp. TR16-TR23.

Within Step 2, there is a Phonics focus which guides the teacher to the Foundational Skills section of the Teacher’s Guide to guide instruction for helping students that struggled with the week’s foundational phonics skills.

Other opportunities to practice with text include:

• Leveled Text Library: Teachers model how to decode unfamiliar words by locating known word patterns.
• Kindergarten Student Reader: Students practice phonics skills and reread for fluency.
• Kindergarten I Can Read selections: Students practice reading.
• Big Books: All units include this resource. Teachers facilitate whole group instruction, including word recognition and analysis skills.