¡Arriba la lectura! - Grade 2

Evaluation for 2.1
Materials include high-quality texts for SLAR instruction and cover a range of student interests.

The materials are well-crafted and of publishable quality, representing the quality of the content, language, and writing that is produced by experts in various disciplines. The texts also include content that is engaging to second-grade students with materials that include traditional, contemporary, classical, and multicultural diverse texts. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials provide leveled readers that have authentically rich plot lines with diverse characters that students can relate to and engage with. Module 3, Week 3, includes the story “Pepita y la Peleonera” (Pepita and the Bully.) In this realistic fiction story, students read about a Hispanic girl named Pepita who must confront and learn how to get along with a school bully who is constantly making fun of her. Students can relate to this family because Pepita is given advice by her whole family on how to deal with the bully, a common occurrence for many students. The teacher monitors for comprehension by having the students find the theme of the story: “After the teacher reads the follow-up question, she guides children to use the topic (bullying) and the clues to figure out the theme and say it in their own words (Possible response: How you treat others can help you make or lose friends).” Students answer using a graphic organizer: “¿Qué aprende o enseña el personaje? ¿Qué mensaje me transmite el cuento?” The text considers a range of interests for students who are at this grade level, and students can identify with the characters.

The materials include high-quality texts and cover a wide range of student interests. In Module 4, Week 2, the materials use the fantasy text Una Gallina en Hollywood (Hollywood Chicken) by Lisa Fleming. This is a fantasy story that provides entertainment and is engaging for students. In the story, children meet an endearing chicken who goes to Hollywood to become a star. While making movies, she communicates in letters to her talent agent and also writes in her diary. Teachers help students analyze the use of figurative language by engaging students in critical thinking through probing questions. “Luz tells Chicken Lily that she knows ‘you will knock their socks off.’” The teacher asks the students if that is literal language. The students explain why or why not. The materials include instructions for the teacher, such as “Recuerde a los niños que el lenguaje figurado usa palabras que significan algo diferente de lo que dicen.” Using a graphic organizer, the students find figurative language the author used to make their writing colorful and interesting.

In Module 7, Week 2, “Todos tenemos una historia,” the materials provide text that includes other disciplines, like the Arts, that includes a biography about Frida Kahlo. In this biography of the famous Mexican artist, students learn how she overcame the struggles she encountered and how she persevered until becoming a world-renown artist. As the teacher and students read, the teacher stops to model synthesizing by using the “Think Alouds” resources provided in the “Teaching Pal” (student copy). Prompts provided in “Compañero de enseñanza” assist learners in understanding the concept. The teacher explains to students that “when good readers read a book about a person in history, they identify the important details.” Students make connections with real life by sharing with the class if they have ever painted a picture of something or of themselves. The materials include texts and biographies of people in history to grow knowledge. The text is authentic because it is only found in Spanish and is not a translated version.

The materials include informational text with rich vocabulary and language appropriate to the discipline it represents. In Module 9: “Hábitat, dulce hogar,” Week 2, the materials include informational texts about science that contain scientific context, vocabulary, and illustrations. Through reading a variety of texts and collaborative work, students explore how the conditions in different habitats help different animals to survive. In “Las nutrias marinas y sus cachorros,” students learn that sea otters take great care of their young. The informational text includes photographs, and students read about a sea otter’s development and characteristics of its habitat. The teacher uses the prompts from “Read for Understanding” and asks, “Why do you think that the mother sea otter teaches her pup to dive and find shellfish?” Students use the headings and labels to answer questions such as “¿Qué te indican el encabezado y los rótulos de esta página?” The language of this informational text reflects rich vocabulary and is language appropriate. 

The materials expose students to other cultures, beliefs, and customs through the use of stories. In Módulo 10, Week 1, “Muchas culturas, un solo mundo,” the essential question “¿Qué Podemos Aprender de Diferentes Pueblos y Culturas?” presents the students with a “Mapa de Conocimientos” section that summarizes the four weeks of learning. The main focus of this map is to provide information on daily living, respect, and traditions. The materials include three stories per week: “Sueños de los Niños del Mundo,” “Poemas en el Ático,” and the video “Así se Almuerza en Diferentes Países.” The materials include text that presents under-represented groups. Throughout the same module, the teacher explains that “Todos los textos de esta colección se relacionan con esta pregunta: ¿Qué podemos aprender de diferentes pueblos y culturas?” The materials include the text “Sueños de los niños del mundo,” which has students from thirteen different countries answer the question “What do you want to be when you grow up?” The book cover shows children from different races and ethnicities. The teacher’s actions include asking the students what questions they have about the children shown on the cover. This also reminds the teachers to use their questions to set a purpose for reading. 

In Module 10: “Muchas Culturas, Un solo Mundo,” the materials include texts that expose students to other cultures and customs. In Module 10, Week 2, students learn how May Day is celebrated in five different countries. Students are asked to tap into their prior knowledge to answer questions like “Why do you think people celebrate the beginning of Spring?” After students read and learn about May Day, they are asked to respond to literature and compare two celebrations on May Day. “Compara dos celebraciones de la Fiesta de Mayo.” The material provides an opportunity to learn about other cultures and customs.

Evaluation for 2.2
Materials include a variety of text types and genres across content that meet the requirements of the SLAR TEKS for each grade level.

The materials include a variety of text types and genres across content areas that meet the requirements of the second-grade Spanish Language Arts and Reading TEKS. Materials also provide opportunities for students to recognize the characteristics and structures of informational texts. Additionally, materials include informational texts that are connected to science and social studies in the TEKS for second grade. Furthermore, the texts offer illustrations, labels, descriptions, tables of contents, glossaries, and index pages to include opportunities for students to recognize characteristics and structures of literary and informational texts.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

Module 2: “¡Mira y Explora!,” “Mi Libro” offers the informational text Muchas Clases de Materia by Jennifer Boothroyd. The teacher tells the students that informational texts give facts about a topic, and the text is connected to science topics in the TEKS. Students learn about the three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas, as well as how states of matter can change. The students see examples of each state of matter and are encouraged to find different states of matter in their classroom. At the end of the selection, there is an activity for students to work in pairs or small groups where they can work on inference skills. Students have an academic discussion and use the “Turn and Talk” routine to compare the types of matter.

Module 5: Toma la Iniciativa offers the informational text Conoce a los perros de la granja Bedlam by Jon Katz. The teacher explains that the story shows us the story of four rescued dogs and the different ways they help around the farm where they live. The text goes into detail regarding how the dogs perform duties that help cattle stay together during feeding times and how they offer protection and structure to other animals on the farm. The book can be found for students and teachers in “Libros and Super Libros Para la Lectura en Voz Alta.”

Module 6: “Hablemos del Estado del Tiempo” offers the informational text La Historia de la Nieve by Mark Cassino. The teachers explain that this text is connected to science topics in the TEKS. The materials include text features, such as subtitles and photographs, to guide students through the process of learning where snow comes from as well as characteristics of snow. At the end of the selection, the materials offer an activity where students can learn how to catch snow at home in order to be able to look at it with a magnifying glass to study the structure of a snowflake. The book can be found for students and teachers in “Libros and Super Libros Para la Lectura en Voz Alta.”

Module 10: “Muchas Culturas, un solo Mundo” offers the informative text Sueños de los niños del mundo by Takashi Owaki. The teacher explains that the story contains text features such as photographs and descriptions that tell us the story of children from thirteen different countries (in five different continents) and what they want to become when they grow up. At the end of the selection, the materials offer a world map highlighting the countries where the thirteen children come from. It also includes one last question that asks the reader what they want to become when they grow up. The book can be found for students and teachers in “Libros and Super Libros Para la Lectura en Voz Alta.”

Evaluation for 2.3
Texts, including read-aloud texts in K-2 and shared reading in Grade 2, are appropriately challenging, and are at an appropriate level of complexity to support students at their grade level.

The materials provide texts, including read-aloud texts and shared readings, that are appropriately challenging and are at an appropriate level of complexity to support students at the second-grade level. The texts are accompanied by a text complexity analysis provided by the publisher. Read-aloud and shared-reading texts are at the appropriate quantitative levels, with Lexile levels ranging from BR300L to 2000L. Texts are rated from A to Z, and they include qualitative features that are assessed using a rubric. Based on the rubric score, texts are assigned a qualitative rating from Simple to Exceedingly Complex and are mostly above the complexity level of what second-grade students can read independently.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

Module 2: “¡Mira y Explora!,” “Mi Libro” offers the text “Muchas Clases de Materia” by Jennifer Boothroyd. This informational text introduces the three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas, as well as how states of matter can change. The quantitative features of the materials are Lexile Level 530L and a Guided Reading Level of M. Qualitative features considered include graphic features such as illustrations, labels, and descriptions for the understanding of the central idea and key details.

Module 5: “Toma la Iniciativa,” offers the book “Conoce a los perros de la granja Bedlam” by Jon Katz. This informational text shows us the story of four rescued dogs and the different ways they help around the farm where they live. The quantitative features of the materials are Lexile Level 640L and a Guided Reading Level of J. Qualitative features considered include graphic features such as illustrations for the understanding of the central idea and key details. 

Module 11: “Estudio del género: No ficción,” offers the book “Oscar y la polilla” by Geoff Waring. This narrative, non-fiction text shows the story of a moth that helps Oscar, a kitten, to find out where light comes from, how shadows exist, and why it gets dark at night. The quantitative features of the materials are Lexile Level 630L and a Guided Reading Level of E. Qualitative features considered include graphic features such as illustrations to understand the central idea and key details.

Evaluation for 3.A.1
Materials contain questions and tasks that support students in synthesizing knowledge and ideas to deepen understanding and identify and explain topics and themes.

The materials contain questions and tasks that support students in synthesizing knowledge and ideas to deepen understanding and identify and explain topics and themes. Questions and tasks build conceptual knowledge, are text-dependent, and prompt students to synthesize new information through read-aloud texts, writing tasks, and “Inquiry and Research” projects. Most formal and informal assignments and activities focus on texts students are reading/listening to through read-alouds, shared reading, and videos and require close attention to the meaning and inferences as students demonstrate comprehension. Questions and activities grow students’ understanding of topics and literacy skills over the course of each unit. Each text has two or more stopping points for student discussions, providing opportunities for students to evaluate and discuss information from multiple places within a text.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 3, “Pongámonos de acuerdo,” the materials provide questions and tasks to build conceptual knowledge; they are text-dependent and prompt students to synthesize new information that supports students in examining complex elements of texts. Early in the module, the teacher is asked to tell the students that the theme of a story is the big idea, moral, or lesson the author wants readers to take away from the story. The teacher projects “Cartel didáctico: Mensaje.” The materials prompt the teacher to identify the story’s topic. The teacher prompts students to explain how understanding the lesson a character learns or teaches will help them figure out the theme of a story. These informal assignments and activities focus on texts students are reading/listening to and require close attention to the meaning and inferences as students demonstrate comprehension. Some of the questions the teacher asks are: “What lesson does this character learn or teach? What message can I take away from reading?” During another read-aloud, students respond to questions by drawing on textual evidence to support their learning of explicit facts and inferences in a text. The read-aloud “Mango, abuela y yo” contains a “Point of View” section that asks the teacher to refer to “PagiNotas,” a document for teachers that suggests questions based on the text. The teacher reads aloud to children, occasionally pausing to ask the questions on PagiNotas and to note clues they can use to figure out the point of view. The teacher refers back to the “Cartel Didáctico” to discuss how they determined the story’s point of view. The questions and activities grow students’ understanding of topics and literacy skills over the course of each unit. Some of the questions are: “¿Por qué creen que Abuela tiene una pluma de un pájaro en su maleta? ¿Cómo se siente Mía al no poder hablar con Abuela? ¿Cómo ayuda a Abuela a aprender inglés el juego ‘Oye y di’? y ¿Por qué todavía extraña su antigua casa, Abuela, pero ‘ahora solo un poco’?”

In Module 6, “Hablemos del Estado del Tiempo,” the materials provide opportunities for students to evaluate and discuss information from multiple places within a text. In the module, students work together to create a brochure about weather. Teachers ask students to brainstorm research questions about extreme weather and how to stay safe. Students come up with questions to revisit after they have completed their projects. Later in the module, the students elaborate on an investigation plan that helps them answer the questions from their investigation. The teacher encourages the students to create their products using different formats (written, visual, media).

Module 7, “Todos tenemos una historia,” the Teacher’s Guide, in the section “Introduce the theme” includes the Essential Question “¿Cómo moldean nuestra vida las experiencias?” This section allows students to explain, connect, and synthesize what they learned based on the targeted skill. Later in the module, the teacher introduces the topic “Personas importantes” and asks the students to brainstorm using words associated with important people and write them on a concept map. Some of the suggestions include objectives, life, honor, and talent.

Evaluation for 3.A.2
Materials contain questions and tasks that require students to evaluate the language, key ideas, details, craft, and structure of individual texts.

The materials contain questions and tasks that require students to evaluate the language, key idea, and details of individual texts to support students’ analysis of the literary/textual elements of texts to make inferences and draw conclusions about the author’s purpose in cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support student understanding.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 1, “Como el mejor Ciudadano,” the materials include questions and tasks that require readers to identify and support the author’s purpose. Earlier in the module, the teacher tells students that authors have a specific reason for writing a text. Students analyze, make inferences, and draw conclusions about the author's purpose in cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students work on identifying the author’s purpose and how this helps readers understand the text and understand what the author wants the reader to learn. The teacher projects “Cartel didáctico” on the author’s purpose. The module offers the fiction text El Desfile de las Nubes by Carlos Zamora. Students study the language within texts to support their understanding. The teacher points out the acronym “PIE” to help children remember the three purposes authors write: to persuade, to inform, and to entertain. Towards the end of the lesson, the teacher reads aloud the information about the three purposes for writing. The teacher works with children to brainstorm a list of genres. For each genre, they discuss clues that might signal the type of writing it is. “When I see photographs with captions, I think that I am going to read an informational text” and “When I see many illustrations, I think that I am going to read a story.” Students analyze the author’s choices and how they influence and communicate meaning. The teacher models by asking questions to determine the author's purpose: “Does the author want to entertain me?” and “Is the author trying to teach me something?”

In Module 5, “Toma la Iniciativa,” the Teacher's Guide includes the section “Lectura en voz alta,” which contains questions that can be answered by referring back to the text. Earlier in the module, the materials offer the read-aloud El parque de mis sueños by Kate Becker. The teacher asks the students to compare and contrast the stated purposes of different authors’ writing on the same topic. The section “Leer y comprender” includes the following teacher actions: “Pause occasionally to ask questions from ‘Paginotas’; Ask students to pay attention to external characteristics of characters; Point out ‘Cartel Didactico’ to guide students to use what they know about the girl to understand why she reacts a certain way when she faces a challenge.” 

Module 5, “Toma la Iniciativa,” includes questions and tasks that require readers to identify and support the author's purpose of both general topic and specific author’s literary choice. Materials analyze the author's choices and how they influence and communicate meaning; they also note how authors often write advertisements and speeches to persuade, nonfiction books and articles to inform, and stories and plays to entertain. The author’s purpose goes beyond simply to persuade, inform, or entertain. The purpose can usually be stated as a more focused statement, such as “The author’s purpose is to inform readers about how various animals build their habitats in the rainforest.” Also, within the module, teachers guide students to identify the author’s purpose by probing questions, such as “Does the title of the text tell you anything about the author’s purpose? What is the genre? How can knowing the genre help you figure out the author’s purpose? Is the author trying to get you to do something or to believe something? What words in the text make you think so?” Students are guided to use a graphic organizer to identify supporting ideas to understand what they are reading independently. The materials include questions and tasks that require readers to identify and support the author’s purpose. 

Evaluation for 3.A.3
Materials include a cohesive, year-long plan for students to interact with and build key academic vocabulary in and across texts.

The materials include a year-long plan for building academic vocabulary, including ways to apply words in appropriate contexts. Materials also include scaffolds and supports for teachers to differentiate vocabulary development for all learners. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 1, “Vocabulario Académico: Presentar el Lenguaje Oral,” the materials provide guidance about supporting cross-content vocabulary development throughout the year. The teacher introduces the “Oral Language” activity by following three steps: “I Do It, We Do It, You Do It.” The teacher uses oral power words from the read-aloud book Conoce a los perros de la granja Bedlam by Jon Katz. During the “I Do It” step, the Teacher’s Guide instructs the teacher to use the vocabulary routine and vocabulary cards to introduce the oral power words from Conoce a los perros de la granja Bedlam. The teacher displays the corresponding vocabulary card for each word as it is discussed in class. The teacher asks the students to repeat the words and explain the meaning. After that, the teacher reads aloud the student-friendly meaning and talks about examples. The materials include a section in each module for building academic vocabulary, including ways to apply words in appropriate contexts. That section allows the students to have many opportunities to see and actively use the words in various contexts that reinforce their meaning. Towards the middle of the module, under the “We Do It” step, the teacher guides students to make connections between each word’s meaning and how they can use it in their own lives by using prompts such as “What kind of worker guards children on the playground? What does the worker do? Which is more serious, a cartoon or a movie about history? Why? What might happen that would make you feel carefree? Who might guide you on a trip to a museum? How would that person act? What images do you like to remember? Why?” During the “You Do It” (independent practice) step, the students work in pairs to complete each of the activities: “Draw a picture of someone who guards a store. Include a sign that helps to guide people in the store. Describe what kinds of images you would want to hang on your wall at home. Role-Play to show how your face looks as you change from serious to carefree.”

Materials include a year-long plan for building academic vocabulary, including ways to apply words in appropriate contexts. The materials introduce vocabulary through various forms. The materials offer students precise definitions of words (e.g., includes a glossary or defines the word in the margins of the story). In every module in second grade, the online version of the text gives the student the opportunity to access the digital glossary. As the student reads the text, the vocabulary words that are introduced at the beginning of the unit are included in the text. The students hover over the highlighted word, and an information box with the word appears, with the pronunciation, definition, and sentence with the word included. The information is also read to the student by clicking on the icon of a megaphone. The hard copy of each book contains the same glossary at the back of the book, along with a picture of the vocabulary word. The materials’ instruction focuses on how to pronounce each word, understand its meaning, and use it in context. The materials introduce vocabulary through various forms.

Evaluation for 3.A.4
Materials include a clearly defined plan to support and hold students accountable as they engage in self-sustained reading.

The materials include procedures and protocols, along with adequate support to guide teachers through implementation, that foster self-sustained reading as appropriate. Materials provide a plan for students to self-select texts and read independently for sustained periods of time, including planning and accountability for achieving independent reading goals.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The Teacher’s Guide offers guided reading support to build knowledge and develop reading independence using leveled texts during small-group guided reading. The materials offer “Rigby Leveled Reader” books that include select texts for guided reading instruction. There are 90 books overall, between fiction and informational genre ranging from levels I through N, 15 titles per level. 

The materials allow opportunities for students to self-select their reading. In the “Guiding Principles and Strategies” resource for teachers’ advice, under the “Setting Goals and Responding to Reading” tab about how to encourage independent reading for a sustained period of time, the Teacher’s Guide suggests that when it comes to the time children read in one sitting, starting small is key. At the beginning of the year, that could look something like this: 5 to 10 minutes of reading, a body break, and then another 5 to 10 minutes of reading. The materials emphasize that the more children read, the more they will be able to read. Teachers encourage the students to set reading goals, such as reading to themselves for 10 minutes, tracking their progress by using Printable: Reading Log (Registro de Lectura), or by making a graph. As children move into reading time, they set reading goals. Materials provide a plan for students to self-select texts and read independently for a sustained period of time, including planning and accountability for achieving independent reading goals. The materials offer a wide variety of texts included in the Rigby Leveled Readers collection. The materials offer books in different genres, such as informational, fiction, non-fiction, and fantasy, and a wide array of reading levels ranging from Lexile Levels 190L to 570 and Guided Reading Level D to L. 

In Module 3: “¡Pongámonos de acuerdo!” the materials offer a printable “Family Letter” to send home, which includes a section titled “Leamos juntos” intended to inform parents of what students will be working on for the next three weeks and outline ways that they can help promote a positive reading environment at home. The letter includes tips for parents to support children’s learning at home, such as setting a special time and place to read with their child every day and having them keep a reading log, which is also available for the teacher to print for each student. Additionally, the family letter includes suggestions for parents to use when questioning to check for comprehension during and after students have read a text, such as “¿Qué piensas que pasará? ¿Por qué? ¿Qué ocurrió al principio, durante el medio y el final del cuento? ¿Qué crees que eso significa? ¿Cómo lo sabes?” The materials include procedures and protocols, along with adequate support for teachers, that foster independent reading. The Teacher’s Guide states that the teacher should encourage a minimum reading time of 15–20 minutes at home since research has proven that reading for that designated amount of time exposes students to 1.8 million words a year. Additionally, it recommends that parents try some easy-to-follow activities while reading together, such as pointing to the pictures and illustrations and talking about how those illustrations relate to friendship. The materials suggest the parents ask their children, “¿Por qué es importante escuchar a los demás? ¿Por qué debemos ser respetuosos?”

In Module 6: “Hablemos del estado del tiempo,” the materials offer the non-fictional text El tiempo está loco by Thomas Kingsley Troupe and suggest the following activities to teachers to ensure comprehension during and after reading together. The teacher asks students to raise their hands every time the text mentions the weather. In this particular text, students are expected to successfully identify when the weather changes in the story. The vivid illustrations from the story assist all learners in successfully identifying every time the weather changes. The materials offer an additional activity once students have finished reading the text; they work in pairs and pretend that they are informing each other about local current weather conditions. Students are expected to use some of the new vocabulary words they learned in this text to create this information. 

Procedures and protocols, along with adequate support for teachers, are provided to foster

independent reading. Module 9: “Hábitat dulce hogar” provides lessons on Foundational Skills where students learn about compound words, the prefix pre, multisyllabic words, and blending phonemes. After each lesson, the students are instructed to apply the skill to independent reading using a graphic organizer. They are instructed to do things such as find the compound words inside the text and find words that contain the prefix pre. The teacher is instructed to meet with students to work in small groups to assist those students who are struggling. The teacher follows the lessons outlined in the “Tabletop minilessons” booklet provided with the materials to address skills like retelling, summarizing, and applying the concept to the current text. Teachers are directed to encourage the other students to do independent work using the “Know it, Show it” worksheets available for teachers to print as needed. 

Evaluation for 3.B.1
Materials provide support for students to compose across text types for a variety of purposes and audiences.

The materials provide support for students to compose across text types for a variety of purposes and audiences. Students have opportunities to dictate or write literary texts with multiple intentions and audiences, including but not limited to poetry using poetry elements and personal narratives that convey their thoughts and feelings about an experience. Additionally, the materials provide students opportunities to dictate or write informational texts, including procedural texts and reports about a topic. Finally, the materials also provide students opportunities to dictate or write correspondence, including thank you notes and letters.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

in Module 2, “¡Mira y explora!,” the materials provide students opportunities to write literary texts for multiple purposes and audiences. The students write personal narratives that convey their thoughts and feelings about an experience. Students write a personal narrative about something that they did to make the world a better place. The teacher provides support to help students grow their composition skills. After reading the text “Solo un sueño” by Chris Van Allsburg, the teacher reminds students that this story is a narrative text. The teacher refers to the Anchor Chart “Steps to Writing” and guides children to see that a narrative uses a story form. The teacher says, “El autor escribe una historia acerca del medio ambiente. ¿Por que crees que autor escribió acerca de esto?” The writing process includes “Mostrar y motivar” resource and offers guidance for teachers to deliver the writing narrative lessons. The materials include charts, a sample of a personal narrative, and strategies on how students share their narratives with the audience. 

In Module 8, “Tiempo de Crecer,” the materials provide guidance for teaching all the elements of the writing process throughout the school year, as well as guidance for scaffolding the process. In the Writer’s Workshop, students move from their notes to their drafts. The teacher displays “Mostrar y motivar” and reads through the model text with the children. During the “Think Aloud” portion of the lesson, the teacher reads through the beginning of the paragraph, and students find the word primero. This signal word lets students know to start their list with this step. The teacher keeps reading and points out the word segundo. Students write this step after the first step. The teacher continues to read, prompting the students to look for other words that show them the order of the steps like next and then. The teacher ensures that children can explain how they transition from one step to the next. Building this list helps students think about the correct order for the steps when they write about an activity in paragraph form. 

In Module 10: “Atrevete a Soñar,” students have the opportunity to write correspondence. Materials include a correspondence segment, “Comentar tipos de correspondencia.” The teacher displays Anchor Chart “Types of Correspondence” and discusses the difference between notes and letters. The teacher explains to students that a thank-you letter is one type of correspondence, which is a written communication such as notes, letters, or email. Next, the teacher discusses with students why people write letters. Students are guided to see that the purpose of a thank-you letter is to express your appreciation for a present or an experience.

In Module 11, “Estudio de género: No Ficción,” students dictate or write personal narratives that convey their thoughts and feelings about an experience. Included in the materials is La montaña rusa by Marla Frazee. The teacher reads aloud the book title and asks children to share what they know about roller coasters. Students volunteer to share experiences they have had with riding a roller coaster or another amusement park or fair rides, such as the Ferris wheel, the mechanical swings, or the giant slide. To connect with writing, teachers read the following sentence: “La primera vez que hacemos algo nuevo, puede ser interesante o puede ser temeroso. Piensa cuando tu intentaste hacer algo nuevo. Escribe acerca de tu experiencia y sobre algo que no querías hacer.” Children write their topics in a Writer's notebook or their own notebooks. Teachers will remind them that the activity should be one that they can easily write about in detail to include quién, qué, dónde, por qué, cuándo, and cómo. The materials provide teacher support to help students grow their composition skills. For example, the materials offer guidance in the use of graphic organizers to help students develop their composition skills.

Evaluation for 3.B.2
Materials engage students in the writing process to develop text in oral, pictorial, or written form.

The materials engage students in the writing process to develop text in oral, pictorial, or written form. Students coherently use the elements of the writing process (planning, drafting, revising, editing, and sharing/publishing) to compose text; students draw and brainstorm to generate drafts and organize their drafts by speaking, drawing, or writing. Students organize drafts by writing based on an idea and details. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 1, “Como el Mejor Ciudadano,” the materials provide resources and activities for explicit instruction in the writing process. For example, for a pre-writing activity, every module, including this one, has a section called “Actividades previas a la escritura.” Throughout this module, students use a three-column chart with the headings “amigos, familia y comunidad” to brainstorm ideas for their writing, set goals, and begin prewriting their personal narrative. The section provides “Mostrar y motivar” with writing prompts: “Read the following sentence: Write a story about something you made to make the world a better place. Think about an action that you did that made someone or something better. Write about that action. Describe the action and explain how it made the world a better place.” 

In Module 5: “Toma la Iniciativa,” the materials support teachers in providing students support to grow their composition skills. In this module, the students explore things that make them unique and write a personal essay about what makes them unique to share with others. The teacher points out that no two people are exactly the same and that our differences are what make us special and unique. The materials include a Think Aloud activity introduced in the module that the teacher reads aloud: “When I was in the second grade, I had brown hair that I wore in two long braids. My mother would tie a colorful ribbon to each of my braids. I had a matching set of ribbons for every dress. I was very tall, and people always asked me if I liked to play basketball. I did not. I liked to play soccer instead.” After reading the prompt, the teacher asks the students, “What details tell you more about me? How could I show these ideas in a drawing?” This activity helps students spark brainstorming ideas as a class for an “All About Me” assignment. The teacher creates a web on chart paper to capture children’s ideas. She asks questions to help children focus on what makes them unique. Later, the teacher gives children time to draw pictures of themselves and encourages them to label unique things about themselves as they draw, such as red hair, freckles, braces, curly hair, bike riding, or singing. The teacher guides the students to share their pictures with a writing partner and reminds them to listen respectfully while they share their ideas. She explains that one way to demonstrate respectful listening is by looking at someone while he or she is speaking. 

In Module 10: “Muchas Culturas, un solo Mundo,” the materials facilitate students’ coherent use of the elements of the writing process. Students recall the selection Where on Earth Is My Bagel? (¿Adónde fue a parar mi rosquilla?) by Frances and Ginger Park. The materials instruct teachers to tell students that before writing the story, the author had to pick a topic, bagels, and find information about how bagels are made. After that, the teacher displays the Anchor Chart “Follow a Research Plan.” The teacher uses the Anchor Chart to explain how an author gets information about a topic. The teacher discusses the importance of following the steps of the research plan in order. The teacher reviews steps 1–3 and explains that resources can be found at the library or online. The materials offer suggestions for students to write questions about the topic in a notebook or on index cards. Continuing with steps 4–7, students take notes in response to the questions they asked in Step 2. Students sequence the notes they take in the order they want to include the information in their report. Finally, students discuss the different ways they might present the information they gathered about a topic.

Evaluation for 3.B.3
Over the course of the year, students are provided opportunities to apply grade-level standard Spanish conventions to their writing.

Over the course of the year, students are provided opportunities to apply grade-level standard Spanish conventions to their writing. The materials include opportunities for the practice and application of the conventions of academic language when speaking and writing, including punctuation and grammar. Grammar, punctuation, and usage are taught systematically, both in and out of context. Although there is some evidence of introduction to accent-marked words in the form of verbs and nouns review, the materials lack evidence on systematic accent rule instruction. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 2, “¡Mira y explora!,” the materials provide opportunities for practice and application of the conventions of academic language when speaking and writing, as noted in the “Oral Language” section in each module. The module shares information and ideas that focus on the topic under discussion, speaking clearly at an appropriate pace and using the conventions of language. Later in the module, the oral language section provides support to the teacher in the use of formal and informal language. The students brainstorm times when they should use informal and times when they should use formal language. The teacher says, “How would you greet the principal if he/she came to the classroom? How would you greet a friend on the playground?” The teacher explains the difference between asking and telling if you want someone to do something. She provides examples and says, “Can you please walk the dog?” or “Please walk the dog, now.”

In Module 5, “Toma la Iniciativa,” the materials offer multiple ways for students to write about their learning. In this module, there are some activities under the “Writer’s Workshop” focused on “Character Traits.” The teacher tells the children that they will write a personal essay. The teacher remarks that a personal essay is one type of informational text and explains that they will write about something that makes them unique in this personal essay. The teacher displays the “Mostrar y motivar 5.3a’ slide” and reads the writing prompt aloud. The Teacher’s Guide instructs the teacher to remind children of Molly Lou Melon’s unique character traits (short, buck teeth, positive attitude, self-confidence) and explain that we all have unique characteristics like Molly Lou Melon. Children revisit the prior lesson where they drew and labeled pictures of themselves to think about the things that make them unique or special. Students use the Writer’s Notebook “Cuaderno” to record ideas about what makes them unique. Students are aware that they need to list the things that make them special inside the heart. 

In Module 9, “Habitat, Dulce Hogar,” the materials provide opportunities for practice and application of the conventions of academic language when speaking and writing, including punctuation and grammar. In this module, the Writer’s Workshop introduces compound sentences. The materials explain how writers use different kinds of sentences to make writing flow smoothly and be easy to understand. Simple and compound sentences (oraciones compuestas) are used to make sentences different lengths and keep readers interested. Materials introduce conjunctions. They explain how they can be used to connect ideas. The teacher says, “Words like and, but, and or, help us connect ideas in writing.” The teacher discusses how the conjunction in each example is used to join two ideas and reads the list of conjunctions. The teacher asks for a volunteer to use the conjunction and in a sentence and writes the sentence on the board. Later, the teacher asks, “What two ideas are being joined?” and underlines those ideas.

In Module 4, “Había una Vez,” grammar, punctuation, and usage are taught systematically, both in and out of context. The materials include units dedicated to teaching punctuation and grammar. However, the materials do not include explicit and systematic instruction on accent lessons. The “Grammar Scope & Sequence” details the path through the “Grammar Minilessons” in the Writing Workshop Teacher’s Guide, along with links to the “Grammar Display and Engage” projectables and printables. In this module, the grammar lesson is about verbs in past tense. The teacher shows the “Mostrar y motivar: Gramatica” chart to explain to the students that “if the action happened at a specific time, the endings are -é, -í; -aste, -iste; -ó; -amos, -imos; -aron, -eron. If the action lasted a long time, the endings are -aba, -ía; -abas, -ías; -aba, -ía; -ábamos, -íamos; -aban, -ían.” Words like “ayer” or “anoche” give clues that an action happened in the past. The materials provide support for the teacher to model forming past-tense verbs by adding -ó to verbs. “Write: Anoche mamá (cocina, cocinó) verduras.” 

In Module 12, “Estudio del género: Textos Literarios,” the materials include lessons on the “Mostrar y motivar: Gramática 6.1.2a” slide. The teacher explains that a diphthong (diptongo) is a group of different vowels pronounced in the same syllable. The teacher writes the following examples on the board: viaje, suave, cuadrado. The teacher explains that a hiatus is a group of different vowels pronounced in different syllables. In Spanish, there are closed vowels: i, u; and open vowels: a, e, o; to form a diphthong, at least one of the vowels has to be weak (closed), and it must not have an accent mark. If the closed vowel has an accent mark, there is no diphthong but a hiatus (hiato). Students practice words with diphthongs and hiatus on a separate worksheet. There is minimal systematic and explicit evidence regarding lessons on orthographic accent marks.

Evaluation for 3.B.4
Materials include practice for students to write legibly in print (K-1) and cursive (Grade 2).

Materials include instruction and practice for students to write legibly in print. The materials include a plan for procedures and supports for teachers to assess students’ handwriting development.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 3: “Pongámonos de Acuerdo,” the materials include instruction in cursive handwriting for students. The module includes the “Demostrar la caligrafía” section for the teacher to model handwriting. The teacher models on the board how to write uppercase M, N, V, and X. Additionally, the teacher points out that uppercase M and N are formed with slanted lines, but lowercase m and n are formed with curved lines. Printables for Continuous Stroke letter forms are also available for students’ further practice.

In Module 4, “Había una vez,” the materials include instruction in print and cursive handwriting for students. The module offers varied activities to support instruction in print and cursive handwriting. Instructions in print are included within the module under the “Ortografía” section. The beginning of the module provides guidelines for teachers about modeling how to write uppercase and lowercase “Ñ, ñ.” The instructions are provided in Spanish in the Teacher’s Guide. The materials provide explicit instruction for teaching cursive by suggesting the teacher introduce one cursive letter at a time. The teacher starts with lowercase letters and those with similar forms: c, a, d, and g, followed by uppercase. Handwriting cursive models are found under the printable resources that offer a model for each letter of the alphabet and space for students to practice writing it. The letters are distributed in the lessons of the modules. 

In Module 5, “Toma la iniciativa,” the materials provide guidelines for teachers on modeling how to write lowercase cursive letters a, d, and o. The Teacher’s Guide shows how to start at the middle line and curve down to the bottom line to form the letters. The teacher asks the students: “¿Por donde empecé a dibujar cada letra?” After modeling for students, the materials include the “Know It, Show It” printable pages where students practice their cursive letters Xx, Ww, Aa, Dd, and Oo.

In Module 8, “Tiempo de Crecer,” the materials offer ideas for students to be able to take ownership of their learning; however, there was no explicit evidence of any teacher guidance for assessing, measuring, and supporting students’ handwriting development. The materials include workstations for students to read and practice handwriting. One of these workstations includes “Word Work.” The students work with their weekly words; they choose an activity to work on based on a checklist from the “Spelling and Handwriting Printable.” When students complete their activity, they verify if they trace their letters correctly by reflecting on the following questions: 

• Do my letters touch the line? 
• Can others read what I wrote?
• Did I leave enough space between words and sentences?
• What word did I write better? (The students put a star on the side of that word and respond why it is better.)

Evaluation for 3.C.1
Materials support students’ listening and speaking about texts.

Materials support students’ listening and speaking about texts by providing students the opportunity to listen actively and ask questions to understand information. There is evidence of consistent opportunities for students to engage in discussions that require them to share information and ideas about the topics they are discussing. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 3, “Pongámonos de Acuerdo,” the teacher practices active listening by acting out a scene from the book Three Hens and a Peacock by Lester L. Laminack. The students then guess what book he/she is acting out. Using the same text, students engage in a writing activity and choose a character from the story to draw a picture to show what that animal does well. Students write a sentence to explain why that animal is important to everyone on the farm. The teacher encourages them to use evidence from the book to craft their responses.

In Module 8, “Tiempo de Crecer,” the materials provide opportunities for students to listen actively and to ask questions to understand information. For example, the Teacher’s Guide includes “Check for Understanding” questions at the end of the read-aloud De semilla a planta by Gail Gibbons. The teacher reads the focal text “De semilla a planta” and asks the students, “Why do you think the author wrote this book? What was her purpose in writing the story this way?” The teacher and students talk about how the topic relates to the focus statement. The teacher uses questions such as “What in the story happens in a certain order? Why is it important for these steps to happen in this order?”

In Module 9, “Hábitat, Dulce Hogar,” the materials provide activity ideas for teachers to practice active listening. The module presents the informational text The Long, Long Journey by Sandra Markle. The teacher reads the text and then asks students to support their understanding of the book. Questions such as “What questions did you ask yourself about the godwit before, during and after reading? How did your questions help you understand the text? How does this help them survive?” Students listen carefully and kindly and engage in discussion with a partner. They listen actively to each other because when the activity is over, they share what they liked about their partner’s idea. 

In Module 10, “Muchas Culturas, un solo Mundo,” the materials provide opportunities for students to share information through collaborative activities, such as “Stand Up, Hand Up, Pair, Up,” and “Round Robin.” In this module, the “Teaching Pal,” which complements the Teacher’s Guide, provides instructional notes with directions on how to guide discussions for different purposes. The module offers the non-fiction narrative text La Fiesta de Mayo en el Mundo by Tori Telfer. The students use the details in the story to answer questions, as well as to make and confirm predictions. The teacher asks the following questions to guide students through the making and confirming prediction process: “How did using headings and other text features help you make predictions before and during reading? What did you get right? What turned out to be different? How are celebrations alike and how are they different? What was the author's purpose in writing this text?”

Evaluation for 3.C.2
Materials engage students in collaborative discussions.

Materials provide students consistent opportunities to engage in collaborative discussions by practicing grade-appropriate speaking skills using the standard conventions of Spanish language. Additionally, the students have the opportunity to develop social communication skills that are appropriate to their grade level.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 1, “Como el Mejor Ciudadano,” the materials provide consistent opportunities for students to engage in discussion. The module is divided into a three-week span, and students collaborate to generate ideas, research, complete, and present an inquiry-based project to make a mural showing community or school helpers. As a culminating activity, students take turns presenting their descriptions of parts of the mural. The teacher asks presenters to speak loudly and clearly. The audience is to sit quietly and listen attentively. Students are given the opportunity to integrate talk in the classroom.

In Module 6, “Hablemos del Estado del Tiempo,” the materials provide consistent opportunities for students to engage in discussions. They include protocols for students to practice speaking and listening. For example, the material includes activities such as “Turn and talk” protocols in the teacher guide: “Speak clearly when you share your ideas. Do not speak too fast or too slow. I think that....” This module includes the non-fiction text “The weather is crazy.” After reading the text, the students turn and talk using the following questions provided in the teacher guide: “Why is the job of a meteorologist important? How can you use the text and the illustrations to find and understand the water cycle? How are a hurricane and tornado alike?”

In Module 10, “Muchas Culturas, un solo Mundo,” the materials include research-based opportunities for integrating talk in the classroom consistent with a gradual release of the responsibility model of instruction. The module introduces the text “Culturas del Mundo.” Language development in Spanish encourages participation. In order to help children participate in the conversation about the topic, the teacher asks, “What is something special about your culture? What would you like to learn about different people? Why do you think it is important to know about people from other cultures?”

Evaluation for 3.D.1
Materials engage students in both short-term and sustained recursive inquiry processes for different purposes.

Materials engage students in both short-term and sustained recursive inquiry processes for different purposes by providing students with opportunities to ask and generate general questions for inquiry and generate and follow a research plan with adult assistance when applicable.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 7: “Todos tenemos una historia,” the materials support instruction for students to ask and generate general questions for inquiry with adult assistance. In this module, everyone has a story. The materials provide lessons about a research project. First, the teacher projects or displays “Anchor Chart 45: Research Questions” (“Cartel didáctico 45: Preguntas de investigación”). The teacher explains that before beginning to research, it is important to write research questions. Looking for answers to questions helps guide the information you look for and makes certain all of the research is about the topic. Teachers use the Anchor Chart to explain how to write the best research questions. “First, discuss steps 1–3. Compare the steps to brainstorming.” The materials guide the teacher to say, “It’s fine to begin by writing a long list of questions. But you want to remove any questions that are off-topic or can be answered with yes or no, so you find the best information about your topic.” The teacher reviews print and digital sources children may use, such as books, websites, and magazine and newspaper articles.

In Module 8: “Tiempo de Crecer,” the materials support instruction for students to generate and follow a research plan with adult assistance. In this module, students learn about the growth of plants and what they need to thrive. Students are assigned a different type of environment, such as a desert or a rainforest. Students work in groups to learn about what types of plants grow in these environments and what they need to grow. Then students write and present a book about how to care for one type of plant that grows in their assigned environment. Students generate research questions and then create a research plan that helps them answer their research questions. Students look at informational books and approved websites for information about the plants in their environment. They can also look at magazines, newspapers, catalogs, and printable content for pictures.

In Module 9: “Hábitat, dulce hogar,” the materials support instruction for students to ask and generate general questions for inquiry with adult assistance. For example, the materials have suggested topics at the end of each unit that students can use to generate questions, as well as suggestions for places to gather information from a variety of sources. In this module, students are supported to complete a three-week inquiry and research project about habitats. They demonstrate understanding of information gathered from their observations, books, approved websites, magazines, newspapers, and catalogs and work collaboratively with others by following agreed-upon rules for discussion, including listening to others, speaking when recognized, making appropriate contributions, and building on the ideas of others. The students are divided into small groups of 3 or 4 students. Teachers use the Think-Pair-Share routine to have children brainstorm research questions about their habitats that they hope their research will help answer. The teacher makes a note of children’s questions to revisit after they have completed their projects.

Evaluation for 3.E.1
Materials contain interconnected tasks that build student knowledge.

Materials contain interconnected tasks that build student knowledge through questions and tasks designed so that students build and apply knowledge and skills in reading, writing, speaking, listening, thinking, and language. Tasks integrate reading, writing, speaking, listening, and thinking; include components of vocabulary, comprehension, and syntax; and provide opportunities for increased independence.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

In Module 1: “Como el mejor ciudadano,” the materials include interconnected tasks and activities to practice and demonstrate integrated skills. In this module, the writer’s workshop focuses on “Personal Narrative.” Students set goals for writing and sort them by steps. The first step for students is to set writing goals. The second step for students is to organize personal narratives. The Teacher’s Guide helps the teacher explain that the student’s personal narrative should have three parts: Beginning, Middle, and End. The next steps for students involve conferences, edit, and present. 

In Module 2: “Mira y Explora,” the materials include tasks to integrate reading, writing, speaking, listening, and thinking. The Teacher’s Guide includes components of vocabulary, comprehension, and syntax and provides opportunities for increased independence. In this module, the read-aloud lesson includes opportunities for students to discuss key vocabulary in the context of the story and use sentence stems such as “I want to read stories about…” “I want to learn about…” and “I’m going to... be able to....” This includes increasingly complex grammatical structures as appropriate (addressing syntax) to help the students develop oral language. The vocabulary and sentence stems are integrated into a reader’s response task. Under the “Reading and Comprehend” tab, the materials suggest that the teacher guides children to read the selection all the way through. Students occasionally pause, using the prompts in “Compañero de enseñanza” (¿Que es la materia?) to grasp understanding and to have them find evidence about the genre, as well as to describe the author’s purpose for writing. After finishing reading, students refer back to the “Cartel didáctico” to discuss what they did to understand the author’s purpose for writing. 

In Module 6: “Hablemos del Estado del Tiempo,” the materials offer questions and tasks that are designed so that students build and apply knowledge and skills in reading, writing, speaking, listening, thinking, and language. While reading the text Cloudette (Nubita) by Tom Lichtenheld, with a Lexile Level 590L and a Guided Reading Level K, the teacher uses the “Turn and Talk” routine using questions from the teaching resource “Teaching Pal.” The teacher reminds students to make connections to their own lives and to include details from the text and pictures as evidence to support their responses. The teacher provides children with sentence starters to use during the discussion with their partner, such as: “I think you are saying….” “It reminds me of....” “That is like....” After reading the text, the teacher reads aloud the writing prompt: “What will Cloudette do next?” Students use what they know about her to write about her next adventure. Students look for details in the words and pictures to help them think of ideas. The teacher reminds the students to go back to the story to look for details in the words and pictures that will support their ideas about what Cloudette might do next.

In Module 9: “Hábitat, dulce hogar,” the materials include interconnected tasks and activities to practice and demonstrate integrated skills. The questions and tasks are designed to build and apply knowledge and skills in reading, writing, speaking, listening, thinking, and language. In this module, the focus statement says that some animals have a special relationship with others, including people. The teacher asks students to make connections to the statement from their personal experiences, such as with pets. The students turn and talk to a partner and ask what they want to learn by reading the text El gran capoquero by Lynne Cherry. After the teacher reads the text, students engage and respond in academic conversations about how to prepare to research. The teacher asks, “How did the author know the information on the map?” In the writer’s workshop, students write a research report about people, animals, or other living things. Students think about which facts and details they have gathered that will be interesting and help readers understand the special relationship their animal has with another plant, animal, or people. 

In Module 10: “Muchas Culturas, un solo Mundo,” the material tasks integrate reading, writing, speaking, listening, and thinking, include components of vocabulary, comprehension, and syntax, and provide opportunities for increased independence. The integrated tasks require students to build knowledge on a worthwhile topic. For example, the tasks included require students to work collaboratively with others to develop social and emotional skills while working to resolve problems or generate new products and solutions. This module includes the read-aloud El frasco de los nombres by Yangsook Choi, where students learn the meaning of culture. The teacher asks, “What can we learn from different people and cultures? Suppose you had to move to another country. What might be different for you?” The students discuss problems they might face. Then they engage and respond about what they would do to welcome a new student to the class.

Evaluation for 3.E.2
Materials provide spiraling and scaffolded practice.

The materials provide distributed practice over the course of the year. The design includes scaffolds for students to demonstrate the integration of literacy skills that spiral over the school year.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

Module 1: “Como el mejor ciudadano,” the materials support distributed practice over the course of the year. The materials help students master reading and spelling high-frequency words (“Palabras de uso frecuente”) with automaticity. High-frequency words are the most commonly used words in printed text; students memorize these words and recognize them by sight to build reading fluency. The high-frequency words taught in all the materials are compiled from well-known sources like the Dolch Basic Sight Word list. Each weeks’ high-frequency word list is found in the “Foundational Skills” (“Destrezas fundamentals”) sections of the materials. The word list in this module includes high-frequency words that will be used in the texts for the week; they are one- or two-syllable words (árbol) that increase in complexity to multisyllabic words like in Module 10 (Time to Grow) (compañero). The students complete different activities with these words. The teacher has children write a word on the front of each card and write a sentence or draw a picture to help them remember the word on the back.

In Module 2: “Mira y Explora,” the materials offer suggestions of transition activities that provide review and practice of previously taught skills and concepts. In this module, under the “Writer’s Workshop,” Pre-writing activities, students identify the topic by using an “Insider Chart” to conduct research about a place they would like to visit. Then students begin prewriting. The teacher sets writing goals, such as “Children write and explain their goals for their descriptive essays.” Later in the module, students organize their information for the place they would like to visit in a chart. Students read a model of a descriptive essay. They organize their ideas and start writing first-draft essays with an introduction, body, and conclusion. Students have peer conferences with a checklist to check their writing. Students will then edit their own papers using a checklist. At the end, another checklist gives students the opportunity to evaluate themselves on the transition of activities. 

Module 8: “Tiempo de Crecer,” the materials include scaffolds for students to demonstrate integration of literacy skills that spiral over the school year. “Teaching Pal” guides children’s understanding of the text through think-aloud strategy modeling, text-based questions, and annotation tips to promote active reading, phonics, and decoding tips, as well as quick point-of-use explanations of specific words in a text that children may not know but are needed to understand the text. The questions used in all the modules include the levels of Depth of Knowledge (DOK), which is a scale used to determine the amount of thinking required for a given question or task. Aligning the questions to different DOK levels facilitates higher-order thinking and deeper learning for students. This module includes the tall tale “Jack and the Beanstalk” (“Jack y los frijoles mágicos”) by Helen Lester, Lexile Measure 550L, Guided Reading Level M. The materials include questions at level 3 out of a 4-point scale. “The author wants to help you understand how tall the beanstalk is. DOK 3 ASK: How is Jack’s third trip up the beanstalk different from the others?”

In Module 9: “Habitat, Dulce Hogar,” the materials include scaffolds for students to demonstrate integration of literacy skills that spiral over the school year. The materials include activities that support repeated opportunities to hear and practice skills and concepts across all language domains. Lessons are not designed for a specific period or time of the day but are able to be embedded across the literacy classroom, as demonstrated in the vocabulary section of each module. This module includes the “La lectura” section, where students learn key vocabulary words from the focus text. The students are provided with a graphic organizer, “Buscar el significado de una palabra,” to help them find the meaning of vocabulary words. Later, the students apply their knowledge to use that vocabulary word in a sentence. Finally, students write and share their sentences with the class. 

In Module 10: “Muchas culturas, un solo mundo,” the materials support distributed practice over the course of the year. For example, the standard of making connections to personal experiences, ideas in other texts, and society is reinforced throughout the year. This module includes a section in the teacher guide called “Preparar a los estudiantes.” In this section, the teacher guides the students to discuss the topic of the lesson. The students make connections to personal experiences like brainstorming things they have learned from different cultures. Students write one or two ideas in their notebooks. The standard 2.6.E is reviewed and practiced over the course of the year.

Evaluation for 4.1
Materials provide explicit instruction in print concepts and opportunities for student practice (K-1 only).

Evaluation for 4.2
Materials provide explicit instruction in phonological skills and opportunities for student daily practice (e.g., rhyming, syllabication, blending, segmenting, manipulation) (K-1 only).

Evaluation for 4.3
Materials provide explicit systematic instruction in phonetic knowledge and opportunities for students to practice both in and out of context (K-2).

The materials provide explicit systematic instruction in phonetic knowledge and opportunities for students to practice both in and out of context. Materials include a research-based sequence of grade-level foundational skills instruction and opportunities for ample student practice to achieve grade-level mastery. Additionally, materials systematically develop knowledge of grade-level phonics patterns as addressed in the SLAR TEKS for grades K-2. Materials provide opportunities for students to apply grade-level phonetic knowledge to connected texts (e.g., decodable reader). Materials include building spelling knowledge as identified in the SLAR TEKS.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials include opportunities for students to build spelling knowledge. For example, the “Palabras de uso frecuente” grow in complexity as the year progresses. For example, in the Teacher’s Guide, Module 2: “¡Mira y explora!” the “Palabras de uso frecuente” are “como, conejo, entrar, tiene, vez.” Then in Module 5: “Toma la iniciativa,” the Palabras de uso frecuente are “cerca, bonita, viento.” At the end, in Module 10: “Muchas culturas, un solo mundo” the Palabras de uso frecuente are “compañero, equipo, jugar, partido, practicar.” Words grow in complexity and they are connected to the theme with each module. 

The materials provide frequent and adequate opportunities for students to apply phonetic knowledge to connected texts and tasks. Module 3: “Pongámonos de acuerdo” includes an activity for the teacher to provide magazines in the center. The teacher displays the “Word Cards” for this week’s high-frequency words included in the materials. Students find or draw a picture that reminds them of one of the high-frequency words. Students write a caption or label containing the high-frequency word to go with their picture. For an extra challenge, students include two high-frequency words in their captions.

The materials include a research-based sequence of grade-level foundational skills instruction and opportunities for ample student practice to achieve grade-level mastery. Materials systematically develop knowledge of grade-level phonics patterns as addressed in the SLAR TEKS for grades K-2. In second grade Module 4, “Había una vez,” Lesson 6, the materials include the activity for Word Sort; the teacher explains that the students will sort words and focus on whether the syllables ha, he, hi, ho, hu are at the beginning of the word, like in haber, or at the end of the word, like in ahí. The teacher draws a two-column chart. Then she writes the word haber as the heading for the first column and ahí for the second. Next, the teacher displays and reads “harapo.” The teacher models how to decide whether the syllable ha is at the beginning or the end of harapo. In column 2, the teacher repeats the process using the word alcohol. The students continue sorting the other words in the week’s spelling list. 

The materials systematically develop knowledge of grade-level phonics patterns as addressed in the SLAR TEKS. The materials provide scope and sequence with teacher suggestions on how to teach the skill. For example, the “Secuencia de instrucción” (Scope and Sequence) provides an overview of each week’s phonics skills with the corresponding Standards/TEKS. In Module 9: “Hábitat, dulce hogar,” in Week 1, the “fonética” lessons include “Palabras graves sin tilde” and “Palabras graves que riman.” One suggestion to teach the skill is to sing the “lluvia” song that is provided in the materials. The Guide also suggests the teacher write the word alberca, read it silently, read it aloud, break the word into syllables, and finally explain the meaning.

Evaluation for 4.4
Materials provide frequent opportunities for students to practice and develop fluency while reading a wide variety of grade-level texts at the appropriate rate with accuracy and prosody. (Grades 1-2 only)

The materials provide frequent opportunities for students to practice and develop fluency while reading a wide variety of grade-level texts at the appropriate rate with accuracy and prosody. Materials include explicit instruction in fluency, including rate with accuracy and prosody. Materials provide opportunities and routines for teachers to regularly monitor and provide corrective feedback on rate, accuracy, and prosody. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials provide opportunities and routines for teachers to regularly monitor and provide corrective feedback on rate, accuracy, and prosody. The materials provide recommendations for data-driven instruction (“Recomendaciones para la enseñanza basada en los datos”) based on the “Oral Reading Fluency” (“Fluidez de la lectura oral”). The suggestions are to identify student needs, teach to the need, provide scaffolded support, and monitor progress. The materials include a “Summary Recording Form” for each grade level. The form includes rows for 18 progress-monitoring assessments data. In second grade, the form suggests that students have a goal of 40-60 Words Correct per Minute (WCPM) at the beginning of the year and end with a goal of 90-110 WCPM.

The materials include explicit instruction in fluency, including rate, accuracy, and prosody. The materials include the “Foundational Skills and Word Study Studio” (“Taller de destrezas fundamentales y estudio de palabras”) that provides targeted intervention for students who need practice in the critical areas of print concepts, letter knowledge, phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, phonics and decoding, word recognition, and fluency. The studio includes instruction and practice at multiple grade levels, enabling teachers to bring students gradually up to grade level. Key features of the studio include Instructional sessions that follow the steps of Teach/Model, Guided Practice, and Apply. Reproducible Practice Pages are used in the Apply step of most sessions. Text passages for cumulative review and fluency practice have Lexile measures that gradually increase. Lexile measures are shown in the introduction to the “My Progress” graph. The materials include cumulative reviews, integrated with fluency practice, to cement learning over time. Students can track their progress through these cumulative reviews on their My Progress graphs. “Intervention Assessments” (“Evaluaciones para la intervención”) are efficient, valid assessments that can help instructors place students in appropriate lessons based on their needs and performance. The assessments can also be used to check that students are progressing toward grade-level achievement at an appropriate pace.

In Module 8: “Cuéntame un cuento,” Week 8, the teacher models fluency by reading smoothly, reading with expression, and reading at an appropriate speed. The teacher’s guide in the subsection “Destrezas fundamentales” includes “Fluidez,” where the teacher provides instruction using the gradual-release model. First, the teacher reminds students that good readers read with expression. This means that they show the meaning of the sentences and the feelings behind them with their voices. The teacher explains to children that paying attention to end punctuation can help them know when to change their voices to show feelings. Additionally, the teacher tells the children that reading with expression helps listeners know the meaning of the sentences. The teacher models reading in a monotone first and then reading it with appropriate expression to show emotion. Then, they use the partner reading routine for partners to reread the page to each other. The teacher coaches children to read with appropriate expression. At the end, students practice reading with prosody using the partner reading routine with the story “La visita al museo.” Partners are encouraged to give each other feedback.

The materials provide opportunities and routines for teachers to regularly monitor and provide corrective feedback on rate, accuracy, and prosody. Teachers use the “Oral Reading Fluency assessment” to assess a child’s oral reading fluency, accuracy, and rate, as well as information about decoding strategies using specific grade-level targeted vocabulary. The teacher uses the results to determine whether children would benefit from intervention instruction or require additional diagnostic testing. Additionally, every Leveled Reader also has a corresponding “Oral Reading Record” (“Registro de lectura oral”) so teachers can monitor children’s reading as frequently as needed. The analysis of the Oral Reading Record includes the formula so the teacher can determine the accuracy percentage.

The materials provide opportunities and routines for teachers to regularly monitor and provide corrective feedback on rate, accuracy, and prosody. The materials provide teachers with routines and opportunities to monitor student fluency. For example, the materials include the “Guided Reading Benchmark Assessment Kit” to determine children’s Guided Reading levels and make instructional decisions. The kit includes a paired fiction and nonfiction Benchmark Leveled Reader for Guided Reading levels A–N. Including this range of levels allows the teacher to assess accelerated learners in the class beyond grade-level expectations. 

Evaluation for 5.1
Materials include developmentally-appropriate diagnostic tools (e.g. formative and summative progress monitoring) and guidance for teachers, students, and administrators to monitor progress.

The materials include developmentally appropriate diagnostic tools and guidance for teachers, students, and administrators to monitor progress in a variety of settings (observational, anecdotal). They also provide guidance to ensure consistent and accurate administration of diagnostic tools. Additionally, the materials include diagnostic tools to measure content and process skills for SLAR K-2, as outlined in the SLAR TEKS.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials include a variety of diagnostic tools that are developmentally appropriate (e.g., observational, anecdotal, formal). At the beginning of the school year, the online platform offers screening assessments to monitor all students for reading difficulties. The materials provide “Screening Assessments,” including “Word Identification” and “Oral Reading Fluency.” The Diagnostic Assessments provide information on a student’s performance on the essential skills and strategies necessary to prepare and become a successful reader. These assessments are based on students’ performance on the Screening Assessments. The materials provide guidance to ensure consistent and accurate administration of diagnostic tools. The Diagnostic assessment “iRead,” offered three times a year at the beginning, middle, and end of the year, provides the teacher with detailed instruction on how to enable the test for students. It also provides constant reminders to the teachers so they are aware of when the testing window opens and closes. 

The teacher uses this data to group students according to ability level and evaluate performance and growth throughout the year. The materials recommend assessing students three times a year, at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. Reports are available immediately for teachers and administrators. They outline in detail those areas where students need assistance and those areas that students have mastered. The materials include resources for Screening, Diagnostic, and Progress-Monitoring Assessments (Evaluaciones preliminar, diagnóstica y para verificar el progreso). The Intervention Assessments provide screening, diagnostic, and progress-monitoring assessments to identify students who are at risk for reading difficulties and provide recommendations on the amount of support students are likely to need during reading instruction. The materials encourage teachers to hold data meetings with students to share the results with them and work on tracking their personal goals in order to keep up with their own progress and growth. This is done through data trackers offered in the materials. Students are also encouraged to keep up with the reading log included in the materials to keep track of the books read in school and at home.

The materials include a separate assessment guide or section that supports the teacher in understanding the types of informal assessment tools included. To locate the intervention assessments component, “Evaluaciones para la intervención,” the teacher needs to navigate to Grade K on the digital platform, HMH Ed: Your Friend in Learning. Under the Resources panel, the teacher selects the “Evaluación” icon. Finally, in the Filters panel, the teacher opens the “Componente” section and selects “Evaluaciones para la intervención” tab.

Evaluation for 5.2
Materials include guidance for teachers and administrators to analyze and respond to data from diagnostic tools.

The materials include guidance for teachers and administrators to analyze and respond to data from diagnostic tools. Materials support teachers with guidance and direction to respond to individual students’ needs in all domains, based on measures of student progress appropriate to developmental level. Diagnostic tools yield meaningful information for teachers to use when planning instruction and differentiation. Materials also provide a variety of resources and teacher guidance on how to leverage different activities to respond to student data. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials support teachers with guidance and direction to respond to individual students’ needs in all domains, based on measures of student progress appropriate to their developmental level. The materials include “Recommendations for Data-Driven Instruction” (“Recomendaciones para la enseñanza basada en los datos”) in the Screening, Diagnostic, and Progress-Monitoring Assessments section. Before providing recommendations, an overview is given with steps to follow: First, the teacher needs to identify student needs; if a student shows a weak area on the Screening Assessment, the teacher is instructed to administer a more specific diagnostic test to pinpoint the missing skills. Once that has taken place, the teacher provides intensive instruction based on assessment results, using “Foundational Skills and Word Study Studio.” Later, the teacher scaffolds the Core; in addition, the teacher continues providing scaffolded support (which may include strategic, or Tier II, intervention) during core instruction for two weeks. Finally, the teacher monitors progress using the Progress Monitoring Assessments and core assessments. The materials offer recommendations in detail for each grade level that support interventions. The materials also offer action steps that need to be applied after the assessments have concluded. Some of the suggestions are as follows: “Below Goal” in the Screening Assessments for Oral Reading Fluency. The assessment results can be utilized to understand the learning of a specific student.

The materials include guidance that supports the teacher in scaffolding instruction based on the students’ demonstrated aptitude level within each literacy skill. The materials offer a booklet that includes the “Administering and Scoring Guidelines” (“Guías para la administración y calificación”) that provide general guidelines as well as specifications for administering Screening Assessments, Diagnostic Assessments, and Progress-Monitoring Assessments. The materials advise that evaluations must be accounted for individually since responses must be oral. Teachers are instructed to follow these general instructions and guides to administer assessments.

The materials provide a variety of resources and teacher guidance on how to leverage different activities to respond to student data. The materials recommend that the teacher assess all students at the beginning of the year using “Intervention Assessments” and use the data to plan flexible groups for foundational skills lessons. Teachers are encouraged to use whole-class instruction to teach skills that the majority of children have not mastered. The materials offer guidance on grouping students into small groups according to reading ability to teach skills that a cohort of children in the class need to learn or review. The materials provide separate resources intended to reinforce the development of literacy skills. Suggestions for the “Guided Reading group” (“Grupos de lectura guiada”) include Rigby Leveled Readers, Take and Teach Lessons, and Tabletop Minilessons: Reading. Additionally, the materials offer suggestions for the “Foundational Skills group” (“Grupo de apoyo de destrezas y estrategias”): Start Right Reader, Reinforce Foundational Skills lessons, Learning Cards, Foundational Skills and Word Study Studio.

The materials provide guidance for administrators to support teachers in analyzing and responding to data. The materials suggest: “Using Data to Drive Decision-Making: The first step in developing a multi-tiered system of support is assessment. Different types of assessment can help educators and administrators identify areas in which children need additional support. Screening: Screen children to assess their academic performance against grade-level standards. Diagnostic: For children whose initial assessment scores show areas of concern, administer assessments to determine the focus for intervention. Progress Monitoring: Use ongoing progress monitoring to measure the effectiveness of instruction or intervention.” Also provided in each module are weekly assessments (Evaluaciones semanales) and module assessments (Evaluación del módulo) that assess select children’s progress with foundational skills at the end of each module for more information. When teachers assign any program assessment, they can review students’ scores in the Assessment Report. This report highlights the standards on the test that students struggled with most and allows them to review responses to each item. It also allows them to automatically create groups based on students’ scores so that they target the areas of greatest need.

Evaluation for 5.3
Materials include frequent, embedded opportunities for monitoring progress.

The materials include frequent, embedded opportunities for monitoring progress. The materials include routine and systematic progress monitoring opportunities that accurately measure and track student progress. Additionally, the frequency of progress monitoring is appropriate for the age and content skill.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials include routine and systematic progress monitoring opportunities that accurately measure and track student progress. Each module includes a two-page layout of the “Assessment and Progress Monitoring” (“Evaluación y supervisión del progreso”) available for the following weeks. The teacher can assess using these resources: Selection quizzes, weekly assessments, ongoing formative assessments, module assessments, performance-based assessments, and writing assessments. When the students take the Weekly and Module Assessments online, the teacher is able to access data reports to analyze gaps and gains, form groups for differentiated instruction, and locate resources to target children’s needs. In the Assessment Report, the teacher can view class scores for each assessment and analyze student proficiency data. In the Standards Report, the teacher can follow the students’ progress in standards proficiency and access resources that support learning those skills.

The materials recommend embedded systematic observations in students’ everyday activities and interactions as opportunities to track progress and assess skills in authentic situations. The materials provide systems for documenting observational assessment of students’ oral language skills during literacy centers, free play, and other daily activities. Teachers are instructed to utilize Learning-Explore foundations as well as best practices for building literacy skills, and they are encouraged to implement routines to actively engage young children in learning.

The materials recommend informal assessments that allow teachers to observe and document children’s learning and behaviors over time. Continued progress monitoring provides teachers with feedback for identifying each child’s skill level and how they change over time. The “Evaluaciones para la intervención” (intervention assessments) include progress monitoring assessments to monitor the progress of students who are receiving intervention and to evaluate when they are ready to exit the intervention program. Each grade level has multiple tests designed to assess students’ reading ability frequently throughout the school year.

Frequency of progress monitoring is appropriate for the age and content skill. The Progress Monitoring Assessments provide biweekly checks on students’ progress. These oral reading tests are administered individually and assess students’ growth or problems in pre-reading/reading skills throughout the school year. There are grade-level biweekly Oral Reading Fluency passages. The materials recommend that teachers “administer each assessment orally to individual students approximately every two weeks” and should take three to five minutes.

The materials include recommendations for assessing students with formal progress monitoring measures at least three times in a school year, such as at the beginning of the year, the middle of the year, and the end of the year. This frequency will allow teachers to identify which students are not showing sufficient progress. “Medida de Crecimiento” for beginning, middle, and end of the year. The beginning-of-year test window opens from July 1 through October 31, the middle-of-year test window opens from November 1 through March 1, and the end-of-year test window opens from March 2 through June 30. 

Evaluation for 6.1
Materials include guidance, scaffolds, supports, and extensions that maximize student learning potential.

The materials include recommendations for ways to enrich content to support students who have met mastery by including additional activities to support student collaboration, like working and exploring in groups. Other activities throughout the Teacher’s Guide display evidence for recommended targeted instruction and activities for students who have mastered content. Additionally, during “Reading Workshop” (“Taller de lectura”), students work in “Literacy Centers” (“Centros de lectoescritura”) and collaborate with others, providing enrichment activities for learners of all levels.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

Module 1, “Como el mejor ciudadano,” includes research-based guidance that supports teachers in understanding the developmental continuum across content domain areas. The section “Visualización activa” introduces the students to a video, “Mentes Curiosas,” that encourages them to learn more about being a good citizen and different ways to help others. This introductory video makes students aware of the intent of the lesson, summarizing the concepts students will learn throughout the module. The video provides built-in scaffolding to help struggling learners build background knowledge to utilize during future lessons. 

The Teacher’s materials also include resources targeted to assist those students who are performing below level and have not yet mastered the content. In Module 1, the materials provide the “Rincón de creatividad” section that comes with a set of directional cards for teachers. In this module, during the creative activity, a card instructs students to write a news story by saying: “Tell partners to explain to one another how their news story shows their understanding of the selection.” The students choose an event from the selection that was recently read that would make a good news story. Students recall the details, take notes, and then create a story using those notes. Finally, students “Add a picture and a headline.” This additional activity allows students to organize the information recently learned and share their understanding of the lesson, ideal for students who have mastered the content. 

In Module 5, the materials include recommendations for ways to enrich content to support students who have met mastery by including an independent work section. During this time, students practice and apply mastered targeted skills. Students choose a book to read independently from the Rigby Leveled Library (Lecturas por niveles). Teachers have access to the library’s table of contents by accessing the resource area on the opening page. This resource offers books by Guided Reading Levels as well as Lexile levels. Teachers assign the books to students according to their independent reading level. This resource provides support for all learners. 

In Module 7, the “Inquiry and Research Project” section provides enrichment activities for students that have mastered content by providing opportunities to explore by researching and collaborating with peers. The project requires students to “work for an extended period of time to solve a problem, answer a question, or share information.” The teacher supports students with creating a research plan. The teacher prompts students to “research facts about their own lives, reflect on experiences, by asking family members, or by looking through family keepsakes.” The students are then prompted to “Generar preguntas de investigación” by using strategies such as “Think, Pair, Share” to think of important times in their lives. The project must be completed in three weeks but can be adjusted to the students’ pace. The project allows children to explore their interests or have real-world applications, such as solving a problem in the community. In this same module, students collaborate, complete, and present an autobiography. The Inquiry and Research Project engages students in projects to allow opportunities to extend content knowledge. 

Evaluation for 6.2
Materials provide a variety of instructional methods that appeal to a variety of learning interests and needs.

The materials provide a variety of instructional methods that appeal to a variety of learning interests and needs. Materials include a variety of instructional approaches to engage students in mastery of content in an array of multimodal instructional strategies, such as visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. The materials support whole and small group instruction. Additionally, the materials offer guided, independent, and collaborative instruction practices, providing guidance and structures to achieve implementation.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials include recommendations for activities that can be embedded into learning center areas for student-led practice in collaborative groups and independently. The materials give clear instructions for how to organize and establish Literacy Centers. The materials suggest the teacher begin with three or four centers during the first few weeks of school before introducing more. The teacher circulates around the classroom, gives targeted feedback, and reinforces procedures during center time before starting small-group instruction, such as working quietly, reading silently, modeling strategies like “think-pair-share,” and guided reading.

The materials provide daily lessons designed for small groups of students to allow students more opportunity for oral language development, providing the teacher with specific opportunities for scaffolding with shared and guided reading practice. This module includes a lesson, “Opciones para la enseñanza, enseñanza en grupos pequeños,” intended to assist struggling readers by revising the concepts previously taught to reinforce reading and comprehension skills. Module 7, Lesson 1, includes activities like Guided Reading, where students are encouraged to select a book according to their reading level. The teacher guides students during small-group instruction to reinforce and/or enhance the concepts learned through activities outlined in the Teacher’s Guide. Teachers are encouraged to use the graphic organizer provided in the materials to target instruction and scaffold by asking comprehension questions and reviewing the meaning of vocabulary words within the text.

The materials include teacher-directed activities that connect to student-led learning, striking a complementary balance of the two approaches. The Teacher’s Guide includes weekly ideas for Literacy Centers that reinforce and extend what children are learning through direct instruction. At the beginning of the week, students will know what is expected of them to complete in each Literacy Center. The lessons incorporate a variety of different instructional approaches for teaching literacy skills. Module 9 provides instructions for students to make a high-frequency word game. The teacher tells students to place nine cards with words in each grid, one per square, in any order. The goal is to make a series of three marks in a row while blocking their partners from making three-in-a-row. Students continue to play until one child makes three marks in a row, either across, down, or diagonally. The child must correctly read aloud the three words to win. 

Evaluation for 6.3
Materials include supports for English Learners (ELs) to meet grade-level learning expectations.

Materials do not include support for English Learners (ELs) to meet grade-level learning expectations. Materials do not include accommodations for linguistics (communicated, sequenced, and scaffolded) commensurate with various levels of English language proficiency. Materials do not encourage strategic use of students’ primary language as a means to develop linguistic, affective, cognitive, and academic skills in the target language (e.g., to enhance vocabulary development). 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials in second grade are in Spanish and support the development of literacy skills in the Spanish language. Units 1–9 support Spanish language acquisition through the use of videos, visuals, and high-quality texts in Spanish. However, there is no evidence that the materials provide accommodations for English learners with various levels of English proficiency. Also, materials do not encourage strategic use of students’ primary language as a means to develop linguistic, affective, cognitive, and academic skills in English. The goal is to develop literacy skills in the Spanish language. 

Evaluation for 7.1
Materials include year-long plans with practice and review opportunities that support instruction.

Materials include year-long plans with practice and review opportunities that support instruction. Additionally, they include a cohesive, year-long plan to build students’ concept development and consider how to vertically align instruction that builds year to year. Finally, the materials provide spiraled review and practice of knowledge and skills in all domains throughout the span of the curriculum.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials include a cohesive, year-long plan to build students’ concept development and consider how to vertically align instruction that builds year to year. The materials’ plan supports efficient planning for teachers by identifying directly taught learning goals of focus within each unit as well as outlining opportunities for review and practice of other content domains. The Teacher’s Guide includes, at the beginning of each module, “Desarrollar los conocimientos y destrezas” section. The section provides support for teachers to help their students build topic knowledge and develop foundational reading, writing, and oral language skills through daily whole- and small-group instruction. The information is divided into five sections: “Learning mindset: Build knowledge and Language,” “Foundational Skills,” “Reading Workshop & Vocabulary,” “Writing Workshop,” and “Demonstrate knowledge.”

The materials include weekly “Foundational Skills” that provide a clear content plan for instruction. The activities are clearly connected within each unit, and the introduction of new concepts builds upon prior knowledge. Some of the activities include:

• High-Frequency Words lessons to teach and practice reading, spelling, and using high-frequency sight words. Teachers use the High-Frequency Words routine to teach these commonly used words each week. Following that, the teacher builds students' automaticity by having them practice the words throughout the week in varied activities that focus on reading, writing, spelling, and using the words in conversation. A weekly printable word list is available for students to review with their families at home.
• Phonological Awareness skills lessons that aim to have children identify, produce, and manipulate the sounds in spoken words and syllables. The lessons engage students to enhance their rhyme recognition skills and help them produce rhymes using familiar songs, rhymes, and poems. The teachers use Picture cards to help students work with sounds. Teachers cycle through phonological awareness skills—as students develop decoding and encoding skills, this spiraling review benefits students that did not grasp the concept when the skill was introduced.
• Phonics lessons to introduce sound-spellings that help children associate consonants, consonant blends, digraphs and trigraphs, short and long vowels, vowel digraphs and diphthongs, and other common vowel spellings with the sounds they represent and to read words with these sound-spellings. They build children’s skills to master the phonics focus each week. In grade 2, teachers use the Continuous Blending routine to help children blend and read words. Then, they introduce more complex routines for syllabication.

The materials provide spiraled review and practice of knowledge and skills in all domains throughout the span of the curriculum. The materials include activities that support repeated opportunities to learn and practice using knowledge and skills in all domains. The materials include recommendations for review and practice of specific literacy skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, noting connections within and across units. Each week, the materials include “Vistazo a la semana,” where teachers can visualize how to preview and build understanding of the topics of the week. The materials include support in language, foundational skills, reading, and writing. The “Guiding Principles and Strategies/Teacher and Learning” section provides guidance about how children build networks of knowledge that help them construct meaning. It gives the definition of prior knowledge and background knowledge. Both components are included in each lesson. 

The materials include weekly academic vocabulary called “Palabras Poderosas.” The Power Words lessons introduce and review high-utility academic and content vocabulary from the student’s text. The techniques used are: 

• Directly teach words: Focus on sophisticated words that appear in a variety of texts and across content areas, using a consistent routine. 
• Address language differences: Directly teach the language of school and make direct comparisons between “school language” and “home language.” 
• Share words in context.
• Provide repeated exposures to words: Find ways for the words to “crop up” throughout the year, to provide repeated exposure to them over time, and take note when students use the words. 

Evaluation for 7.2
Materials include implementation support for teachers and administrators.

The materials include implementation support for teachers and administrators that are accompanied by an SLAR TEKS-aligned scope and sequence outlining the essential knowledge and skills that are taught in the program, the order in which they are presented, and how knowledge and skills build and connect across grade levels. Additionally, materials include a school year’s worth of instruction, including realistic pacing guidance and routines. The materials include resources and guidance to help administrators support teachers with implementation.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

Materials are accompanied by a SLAR TEKS-aligned scope and sequence outlining the essential knowledge and skills that are taught in the program, the order in which they are presented, and how knowledge and skills build and connect across grade levels. Each module is divided into the weeks allocated for the module. Each week includes the skills that will be taught. The components include the TEKS that correspond to the skill. The TEKS are cited on the pages of the “Teacher’s Guide” where that particular TEKS is being covered. The materials include a scope and sequence for instruction. The scope and sequence shows alignment to the appropriate grade-level SLAR TEKS and outlines the sequence of instruction towards the end-of-year outcomes. The scope and sequence outlines the materials’ focus and how the plans support students at different levels of knowledge, building across grade levels. The Teacher's Guide and online resources include an organized chart that clearly delineates which knowledge and skills are introduced and which are reviewed within each unit. The resource “Conocimientos y destrezas esenciales de Texas” in the “Correlación con los estándares” section provides a description of the standard correlation with the student and teacher materials from the Teacher’s Guide. 

The materials include support to help teachers with implementation and navigation of the resources. For example, the materials are color-coded to easily identify the content on the page. Each instructional component of the materials has its own color-coded pages. These are sorted as follows: “Desarrollar los conocimientos y el lenguaje” in red, “Lectura y vocabulario” in light blue, “Destrezas fundamentales” in purple, “Taller de escritura” in green, and “Demostrar conocimientos” in navy blue. The materials include an overview at the beginning of each week or unit of instruction that emphasizes the purpose of the lessons and activities to come. The section is located on week 1 of each module for all grade levels and is intended to support every student as they work towards building upon known concepts. The section also supports teachers in purposeful planning and making connections within and between the weeks of instruction. For example, in week 1, Lesson 1 for each module includes a “Week at a Glance” that outlines the topic of each lesson for the components of the day. It includes a comprehensive materials list for preparation as well as additional books and resources to support instruction. 

The materials include resources and guidance to help administrators support teachers in implementing the materials as intended. The materials include guidance for evaluating and supporting the classroom environment and implementation of the lessons. For example, the materials include “The Lenguaje dual: Guía de implementación/Dual Language Implementation Guide,” which has best practices such as how to group students and assessment strategies such as running records or module evaluations. Also included are ideas for reaching out to families and community members by providing family letters in every module that outline the different activities parents can do at home to support their child’s learning, like reading to them or creating a reading corner at home. 

The materials include a school years’ worth of literacy instruction, including realistic pacing guidance and routines. The pacing guides are year-long plans that showcase lessons and activities for a full year of instruction. The lessons can be reasonably implemented within the time constraints of a school year. For example, the pacing guides or yearly plans give evidence that the materials include lessons to support systematic pacing of SLAR TEKS-based instruction throughout the year. The materials include a weekly “Secuencia de instrucción” scope and sequence instruction for each module. It includes the five instructional components for each week: “Taller de lectura, vocabulario, destrezas fundamentales, taller de escritura, and dual language settings.” The “Secuencia de instrucción” can be found in the “Recursos para maestros.”

Evaluation for 7.3
Materials provide implementation guidance to meet variability in programmatic design and scheduling considerations.

The materials provide implementation guidance to meet variability in programmatic design and scheduling considerations. Additionally, materials provide guidance for strategic implementation without disrupting the sequence of content that must be taught in a specific order following a developmental progression. They also allow LEAs the ability to incorporate the curriculum into district, campus, and teacher programmatic design and scheduling considerations.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials provide guidance for strategic implementation without disrupting the sequence of content that must be taught in a specific order following a developmental progression. The materials include lessons divided into three weeks, and each lesson takes one day; there are five lessons in a week. The materials recommend the teacher start on Week 1, Day 1, and use the Week-at-a-Glance (“Vistazo a la semana”) pages for guidance on the skills and tasks to focus on. The Teacher’s Guide provides a pacing calendar that includes the Week-at-a-glance for each instructional week. A summary of the week divided into three main areas: 1) Suggested Daily Times: Used as a guide for scheduling each block in the lesson. The color tabs match the colors of each block in the lesson breakdown next to it. 2) This Week’s Words: Found here are the different types of vocabulary words that will be taught over the week; for example, power words, high-frequency words, etc. 3) Assessment Options and Intervention: Teachers can check here for the assessments for the lesson. Intervention options are in Small-Group Instruction in the lesson breakdown. Next to the overview is a breakdown of each lesson in the week that describes which skills students will be working on and what tools are needed to teach them. Lessons include instructional blocks on foundational skills, vocabulary, reading, writing, and communication.

The materials are designed in a way that allows LEAs the ability to incorporate the curriculum into district, campus, and teacher programmatic design and scheduling considerations. The materials include a “TEKS aligned by standard” section. The alignment of the program's resources to the TEKS can support teachers by using instructional resources that align with the district’s framework. The Standards search also allows teachers to determine appropriate texts for students to pair with standards, using information about text complexity. The materials facilitate choosing from the program’s resources for each standard or set of standards. The materials also include a suggested allotment of time in the Instructional Model: A Day of Into Reading targets children’s diverse needs using whole-class instruction, teacher-led small groups, and options for collaborative work and independent practice. The schedules are included for a 45–60 minute time block of instruction.

Evaluation for 7.4
Materials provide guidance on fostering connections between home and school.

Materials provide guidance on fostering connections between home and school by supporting development of strong relationships between teachers and families. Additionally, materials specify activities for use at home to support students’ learning and development.

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials support development of strong relationships between teachers and families. The “Guiding Principles and Strategies” resource includes ideas and resources for teachers to communicate with families. The teacher may hold conferences with parents or caregivers to share observations about children’s development and discuss strategies for working together. The teacher should start with the positive, focusing on the child’s particular strengths or progress since their last meeting, and share the child’s reading and writing goals. The materials provide suggestions to review the child’s portfolio with classwork that shows growth and includes samples of children’s work. The teacher can share assessment scores and individual reports, making sure to explain where the data come from and what they mean. The teacher can provide specific strategies and resources for family members to support their child’s learning outside of school.

The materials specify activities for use at home to support students’ learning and development. They include reproducibles in the form of nightly reader books that parents may use to help students acquire literacy skills. The Guiding Principles and Strategies, under the “Family and Community” section, provides guidelines for teachers to discover how to engage children’s families as learning partners using communication strategies and key resources and find ideas for connecting learning to the broader community. One of those resources is the printable version of the “Start Right Readers.” The students take home those printable texts to practice decoding and fluent reading. Some suggestions for teachers are: “Encourage children to read the texts to different family members, favorite dolls or stuffed animals, or family pets. Share the focus sound-spellings and High-Frequency Words with families so they can reinforce them while reading. Have children do the activities on the pages that precede and follow each Start Right Reader text with a family member to review foundational and comprehension skills.” The materials also suggest the teacher give family members the weekly printable list of High-Frequency Words and Spelling Words available online and highlight particular words for the child to practice. Teachers provide ideas for working with the words; for example, play games using the words such as Tic-Tac-Toe and Go Fish, and make a word ring or flashcards to practice reading and spelling the words. The parents have children practice writing the words and writing sentences that use the words.

In Module 4: “Había una vez,” the materials support development of strong relationships between teachers and families. The school-to-home connection section provides tips and examples of exemplary family engagement practices. For example, each module includes a family letter that helps parents and caregivers support the learning objectives. In this module, students read many kinds of stories, from classic fairy tales to modern retellings, and even an informational text about how to appreciate a story. Children will also write a story about an imaginary friend or place. The family letter includes some fun activities to practice those skills at home, like “Let’s Read Together,” where parents or caregivers make a special time and place to read with their child every day. During the module about storytelling, the family letter encourages parents or caregivers to try the following activities during their reading time together: “Tell which characters you’d like to be friends with and why. Talk about how a lesson that a character learns in a story can help you. Read the dialogue in a different voice for each character.”

Evaluation for 7.5
The visual design of student and teacher materials (whether in print or digital) is neither distracting nor chaotic.

The visual design of student and teacher print or digital materials is neither distracting nor chaotic. They include appropriate use of white space and design that supports and does not distract from student learning. Additionally, pictures and graphics are supportive of student learning and engagement without being visually distracting. 

Evidence includes but is not limited to:

The materials include appropriate use of white space and design that supports and does not distract from student learning. The materials provide a list of quality questions for a lesson that is placed on the lesson page for ease of use. All the materials in second grade include a separate resource titled “The Teaching Pal” (“Compañero de enseñanza”), which is a companion to the Teacher’s Guide, providing point-of-use instructional notes for using the students’ texts for different purposes. On the side of the text are color-coded boxes with specific questions that the teacher asks as the text is being read. “Read for Understanding” notes are in blue, “Targeted Close Read” notes are in purple, “General” notes are in gold, and “Notice and Note” notes are in red. These teacher tips are in a logical place on the pages that is consistent throughout the materials and is clearly designated. 

Module 9: “Hábitat, dulce hogar” includes eleven colorful text sets: three sets for week 1 and four sets for weeks 2 and 3. The texts are fiction and nonfiction and are connected to the Essential Question of the module: “How do living things in a habitat depend on each other?” The variety of content-rich texts supports students in exploring how the conditions in different habitats help different animals survive. Module 10: “Muchas culturas, un solo mundo” includes two Writing Anchor Charts: “Parts of a Letter” and “Revise Your Work.” The materials include appropriate use of white space and design that supports and does not distract from student learning. The Writing Anchor Charts included are clear and concise without being distracting. 

Pictures and graphics are supportive of student learning and engagement without being visually distracting. The materials contain high-interest and diverse texts arranged in topically related text sets that deepen comprehension and allow children to explore text characteristics and structures across a range of genres while also developing topic knowledge. The artwork in the materials’ illustrations helps children understand what they are reading and allows young readers to analyze the story. They also help create the mood of the story. Module 3, “Meet in the Middle,” includes the text Pepita y la Peleonera by Ofelia Dumas Lachtman, illustrated by Alex Pardo De Lange, with a Lexile Measure 530L and Guided Reading Level L. De Lange provides colorful illustrations with a style of art that enhances the story and captures a warm-hearted family ritual shared by many cultures, like having dinner together and talking to communicate and solve problems. The pictures integrate with the text to bring the story to a happy conclusion.