Learning List has reviewed Glynlyon’s Odysseyware Texas middle school products for mathematics and English Language Arts and Reading (ELAR). Both products are Texas Editions that were developed to address the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). Both math and ELAR products are comprehensive resources that cover a full year’s content. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> Middle school math instruction provides the foundation for the study of algebra. Across grades, courses address problem solving, number theory, proportional reasoning, statistics, and the relationship between numeric, algebraic, and geometric concepts. ELAR courses develop close reading, critical thinking, writing, speaking, and listening skills.  Instruction centers on high-quality literary and informational texts that span a variety of genres (e.g., short story, biography). Students encounter increasingly complex texts as instruction progresses in each grade level. Writing instruction focuses on argumentative, narrative, and expository essays and creative works, such as poetry. At grades 7 and 8, instruction is theme-based. Grade 7 addresses themes related to earth, space, and survival. Instruction at grade 8 uses historical themes (e.g., world civilizations) to structure content. About Odysseyware* Odysseyware takes the question of where students can learn out of the equation. With its fully HTML5 course library, students can learn anywhere, anytime, on any device, via a powerful Learning Management System delivering hundreds of multimedia-based courses. Students have access to CTE, Advanced Placement®, core and elective options, all aligned to national and state standards. They also have access to powerful supports including translations in 23 languages, vocabulary and reference libraries, text-to-speech, and immediate coaching for writing skills via the Writer Tool. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Odysseyware . Subscribe to  Learning List for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources. Learning List's reviews not only inform selection decisions, they facilitate curriculum mapping and instructional alignment, as well.

The increased emphasis on ensuring that all students are able to read and understand complex texts has prompted  MetaMetrics , the developer of the widely used  Lexile Framework  for text complexity, to extend the Lexile scale to enable more precise measurement of text complexity in grades  K-2. In the past, the Framework identified texts with Lexile levels below zero (i.e., 0L) simply as Beginning Reader and included a “BR” code  without  an associated Lexile level. With the extension of the scale, BR texts will now include a numeric Lexile value after the BR code. For example, BR100L represents a Lexile level of -100L and BR300L represents -300L. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> The Lexile scale itself has not changed. It has only been extended to include measures of text complexity below zero, with larger BR values indicating lower reading levels. Educators may want to use the analogy of a thermometer to help them understand Lexile measures below zero. A text at the BR300L level is written at lower level than a text at BR100L, much as a temperature of -30 is colder than a temperature of -10.The use of the BR code ensures that no text is ever associated with a negative number.

Learning List has reviewed Glynlyon’s Odysseyware products for mathematics and English language arts (ELA) for grades 3-5. Although neither product was created to address the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) specifically, Learning List has conducted TEKS alignment verifications for each product at each grade level. Mathematics 300, 400, and 500 and Language Arts 300, 400, and 500 are year-long courses for students in grades 3, 4, and 5, respectively. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> Across grades, mathematics instruction focuses on developing number skills, numerical literacy, and concepts in geometry. ELA courses develop close reading skills in conjunction with writing, speaking, and listening skills. Each course begins with a “Course Overview” that provides an introduction to content and a list of additional materials (e.g., protractor, “Fantastic Mr. Fox”). Both the math and ELA materials are fully customizable; teachers may reorder, add, and delete content. Some units include projects that require students to apply what they have learned (e.g., use patterns to determine the next term in a sequence, write a fable). Projects are completed online using Odysseyware’s “Writer” word processing tool. About Odysseyware* Odysseyware takes the question of where students can learn out of the equation. With its fully HTML5 course library, students can learn anywhere, anytime, on any device, via a powerful Learning Management System delivering hundreds of multimedia-based courses. Students have access to CTE, Advanced Placement®, core and elective options, all aligned to national and state standards. They also have access to powerful supports including translations in 23 languages, vocabulary and reference libraries, text-to-speech, and immediate coaching for writing skills via the Writer Tool. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Odysseyware . Subscribe to  Learning List  for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources.

Over the last five years, we have learned a lot about instructional materials. One observation is that comprehensive and supplemental materials, including RtI and test prep resources, are designed very differently and are intended for different purposes. Another observation is that unless you use a material for its intended purpose, it is unlikely you will achieve the result you need. What are test prep materials? Publishers design test prep products to help students to improve their performance on standardized tests. Generally, test prep products help students prepare for standardized assessments by providing practice tests and related content that reflects exam questions in form and substance. How well aligned are test prep materials to state standards? As referenced in their correlation documents, some test prep publishers attempt to  address *  all  grade level standards. Many publishers attempt to address only the standards that are  eligible for assessment  in the particular grade level and subject. Still other test prep products focus solely on a  subset  of the grade level standards (e.g., the content standards). Regardless of which standards the material attempts to address, test prep materials rarely address those standards in their its  entirety.   Rather, the products often address only the part of the standard the publisher believes is  likely to be assessed  on the standardized test.  Moreover, test prep resources are not always  aligned  to each standard they attempt to address. For all of these reasons, we find that test prep materials are often not aligned to 100% of the grade level standards. For example, we have reviewed four test prep materials for 8th grade science. The image shows what we found the products' alignment percentages to be. But, the alignment percentages alone do not describe which resource would be best for your students. We found the 67% aligned material to have multiple  aligned citations for every standard the publisher addressed (i.e., all the  content  standards). The only reason that product's alignment percentage was not higher is because the material did not address any of the 8th grade process standards. In contrast, the remaining three test prep products addressed both content and process standards. However, none of those materials was  aligned  to all of the standards they addressed, and none had consistently as many aligned citations for each standard as the 67% aligned material. Learning List's alignment reports shows you which standards each material is/is not aligned to and how many citations we found to be aligned to each standard. What should you look for when selecting test prep materials?  For the reasons articulated above, when assessing the value of a test prep material, look  beyond the alignment percentage.  Determine which standards  the product is aligned to and whether there are  a sufficient number of aligned citations  (i.e., test questions) for each standard  at the appropriate level of rigor  to provide your students with the practice they need to prepare them for the standardized test. Test prep products vary widely in the amount of support they provide to prepare students for exams. Some simply offer practice tests that familiarize students with the format of the exam. Others provide guidance in taking notes, studying, and test-taking strategies, as well as day-of-test behaviors that support improved performance (e.g., eat a good breakfast). These resources aim to help reduce students’ test-related anxiety and improve their scores. Many  online  test prep materials provide immediate, corrective feedback and direct students to the specific content they have not yet mastered.Test prep materials also differ in the supports they provide for teachers. While some materials limit teacher resources to test overviews and answer keys, others provide rubrics and online tools that enable teachers to see patterns in class and individual student performance. These tools help teachers identify and reteach the content that students have not mastered and group students for targeted intervention. In sum, to find the test prep material that best meets your students' needs, you must  look beyond the alignment percentage  to see which product is aligned to the standards students are struggling with, which will provide sufficient practice and support for your students, and which includes the instructional resources and monitoring tools your teachers need. Once you have selected a test prep product, be sure you use it to prepare students only for the standards the material is aligned to. *The standards that a material "addresses" are those listed in the publisher's correlation (i.e., the standards the publisher believes the product covers). A material is only deemed to be " aligned " to a standard if the material teaches/assesses the content, context and cognitive rigor of the standard (i.e., all of the knowledge and skills the standard requires students to learn).

Learning List has reviewed several of Odysseyware’s high school English language arts products, including English I, English II, English III, and English IV and the “Fundamentals” version of each course (e.g. English I Fundamentals). Each product supports year-long instruction in self-paced and credit-recovery programs and blended learning environments.  < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> English I (Texas Edition) covers the short story, literary non-fiction, epic poetry, drama, the novel, and poetry, as well as grammar and writing skills. English II (Texas Edition) is organized in thematic units (e.g., “Coming of Age) that integrate instruction in literary genres (e.g., the novel, poetry), literary non-fiction, grammar, and writing skills. English III (Texas Edition) is organized in chronological units that address themes related to the development of American literature (e.g., “American Romanticism”). Units integrate instruction in literary genres (e.g., the novel, poetry), literary non-fiction, grammar, and writing skills. English IV (Texas Edition) is organized in chronological units that address themes related to the development of Western world literature (e.g., “The Individual and Society”). Units integrate instruction in literary genres (e.g., the novel, poetry), literary non-fiction, grammar, and writing skills. The Fundamentals version of each course focus on reading comprehension and composition skills, grammar and usage, literature studies (e.g., drama, poetry), speaking and listening skills, and special topics, such as internet research. Fundamentals courses were not created to address the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). About Odysseyware* Odysseyware takes the question of where students can learn out of the equation. With its fully HTML5 course library, students can learn anywhere, anytime, on any device, via a powerful Learning Management System delivering hundreds of multimedia-based courses. Students have access to CTE, Advanced Placement®, core and elective options, all aligned to national and state standards. They also have access to powerful supports including translations in 23 languages, vocabulary and reference libraries, text-to-speech, and immediate coaching for writing skills via the Writer Tool. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Odysseyware . Subscribe to  Learning List  for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources.

Learning List has reviewed Pacific Learning’s CSI Literacy for grades 7 and 8. CSI Literacy is supplemental product that supports literacy development in grades 3-8. Content is available in print and online formats and includes digital resources (i.e., USB drives). Instruction emphasizes the development of close reading skills and the comprehension of complex texts. Resources support instruction in blended learning environments.< Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> At grades 7 and 8, CSI Literacy presents content in five introductory lessons and 40 text-based lessons organized in terms of English language arts (24 lessons), social studies (8 lessons), and science (8 lessons). For each subject area, content is presented in a separate “Cooperative Learning Activities” student text and an associated teacher “Lesson Plan Book.” Text-based lessons begin by clarifying the purpose of instruction (e.g., determine important ideas) and organize learning activities in four sections: Prior to reading, Interacting with the text, Reflecting on the text, and a Writing activity. Each Cooperative Learning Activities book has a glossary and a list of reading comprehension strategies. A “Student Reflection Journal” contains guidance in using and combining close reading strategies. About Pacific Learning* Pacific Learning has been a dedicated provider of PreK–8+ literacy solutions since 1999. Pacific Learning’s supplemental resources are research-based and designed to increase instructional excellence and student achievement. Pacific Learning supports the needs of school and district administrators, literacy coaches, and teachers. They understand that needs vary from school to school and from student to student. So they treat each customer as an individual and work closely to understand and support the different needs. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Pacific Learning . Subscribe to  Learning List  for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources.

Learning List has reviewed Heinemann’s Units of Study in Argument, Information, and Narrative Writing for grades 6-8.  We have previously reviewed Units of Study in Opinion, Information, and Narrative Writing for grades K-5. Both products are supplemental writing programs made up of a set of print resources for teachers with additional materials available on CD-ROM.  Based on the work of Lucy Calkins and the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Teachers College, Columbia University, Units of Study incorporates a workshop approach to teaching writing skills that focuses on Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for writing. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> At each grade level, content is organized in 6-week units that include argument/opinion, information, and narrative writing, as well as an additional unit (e.g., memoir). Additional, shorter units are provided in a separate book, titled “If…Then…Curriculum: Assessment-Based Instruction.”  Each unit is organized in “Bends” (i.e., bend in the road). For example, the grade 5 unit for research-based argument essays is made up of three Bends: (1) Establishing and Supporting Positions, (2) Building Powerful Arguments, and (3) Writing for Real-Life Purposes and Audiences. Bends are made up of sets of lessons, or “Sessions,” that follow a consistent format across grades K-5. CD-ROMs for each grade level contain additional resources to support each unit (e.g., photographs), printable checklists and handouts for students, and video samples of student work. Daily writing workshops last 50-60 minutes and foster the development of higher level thinking skills (e.g., synthesis, analysis). Content is organized sequentially within and across grades and learning progressions are provided. Accompanying sets of trade books for each grade level are available from the publisher. Units of Study uses a system of performance-based assessments to evaluate students’ writing skills.  The “Writing Pathways: Performance Assessments and Learning Progressions” text provides teachers with comprehensive guidance in implementing the system, as well as writing prompts and rubrics to support assessment. About Heinemann* Heinemann is a publisher of professional resources and a provider of educational services for teachers, kindergarten through college. Heinemann strives to give voice to those who share our respect for the professionalism and compassion of teachers and who support teachers’ efforts to help children become literate, empathetic, knowledgeable citizens. Heinemann’s authors are exemplary educators eager to support the practice of other teachers through books, videos, workshops, online courses, and most recently through explicit teaching materials. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Heinemann . Subscribe to  Learning List  for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources.

This is Part Two of a post in response to the recent report Leadership Perspectives on Public Education: The Gallup 2017 Survey of K-12 School District Superintendents .  As discussed in our first post , the superintendents who participated in the Gallup 2017 Survey identified teacher quality as the most important element in student success, but noted the difficulty in hiring talented teachers. In particular, superintendents said that the quantity and quality of new teachers is decreasing and that districts need to become more effective in training teaching staff. In Part One of this post, we explored how districts can use the resources embedded in instructional materials to support teacher professional development. In this post, we examine how the tools on LearningList.com can facilitate training by enhancing teachers’ understanding of state standards and how standards shape day-to-day instruction. Learning List features a detailed alignment report for each product we review.  The alignment reports reflect our independent verification of the alignment of citations listed in the publisher’s correlation. In order for Learning List to consider a citation to be aligned to the standard, the citation must address the content, context, and cognitive demand specified in the standard. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> Learning List’s alignment reports verify the material’s alignment to the component elements of the standards, where relevant. On the TEKS alignment report presented below, readers can see that the Standard is broken into “Student Expectations” that are further divided into “Breakouts.” In order for Learning List’s reviewers to consider a publisher’s citation aligned to a given TEKS, it must be aligned to the full set of Student Expectations for the standard and the full set of Breakouts for each Student Expectation in the standard.  Thus, each of Learning List’s alignment reports essentially “unpack” each grade-level standard into its component pieces, making it easier for teachers to see the structure of standards, including the focus of learning goals and the sequence of content within and across grade levels. Learning List’s alignment reports also help teachers recognize when and how the instructional content of materials may fall short of what the standards require. If Learning List reviews a publisher’s citation and finds it not to be aligned to the standard, a “Reviewer’s Comment” clarifies why the citation is not aligned to that standard. These Comments can spur important conversations among teachers about what is missing in the material and how instruction should be modified to ensure the standard is fully covered. In these ways, Learning List’s alignment reports provide ongoing support and professional development.  As teachers gain a better understanding of standards, they become more aware of how daily instruction should address what students are expected to know and be able to do in order to be prepared for subsequent content in the next the grade level.   Learning List’s alignment reports also help teachers understand how best to prepare students for standardized tests, particularly in Texas. In the case of the TEKS, alignment reports identify whether each standard is a “Readiness Standard,” a “Supporting Standard,” or a “Process Standard” to help teachers prioritize instruction in preparation for testing. Alignment reports for tested grades and subjects in Texas contain links to released STAAR questions from the previous four years. The test question links make it easy for teachers to see how the student expectations have been tested over multiple years, which deepens their understanding of how students are expected to demonstrate their learning. The released STAAR questions also help teachers develop question stems for common assessments and quizzes. Understanding of learning standards and the student outcomes they define is fundamental to good teaching. As districts play a greater role in professional development, it will be important that they ensure all teachers understand how their content area is shaped by the applicable learning standards. Learning List’s alignment reports are tools that districts may use to show teachers how standards set learning goals and how these goals shape instruction. Contact us if you’d like to learn more about how Learning List can help you choose and use materials effectively for  instruction.

Learning List has reviewed several of Glynlyon’s Odysseyware high school math products, including Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, and the “Fundamentals” version of each course (e.g. Algebra I Fundamentals). Each product supports instruction in self-paced and credit-recovery programs and blended learning environments. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> Algebra I (TX Edition) is a year-long course that addresses the foundations of algebra, linear equations, functions, inequalities, linear systems, polynomials, exponential functions and radicals, and quadratic equations. Geometry (TX Edition) is a year-long course that addresses the foundations of geometry, logic, functions, angles and parallels, congruent triangles and quadrilaterals, similar polygons, circles, area and volume, coordinate geometry, transformations and trigonometry, and probability. Algebra II (TX Edition) is a year-long course that expands students’ understanding of quadratic and exponential functions, systems of equations, and inequalities. Instruction addresses logarithmic, square root, cubic, cube root, absolute value, rational, and inverse functions and their related equations. Students learn to connect functions to their inverses and associated equations and solutions in both mathematical and real-world situations. Data analysis and numeric and algebraic methods are also covered. The Fundamentals versions of each course are designed to provide focused instruction. Each course contains extended review activities and fewer performance tasks and opportunities for project-based learning. About Odysseyware* Odysseyware takes the question of where students can learn out of the equation. With its fully HTML5 course library, students can learn anywhere, anytime, on any device, via a powerful Learning Management System delivering hundreds of multimedia-based courses. Students have access to CTE, Advanced Placement®, core and elective options, all aligned to national and state standards. They also have access to powerful supports including translations in 23 languages, vocabulary and reference libraries, text-to-speech, and immediate coaching for writing skills via the Writer Tool. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Odysseyware . Subscribe to  Learning List  for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources.

The new report Leadership Perspectives on Public Education: The Gallup 2017 Survey of K-12 School District Superintendents identifies the key challenges that school leaders believe are facing public education today.  Not surprisingly, superintendents say that quality teachers who can engage students and build excitement about learning are the most critical element in improving student outcomes. However, surveyed superintendents underscored the difficulty of finding talented teachers. The report’s conclusion explains: Superintendents believe having teachers who create excitement about the future is, more than any other proposed strategy or initiative, extremely important for preparing students for success later in life. But finding enough quality teachers is a difficult task, and superintendents are much less likely to see their district as effective in recruiting new teachers as effective in selecting, developing or retaining them. A majority also see the quantity of new teacher candidates decreasing, and more view the quality of those candidates as decreasing rather than increasing (p. 31). < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> This result suggests that districts are increasingly involved in training new teachers and providing ongoing professional development to ensure all teachers provide high quality instruction. In this two-part blog series, Learning List will discuss the ways in which districts can use (1) their instructional materials, and (2) the resources and tools on Learninglist.com to support teacher growth and improved instruction. In this first blog post, we will discuss the embedded teacher supports that publishers often provide to ensure their materials are used effectively and to optimize student outcomes. While not all publishers offer such supports, the resources we find to be most common are discussed below. Detailed lesson plans. Many products provide teachers with lesson plans that have lightly- or heavily-scripted “teacher talk” and examples of possible student responses. The responses typically include a variety of possible correct responses as well as incorrect responses and the underlying student misconceptions. These lesson plans discuss the materials required for instruction and pacing options. They provide step-by-step guidance in implementing activities and include teaching tools, such as graphic organizers, learning games, and hands-on activities. In some instances, the lesson plans are so detailed, that they “teacher-proof” instruction. That is, the guidance is so detailed that the most inexperienced teacher can deliver the lesson effectively. This may make some experienced educators uncomfortable; however, publishers generally allow teachers to modify the plans to meet their teaching styles and their students’ learning needs. Strategies for differentiating learning. Recognizing the importance of providing instruction for all learners, many publishers offer detailed activities and/or mini-lessons that support English language learners (ELLs) at different levels of language acquisition, Response to Intervention (RtI) at Tiers 2 and 3, and gifted students. Often, these resources are embedded in lesson plans or included in wrap-around teacher editions. However, as more resources are offered online, teachers increasingly have access to fully developed differentiated learning resources that address different learning needs. Such resources may include leveled reading materials that cover the same content, but at different reading levels; adaptive learning tools that adjust instruction to meet each student’s learning needs; and online tools, such as audio-readers and translation features that help struggling readers and ELLs master content. On-demand professional development. We see many publishers offering on-demand training in the form of videos, webinars, and interactive tutorials. This training often includes guidance in planning and implementing lessons; background in content, pedagogy, and learning standards; strategies for differentiating instruction; videos of expert teachers modeling instruction in classrooms; and support for using the product’s resources and/or online features. Monitoring tools. Products increasingly are offering monitoring tools that allow educators to track student progress, identify struggling students, and design interventions. These tools support data-driven instruction and provide powerful information in training teachers in the use of data, measurement of learning objectives, and effective assessment. A community of users. To facilitate effective use of instructional materials, publishers often seek to build online communities of teachers. These communities enable teachers to share teaching tips, lesson plans, and best practices through chatrooms, discussion boards, and other social media tools. Teacher portals. In addition to traditional teacher resources, such as teacher editions and answer keys, some publishers are providing access to additional materials through online teacher portals.  Materials offered through portals supplement traditional teacher resources and often include articles that offer deeper discussions of content and pedagogy, alternative instructional approaches to satisfy different teaching and learning styles, and links to additional resources. As noted earlier in this blog, not all publishers offer these supports. In our reviews of over 2,500 instructional materials, we have found some products that provide no support for teachers, while others offer each of the resources described above. Learning List’s editorial reviews discuss each product’s teachers supports in detail and the Academic Inventory page of our Spec Sheet provides a check list of the supports available in each product (e.g., on-demand professional development, monitoring tools). As districts look to invest more resources in teacher training, selecting instructional materials that facilitate teacher development is one strategy that makes sense.  By investing in high quality instructional materials that help students master content and improve teachers’ instruction, districts are getting a two-for-one deal. To our way of thinking, this reflects responsible stewardship of district resources and an effective approach to improving teaching and learning. Contact us if you’d like to learn more about how Learning List can help you choose and use materials effectively for  instruction.

Learning List has reviewed Region 13 Education Service Center’s Algebra I Mini Interventions: Linear Equations and Inequalities. This is a supplemental product that helps teachers understand and teach the student expectations (SEs) added to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for Algebra I in 2012. Instruction addresses only that content added to the “Linear Equations, Functions, and Inequalities” strand of the TEKS. Content is available in interactive PDF format and may be printed. < Read=">Read" more... ="more..."> Mini Interventions provides an overview of the structure of the TEKS, including content standards and the Mathematical Process Standards, and then introduces each of the new student expectations (SEs) added in 2012. Each new SE, or “targeted standard,” is discussed in a chapter that is organized in six sections designed to help teachers prepare for instruction; teach the new standards; re-teach , where appropriate; and assess mastery of the standards. Instruction emphasizes spiraling (i.e., weaving in) supporting content from prior grade levels and existing Algebra I standards Formative Pre- and Post-Assessments are provided for each of the Algebra I SEs addressed by Mini Interventions. Assessments are made up of open-ended questions and include answer keys that reference the SE assessed by each question. About Algebra I Mini Interventions: Linear Equations and Inequalities*  Algebra I Mini Interventions: Linear Equations and Inequalities  was produced by Virginia Keasler, an Education Specialist for Secondary Mathematics at Region 13. Virginia has experience with teaching all high school math courses. Virginia also has been a district Math and Science Coordinator and a Middle School Math Instructional Coach. In her work with high school math teachers across the state, Virginia noticed that intervention tools were greatly needed. While K-8 schools may have intervention teachers, this is a rarity in high school. In an effort to provide high school teachers with much needed resources for intervention to close the gap for their Algebra 1 students, Virginia has created the intervention tool Algebra 1 Mini-Interventions. *Information in this section is provided by or adapted from Region 13 . Subscribe to  Learning List  for access to the spec sheet, full editorial review and alignment reports for these materials and thousands of other widely used PreK-12 resources.

Have you ever been frustrated when attempting to plan differentiated lessons? Though “differentiation” is a rather simple concept, it is complex to implement successfully. Most teachers understand that any resource used to differentiate instruction must have the requisite adaptions for the students being taught. For example, materials being used to teach ELLs should have multi-lingual glossaries, linguistic accommodations, and culturally relevant examples and activities to engage ELL students. Materials being used to engage Gifted and Talented students would have extension/ enrichment activities, higher-level questions, and options for inquiry-based learning.  And, for RtI , the materials should have options for each tier of intervention. > > However, to successfully differentiate instruction, you have to drill down even further and ensure that not just the materials but rather, the particular citations in the material(s )you want  to use to differentiate instruction are (1) aligned to the standards being taught, and (2) have the adaptions the students need. Alignment: Students won’t learn what they are not taught. In order for your students to learn the knowledge and skills the standards require, the citations (i.e., pages, lessons, videos in the materials) you are using must be aligned to those standards.  If the point of differentiating instruction is to help all students learn the standards, the citations you use to differentiate instruction must be aligned to the standard(s) you are teaching. For example, below are 3 supplemental materials you have available for 4 th  grade math. Each material has citations that you have verified to be aligned to the standard that is the focus of your lesson. You now have choices and can move to step two in selecting materials. Adaptions:  Beyond being aligned to the standards, the citations you use to differentiate instruction must be developmentally appropriate for and/or must contain the supports your students need in order to learn the information.  A Learning List’s Editorial Review for a popular material points out: “Some lessons, quizzes, and accompanying activities may be too advanced for emerging readers; audio readers are provided.” In order to use materials successfully to differentiate instruction, you must make sure that the citations in the materials you use are aligned to the standards you intend to teach, and that those citations also have the adaptions your students need to learn the information presented. Learning List’s reviews and tools make the process of selecting and using materials for differentiation easier.  Our Alignment Comparison tool helps you identify which of your materials are aligned to the standards you want to teach. Our Alignment Reports list specific citations in each material that we have verified to be fully aligned to each standard, as well as other citations that we found not to be completely aligned. And, our Editorial Reviews explain the adaptions each material contains for the different student groups and the instructional resources provided to help teachers differentiate instruction. Using this information, and knowledge of your students’ needs, will make planning for differentiation easier. Contact us if you’d like to learn more about how Learning List can help you choose and use materials effectively for differentiating instruction.