LearnZillion is an online, open educational resource that provides supplementary mathematics teaching materials for grades 2-12. Resources are free and address the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). At each grade level, instruction is presented in short Video Lessons and detailed lesson plans (i.e., Full Lessons) that focus on a particular standard or set of standards. Learning List has recently completed reviews of LearnZillion’s OER math materials. Video Lessons are narrated slide shows that focus on particular mathematics concepts and skills (e.g., “Find the volume of 3-dimensional objects”). Lessons begin with a review of what students already know and then provide step-by-step guidance in solving problems, including the use of mathematical tools (e.g., unit cubes) in finding solutions. Some Video Lessons include a “Commentary” video that provides background information about the topic and the approach to instruction for teachers. Full Lessons are detailed lesson plans centered on slide shows with teaching notes. Slide shows focus on problem-solving and include activities that foster “productive struggle” with concepts. Academic vocabulary is highlighted and instruction encourages students to consider multiple solution paths and share their solution strategies with the class. Full Lessons reference the Mathematical Practice Standards (MPS) addressed in each lesson and lesson plans provide teachers with detailed guidance in incorporating the MPS in instruction. About LearnZillion* LearnZillion is dedicated to championing teachers and supporting their ongoing professional development. Teachers develop expertise and insights while working with students, and have exceptional ideas for how to improve classroom learning. However, they have never been able to integrate that expertise into a curriculum that keeps getting better. LearnZillion believes that empowering teachers to collaborate and share best practices creates new possibilities for students, and the profession. LearnZillion.com offers a free and growing set of Math and English Language resources for grades 2-12 that have been developed by expert teachers directly from the Common Core State Standards. LearnZillion’s premium participatory curriculum platform enables schools and districts to accelerate the successful implementation of the Common Core, augment the efficacy of their coaches, create class time capacity to address differentiation needs, and build teacher leaders. The idea for LearnZillion began at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School in Washington, D.C. where co-founder Eric Westendorf, was principal. After watching 6th grade teacher Andrea Smith teach her students what it meant to divide by fractions, Eric wondered, "could powerful learning experiences be captured so that teachers didn't have to re-invent the wheel every time they taught a standard?" He decided to find out. Working with Andrea and a few other E.L. Haynes teachers, he created a homemade website that featured screencasts of high quality, Common Core lessons. The website worked. Not only could teachers find examples of high quality lessons, but parents and students also benefited from the explanations. Thanks to a Next Generation Learning Challenge Grant, Eric was able to grow the idea. He teamed up with former classmate and teacher, Alix Guerrier, and together they recruited an initial corps of 20 Dream Team teachers from across the country. The  Dream Team  grew to 123 the following year. In 2013, 200 teachers from 42 states worked on high quality Common Core lessons. There are now over 10,000 high quality resources on the site, covering grades 2-12 in math and ELA. LearnZillion also launched it's premium offering to enable states, districts, and schools to provide powerful and invigorating professional development experiences for their own teachers. For more about the founding story, check out  this post  on their blog, The LearnZillion Insider. * The content in this section is provided by or adapted from LearnZillion. © 2015 Learning List

Discovery Education’s Science Techbook for Texas is a comprehensive, web-based science curriculum for grades K-12. At each grade level, the multimodal program includes a range of digital resources, including interactive text; embedded videos, animations, and virtual investigations; and hands-on explorations. Techbooks support struggling readers, English language learners (ELLs), and students with disabilities. At grades K-8, resources include Lexile-based, or “leveled,” text in English and Spanish to address the needs of students at different reading at, below, or above grade level. Learning List has completed reviews for Discovery Education’s web-based science curriculum for grades K-12. Content is structured to help students think and communicate in scientific language. Lessons focus on answering “essential questions” and are organized using the 5E Instructional Model. Instruction builds conceptual understanding and develops scientific process skills, such as establishing hypotheses, collecting and analyzing data, drawing evidence-based conclusions, and applying concepts to new problems. Partnerships with the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Science Channel, and other publishers facilitate access to high-quality and engaging materials that connect science to real-world problems and events. Techbooks aggregate a diverse set of interactive, multimedia tools in a single digital platform. The program’s user interface is intuitive and easy-to-use. Content for both teachers and students is explicitly organized in terms of the 5E model and is searchable by keyword for students and by keyword and TEKS. Click here for a 60-day evaluation. About Discovery Education* Discovery Education transforms classrooms, empowers teachers and captivates students by leading the way in providing high quality, dynamic, digital content to school districts large and small, rural and suburban and everything in between. Discovery Education courses are designed to accelerate student achievement in each district by capturing the minds and imaginations of students with the fascination of Discovery, tapping into students’ natural curiosity and desire to learn. Discovery Education offers a portfolio of opportunities for districts to meet students where they want to learn in the digital age. With award-winning digital content, interactive lessons, real time assessment, virtual experiences with some of Discovery’s greatest talent, classroom contests & challenges, professional development and more — Discovery helps to lead the way in transforming classrooms and inspiring learning. Click here for more information about Discovery Education. * The content in this section is provided by or adapted from Discovery Education. © 2015 Learning List

Read Naturally Live is a web-based program that provides differentiated instruction to meet the needs of struggling readers and second language learners in grades 1 through 8. The customizable program supports improved vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension through a system of repeated, timed student reading and includes ongoing phonics instruction in grades 1 through 3. Learning List has completed reviews for the web-based program in grades 1 through 8. Read Naturally includes a web-based diagnostic assessment of oral reading fluency that ensures students start at the appropriate reading level. Instruction is sequential and addresses multiple reading levels for each elementary and middle school grade. At each reading level, the program provides 24 non-fiction texts that are grouped based on difficulty and include relevant, age-appropriate content. Diverse passages focus on history, science, and biography and address the challenges and accomplishments of real people from a range of backgrounds. Audio files help students learn the sounds of letters and the phonics and syllable patterns common to the English language. Through repeated timed readings, students practice decoding words at increasingly faster rates. Timing tools and quizzes allow teachers and students to measure improvements in reading comprehension and fluency. Headphones are recommended to reduce classroom distractions, and Spanish language translations are available for students in grades 1-4. See the video on the right for a brief overview. About Read Naturally* In 1989,  Candyce Ihnot  was a teacher, graduate student, wife, and mother of four active children (ages 18, 14, 12, and 6). That year, as part of her master’s program in special education, Candyce developed a unique and highly effective strategy to help struggling readers achieve fluency. She combined three research-proven methods (teacher modeling, repeated reading, and progress monitoring) into a simple set of steps that would later become known as the  Read Naturally Strategy . Eventually, this strategy would help millions of struggling students read more fluently. Along with her husband, Tom, a high school economics teacher and basketball coach, Candyce founded Read Naturally , Inc., in 1991. Early on, the husband-and-wife team ran the business from their kitchen table. As Read Naturally's sales increased, they cleared space in a spare bedroom to expand operations. The kitchen table continued to host “board meetings,” and the basement doubled as the assembly and warehouse space. Candyce developed curriculum materials and trained teachers around the country to implement the strategy. Tom handled the business side of Read Naturally, servicing customers, shipping orders, and keeping the books. All four of their children were employed to stuff envelopes, assemble materials, and carry out countless other tasks. It was truly a family affair—and it still is, after more than 20 years in business. The Read Naturally family has now grown to nearly 30 dedicated and hardworking people, most of whom work in an office less than one mile from the kitchen table where it all started. The Read Naturally staff prides themselves on the quality of their materials, dedicated service to educators, and the success of students who use their products. They believe that curricula should be interesting and appropriate for each and every student, and that materials should be flexible and adaptable for many situations and environments. Read Naturally believes that teachers understand best the needs of their students, and that teachers should be supported in their efforts through professional development and coaching. Developing literacy is one of the most important steps toward a successful future. Reading is not only a necessary skill, but also an enjoyable and rewarding practice that enables a lifetime of exploration and discovery. For these reasons, Read Naturally is dedicated to producing  better tools ,  better readers , and  brighter futures . For more information, click here . *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from Read Naturally. © 2015 Learning List

Gourmet Learning Reading is a vertically-aligned, supplemental reading comprehension program for grades 1-8. The flexible program allows teachers to customize instruction for students reading above, on, or below grade level. The program’s modular design meets a range of teaching needs, including whole-class instruction, supplemental instruction, and Response to Intervention (RtI). Content includes multiple opportunities for re-teaching and for students to interact with peers. Learning List has completed reviews for the supplemental reading comprehension program for grades 1-8. Instruction emphasizes the skills and strategies that support independence with the reading process and students’ ability to learn from what they read. Across grades, content includes cross-curricular, fiction and nonfiction reading selections with a high level of differentiation to engage diverse learners. Content-related games and collaborative projects provide opportunities for students to interact with classmates. Teachers monitor student learning through periodic observational assessments of comprehension and skills. Resources include a practice test, a benchmark test, and a final assessment for each unit of instruction. Click the video for a quick overview of Gourmet Learning's benefits. About Gourmet Learning* The Gourmet Learning team has 100+ years of collective classroom experience. Their programs are research-based principles and practices from The National Reading Panel, NCTM, NSTA, Marzano’s and Hunter’s work on effective classroom strategies. Each reading program actively involves students in critical thinking strategies and application of skills, based on the work of Benjamin Bloom. Lessons are comprehensive in scope, modular in design and are ideal for differentiated instruction. Our scope includes Math and Reading objectives in many states. “Modular Design” means you can use our materials to teach or reinforce a single learning objective, a summer school course of selected objectives or an entire year’s curriculum. For more information, click here . *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from Gourmet Learning. © 2015 Learning List

Texas Economics: Math & Personal Finance is a free set of lesson plans for teaching mathematics and personal financial literacy in grades K-12. Lesson plans reference the relevant Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) and the National Standards for Personal Finance, National Teachers of Mathematics Standards and Benchmarks, and the National Council on Economics Education Voluntary Standards in Economics. Resources are available for download on the Texas Council on Economic Education website . Learning List has completed reviews for Personal Financial Literacy (Grades 4-6), Personal Financial Literacy - Lessons for Classrooms and After School Programs (Grades 7 & 8) and Texas Economics: Math & Personal Finance (Grades K-3). Lessons are supplemental and designed to meet the economics strand of the TEKS. At grades K-8, instruction addresses income, money management, spending and credit, as well as saving and investing. Content incorporates age-appropriate children’s literature with plots linked to personal finance (e.g., Curious George Takes a Job ) and include activities that address concepts introduced in readings. Each lesson includes rubrics to guide assessment by observing students’ participation in activities and evaluating completed activity sheets. About TCEE* The Texas Council on Economic Education (TCEE) has a vision that by working with kindergarten through grade 12 educators, TCEE can establish the seeds of a healthier U. S. economy and personal financial stability.  TCEE’s goal is to provide teachers with hands-on lessons and programs that allow students to practice implementing  real life economic and financial skills, and thus pave the way to a life of economic security and a Smarter Texas. As a 501(c) 3 nonprofit founded in 1949 and incorporated in 1969, TCEE has strong program roots throughout the state. TCEE coordinates programs to provide statewide student activities and teacher staff development with a goal to ultimately reach the 5 million school children of Texas.  TCEE strives to provide free or low cost programs that school districts and teachers can afford in times of significant budget cuts.  Each year TCEE reaches at least 2,000 educators who then impact the learning of 2 million students. TCEE seeks partnerships to promote its vision that the U. S. become a nation of citizens who have the knowledge and skills to make sound, informed economic decisions. *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from TCEE. © 2015 Learning List

WriteSteps is a comprehensive, stand-alone writing program for grades K-5. Resources address the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for writing and grammar and are available in print and digital formats. Instruction focuses on developing writing skills using the “6 Traits of Quality Writing” framework (i.e., ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, and conventions). Learning List completed reviews of the comprehensive (K-5) program. WriteSteps develops writing skills characterized by CCSS “text types.” Text types include opinion, informative/explanatory, narrative, research, and, at grades 3-5, response to literature. Content is organized in multi-day units that focus on a particular text type. Across grade levels, instruction includes opportunities for students to work with peers, participate in collaborative writing projects, and to develop editing and revision skills. Writing tasks are connected to students’ lives and experiences and include integrated instruction in grammar and usage. See video overview on the right. Each unit includes a Formal Core Writing assignment that serves as a summative assessment. Rubrics based on the CCSS and the 6 Traits of Quality Writing support the evaluation of student work. At grades 2-5, WriteSteps includes a writing prompt early in each unit that may be used as a pre-assessment of students’ skills. Click here for a Free Trial. About WriteSteps* WriteSteps Founder & CEO Suzanne Klein is a former K-5 teacher and writing consultant with extensive training in writing pedagogy best practices, especially writer’s workshop and 6 Traits. Klein holds a Master of Arts degree in teaching, is a National Writing Project fellow, and draws inspiration from teachers such as Ralph Fletcher, Barry Lane, Lucy Calkins, Katie Wood Ray, and John Collins. WriteSteps is a 2015 SIIA CODIE Finalist and a 2015 AAP Revere Awards Finalist. *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from WriteSteps. © 2015 Learning List

Mathalicious is an online, supplemental resource that supports Common Core middle school and high school math instruction. Instruction emphasizes the application of math to real-world issues and focuses on algebra, geometry, statistics, and probability at the high school level. Instruction is teacher guided and focuses on engaging students in meaningful conversations about mathematics. Learning List has completed reviews for Mathalicious Lessons for Grades 6-8 as well as Algebra I, Algebra II and Geometry. Lessons are designed for use with LCD projectors or interactive white boards and last about two days (block scheduled). Online resources are organized in three parts Plan, Teach, and Reflect. Content includes video and audio clips and interactive slide shows that help students visualize the concepts they are learning. Discussions of problem-solving strategies are integrated throughout instruction. Mathalicious lessons may be searched by grade level, topic, standard, and key word. Interactive tools enable teachers to display charts, graphs, and data in ways that support student understanding. For example, the “Projector Mode” tool makes interactive graph images bolder and larger for easier viewing using LCD projectors or interactive white boards. About Mathalicious* The Mathalicious team thinks the world is an interesting place full of interesting questions.  Do people with small feet pay too much for shoes? Do taller Olympic sprinters have an unfair advantage? How have video game consoles changed over time…and are we building the Matrix? They also think math class is the perfect place for students and teachers to explore questions like these, and that it can be the most interesting part of the day. All teachers want to engage their students in meaningful learning experiences. Mathalicious helps teachers create a different kind of math class. They create lessons that explore the math behind real-world topics, from sports to shopping to the odds of finding life on other planets. These lessons put teachers and students in a position to have interesting conversations that foster a classroom culture of curiosity and rigorous mathematical thinking. According to Mathalicious, teachers who use their lessons say they enjoy their jobs more, and that their students look forward to coming to class. The Common Core Standards emphasize problem solving and critical thinking. Every Mathalicious lesson is aligned to the Common Core State Standards. In fact, most lessons connect multiple content standards, and help build deep conceptual understanding through real-world contexts. And live more fully in it. *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from Mathalicious. © 2015 Learning List

The State Bar of Texas’ OYEZ, OYEZ, OH YAY! is a supplemental open-educational resource (OER) that supports social studies instruction for grade 8 and high school students. Instruction focuses on the landmark court decisions that have shaped the nation’s laws and history. The online program provides instructional materials for each of the court cases addressed in the U.S. History TEKS for grade 8 and 11 and U.S. government at grade 12 (e.g., Marbury v. Madison). Learning List has completed reviews of these resources. Content focuses on civics and the importance of engaged citizenship and the judicial systems at the state and federal levels. Instruction is centered on a short video (about 15 minutes) for each case. Videos include an engaging host who provides the historical context for each case and background information about key figures. Videos contain commentary from university professors, attorneys, historians, and constitutional law experts, as well as illustrations, artwork, and photographs of important events and key figures in each case. Resources include downloadable teaching guides and case summaries, overviews of legal issues, and summaries of court decisions. About the State Bar of Texas' LRE Department* The State Bar of Texas' Law-Related Education Department has created Oyez, Oyez, Oh Yay! , an engaging and interactive site geared toward helping students (and their teachers) explore the court decisions that have helped shape our country and the state of Texas — and, most important, how these decisions have affected our everyday lives. What Does "Oyez, Oyez, Oyez" mean? "Oyez" is primarily pronounced "o-yay," although sometimes as "o-yez" or "o-yes." It is used three times in succession to introduce the opening of a court of law, especially the U.S. Supreme Court. Word origin is Middle English and descends from the Anglo-Norman "oyez," the plural imperative form of "oyer" ("to hear"). Thus, it means "hear ye" – a common call for silence or attention in medieval England. *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from the State Bar of Texas. © 2015 Learning List

Learning List will be presenting a session titled "Unpacking the Standards in the Transformative Classroom"  at the Texas ASCD's Ignite15 conference at the Irving Convention Center - 10:30AM today in the Junior Ballroom A1. The session will discuss how to "Use your Instructional Materials Instructionally." Tasha Barker, Director of Alignment at Learning List and Texas ASCD Board of Governors, will be c0-presenting with Jackie Lain, President of Learning List . Texas ASCD's Ignite 15 is a 3-day event that offers K-12 educators and administrators the opportunity to network with and learn from internationally recognized presenters in hands-on groundbreaking sessions designed to transform curriculum with technology integration. This conference and its focus on digital learning will give you the spark you need to develop innovative plans to implement at your school or district. Click here for a digital schedule of other sessions and events at Ignite15.

This week, Ed Week Teacher had a great article explaining “3 Things You Can Do This Summer to Be a Better Teacher in the Fall.” The second point the article makes is “Read, Reflect, Plan,” with an emphasis on the importance of planning. In that regard, the article suggests: Map out your school year with a month-by-month instructional plan. Framing your monthly goals will help you to launch an organized year of learning and teaching. Identify the resources you will need and make a list so you can begin to gather what you need over the summer. Learning List helps teachers streamline their planning and make their instruction more effective. In order to succeed academically, students must learn the knowledge and skills the state’s standards require. With so many standards and so little class time, teachers have to be instructionally efficient. One way to be instructionally efficient is to use only the portions of your instructional materials that are truly aligned to the standards. For each material, Learning List’s reviews the citations listed in the publisher’s correlation for alignment to the three c’s of each standard: content , context and cognitive demand . The alignment report lists the citations Learning List found to be aligned to each standard, as well as the citations found not to be aligned, along with a Reviewer’s Comment explaining which of the three c’s each non-aligned citation failed to address. By referencing Learning List’s alignment reports when creating lesson plans, teachers can easily identify the citations that will teach students what the standards require them to learn, thus saving teachers hours of work both during the summer and the school year. One last point, if your district subscribes to Learning List, and we have not yet reviewed the materials you are planning to use next fall, simply Request a Review . Let us work for you. Teachers, we hope you enjoy your summer! You’ve certainly earned it.

Cosenza & Associates’ STAAR Mission Math is a supplemental, accelerated program to help students master the TEKS and prepare for STAAR math exams in grades K-12. The online program includes printable resources and supports instruction in blended learning environments. Learning List recently reviewed STAAR Mission Math products for grades K-8 and Algebra I. At each grade of these grade levels, STAAR Mission Math provides sets of lessons that support students in mastering specific TEKS and preparing for standardized tests. Lessons are organized using the 5E instructional model (i.e., Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate) and include videos, activity sheets, hands-on activities, and opportunities for formative and summative assessment. Instruction incorporates multiple representations of concepts and math journals in which students keep track of new vocabulary, record their conclusions, and reflect on what they have learned. Teacher resources include a downloadable one-page lesson plan for each lesson, blackline masters of student handouts, and answer keys. Lesson plans include an overview, links to the relevant TEKS, and step-by-step guidance in implementing the 5E lesson cycle, including steps to prepare the lesson and discussion questions.   About Cosenza & Associates* Cosenza & Associates, LLC , was founded in 2010 by Gary Cosenza and Dr. Paul Gray. They founded the company in order to provide a better organizational structure for putting their expertise to work for schools and districts across Texas and around the nation. What is STAAR Mission™ ? STAAR Mission™ is a flexible, condensed curriculum for Grades K-12 Mathematics, Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2. Based on the 5E instructional model, STAAR Mission™ lessons are teacher tools that harness the power of multimedia, including engaging audio and video documents, to deliver instruction that reinforces conceptual understanding so that students can become proficient with important skills. STAAR Mission™ lessons emphasize succinct, tailored instruction centered around students' use of a daily math journal. Each lesson includes high-yield strategies cited by Marzano, Pickering, and Pollock (2001) such as summarizing, using graphic organizers, and note-taking. Lessons also include hands-on activities, digital and printable activity masters, and detailed teacher directions. Visit the STAAR Mission™ website , to learn more about how STAAR Mission can help make students successful! *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from  Cosenza & Associates . © 2015 Learning List

Jarrett Publishing’s Mastering the TEKS in World History is a supplemental test preparation program for world history available in print format. Resources provide complete coverage of the high school world history TEKS. Instruction addresses world history from the establishment of the first human civilizations through the present day with a focus on key vocabulary, important concepts (e.g., human rights), and historical figures. Learning List recently published an editorial review and alignment report for this book. The book’s introduction provides a rationale for studying world history and an overview of resources and how to use them to master the TEKS. The first unit addresses test-taking, social studies, and problem-solving skills. Subsequent units cover world history from the development of early civilizations to the present day. Most chapters include practice questions formatted to reflect the STAAR end-of course exam in U.S. History (students will take this test in a later grade). The final chapter is a cumulative practice test. Each practice question references the specific world history TEKS assessed. About Jarrett Publishing Company* Founded in 1989, Jarrett Publishing Company is renowned among leading educators for its wide range of products. Each of their publications is carefully tailored to match state learning standards, to provide the thorough content review, to incorporate the latest educational research on learning styles, and to include the most authentic test practice questions available. With these ingredients, Jarrett Publishing strives to improve students' learning and results. *The content in this section is provided by or adapted from Jarrett Publishing . © 2015 Learning List