K-5 Academic Content

Phonological Awareness 

• Hear and say words that rhyme
• Hear and say the beginning, middle, and ending sounds in words
• Put sounds together to make words and take them apart
• Work with parts of words, like in compound words (sun and flower in sunflower)

Print Concepts

• Know and name all uppercase and lowercase letters
• Tell the difference between letters, words, numbers, and pictures
• Notice that words are made of letters and have spaces between them
• Know that sentences start with a capital letter and end with punctuation

Phonics

• Match each letter with its sound
• Know the short and long vowel sounds
• Use letter sounds to read and spell simple words
• Read and spell common sight words that don’t follow spelling rules (the, said, was)

Fluency

• Read simple books with understanding and purpose

Handwriting

• Write uppercase and lowercase letters correctly
• Write first and last name neatly
• Use spaces between words and sentences

Grammar

• Use capital letters at the start of a sentence and for the word “I”
• Speak and write in complete sentences
• Use the correct forms of nouns (singular and plural)
• Ask questions using words like who, what, where, when, and why

Vocabulary

• Use new words learned from stories and conversations
• Group words that are alike and connect words that have related meanings

Comprehension

• Talk about the author and illustrator of a book
• Identify characters, setting, and important events in stories
• Tell the main idea in nonfiction books
• Know the difference between fiction and nonfiction
• Explain the lesson or message in a story
• Compare and contrast characters or events
• Use details from the book to support answers or ideas

Writing

• Retell a story in order from beginning to end
• Draw, label, and write to tell a story with characters, setting, and events
• Draw, label, and write to share facts about a topic
• Draw, label, and write to share an opinion or preference about something

Phonological Awareness

• Hear, say, and work with sounds in words
• Blend sounds together to make words
• Break words apart into smaller sounds
• Add, take away, or change sounds to make new words

Phonics

• Match letters and letter groups with their sounds
• Read and spell words with:

 ○ Short and long vowel sounds

 ○ Blends and digraphs (like bl, sh, ch, th)

 ○ Silent e (like make, ride)

 ○ Vowel teams (like ee, ai, oa, igh)

• Use phonics to read and spell new one- and two-syllable words
• Read and spell common sight words that don’t follow regular spelling rules

Fluency

• Read grade-level books with understanding and purpose
• Read smoothly, with expression, and fix mistakes while reading

Handwriting

• Write all letters and words neatly and correctly
• Use spaces between words

Grammar

• Make plural nouns by adding -s or -es
• Change verbs by adding -ing, -ed, or -s
• Write complete sentences using a variety of simple sentence types
• Use nouns, verbs, pronouns, and describing words (adjectives)
• Use capital letters, spaces, and punctuation correctly

Comprehension

• Identify who is telling the story or speaking in a text
• Notice and talk about descriptive words authors use
• Tell the difference between fiction and nonfiction books
• Retell important story parts — characters, setting, and events
• Recognize simple story structure with a problem and a solution
• Identify the main topic in informational (expository) texts and tell key details that support it.

Vocabulary

• Use new words learned from stories and conversations
• Recognize root words and endings that change meaning (look, looks, looked, looking)
• Understand relationships between words: like synonyms, antonyms, and shades of meaning (walk, march, strut)
• Use clues in the sentence or word endings to figure out what new words mean

Writing

• Use transition words like first, next, then, and finally to show order
• Use describing words to make writing more detailed
• Write for different purposes:

 ○ Expository Writing: Tell about a topic and include some facts

 ○ Narrative Writing: Tell a story with characters, setting, and events in order

 ○ Opinion Writing: State an opinion, give reasons, and connect ideas with linking words

• Work with others to research and write about what they’ve learned

Phonics

• Match letters and letter groups with their sounds
• Read and spell words with:

 ○ Short and long vowels

 ○ Vowel teams (like ew, ui, ea, aw, au, ue)

 ○ Diphthongs (like oi, oy, ou, ow)

 ○ R-controlled vowels (like ar, er, ir, or, ur)

• Use phonics to read and spell new one- and two-syllable words
• Read and spell common sight words that don’t follow regular spelling rules

Fluency

• Read grade-level books smoothly, with expression and understanding
• Reread and self-correct when something doesn’t make sense

Handwriting

• Write letters and words neatly and quickly
• Use spaces correctly between words and sentences 

Grammar

• Use describing words (adjectives) and words that tell how, when, or where (adverbs)
• Use nouns, pronouns, and proper nouns correctly
• Use prepositions and conjunctions to make sentences clear
• Capitalize proper nouns (names, places, months, days)
• Use periods, question marks, and exclamation points correctly
• Change words ending in -y to -ies to make them plural
• Use commas in a list, in dates, and in greetings and closings
• Write both simple and compound sentences

Comprehension

• Read and understand stories and informational texts
• Identify who is telling the story and how characters respond to events
• Find the main idea and key details in a text
• Retell important events and identify the problem and solution
• Tell the difference between fiction and nonfiction
• Use examples from the text to explain different points of view
• Ask and answer questions about what they read or hear

Vocabulary

• Use new words learned from stories and conversations
• Recognize root words and parts added to change meaning (prefixes and suffixes)
• Understand word relationships such as synonyms and antonyms
• Recognize words that have related meanings (like run, jog, dash)

Writing

• Write clear, complete sentences, including simple and compound ones
• Use linking and transition words like and, but, because, then, and after to connect ideas
• Use describing words to add detail to writing
• Write for different purposes:

 ○ Expository Writing: Tell about a topic with facts and definitions, and end with a conclusion

 ○ Narrative Writing: Tell a story with characters, setting, events, and dialogue that make sense and have an ending

 ○ Opinion Writing: Share an opinion, give reasons to support it, use linking words, and end with a conclusion

● Work with others to research and write about what they have learned