Kindergarten - Gateway 3

The teacher guidance in Wilson Fundations meets the expectations for Indicator 3a. Materials provide well-defined resources for presenting content and instructional routines, including detailed explanations of learning activities that outline procedures, materials, timing, and expected student outcomes. Daily lessons consistently identify the unit and week and include structured plans with step-by-step instructional guidance and embedded supports such as review and current word lists and corrective feedback. Materials also include point-of-use annotations and suggestions within lessons that support implementation aligned to specific learning objectives. Additional reference tools, such as Activity Cue Cards, provide support for consistent implementation of instructional routines.

• Materials provide a well-defined, teacher resources for presenting content and instructional routines. 

  • In the Teacher Manual, materials present instructional routines with explanations and rationales for teacher implementation. These explanations can be found in several places:

    • The Learning Activity Overview provides a list of the Fundations Learning Activities in alphabetical order. The teacher is guided to prepare for an activity by reading the Learning Activity Overview prior to the lesson within which they will present that activity until the students reach automaticity with the Learning Activity routines. 

      • For example, for the Learning Activity Alphabetical Order, the Learning Activity overview provides a suggested time frame for the activity, a synopsis of the activity, the activity procedure, and corrective feedback to provide students during the activity. The Learning Activity also provides a summary of the activity within a box titled “In a Nutshell.” In this box, the teacher can find a quick snapshot of activity procedures, the materials needed for the teacher and students to implement the activity, and the student outcomes that the activity is meant to support. Each Fundations Learning Activity overview includes similar levels of detail that support the teacher presenting content and instructional routines with fidelity. 

    • Each daily lesson clearly identifies the unit and week and includes a structured daily plan with student learning goals, required teacher materials, and step-by-step instructional guidance. Lessons outline consistent instructional routines that guide teachers through instruction and targeted practice. For example, in Kindergarten, Unit 4, Week 3, Day 2, the lesson includes routines such as Drill Sounds/Warm-Up, Word Play, Teach Trick Words, and Echo/Find Letters & Words. Materials also include embedded supports such as review and current word lists and corrective feedback to support instructional delivery throughout the lesson.

    • Activity Cue Cards can be found in the Appendix and serve as a reference for activities and instructional routines that are presented in each lesson. The materials suggest that the teacher has the Cue Cards available during a lesson for quick reference. 

• Materials include annotations and suggestions to support implementation, presented in the context of specific learning objectives. 

  • In Unit 1, Week 6, Day 1, Sky Write/Letter Formation, the materials include suggestions to support implementation of the activity as aligned with the learning objective of letter formation for lowercase letters. When forming the lowercase letter d, the materials instruct the teacher to “use the following verbalization to direct students in proper letter formation.” The materials then provide examples of speech that will support students in forming the lowercase letter d and visually provide steps for the teacher to follow, starting from where to place the pencil initially on a letter line to the direction the pencil should move to form each element of the letter. 

  • In Unit 5, Week 3, Day 1, during Word Play, the materials include a teacher annotation that provides specific implementation guidance aligned to the objective of developing accuracy and automaticity in word reading. The note directs the teacher to have students demonstrate tapping when reviewing words and then continue practicing reading for automaticity by having students read the words without tapping. The teacher is instructed to create a word chain of three to five review words by changing a word’s initial, medial, or final sound to form a new word, and students are expected to read the chain without tapping unless needed. The materials further guide the teacher to move students from accuracy to automaticity as they progress through the unit, emphasizing that students should internalize tapping for accuracy and then transition to tapping only as needed. This embedded annotation provides actionable guidance within the lesson structure and directly supports the development of foundational decoding skills.

The adult-level explanations in Wilson Fundations meet the expectations for Indicator 3b. Materials contain full, detailed explanations of foundational skills concepts so the teacher can strengthen their knowledge of the content as needed. Teacher-facing resources describe the research base of the program, outline key foundational skills components, and explain how these skills develop across instruction. Program resources also explain instructional approaches used throughout the materials and provide clear descriptions of grade-level concepts and the instructional sequence.

• Complete, detailed adult-level explanations are provided for each foundational skill taught at the grade level. 

  • According to the Teacher Manual Preface under the section “Skills and Procedures Taught in Fundations,” the materials provide adult-level explanations of the foundational skills addressed in Kindergarten. These explanations define each skill, explain its linguistic basis, and describe how it is systematically taught within the program. The prefatory sections include the following, but are not limited to:

    • Phonological Awareness and Phonemic Awareness:

      • The materials define phonological awareness as a broad term related to the sounds of language and explain the hierarchy of awareness, including word awareness, syllable awareness, and phoneme awareness. The prefatory section further defines a phoneme as the smallest unit of sound in a language that can be distinguished from another sound. It explains that phonemic awareness is the understanding that words are comprised of individual phonemes that can be combined to form whole words in oral language, segmented to isolate individual sounds, and manipulated within spoken words. 

    • Alphabet Knowledge and the Alphabetic Principle: Key Linkages Between Letter Name, Sound, and Formation:

      • The materials explain the relationship between letter names, sounds, and correct letter formation and describe how these components are explicitly connected during instruction to support understanding of the alphabetic principle.

    • Phonics and Word Study: Instruction for Decoding, Word Recognition, and Spelling:

      • The section provides a rationale for systematic phonics instruction, explaining how students progress from simple to more complex word structures and how decoding and encoding are intentionally integrated.

    • Fluency:

      • The materials explain the role of accuracy and automaticity in developing fluent reading and describe how connected text reading supports expression and prosody.

• Detailed examples of the grade-level foundational skills concepts are provided for the teacher. 

  • According to the Unit Introductions, Learning Activity Overviews, and the Fundations Readers Teacher Guide, the materials provide instructional examples illustrating how foundational skills are enacted in daily lessons.

    • Learning Activity Overviews: 

      • Each activity includes a synopsis explaining the instructional focus and detailed procedures for implementation. For example, in a word dictation activity, the procedure directs the teacher to review the correct sitting position and pencil grip before instruction begins. The teacher selects a word from the unit resources and holds up a visual cue for echo as students repeat the word. Students are directed to tap the word by segmenting each sound, such as /m/ /a/ /t/ for mat, while the teacher models the routine. Rather than blending the word again, students keep the word segmented and name the corresponding letter or letters for each tap before writing. The overview explains that this procedure emphasizes isolating phonemes orally before connecting them to graphemes, reinforcing phoneme segmentation and letter–sound correspondence.

    • Unit Introductions:

      • Unit introductions provide detailed descriptions of the specific skills taught within the unit and how they build on prior instruction. For example, Unit 3 explains that students continue blending and reading two- and three-sound CVC words and are explicitly taught to segment and spell these words by tapping out each sound and identifying the corresponding letter for each phoneme. The introduction outlines a progression for spelling instruction, beginning with words that start with consonants such as f, l, m, r, and s, and then advancing to words with additional consonants, culminating in more challenging spelling patterns. The materials also explain specific spelling conventions, such as using k to represent the /k/ sound when followed by e or i and using c in other contexts. These explanations provide teachers with guidance on the instructional sequence and spelling generalizations encountered within the unit.

    • Fundations Readers Teacher Guide:

      • The guide explains the instructional purpose of decodable texts and provides a structured Teaching Plan framework for initial and subsequent readings. The materials describe teacher modeling during first reads, including reading fluently with expression and prosody, supporting comprehension, promoting enjoyment, checking vocabulary understanding, and demonstrating concepts of print such as left-to-right tracking and return sweep. Subsequent readings include echo, choral, paired, and independent formats to support fluency development.

The lesson design and pacing in Wilson Fundations meet the expectations for Indicator 3c. Materials use a structured lesson format aligned to foundational literacy skills and guided by principles of explicit, sequential, cumulative, and multimodal instruction. Lessons incorporate both whole-group and small-group instructional components within a defined daily structure. The scope and sequence is designed to be completed within approximately 160 instructional days and includes clear mastery expectations with structured, time-bound reteaching cycles. These design and pacing structures support completion of all grade-level foundational skills within one school year.

• Lesson plans utilize effective, research-based lesson plan design for early literacy instruction. 

  • In the Teacher’s Manual, Skills and Procedures Taught in Fundations, the materials state that each Fundations lesson consists of 2-5 Learning Activities. In Figure 2: Fundations Level K Learning Activities and Skills, each Fundations Learning Activity is aligned with at least one Foundational Literacy Skill (e.g. Print Concepts, Phonological Awareness and Phonemic Awareness, Alphabetic Principle, Word Recognition and Spelling, and Automaticity/Fluency). For example, the Fundations Learning Activity Alphabetical Order is said to align with the foundational skills of print concepts and alphabetic principle. 

  • In the Teacher’s Manual, Principles of Instruction, the materials state that core instruction is “explicit, sequential, cumulative, and multimodal.” The materials then go on to explain each of these components. For example, as an illustration of what it means for the Fundations lessons to encourage explicit instruction, the materials say that “when teachers implement Fundations, they are teaching explicitly using the gradual release of responsibility framework.” These types of statements continue for each core component of instruction. 

• The effective lesson design structure includes both whole group and small group instruction. 

  • In the Teacher’s Manual, Fundations for Whole Class General Education Instruction, the materials state that the Fundations curriculum “provides all students with a solid foundation for reading and spelling.” The standard lesson occurs daily and consists of 30 minutes of “explicit instruction in foundational skill areas” within a whole-class setting. The materials state that “additional practice of up to 20 minutes for individual students or small groups with aligned Fundations products round out the complete Fundations lesson plan.” Those materials include:

    •  Fundations Level K Readers, which include both Alphabet Books and decodable books; and

    • Practice Books, which contain focused exercises aligned to weekly instructional goals. 

  • According to the Fundations Level K: 50-Minute Implementation Guide, all students should receive a 30-minute whole-class instruction and 20 minutes of small-group, focused instruction that takes place within centers, small-group settings, or independently. 

• The pacing of each component of daily lesson plans is clear and appropriate. 

  • In the Teacher’s Manual, each unit includes a Student Learning Plan which provides an overview of each lesson within the unit and each Learning Activity that will occur within each lesson. 

    • For example, each lesson within the six-week sequence of Unit 3 includes at least three, and no more than five, Learning Activities. Although the materials do not provide timing suggestions for the Introduce New Concepts section of a lesson, it is reasonable to assume from the other timings suggested in the Learning Activity Overview that each lesson would not exceed 30 minutes. This aligns with the time that the materials suggest for whole-group instruction.

  • According to the Fundations Level K Learning Community, Resource Library, Lesson Planning, Fundations Small Group Instruction Guidelines, in addition to the core lesson, the materials include guidance for an additional 20-minute targeted practice block, which may extend up to 30 minutes, during which the teacher implements small-group instruction and independent practice or centers. The materials direct the teacher to first deliver the 30-minute whole-group lesson, followed by the targeted practice block to provide additional instruction and reteaching based on student needs. This structure outlines a clear daily pacing model that organizes instruction into whole-group and small-group components within a 50-minute instructional block.

• The suggested amount of time and expectations for maximum student understanding of all foundational skills content can reasonably be completed in one school year and should not require modification. 

  • According to the Teacher’s Manual, Fundations Scope and Sequence, the Level K (Kindergarten) sequence is distributed as follows:

    • Unit 1: 12 weeks

    • Unit 2: 4 weeks

    • Unit 3: 6 weeks

    • Unit 4: 4 weeks

    • Unit 5: 6 weeks

    Each week within a unit includes five days of instruction. Therefore, the Fundations Level K sequence is designed to be completed within 32 weeks (160 days) of instruction. The materials suggest that if a class does not achieve mastery on a unit test (i.e. 80% of the class scoring 80% or better), the teacher should extend the time within the unit. The design of the sequence supports this opportunity for extension. 

• For those materials on the borderline (e.g., approximately 130 days on the low end or 200 days on the high end), evidence clearly explains how students would be able to master ALL the grade-level foundational skills standards within one school year. 

  • According to the Fundations Level K sequence, each unit includes five days of instruction, resulting in approximately 160 days of instruction across the year. The materials establish a mastery benchmark in which at least 80 percent of students must score 80 percent or higher on the unit assessment. When this benchmark is not met, the teacher implements a Learning Plan for Reteach, using assessment data to target instruction over an additional two to five days.

    • According to the Fundations Level K Learning Community, Resource Library, Lesson Planning, Learning Plan for Reteach: Level K Unit 5, Tier 1 reteaching targets specific skill gaps identified through dictation or unit test errors using a structured set of activities within a lesson block. These activities include a two-minute Drill Sounds warm-up, a five-minute Word Play activity, five to ten minutes of Trick Word practice, and a ten-minute Echo/Find Letters and Words activity. These structured reteaching routines provide targeted support within a defined timeframe and allow the teacher to address unfinished learning while continuing progression through the scope and sequence. The combination of a defined 160-day instructional sequence, clear mastery expectations, and bounded reteaching cycles supports completion of the full set of Grade K foundational skills within a single school year.

The teacher guidance for using instructional tools in Wilson Fundations meets the expectations for Indicator 3f. Materials consistently identify the physical tools used across foundational skills lessons and name them directly within routines so the teacher knows what to use and when. Tools are clearly referenced within lesson plans and daily routines and are aligned to specific instructional purposes across phonological awareness, phonics, decoding, encoding, and fluency. Lesson-level annotations and program resources provide explicit guidance on how and when to use each tool, including directions for incorporating classroom materials and manipulatives within instructional routines.

• Materials consistently identify tools (e.g., Elkonin boxes, letter tiles, sound walls, mirrors) within lesson routines and instructional steps.

  • In the Orientation, Day 1, Teach How to Echo, the materials clearly identify how to use the large white owl named Echo and explain that “Echo the Owl is going to help [the students] learn their letters and sounds.” Each time the teacher holds up Echo (or, Baby Echo, a smaller version of the owl), the students should echo (i.e. repeat) what Echo wants them to say. 

  • In Unit 1, Week 3, Day 4, Drill Sounds/Warm-Up, the materials clearly identify the tools necessary to engage in the activity. As part of the Daily Plan box, Teacher Materials are identified. Within the specific activity, three tools are identified and explained within the instructional steps:

    • Large Sound Cards: used to model letter-keyword-sound; 

    • Standard Sound Cards: used to model the letter-keyword-sound; and

    • Vowel Extension Poster: used to model extending vowel sounds. 

• Materials provide teacher-facing guidance on how and when to use these tools to support instruction in phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, and encoding. 

  • In Unit 2, Week 4, Day 5, Word Play, the materials provide teacher facing guidance for using the Standard Sound Cards to create 5-6 unit words that support students’ decoding abilities. The teacher makes each word (sample unit words include map, sum, bad, cut, and fig). The teacher says and taps each sound with students. Then the teacher and students blend the sounds together as they drag their thumb across their fingers. Then, the teacher points under each Standard Sound Card as they say each sound, using the Standard Sound Cards to support blending and decoding the word visually. 

  • The Literacy Leader letter, included with the Fundations Sample Kit physical materials, identifies and provides a description, purpose, and explanation of how each of the following items the Fundations Classroom Set should be is used. Only one example is provided in the list below. 

    • Student Materials

      • Letter Board K-1

        • Description: The Letter Board is a magnetic foldable board with preprinted letter grid and syllable frames.

        • Purpose: Students place magnetic letters to match sounds, learn alphabetical order, and spell words. 

        • How it’s used: The Letter Board is used in activities such as Alphabetical Order, Echo/Find Letters, and Echo/Find Words. 

      • Magnetic Letter Tiles

      • Dry Erase Writing Tablet

      • Student Notebook K

    • Teacher Materials

      • Baby Echo

      • Fundations Teacher’s Manual K

      • Large Sound Cards K

      • Standard Sound Cards K

      • Trick Word Flashcards K

The strategies and supports for reteaching in Wilson Fundations meet the expectations for Indicator 3j. Materials provide guidance for using small-group instruction, centers, and independent practice to support reteaching of foundational skills. Unit Overviews include recommendations for focused small-group instruction using program resources and references additional intervention guidance available through the Fundations Learning Community. The materials also provide suggestions for scaffolding and adapting instruction to support students who need additional support in accessing grade-level foundational skills.

• Materials provide opportunities for small group reteaching. 

  • Each Unit Overview provides recommendations for how to use centers, small groups, and independent practice within the unit, including focused instruction for reteaching. Small group work for focused instruction recommendations “require teachers to facilitate and guide students through the activities and can be found on the Fundations Learning Community.”

    • In the Unit 1 Unit Overview, the materials suggest that the teacher uses Practice Books in small group activities, specifically sections of the book that support students in practicing identifying and manipulating letter names and sounds; writing letters with correct letter formation; and filling in letters in alphabetical order. The teacher is instructed to use multiple resources, such as the Level K Intervention Guidelines found in the Fundations Learning Community, to support small group focused instruction. 

    • In the Unit 5 Unit Overview, the materials suggest that the teacher uses Practice Books in small group activities, specifically sections of the book that support students in practicing identifying and manipulating sound patterns and word structures; word meaning and sentence level meaning; reading Trick Words (HFW) in isolation and in sentences; applying learned skills to connected text; and accurate and fluent reading of connected text. The teacher is  instructed to use multiple resources, such as the Level K Intervention Guidelines found in the Fundations Learning Community, to support small group focused instruction. 

• Materials provide guidance to the teacher for scaffolding and adapting lessons and activities to support students who read, write, speak or listen below grade level in accessing grade-level foundational skills standards. 

  • Each Unit Overview provides recommendations for differentiating instruction for students who need additional support. 

    • In the Unit 2 Unit Overview, the materials suggest that uppercase letter formations may be challenging for some students who have experienced difficulty with handwriting. The teacher is instructed to incorporate additional practice with letter formation into small group work with these students. 

    • In the Unit 4 Unit Overview, the materials suggest that some students may need support in breaking up the sentence to tap each individual word when reading sentences. The teacher is  instructed to support students with this skill, as well as with the tapping of words with digraphs by “explicitly making the connection that these two letters go together to make one sound” and are, therefore, on one card and get one tap.