Benchmark Phonics Intervention, Level 1 Texas Edition

Evaluation for 1.1a
Materials include an explanation of the stated purpose of the supplemental program (e.g., additional instruction and/or practice, targeted remediation or acceleration).

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention is a supplemental program with a clearly stated purpose: targeted remediation. Each level of the program includes a program structure resource that states, “Phonics Intervention provides intensive phonics and phonological awareness instruction for students who are two or more years below grade-level expectations.”

The Program Guide includes a “Program Structure” section that states, “Benchmark Phonics Intervention is designed to be used alongside any core English language arts (ELA) program, providing targeted, research-based tier-three intervention for students who need additional instruction in foundational literacy skills.”

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention is a supplemental program designed to provide targeted remediation. The materials state that “explicit, systematic, and multimodal” instruction aligns with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act’s (IDEA’s) definition of specially designed instruction (SDI).

Evaluation for 1.1b
Materials include guidance on how to appropriately use the supplemental program to support an existing core reading and language arts program.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance on how to appropriately use the materials to support an existing core reading language arts (RLA) program, in which educators administer a comprehensive phonics survey to “identify gaps in students’ foundational phonics skills.” The materials provide educators with additional steps for students who demonstrate multiple decoding difficulties, including the administration of a Phonological Awareness Assessment to determine whether weaknesses in prerequisite skills contribute. Educators then use this assessment data to plan targeted small-group instruction used in addition to an existing core RLA project.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook. This handbook explains how educators can use program phonics assessments, such as the QPA and QSA, to place students into appropriate intervention levels and identify a suitable starting unit. Educators administer this instruction to support an existing core reading and language arts program.

Evaluation for 1.1c
Materials include a scope and sequence outlining student expectations, skills taught, and a rationale for the design of the scope and sequence.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a scope and sequence that outlines student expectations and the skills taught. The Program Guide includes the scope and sequence, in which each unit lists phonological awareness, a focus skill, high-frequency words, the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), and the English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS).

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a rationale for the design of the program’s scope and sequence in the “Phonics Intervention Routines” videos. These videos explain each routine and describe the research to support every lesson component. Lessons are intentionally structured so components build on one another and increase in complexity, beginning with rereading text for fluency and concluding with students learning to apply the lesson focus skill with writing and dictation.

Evaluation for 1.1d
Materials include guidance on time requirements (e.g., duration, frequency) and suggested pacing for effective implementation.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance on the time requirements and suggested pacing for effective implementation in the Program Guide. The Program Guide includes the “High-Impact Instruction Walk-Through of Teacher’s Guides” section that specifies expectations for lesson structure and instructional flow. The materials state, “Each daily lesson is divided into three distinct sections: ‘Warm-Up Review and Repetition,’ ‘Multimodal Mini-Lessons,’ and ‘Apply to Reading and Writing.’” The materials structure each lesson to last 20–30 minutes and provide a time allocation for each subsection.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance on the time requirements and suggested pacing for effective implementation in the Intensive Phonological Awareness: Phonological & Phonemic Awareness Routines & Activities document. In the document, a “Next Steps” section dictates how much time educators and students should spend on phonological awareness and offers a weekly planning chart. This chart outlines Monday through Friday instruction and recommends planning five to 10 minutes per day for focused phonological awareness activities.

Evaluation for 1.1e
Materials include resources and guidance to support educators with implementing the materials as designed.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes resources and guidance to support educators in the implementation of materials as designed. The materials include a “Foundational Skills Assessment” video tutorial that guides educators on the administration and use of student assessments. There are four sections in the tutorial: “Overview,” “Getting Started,” “Views/Reports,” and “Recommended Placements.” The tutorial details the assessment administration and how to interpret assessment results.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes resources and guidance to support educators with the implementation of daily lessons. For example, in the Teacher’s Guide, each lesson provides approximate timing for each lesson component: five minutes for “Warm-Up Review and Repetition,” five minutes for the “Multimodal Mini-Lesson,” 10 minutes for the “Vocabulary Booster,” and 10 minutes for “Apply to Reading and Writing.” Lessons also outline precise educator and student actions, such as having educators direct students to listen to a sound and explain that “the letter m stands for the /m/ sound as in map,” followed by aligned and guided student practice.

Evaluation for 1.1f
Materials contain supports for families in both Spanish and English with suggestions on supporting the progress of their student.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention materials include supports for families in both English and Spanish, with guidance on how to reinforce student progress at home. These resources include Home–School Connection Letters in English and Spanish for each of the 30 units. These letters explain the unit’s focus and suggest ways families can help. For example, the unit 1 English letter encourages families to read a text from the Student Reading Collection together, complete activities in the student book, and support their child as they practice reading and writing decodable and high‑frequency words at home.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention materials include supports for families in both English and Spanish, with guidance on how to reinforce student progress at home. The materials contain a resource library with a section for the Home–School Connection Letters and Activities PDF. This area contains the Home–School Connection Letters in English. However, there are no activities present. Activities are on the back cover of each student book for each lesson.

Evaluation for 2.1a
Materials include appropriate instructional assessments for the stated purpose of the supplemental program (e.g., diagnostic placement assessments for targeted remediation or acceleration).

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes appropriate instructional assessments for targeted remediation. For instance, the level 1 materials include a comprehensive set of assessments that place students in one of four instructional levels, with accompanying starting points for each level. The Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook explains that educators “can use district core ELA assessments to identify students who need additional support,” then go on to “use Phonics Intervention Assessments such as the Quick Phonics Assessment and Quick Spelling Assessment to identify specific areas of need.”

The Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook includes the “Progress Monitoring: One-Minute Oral Reading Fluency Assessment Rubric.” This rubric directs educators to score students on a 1–4 rating scale across the categories of Phrasing and Fluency, Intonation, and Comprehension. The section titled “Rubric Score Key” provides the following guidance: “1 and 2: Student has not achieved an appropriate level of fluency for the level of passage, 3: Fluent reading is being refined at the Phonics Intervention level of the passage, 4: Fluent reading has been achieved for the Phonics Intervention level at which the passage is written.”

Evaluation for 2.1b
Materials include the definition and intended purpose for the instructional assessments included.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention materials include definitions and the intended purposes of the instructional assessments. For example, the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook includes guidance on assessment administration, types of assessments, and the purposes of a variety of tests in the program, including phonics, spelling, phonological and phonemic awareness, fluency, and high-frequency words. The handbook includes explicit guidance, such as, “This phonics survey … is organized around related categories of phonics skills and aids in determining which skills students have and have not mastered.”

The level 1 Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook provides guidance on how to place students accurately, why to give an assessment, and when to do so. Additionally, there is guidance on progress monitoring. For example, directions in the “Phonological Awareness Assessment Schedule” section of the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook state, “All students in levels 1–4 should be formally assessed on their phonological awareness abilities multiple times each year. In levels 1 and 2, these assessments should be administered three times a year—beginning, middle, and end.”

Evaluation for 2.1c
For instructional assessments administered by educators, materials include guidance to ensure consistent and accurate administration of instructional assessments.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance to ensure the consistent and accurate administration of instructional assessments. For instance, in the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook, the materials include one-minute “Oral Reading Fluency Quick Checks.” These tools help guide the educator to compare each student’s performance to the “Hasbrouck and Tindal norms at 50th percentile, for the grade level and time of year.” Additionally, the handbook advises educators to assess students’ oral reading fluency multiple times throughout the school year.

In the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook, there are directions to administer four assessments: QPA, QSA, Phonological Awareness Assessment, and Fluency Assessment. Guidance is clear to ensure consistent administration. For example, the materials tell educators, “Say to the student: I’m going to ask you to tell me the names (sounds) of some letters so that I can find out which ones you already know and which ones you still need to learn. I want you to try to do your best. We’ll stop if they get too hard. Do you have any questions?”

Evaluation for 2.1d
Instructional assessments include items at varying levels of complexity.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes instructional assessment items at varying levels of complexity, such as the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook Phonological Awareness Assessment. This assessment has 18 sections, including word awareness and rhyme identification, and each section has items at varying levels of complexity. For example, in the “Word Awareness” section, the student has to repeat a sentence spoken by the educator and state the number of words in the sentence. The sentences increase in word length and vary in complexity, ranging from two to six words.

Each unit has a Cumulative Assessment that increases in complexity as students progress through the program, in alignment with the program’s scope and sequence of skills. In unit 1, the Cumulative Assessment includes the sounds /a/, /c/, /s/, and /l/. Unit 10 includes words such as mop, Tom, and tan.

Evaluation for 2.2a
Instructional assessments and scoring information provide guidance for interpreting student performance.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes instructional assessments and scoring information to guide the interpretation of student performance. For instance, the QPA provides guidance to help educators accurately score and interpret student performance data. The “Interpreting QPA Results” section explains that skill sets are ordered by difficulty, which enables educators to determine which students have mastered and which specific phonics and decoding skills they still need to learn. The section also includes detailed examples that show how to use scores, observations (like confidence and response rate), and stopping points to make instructional decisions.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes instructional assessments and scoring information to guide the interpretation of student performance. The Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook includes a Phonological Awareness Assessment, and the handbook indicates which of the 18 skill sets should be administered at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. The materials state that at the beginning of the year, level 1 should administer: Word Awareness, Identify Rhyme, Produce Rhyme, Clap Syllables, Blend Syllables, Delete Syllables, Segment Initial Sounds, Segment Final Sounds. The interpretation and next steps are detailed in a chart that outlines the 18 skill sets. Specifically, zero to six correct responses indicate the student “needs intensive instruction and practice”; seven to eight correct responses indicate the student needs “some practice and further development”; and nine to ten correct responses indicate the student has the “skill sufficiently developed.”

Evaluation for 2.2b
Materials provide guidance for the use of the supplemental program to respond to student trends in performance on assessments.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance on how to use the program assessments to address trends in student performance. The Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook provides detailed instructions in its “Introduction” section on the different assessments that can be given to place students into one of four levels of the program. These include the QPA, QSA, Phonological Awareness Assessment, one-minute Oral Fluency Assessment, High-Frequency Word Screeners, and Progress Monitoring Assessments. These assessments help the educator determine each student’s most appropriate starting point in the Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention program. Level 1 materials also include when to assess students, a chart that details the steps the educator should take based on the data collected from the assessments, one-minute fluency assessments, and a rating rubric.

In the Teacher’s Guide, unit 3, lesson 5, educators are directed to use student observation forms and other assessment notes to identify specific phonics and high-frequency word skills that will require additional support with lessons 6–10. The program includes explicit guidance for educators on how to respond to students’ performance trends, such as whether to move students to the next unit, or continue targeted lessons based on their demonstrated proficiency. The guidance states that students who show basic proficiency in reading and writing words with short a can progress to unit 4.

Evaluation for 2.2c
Materials include tools for educators to track student progress and growth, and tools for students to track their own progress and growth.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes tools for educators to track student progress and growth, such as data-recording sheets in the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook. These recording sheets track data for several literacy skills, including high-frequency words, print concepts, letter names, letter sounds, and handwriting. These tools support educators as they track student progress and growth.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes tools for students to track their progress and growth. For instance, the Benchmark Assessment and Screener Handbook includes student record forms to track individual progress across beginning-, middle-, and end-of-year assessments. The handbook also includes class record forms to monitor skill development across the group. These tools help students track their progress and growth.

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Evaluation for 2.2d
If applicable for the stated purpose of the supplemental program, materials include guidance for entry and exit criteria.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance for entry and exit criteria. In the “Placement and Assessment” section of the Program Guide, there is guidance on student placement, progress monitoring, and exit strategies. The monitoring and exit area contains student observation forms as well as four reference points: monitor mastery, cumulative review, pacing adjustment, and repetition.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention Level 1 includes guidance on entry and exit criteria to support student remediation. The materials include diagnostic tools, such as the Quick Phonics Assessment (QPA) and the Quick Spelling Assessment (QSA), to identify students who need targeted intervention and to determine appropriate entry points. These assessments help educators pinpoint specific gaps in phonemic awareness, phonics, and spelling skills to guide instruction.

Evaluation for 3.1a
If applicable for the stated purpose, materials include educator guidance for differentiated instruction and activities for students who have not yet reached proficiency in grade-level skills.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes educator guidance for differentiated instruction and activities for students who have not yet reached proficiency in grade-level skills. For example, the Benchmark Advance Teacher’s Guide includes an “Additional Supports” section with routines that target specific skills. These routines include Vocabulary Picture Cards where students name each picture, read the sentence on the back, and then build the corresponding word with Letter Cards to reinforce decoding. There are also letter songs to review letter formation and sounds, handwriting practice pages, and lessons from the Phonological Awareness Kit that offer more intensive instruction. Educators are also directed to use the Specially Designed Instruction (SDI) Overview to ensure appropriate support for students with special needs throughout the unit.

In unit 16, lesson 1, under “Corrective Feedback,” the Benchmark Advance Teacher’s Guide states, “For students who mispronounce sounds, model the sound and have students repeat. For students who need support with letter formation, provide a model and have students trace and repeat. For students who misread a high-frequency word, say the word. Have students repeat, trace, and spell, then repeat again. Point out any irregular spelling patterns in the word.”

The Benchmark Advance Teacher Resources contain Fluency Instruction Routines that provide educators with guidance to help students build accuracy, automaticity, and prosody. The Fluency Instruction Routines encourage educators to administer the comprehensive phonics survey and/or the Phonological Awareness Assessment, depending on student needs. Specifically, there is guidance and explicit instructions for educators to incorporate a repeated reading routine into weekly independent and small-group work.

Evaluation for 3.1b
If applicable for the stated purpose, materials include educator guidance for differentiated instruction and activities for students who have demonstrated proficiency in grade-level skills.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because the program has a stated purpose of targeted remediation or acceleration, not additional instruction and/or practice.

Evaluation for 3.1c
Materials include educator guidance for providing specially designed instruction (SDI) for students receiving supports and services through special education.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance on how to provide specially designed instruction (SDI) to students who receive supports and services through special education. The Program Guide includes a section titled “Meeting the Needs of Students With Disabilities” that highlights multiple opportunities for the integration of SDI. Additionally, SDI instruction occurs within the Phonics Intervention to support student access to content. For example, when students experience difficulty with sound–spelling correspondences, the guide provides targeted lessons and activity recommendations designed to address disabilities that impact oral language, decoding, and writing skills.

Each lesson contains an “Additional Supports” section, and lesson 9 of every unit specifically includes an audio accommodation. In unit 4, lesson 9, educators are directed to have students listen to the e-book We See. In unit 16, lesson 9, educators are directed to have students listen to the e-book Red Hens to “frontload words and content.” Students use it after the lesson for additional practice and to build fluency.

Evaluation for 3.2a
Educator-led supplemental programs include explicit (direct) prompts and guidance to support the educator in modeling and explaining the skill(s) to be learned.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes explicit prompts and guidance to support the educator as they model and explain the skills to be learned. Additionally, the walk-through of the Teacher’s Guide details clear routines. For example, the “Vocabulary Booster” section directs educators to “display the photos on the other side of the Read-Aloud Card” as they read, and to “use the prompts to highlight the words materials, enormous, species, and generate and check for understanding.” Additional structured support is provided in lessons such as unit 10, lesson 1, where educators are guided to “display the Sound–Spelling Card o and explain that the letter represents the /o/ sound.” Educators are also instructed to model how to write the letters and say the sounds as they write.

The “Review High-Frequency Words” section of unit 11, lesson 6, uses the Say, Spell, Read, Write routine to review the high-frequency words little and play. Educators are instructed to follow the script: “What sounds do you hear in play? (/p/ /l/ /ā/ /y/). Which letter makes the /p/ sound at the beginning of play? The letter p makes the /p/ sound. Which other words do you know that begin with the letter /p/ sound?” In unit 16, lesson 1, in the “Blend Words” section, the educator guidance for direct modeling states, “Model how to blend words with /e/ spelled e and point to each letter,” explicitly outlining educator actions. Educators are then directed to model how to blend the sounds in the words set and met.

Evaluation for 3.2b
Educator-led supplemental programs include educator guidance and recommendations for effective delivery and facilitation using a variety of instructional approaches.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes educator guidance for effective delivery and facilitation with the use of multiple instructional approaches. The Teacher’s Guide provides daily lessons that incorporate explicit instruction, modeling, guided practice, corrective feedback, and cumulative review to support skill development. Lessons also include structured questioning and comprehension checks to guide instruction and student understanding throughout the lesson cycle.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes educator guidance and recommendations for effective delivery and facilitation with the use of a variety of instructional approaches. Benchmark Advance Teacher’s Guide, unit 29, lesson 1, contains scripted lessons and student questions, such as, “Check Comprehension: When completed, ask the following questions to check comprehension … What does the boy have a box of? Use what you know about long u to find the word that tells the answer. (cubes) (Phonics) What letter can the boy assemble if he uses eight cubes? Find the sentence that answers the question. (Text Evidence) How does the boy use the cubes to assemble letters? How do you know? (Higher-Order Thinking) How many cubes do you think you would need to assemble the first letter of your name? Explain your answer. (Making Connections) Have students reread the text during independent work time and as a warm-up to the next day’s lesson.”

Evaluation for 3.2c
Materials include guidance for educators on recommended structures (e.g., whole group, small group, individual) to support effective implementation.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance for educators on recommended structures to support effective implementation. The Phonics and Intervention Program Guide includes a section titled “Program Structure: Intensive Tier 3 Phonics.” The overview states that educators “can integrate daily small-group or one-on-one sessions to reinforce phonemic awareness, phonics, decoding, and high-frequency word recognition introduced in the core curriculum.”

Each unit contains whole-group, partner, and individual activities. Partner work is found in each unit’s lesson 1, where students check comprehension and apply it to reading and writing. After they read, students answer each question with a partner before volunteers are called on. Lesson 7 of each unit has individual work in the section titled “Reread for Building Fluency,” in which students whisper-read and the educator circulates to listen in and provide corrective feedback.

Evaluation for 3.3a
Materials include educator guidance on providing linguistic accommodations for various levels of language proficiency [as defined by the English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS)], which are designed to engage students in using increasingly more academic language.

The materials include educator guidance on how to provide linguistic accommodations for various levels of language proficiency (as defined by the ELPS), which are designed to encourage students to use increasingly more academic language differentiated by levels of language proficiency. In the Benchmark Intervention Program Guide, the document titled “Supporting Multilingual Learners Through ELPS Linguistic Accommodations” provides educator guidance on linguistic accommodations across the materials, aligned to the ELPS.

The materials provide educator guidance for linguistic accommodations aligned to the ELPS and differentiated by students’ levels of English language proficiency. The materials include educator guidance on how to provide linguistic accommodations for various levels of language proficiency (as defined by the ELPS), which are designed to encourage students to use increasingly more academic language differentiated by levels of language proficiency. In the Benchmark Intervention Program Guide, the document titled “Supporting Multilingual Learners Through ELPS Linguistic Accommodations” provides educator guidance on linguistic accommodations across the materials, aligned to the ELPS.

Evaluation for 3.3b
Materials include implementation guidance to support educators in effectively using the materials in state-approved bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes guidance to support educators as they effectively use the materials in state-approved bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs. In the Benchmark Intervention Program Guide, there is a document titled “Implementing Benchmark Phonics Intervention Texas Edition in Texas Bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) Programs.” The document provides specific guidance for educators in bilingual and ESL programs. For example, educators are guided to “build on students’ home-language knowledge while explicitly teaching English sounds, spelling patterns, vocabulary, and language structures.”

The materials provide specific guidance for use in bilingual and ESL programs, including strategies that build on students’ home-language knowledge while developing English phonics, vocabulary, and language skills.

Evaluation for 3.3c
If designed for dual language immersion (DLI) programs, materials include resources that outline opportunities to address metalinguistic transfer from English to the partner language.

This guidance is not applicable because the program is not designed for dual language immersion (DLI) programs.

Evaluation for 4.1a
Materials do not include the three-cueing method as defined in Texas Education Code (TEC), §28.0062. TEC, §28.0062 defines three-cueing as a method of reading instruction for the identification of words in which a student is encouraged to draw on context and sentence structure to read words without sounding the words out or using a phonics-based approach.

No evidence of three-cueing as defined in Texas Education Code (TEC), §28.0062 was found in this program.

Evaluation for 4.2a
Materials include a systematic sequence of phonological awareness skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose that progresses from basic skills and larger units of sound to more complex skills and smaller units of sound.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence of phonological awareness skills, aligned with grade-level TEKS, that progress from basic skills and larger units of sound, to more complex skills and smaller units of sound. The Program Guide outlines this progression through the sections “4 Levels to Support All Students” and “Scope and Sequence,” which detail skills by level, unit, and lesson. For example, lessons in unit 1 focus on syllables and onset-rime, while lessons in unit 30 advance to more complex skills such as phoneme substitution of initial sounds.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence of phonological awareness skills, aligned with grade-level TEKS, that progress from basic skills and larger units of sound, to more complex skills and smaller units of sound. In the Benchmark Advance Teacher Resources, the “Intensive Phonological Awareness Table of Contents” lists all of the 18 phonological awareness skills taught in order of simple to most difficult: word awareness, identify rhyme, produce rhyme, clap syllables, blend syllables, delete syllables, segment initial sounds, segment final sounds, segment medial sounds, segment sounds, blend sounds, substitute initial sounds, substitute final sounds, substitute medial sounds, add initial sounds, add final sounds, delete sounds, and phoneme reversals.

Evaluation for 4.2b
Materials include a systematic sequence of phonemic awareness skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose that progresses from basic skills (e.g., identifying, blending, and segmenting phonemes) to more complex skills (e.g., adding, deleting, and substituting phonemes).

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence of phonemic awareness skills aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose: the progression from basic to more complex skills. For example, in the unit 9, lesson 2, “Build Phonemic Awareness: Phoneme Isolation” section, students are asked to say the first sound they hear in a word and then the last sound they hear in a word. For instance, the educator is prompted to say the word sat, then the student is asked to identify the beginning sound in sat. The educator says the word map, then the student is asked to identify the ending sound in map. The lesson includes explicit, direct instruction, guidance for immediate feedback, and guidance for corrective feedback.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence of phonemic awareness skills aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose, that progress from basic to more complex skills. There are five phonemic awareness lessons in each unit that can be found in the even-numbered lessons: 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10. The phonemic skills vary in difficulty within the 10 lesson units. For example, in level 1, unit 22, “Practicing K,” the skills covered and presented in order are: initial and final phoneme isolation, oral segmentation of initial sound and full segmentation, oral blending of onset-rime and sound by sound, oral segmentation of initial sound and full segmentation, and initial sound addition.

Evaluation for 4.2c
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction in phonological and phonemic awareness skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes explicit instruction in phonological and phonemic awareness skills, aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. In unit 2, lesson 3, under “Build Phonemic Awareness: Differentiated Oral Blending (Syllable and Onset-Rime),” the materials guide educators to “say the following syllables for students to blend. Lightly clap on each syllable to emphasize it.” Embedded corrective feedback guidance directs educators to “hold up one fist for each part, then touch fists” to “model blending the sounds.”

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes explicit instruction in phonological and phonemic awareness skills, aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. The Benchmark Advance Teacher Resources “Intensive Phonological Awareness” section contains direct instruction for each of the 18 routines. For example, the instruction for “produce rhyme” tells educators, “Clearly state a word, such as sat. Ask students to repeat the word, then name other words that rhyme. Model for students that words rhyme because they have the same ending sounds or parts. For example, say: What words rhyme with sat? To figure that out, I need to think of words that end in /at/. One word I know that ends in /at/ is mat. Do mat and sat rhyme? Yes! Listen: /m/ … /at/, /s/ … /at/. I hear /at/ at the end of mat and sat. So, they rhyme. What other words rhyme with mat and sat?”

Evaluation for 4.2d
Materials include cumulative student practice of phonological and phonemic awareness skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes cumulative student practice of phonological and phonemic awareness skills, aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. The kindergarten materials include instructional resources for cumulative student practice of phonological and phonemic awareness skills, aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. For example, using Phonics Cards 1–6 and High-Frequency Word Cards 1–12 in the Quick Review Cumulative Routine, the guidance states, “Chorally respond. Display one Phonics Card at a time. Have students chorally say the sound. Mix and repeat. When completed, mix the cards and repeat. Repeat steps 1 and 2 with the High-Frequency Word Cards. Extend practice. Call out a sound without showing the card, and have students write the letter or letters that make that sound. Have students say the sound as they write it.”

In unit 4, lesson 1, the “Build Phonemic Awareness: Phoneme Isolation” section uses the words sat and seed to provide a cumulative review of the /s/ sound and letter s from a previous lesson. The educator is directed to “say each word” and “have students say the first sound they hear in the word.” The lesson then extends the review to final sounds as it directs the educator to “say each word” and “have students say the last sound they hear in the word,” with the use of words such as kiss, yes, and gas.

Evaluation for 4.2e
Student practice includes only phonological and phonemic awareness skills that have been explicitly taught.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes only those phonological and phonemic awareness skills that have already been explicitly taught. For instance, in unit 6, lesson 2, the phonemic awareness activity requires students to practice phoneme isolation. Specifically, the educator is prompted to “say each word. Have students say the first sound they hear in the word. For corrective feedback, emphasize the initial sound, and have students repeat. Sam, Tam, mat, Nant, an, man, sat, Nat. Say each word. Have students say the last sound they hear in the word. For corrective feedback, emphasize the final sound, and have students repeat at, ant, an, Nan, Sam, mat, man, Tam.”

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes only those phonological and phonemic awareness skills that have already been explicitly taught. In unit 2, lesson 1, students are explicitly taught the sound /m/ made by the letter m during the “Multimodal Mini-Lesson.” Then, in lesson 2, students practice this skill during “Build Phonemic Awareness: Differentiated Phoneme Isolation.” In this lesson, students identify the initial /m/ sound in words. For example, the lesson states, “Have students say the first sound they hear in the word.” Students then provide corrective feedback as they stretch or emphasize the initial sound, such as “/mmmat/,” with additional practice words including man and map. In unit 16, lesson 3, students focus on the short e sound. In the “Multimodal Mini-Lessons” section, students say, write, and blend words with the short e sound. In the section “Build Words with Phonemic Awareness Focus,” students continue with short e words such as ten, pen, and set. The lesson ends with an “Apply to Reading and Writing” section where students practice reading sentences with short e and previously taught phonemes.

Evaluation for 4.A.3a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing sound-spelling patterns in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention Level 1 includes a systematic sequence for the introduction of sound–spelling patterns aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. The Benchmark Advance Program Guide highlights key sections, such as “Four Levels to Support All Students” and “Scope and Sequence,” with the latter clearly outlining progression across all levels. For example, level 1 begins with lessons that focus on short vowels, while level 4 advances to more complex skills such as vowel–r syllables, which demonstrates a systematic approach.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence for the introduction of sound–spelling patterns aligned with grade-level TEKS, as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. In unit 8, students learn ways to say and spell f words (initial). Lessons follow a pattern: teach the sound–symbol correspondence and write and extend it by blending words. After learning f spellings, students decode words such as fan and fit. Unit 9 moves to p (initial and final). Students identify and apply the spelling patterns before they decode words with p (initial and final), such as pat and pan. Unit 10 continues with p (initial and final), in which students spell and read words such as pot and pop. Each lesson supports mastery before students move on to new content.

Evaluation for 4.A.3b
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction in decoding and encoding words using sound-spelling patterns in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes explicit instruction in decoding and encoding words with the use of sound–spelling patterns, in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. In unit 18, lesson 1, under the “Blend Words” section, the educator is directed to “model how to blend words with /d/ spelled Dd.” Encoding occurs in the “Introduce, Write” section. The educator is directed to “have students write the letter Dd several times on paper or a dry-erase board.” The educator is then told to “prompt them to say the /d/ sound each time they write the letter.”


Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes explicit instruction in decoding and encoding words with the use of sound–spelling patterns, in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. In unit 8, lesson 3, “Multimodal Mini-Lessons: Blend,” the educator is directed to “use the letters and blending words to apply the skill. Pause before each word to whisper-blend it before having students read it together aloud.” Encoding occurs in the “Write” section, in which the educator is directed to “have students write the letters Ff several times on paper or dry-erase board. Prompt them to say the /f/ sound each time they write the letters.”

Evaluation for 4.A.3c
Materials include cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding words using sound-spelling patterns in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose, both in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in decodable connected text, to develop automaticity.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding words with the use of sound–spelling patterns, both in isolation and in decodable connected text, to develop automaticity. This is in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. For example, in unit 14, lesson 1, “Multimodal Mini-Lessons,” the lesson begins with explicit decoding introducing the short u sound. Students say the short u letter and sound, repeating as necessary. Students then progress to reading words that contain the short u sound, and progress to reading short u words in sentences in the “Blend Words” section. Finally, under “Apply to Reading and Writing,” students practice using the short u sound in context with the decodable text, “Fun With my Pup.”

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding words with the use of sound–spelling patterns, in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. Students practice both in isolation and in decodable connected text to develop automaticity. In unit 3, lesson 1, the “Multimodal Mini-Lessons” section provides isolated decoding practice with short a words, such as am and Sam. The section tells educators, “point to each letter or spelling as students say the sound,” “run your finger under the letters as students blend the sounds orally,” and “have students say the word.” Students then apply the sound–spelling pattern in connected text as they read the decodable text “I Am.” In unit 15, lesson 2, the “Review and Repetition” component explicitly states, “Use the lesson 1 letters and blending words (with additional review words) to apply the skill.” Students practice decoding words that contain the target sound–spelling pattern Rr = /r/ in a structured word list. Students also practice encoding the sound–spelling pattern as they write the target grapheme and produce its corresponding phoneme.

Evaluation for 4.A.3d
Student practice includes only sound-spelling patterns that have been explicitly taught.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes only those sound–spelling patterns that have already been explicitly taught. Lessons begin with explicit instruction and practice of targeted sound–spellings and word patterns, which allows students to build accuracy at the word level. Instruction advances structured practice with short phrases and complete sentences, giving students opportunities to apply decoding skills in increasingly meaningful contexts. For example, unit 18, lesson 1, begins with a review of taught sounds, an introduction to the new sound /d/ in letter d in isolation, and practicing the new sound within words and sentences.

The program further demonstrates this pattern across lessons in unit 23 (odd-numbered lessons 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9), where students first review previously taught skills with the use of Letter and Word Cards before they receive explicit instruction in a new sound–spelling pattern. Students then engage in structured practice and apply only the taught pattern in reading and writing tasks, which reinforces that all student practice is limited to explicitly instructed sound–spelling relationships.

Evaluation for 4.B.3a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence for the introduction of regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list, aligned with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. The Scope and Sequence document identifies which high-frequency words are taught in each lesson and unit. In the first few units, students begin with regular high-frequency words, such as I, a, can, me, the, and see. Later units introduce irregular high-frequency words, such as are, said, when, and here, along with regular high-frequency words. At the end of grade K, students are taught more difficult regular and irregular high-frequency words, including saw, over, them, and put.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes a systematic sequence for the introduction of regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list, aligned with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. For instance, units 1–3 introduce one high-frequency word at a time. In the Student Edition, units 1–2, lessons 2–5, students are given sentence stems to add the high-frequency word to, such as “I see a (picture of a monkey given), or I see a (picture of a tiger given).” In units 4–30, the high-frequency words are introduced at the beginning of each unit, practiced throughout lessons 1–9, and assessed in lesson 10. For example, the High-Frequency Words Cumulative Assessment, located in the Student Edition, unit 16, lesson 10, assesses accuracy and automaticity of words learned in units 11–16.

Evaluation for 4.B.3b
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction in decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes explicit instruction in decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list, in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. In unit 14, lesson 2, the educator guides students to orally segment the word and identify known and unknown parts. For example, “What sounds do you hear in my? (/m/ /ī/) What letter do we write for the /m/ sound? Notice that in this word, the /ī/ sound is spelled with the letter y.” For encoding, the educator is instructed to spell the word as they point to each letter, then have students chorally spell the word with them.

In unit 27, lesson 2, students are explicitly taught the high-frequency words that and why with the use of the Say, Spell, Read, Write routine. Specifically in the “Say” section, the educator displays the card and guides students as they orally segment the word. The educator asks questions such as, “What sounds do you hear in why? (/hw/ /i/) The letters wh work together to make the /hw/ sound. The letter y stands for the /i/ sound at the end of the word. What other words do you know that end with long i spelled y? (my, by).” Additionally, in the unit 27, lesson 4, “Write” section, students make flash cards with the word on one side of the card and a sentence that contains the word on the opposite side of the card.

Evaluation for 4.B.3c
Materials include cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list in alignment with grade-level skills as appropriate for the program's stated purpose, both in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in decodable connected text, to develop automaticity.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list, in alignment with grade-level skills as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. Students practice both in isolation and in decodable connected text to develop automaticity. In unit 20, lesson 4, “Multimodal Mini-Lessons: Review High-Frequency Words,” students review the words said and two which were introduced in unit 20, lesson 2. The educator displays High-Frequency Word Cards one at a time, then says each word, and students repeat. Next, students chorally spell the high-frequency words along with the educator, then chorally read each word along with the educator. Finally, students make their own flashcards by writing each high-frequency word on one side of an index card, and a class-created sentence on the other side. In the “Apply to Reading and Writing” section, students read the decodable text “Mack and Liz,” in which they practice reading the words said and two, along with previously taught high-frequency words: the, you, to, they, and can. The section “Additional Supports: High-Frequency Word Sentences in Writer’s Notebook” tells educators, “Students write one sentence for each high-frequency word in a section of a writer’s notebook.” Educators are then directed to “have students read their sentences from the beginning of the year to a partner. This will increase the amount of times they see the word in context.”

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words from a research-based list, in alignment with grade-level skills as appropriate for the program’s stated purpose. Students practice both in isolation and in decodable connected text to develop automaticity. In unit 15, lesson 2, the materials provide cumulative opportunities to decode and encode high-frequency words from the program’s word list through repeated practice, both in isolation (Word Cards, oral reading, spelling, writing) and connected language (oral sentence generation). These routines support the development of automaticity with high-frequency words, and align with grade-level foundational literacy skills and the program’s intervention-focused purpose.

Evaluation for 4.B.3d
Student practice includes only regular and irregular high-frequency words that have been explicitly taught.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes only those regular and irregular high-frequency words that have already been explicitly taught. In unit 14, lesson 2, new high-frequency words are introduced. Specifically, the materials guide educators to “use the Say, Spell, Read, Write routine to introduce the high-frequency words: my, with.” Then, in lessons 4 and 6, the words from lesson 2 are reviewed. Specifically, the materials guide educators to “use the Say, Spell, Read, Write routine to review the high-frequency words: my, with.” Finally, during lesson 10 of the cumulative review, students read aloud the new high-frequency words.

Benchmark Advance Phonics Intervention includes only those regular and irregular high-frequency words that have already been explicitly taught. In unit 1, lesson 2, the Benchmark Advance Teacher’s Guide introduces high-frequency words such as a, I, and and through a structured instructional routine. Students first repeat the words, orally segment them, and spell each word as the educator points to the letters. After instruction, students practice the taught words as they chorally read them and write each word while they spell it aloud. Student practice remains connected to the high-frequency words previously introduced in the lesson, and in “Review Letter and Word Cards,” students apply their knowledge of known word parts and sound–letter connections. In unit 15, lesson 2 demonstrates that student practice is restricted to the high-frequency words all and our, which are explicitly introduced and taught through the Say, Spell, Read, Write routine before students are asked to spell, read, write, or use the words in sentences.

Evaluation for 4.C.3a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing syllable types and syllable division principles in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list syllable types or syllable division principles.

Evaluation for 4.C.3b
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction in decoding and encoding one-syllable and multisyllabic words in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

This guidance statement is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list decoding and encoding one-syllable or multisyllabic words.

Evaluation for 4.C.3c
Materials include cumulative student practice in decoding and encoding one-syllable and multisyllabic words in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose, both in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in decodable connected text, to develop automaticity.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list decoding and encoding one-syllable and multisyllabic words.

Evaluation for 4.C.3d
Student practice includes only syllable types and syllable division principles that have been explicitly taught.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list syllable types or syllable division principles.

Evaluation for 4.D.3a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing morphemes in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

The guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list morphemes.

Evaluation for 4.D.3b
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction on morphological skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list morphological skills.

Evaluation for 4.D.3c
Materials include cumulative student practice of morphological skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose, both in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in connected text, to develop automaticity.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list morphological skills.

Evaluation for 4.D.3d
Student practice includes only morphemes that have been explicitly taught.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because TEKS for the grade level do not list morphemes.