Blast Foundations Texas Edition, Grade 1

Evaluation for 1.1a
Materials include a scope and sequence outlining the TEKS, ELPS, and concepts taught in the course.

The grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guide Appendix includes a "Scope and Sequence" that outlines the order of English Language Arts and Reading (ELAR), TEKS, ELPS, and concepts taught throughout the year. For example, Unit 1 includes five lessons covering phoneme fluency, high-frequency sight words, phonics, fluency, and phonological awareness. The lessons align with the TEKS K.2Biv, K.2Div, K.2Dv, and 1.2A, along with multiple ELPS from subsection C. In grade 1, the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, includes a scope and sequence outlining the TEKS, ELPS, concepts, and activities taught for each lesson. The different types of activities are color-coded based on skill type. For example, phoneme fluency and high-frequency fluency sight word activity are colored yellow, phonemic awareness activities are colored green, and phonics concepts, reading, and spelling activities are colored teal.

Evaluation for 1.1b
Materials include suggested pacing (pacing guide/calendar) to support effective implementation for various instructional calendars (e.g., varying numbers of instructional days-165, 180, 210)

In grade 1, the Blast "Scope and Sequence" provides a pacing guide that outlines the TEKS and ELPS addressed in each unit. The materials provide a clear pacing guide, which includes the book number, unit number, lesson, activities, skill, the TEKS, and ELPS that are being taught. The pacing guides are built to reflect a five-day week. In the grade 1, Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, "Appendix B," a pacing guide is included as part of the scope and sequence. The scope and sequence is broken down by units, and each unit contains five lessons. The breakdown allows for the pacing of a unit per week or a lesson each day. The materials provide varying instructional calendars for suggested pacing.

Evaluation for 1.1c
Materials include an explanation for the rationale of unit order as well as how concepts to be learned connect throughout the course.

The grade 1 materials provide information explaining that the program follows the TEKS in the Alignment with Texas State Standards section in the Introduction. A chart titled "Examples of Alignment of Blast Foundations to the TEKS for Foundational Reading Skills for Grade 1" is included, showing the student expectation, the application in the materials, and an example from a unit and lesson. In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guide Book Introduction, a graphic is included to illustrate the progression of skills throughout each unit. The graphic serves as a reference for teachers in supporting their understanding and internalization of concept connections across units titled Letter/Sound Correspondences. In the grade 1 "Supply Room Teacher Resources" section, research is provided to explain the logic behind the unit progression and the conceptual connections across units, as well as case studies, white papers, and model studies to support the program.

Evaluation for 1.1d
Materials include protocols with corresponding guidance for unit and lesson internalization.

In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guides, the materials include internalization guidance for each unit. For example, the "Unit Planner" chart provides information on "the essential whole-group, small group, and independent practice and assessment required in each unit, along with resources for Spanish-speaking students and the wider English language (EL) population." Notes throughout the units direct the teacher to the corresponding resources as they teach each lesson. The information clearly describes each component included in the unit. The grade 1 materials include internalization guidance for each lesson by providing specific supports to meet the diverse needs of students. For example, each lesson has a component providing accompanying resources specific to each lesson to support EL students, and an additional component designated to provide resources specific to Spanish-speaking students. The grade 1 materials include an implementation guide that provides lesson internalization protocols with teacher guidance on how to use them. In the "Unit Planners Overview and Design Section," a breakdown of each unit lesson is provided with a diagram. It includes direct instruction, handwriting, resources for ELs, practice to mastery, small group, independent practice, and Spanish resources. This chart demonstrates how all components of the lesson fit together.

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

The grade 1 materials provide a list of materials needed to successfully implement the unit lessons. For example, the "Supply Room" contains an Instructional Resources tab. That tab includes "Instructional Videos," "Articulation Videos," "Vowel Sound Animations," "Posters," and "Charts." The materials do provide guidance for instructional leaders to support teachers with planning or instruction. The "Unit Planners Overview and Design Section" gives the teacher a complete breakdown of each section of the lesson design, with a short description of the teaching expectation for each section. The grade 1 materials provide a formative assessment guide, explaining how to use the Blast Reading Playground as formative assessment, and include guidance for an instructional leader to use the data to provide intervention.

Evaluation for 1.2a
Materials include comprehensive unit overviews that provide the background content knowledge and academic vocabulary necessary to effectively teach the concepts in the unit.

In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guides, the materials provide the background knowledge necessary to effectively teach the concepts in the unit. For example, the introduction section includes a progression graphic that shows how the units progress in complexity of skills, beginning with letter-sound correspondences and progressing from single to two-syllable words. The chart includes three columns labeled: Students Can, Application in Blast Foundations, and Examples. This chart provides the content knowledge necessary to teach the concepts in each unit. Each lesson in the grade 1, Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1 contains a "What You Need to Know" section that gives important background knowledge needed to effectively teach the concepts in the lesson. In addition to background knowledge, each lesson contains an "Important Definitions" section, which provides the instructor with key academic vocabulary needed for that specific lesson. A heading titled "Functional Vocabulary" outlines clear definitions of academic vocabulary to be taught within each lesson.

Evaluation for 1.2b
Materials contain supports for families in both Spanish and English for each unit with suggestions on supporting the progress of their student.

In the grade 1, Blast Foundations Supply Room, the materials include supports for families in both English and Spanish for each unit. For example, the "Home Connections" tab in Teacher Resources contains Parent Letters and Home Activities provided for each unit in both English and Spanish. The letters in Spanish are located under EL Resources in Home Resources. In grade 1, there is a QR code that takes families to a "Family Website" that provides videos that are divided into different skills that students will be learning in the classroom to teach foundational and critical concepts. It also provides home resources to help support students at home, as well as practice ideas to use at home. This website is provided in both English and Spanish. The grade 1 materials include resources to use at home, such as: Letter Tile Freeplay, Using Letter Tiles for Spelling, Heartword Magic, and a Glossary of Terms. The Home Letter that is also supplied has links for parents to click on to take them to the activity. At-home materials are provided to be used by English Language Learners (ELL) as well. In the supply room, students are provided with videos such as "Instructional Animations," "Spanish Articulation," and "Spanish Skill Routine."

Evaluation for 1.3a
Materials include comprehensive, structured, detailed lesson plans that include daily objectives, questions, tasks, materials, and instructional assessments required to meet the content and language standards of the lesson (aligned with the TEKS and the ELPS).

In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher, Guide Books, the daily lessons include a list of necessary materials for each day. For example, in Book 2, Unit 18, Lesson 2, states the teacher needs Blast Online in the Teacher Materials box, and nothing is noted for students on this particular lesson. The lessons provide limited opportunities to allow students to engage in conversation and critical thinking. For example, in Unit 7, Lesson 2, the lesson directs the teacher to say: "How many phonemes did you hear?" Answer: three "What is the vowel phoneme?" Answer: /ĕĕĕĕĕ/ "Is that long or short?" Answer: short "How do you know the vowel phoneme is short?" Answer: because it says /ĕĕĕĕĕ/ as in "edge" (while making short e, "edge" movement.) In the "What is Assessed" section in the Introduction, the materials explain how students will be assessed throughout the lesson cycles. The "Countdown Quick Checks" are a set of reproducible, quick-to-administer, informative, daily mini assessments to ensure that students have grasped and internalized the concepts taught in each lesson. Teachers will administer a pencil and paper "Quick Check" at the end of each day's lesson that targets the specific concepts taught. For grade 1, the lesson plans include daily learning objectives for each lesson that are aligned to the TEKS. For example, each lesson has the TEKS written across the top of the page, and lesson objectives match the TEKS listed. For example, in Unit 8, Lesson 2, the following objectives are stated: To accurately segment phonemes in single-syllable words with short a, long a, short i, and long i; To accurately identify the short a, long a, short i, and long i phonemes in spoken words; To accurately blend phonemes together to produce single-syllable words; To accurately add a final consonant sound to a given word to produce a new word. The materials consistently include the ELPS addressed in each lesson and how mastery of content will be addressed. In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, lessons are aligned to the TEKS, contain daily objectives aligned to lesson standards, asks questions to check for understanding, has tasks to promote mastery of lesson objectives, lists necessary materials for teachers and students, and has a reference to how mastery of TEKS will be assessed. For example, Unit 4, Lesson 4, list the TEKS addressed at the top of the lesson, teacher and student materials are listed in text boxes, lesson objectives are bulleted under the heading "Objectives," check for understanding by asking questions in the "We Do" section of the lesson and tasks like "Detective Work" or "Word Sort" promote mastery of lesson objectives. Unit 4, Lesson 5, has a text box at the end of the lesson on the left side of the page that references using data from the Reading Playground to assess students and drive instruction.

Evaluation for 1.3b
Materials include a lesson overview listing the teacher and student materials necessary to effectively deliver the lesson, and the suggested timing for each lesson component.

The grade 1 materials provide a "Lesson Design" section in the "Introduction" that explains what is needed to teach the unit. The TEKS are listed at the top of each lesson, the objective of the lesson is clearly stated, and to the right of the objective, the materials needed by the teacher and student are provided. The materials also provide "Teacher Notes," with sidebar notes to give additional information or tips about the materials, routines, or concepts taught in the lesson, and how to differentiate instruction for students. In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, each lesson provides a list on the first page with teacher and student materials listed out separately. For example, in Unit 1, Lesson 1, it states teachers will need "Blast Online" for their materials for this lesson, and students will need the Blast Student Workbook. The lessons include a section that includes a list of teacher and student materials as well as a description and sidebars throughout the lesson with information about materials, concepts being taught, and how it is important to the lesson. In the grade 1 Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 2, sections titled "Teacher Materials" and "Student Materials" are provided to list materials necessary to deliver instruction effectively. Below the boxes for Materials are the headings "Objective" and "What You Need to Know." The information in these two sections provides an Overview of the lesson. In the grade 1 Teacher Supply Room under "Teacher Resources," teachers are provided unit planners that provide suggested timing for each lesson component. For example, in Unit 1, Day 1, it states direct instruction would be 20–30 minutes, including a more detailed breakdown of 15–20 plus 5–10 minutes.

Evaluation for 1.3c
Materials include guidance on the effective use of lesson materials for extended practice (e.g., homework, extension, enrichment).

The grade 1 materials provide a Blast Extensions Online Tool for student and teacher use. The materials offer Extension Units such as Additional Long Vowel Teams, R-Controlled Vowels, Other Vowels, Consonant-le, Contractions, Possessives, and Homophones. Each extension unit has a lesson plan identifying the objective, a description, a "What You Need to Know" section, along with the materials needed and a script for the teacher to use. The grade 1 materials provide differentiation activities to support the needs of each student. Differentiation options are provided to allow you to simplify the activities or make them more challenging to meet the needs of your students. For example, in the supply room, there are differentiated activities to use in small groups with the Special Education (SPED) population, Emergent Bilingual (EB) population, and students with dyslexia. The lessons in Blast Foundations Teacher Guide Books have symbols in a text box at the end of some lessons that suggest activities to use for enrichment. The grade 1 materials provide opportunities for students to extend their learning at home. For example, students can click on Letter Tile Freeplay, Using Letter Tiles for Spelling, or Heart Word Magic.

Evaluation for 2.1a
Materials include a variety of instructional assessments at the unit and lesson level (including diagnostic, formative, and summative) that vary in types of tasks and questions.

In grade 1, materials include a variety of instructional assessments. Grade 1 materials provide "Diagnostic Decoding Surveys" in which teachers can use the "Diagnostic Decoding Surveys" to help determine which students are struggling with decoding, and more specifically, what types of words those students are struggling with. The words in the Grade 1, Diagnostic, are identical to those found in Really Grade Reading (RGR)'s Grade 1, Foundational Skills Survey (FSS1). The words in the diagnostics are representative of first grade foundational literacy skills (those found in the Blast curriculum) that focus on: simple and complex single-syllable words, decodable two-syllable words, and select sight words. The materials provide the teacher with information on how to administer the survey and how to use the data received from the survey. Grade 1 materials provide opportunities for formative assessment. At the lesson level, the formative and summative assessments vary in types of questions and tasks. In "Appendix A" in the Blast Teacher Guide, Book 2, the procedure for an activity called Read A Row is explained. The guidance states the activity, "The objective of Read a Row in Lessons 1 and 5 in each unit (beginning in Unit 4) is to allow you to measure how well individual students grasped (in Lesson 1) and have mastered (in Lesson 5) the letter-sound relationships and Heart Words that were taught and practiced." At the unit level, the diagnostic and summative assessments vary in types of questions and tasks. Three Reading Playground games from each unit can be utilized as formative assessments. In the Blast Supply Room under Reading Playground, Formative Assessment, and the Blast Formative Assessment Guide, it states, "Each game assesses a unique skill taught within the current unit. The concepts targeted in the assessment games are phonemic awareness, phonics, letter identification, letter-sound correspondence, decoding, and encoding, under the Game Choice Rationale, showing the variety used. Also under the "Reading Playground" tab in "Diagnostics," the Blast Oral Decoding Diagnostic Survey shows variation by assessing students through their word-reading skills. A video is included to guide the teacher on how to assign the assessments. A chart is also included to guide the teacher with next steps and instructional recommendations. In grade 1, Blast Online provides Beginning, Middle, and End of Program Summative Assessments in the "Reading Playground." Section 2, "Blast Reading Playground's Recommended Timeline," of a document titled "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" uses a timeline to visually represent when summative assessments should be administered throughout the school year. The assessments are intended to be used at the beginning, middle, and end of the year. The assessments can be administered in the form of games by creating an assignment, and can be completed whole class or in reading rotations. The "Reading Playground" also contains a "Diagnostics" tab with a document titled "First Grade Diagnostic Decoding Surveys." Section 2, "Blast Reading Playground's Diagnostic Timelines," of the document uses a timeline to visually represent when assessments should be administered throughout the school year. The teacher can also choose to use Oral Decoding in two ways: 1:1 with each student, or using voice recording tied to an assignment. In grade 1, Blast Teacher Guide, Book 1, "Cumulative and Controlled Practice as Formative Assessment" explains "the last two lessons of every Blast unit provide practice activities and a wrap-up where students show what they know as they synthesize newly taught information with previously taught concepts." For example, Unit 1, Lesson 5, students review alphabet, consonant letter names and phonemes, short vowel phonemes and motions, and long vowel phonemes and motions which were taught previously in the unit. In grade 1, Blast Teacher Guide, Book 1, "Quick Check" section states,

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

The grade 1 materials do not provide the definition of assessment types. In grade 1, the purpose of each type of instructional assessment is given in the materials. When in the "Supply Room" under "Formative Assessment," located under "Reading Playground," the Blast Formative Assessment Guide states that "three Reading Playground games from each unit can be utilized as formative assessments." The guide further explains that these particular assessments are "meant to inform the teacher of the most appropriate next steps for each student. Teachers can use the benchmark scores given in the table to determine which students are on their way to proficiency and which students would benefit from additional instruction and practice." Further, the grade 1 materials provide information for the intended purpose of each kind of assessment available in the program. For example, the materials explain why the assessment should be used, explaining that "poor decoding is one of the primary reasons students struggle to comprehend what they're reading. When students cannot read text accurately and efficiently, it often impacts their academic work. The assessments in the Reading Playground are a simple, efficient way to determine students' knowledge of the phonological and phonemic awareness and phonics concepts taught in the program." An overview of the assessment is also provided. In grade 1, the materials provide guidance on the program assessments located in the Blast Reading Playground for students to take at different times of the year. In the "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" document found by clicking on "Beginning, Middle, & End of Year Program Assessments" in the "Reading Playground" tab, the resource includes the purpose of the program's summative assessments and their purpose for evaluating student learning. For example, in regards to the Beginning of Program (BOP) Baseline, the materials state this is given to "determine students' background knowledge in the phonological and phonemic awareness and phonics concepts taught in the Blast lessons," as well as to "anticipate the amount of additional support, if any, students may need to be successful in Blast lessons." In grade 1, Blast Online provides a "Countdown Formative Assessment Guide." The section titled "Formative Assessment Goal" explains and defines that formative assessments "are not meant to provide a grade that can/should be used on a report card. They are meant to inform the teacher of the most appropriate next steps for each student."

Evaluation for 2.1c
Materials include teacher guidance to ensure consistent and accurate administration of instructional assessments.

In grade 1, the materials provide guidance on the program assessments located in the Blast Reading Playground for students to take at different times of the year. In the "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" document found by clicking on "Beginning, Middle, & End of Year Program Assessments" in the "Reading Playground" tab, the resource includes guidance to ensure accurate administration of the assessments. The document uses a timeline to visually represent when summative assessments should be administered throughout the school year. The document also contains information about how long the summative assessment will take to complete, how to administer the assessment, and a table that breaks down the assessment content and TEKS alignment. For example, Section 3, "General Assessment Information & FAQs," answers questions such as, "How long will it take my students to complete the assessment?" The summative assessment could take 15 to 40 minutes to complete, and a student's progress can be saved, allowing the assessment to be completed over multiple sessions. It explicitly states, "Student progress will be saved between each game, so they can return to the assessment to complete the remaining games at any time." The materials provide teacher guidance to ensure consistent and accurate administration of the assessments. For example, in the Blast Reading Playground Formative Assessment guide, information is provided for several aspects of the assessment, such as Game Choice Rationale, Formative Assessment Goal, Benchmark Scores, and Instructional Recommendations. The materials also provide "Accessing the Formative Assessment Game Data" to be used with a provided benchmark chart to determine next steps for each student or group of students. The grade 1 materials provide an overview of the "Blast Program Assessments," provide information on how the assessments are administered, what the format is, and why they should be given. For example, the Blast Formative Assessment Guide states, "Three Reading Playground games from each unit can be utilized as formative assessments. The games were chosen for their ability to showcase your students' abilities as accurately as possible without face-to-face interaction. For example, Unit 2, Game 2, assesses a student's ability to distinguish between words containing short a and short i." A page with "General Assessment Information & FAQs" explaining how the data can be used, how long it will take students to complete the assessment, and how the assessment should be administered.

Evaluation for 2.1d
Diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments are aligned to the TEKS and objectives of the course, unit, or lesson.

In grade 1, the diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments are aligned to the TEKS and objectives of the course, unit, or lesson. In the "Program Assessments" in the Blast Reading Playground document, there is content and TEKS alignment for the Baseline, Mid-Interval, and Summative assessments. For example, in Game 1 of the Baseline Assessment, the skill counting phonemes is assessed, and 1.2.A.vii is listed for the TEKS alignment. In grade 1, the diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments are aligned to the TEKS and objectives of the course, unit, or lesson. Found in the Blast Teacher Guide Books, each daily lesson begins with an objective that is aligned with the assessments being suggested. For example, in Unit 4, Lesson 2, Part 1, the objective is stated as, "Students will isolate, identify, and produce the shared beginning sound of three words." Phoneme work is also assessed in the first suggested progress monitoring check-in found in the Supply Room, which aligns to TEKS and assessment suggestions. In grade 1, Blast Online provides beginning, middle, and end-of-program summative assessments in the "Reading Playground." Sections 4, 5, and 6, of a document titled "Program Assessments in the Countdown Reading Playground" contain the Assessment Content and TEKS Alignment, which includes the skill, content assessed, and TEKS alignment for each game listed. For example, Game 9 assesses phonics skills of open and closed syllables, which aligns to the TEKS 1.2A.vii and 1.2C.i. In grade 1, Blast Online provides a Blast Formative Assessment Guide that includes a table titled "Blast Benchmark Scores" that contains game numbers, skills assessed, lesson review, and instructional practice. For example, Unit 20, Game 4, provides students with an opportunity to identify how many syllables are in words, which aligns with the Blast Curriculum. Also, in Blast Online is a Diagnostics tab which provides information about the First Grade Diagnostic Decoding Surveys. The paragraph to the right of the title of the document states, "The words in the diagnostics are representative of 1st grade foundational literacy skills (those found in the Blast curriculum)." The formative assessments and diagnostic surveys are aligned to the Blast curriculum, and the curriculum is aligned to the TEKS; therefore, the formative assessments and diagnostic surveys are aligned to the TEKS.

Evaluation for 2.1e
Instructional assessments include TEKS-aligned items at varying levels of complexity.

In grade 1, the instructional assessments include TEKS-aligned items that vary at levels of complexity as students progress through the games as assessments within the Reading Playground. In the "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" document found by clicking on "Beginning, Middle, & End of Year Program Assessments" in the "Reading Playground" tab, the Baseline Assessment Content & TEKS Alignment, for example, states that in Game 1, students are assessed on counting phonemes. The summary of directions states, "Students see and hear the name of a picture and choose the number of phonemes they hear in the word." Later in Game 4, students are assessed on blending phonemes. The summary of directions states, "Students hear a series of isolated sounds. They blend the sounds and touch the picture representing the word they hear." In grade 1, the instructional assessments include TEKS-aligned items that vary in levels of complexity as students progress through the games as assessments within the Reading Playground. In the "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" document found by clicking on "Beginning, Middle, & End of Year Program Assessments" in the "Reading Playground" tab, the Mid-Interval Assessment Content & TEKS Alignment, for example, states that in Game 8, students are assessed on short vowels, digraphs, and two-sound blends. The summary of directions states, "Students choose the correct word from three choices." Later in the Summative Assessment Content & TEKS Alignment in Game 16, students are assessed on vowel teams and VCE. The summary of directions states, "Students determine the correct way to break words containing the suffix -ed into syllables." In grade 1, Blast Online provides beginning, middle, and end-of-program summative assessments in the "Reading Playground." Section 2, the "Blast Reading Playground's Recommended Timeline" of a document titled "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" uses a timeline to visually represent when summative assessments should be administered throughout the school year. The document also contains information about how long the summative assessment will take to complete, how to administer the assessment, and a table that breaks down the assessment content and TEKS alignment. For example, Section 3, "General Assessment Information & FAQs" answers questions such as, "How long will it take my students to complete the assessment?" The summative assessment could take 15 to 40 minutes to complete, and a student's progress can be saved, allowing the assessment to be completed over multiple sessions. In grade 1, Blast Online provides a "Blast Formative Assessment Guide" that includes a table titled "Blast Benchmark Scores" that contains game numbers, skills assessed, lesson review, and instructional practice. The games allow for multiple-choice selections and open responses. For example, in Unit 20, Game 4, "How Many Syllables?" students select how many syllables are in a word from choices given. Students practice open responses in Unit 6, Game 2, by listening and building a word that is spoken.

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

The grade 1 materials include instructional assessments and scoring information that provide guidance for interpreting student performance. The "Reports" section in the Teacher Portal displays game-specific accuracy percentages and benchmark scores aligned to mastery levels. The benchmark chart connects these scores to review lessons and instructional recommendations. The Blast Oral Decoding Diagnostic Surveys include scoring guidance that identifies patterns of student errors and recommends follow-up diagnostics when scores fall below 75%. The Blast Formative Assessment Guide provides score tables with aligned mastery descriptions. For example, 80% or higher on Unit 1 games is classified as "nearing proficiency." The "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" document includes a color-coded scoring key (red, yellow, green, or blue) that clearly defines performance levels ranging from "needs attention" to "exceeds."

Evaluation for 2.2b
Materials provide guidance for the use of included tasks and activities to respond to student trends in performance on assessments.

The grade 1 materials provide guidance for using tasks and activities in response to student performance trends. The Blast Online "Intervention Flowchart" includes the "1st Grade BOY Path for Assessment and Intervention." This tool outlines steps for using assessment data to diagnose performance and group students. Other outlined steps from the tool include the Blast Student Workbook or Countdown Additional Activities and conducting progress monitoring to adjust instruction. The "Next Steps Based on Scores" in the Skills Analysis Report provides color-coded guidance. For example, red indicates a need for additional support, yellow suggests monitoring, and green or blue signals no further support is needed. The Formative Assessment Guide includes benchmark scores paired with instructional recommendations. For example, in Unit 2, a score of 80% or higher on the first three games prompts review using "U2, L2: Choose words from YOU DO section (p. 22) Game 1."

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

The grade 1 materials include tools for tracking student progress and growth. The Grouping Matrix compiles assessment data into reports and graphs that display individual and group performance over time. It supports progress monitoring and includes video tutorials to guide use. The materials also include a student-facing data tracker with unit-specific boxes. For example, after completing Unit 27, which covers contractions, possessives, and homophones, students mark Box 6 to visually track progress toward the final goal.

Evaluation for 3.1a
Materials include teacher guidance for differentiated instruction, activities, and paired (scaffolded) lessons for students who have not yet reached proficiency on grade-level content and skills.

The grade 1 materials provide teacher guidance for differentiated instruction, targeted activities, and scaffolded lessons for students who have not yet mastered grade-level skills. In Unit 3, Lesson 3, the materials include differentiation options with explanations for each area of need. The guidance addresses students who struggle to spell consonant sounds, spell vowel sounds, and blend individual sounds to read a complete word. References to specific supports are included in Appendix B. The grade 1 materials provide "Intervention Flowcharts" in the Blast Supply Room to support differentiated instruction. The flowcharts guide teachers to determine each student's decoding level using the "Foundation Skills Surveys." Based on results, students are grouped into four categories: At or Above Expectations, Slightly or Moderately Below, Significantly or Severely Below, and Emerging Reader. The materials guide teachers to adjust instruction based on students' skill level. The "Scaffolded Instruction" section in the Introduction of the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, explains how to support students who have not yet mastered a concept. The materials include additional guidance for differentiated activities in Appendix B. The "Differentiation Strategies" section outlines vocabulary and sentence structure practice for students performing below grade level.

Evaluation for 3.1b
Materials include pre-teaching or embedded supports for unfamiliar vocabulary and references in text (e.g., figurative language, idioms, academic language). (T/S)

The grade 1 materials include structured pre-teaching supports for unfamiliar vocabulary. The "Vocabulary Playground Deep Teach" routine introduces new vocabulary terms before core instruction. Lessons revisit the vocabulary in later activities to support repeated exposure and deeper understanding. The "Deep Teach Vocabulary" lesson plans provide a consistent routine for teaching vocabulary. Each lesson includes steps to introduce the word, ask beginner and advanced questions, guide discussion, and use sentence frames. The materials provide multiple opportunities to practice the word in context. The grade 1 materials include daily routines that support academic language development. The Vocabulary Playground activities include structured partner discussions and prompts for using vocabulary in speaking and listening tasks. Sentence frames support oral language practice using academic terms. The grade 1 materials include a Vocabulary Playground Scope and Sequence that organizes instruction by word type and depth of instruction. The four categories include Deep Teach, Multiple Meaning, Light Touch, and Related Words. Each category is supported through embedded practice in games and lessons.

Evaluation for 3.1c
Materials include teacher guidance for differentiated instruction, enrichment, and extension activities for students who have demonstrated proficiency in grade-level content and skills.

The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance for differentiated instruction through a packet of "Differentiated Passages." Each "Blast Passage" includes a simplified version designed to build fluency. The guidance directs the use of the standard passage after successful reading of the differentiated version to support continued growth. The grade 1 materials provide enrichment opportunities through interactive games in the Reading Playground. These games reinforce previously taught skills and offer additional practice for students who have demonstrated proficiency. The grade 1 materials include extension units in Blast Online that introduce advanced phonics concepts such as vowel teams, r-controlled vowels, consonant-le, contractions, possessives, and homophones. These units extend learning and promote deeper understanding of foundational reading skills. The grade 1 materials offer additional "Activity Extension Suggestions" to enrich and expand instruction. For example, the "Read a Row" extension prompts students to create a sentence using all three words in the row. The "Build a Word Extension" includes identifying parts of speech, working collaboratively, and changing letter tiles to form new words. The grade 1 materials clearly identify extension and enrichment activities. The materials provide options to challenge proficient students.

Evaluation for 3.2a
Materials include explicit (direct) prompts and guidance to support the teacher in modeling and explaining the concept(s) to be learned.

The grade 1 materials include explicit prompts and clear guidance to support modeling and explanation of lesson concepts. Appendix A in the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1 includes a "Routines and Procedures" section that describes each activity in detail. The guidance outlines the objective, setup, steps in the routine, expected outcomes, and suggestions for addressing common errors. The grade 1 materials provide direct modeling support within lessons in Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 3. For example, in Part 3, Unit 20, Lesson 3, the section "Read Two-Syllable Real Words With Vowel-Consonant-e" includes examples of what Syllaboards should look like during each step of the activity. The first page of Unit 20, Lesson 5, includes a "What You Need to Know" section that explains the lesson focus and provides background on the concept of vowel-consonant-e in one and two-syllable words. The grade 1 materials consistently offer direct prompts, visual models, and detailed lesson explanations to support effective teacher modeling and instruction.

Evaluation for 3.2b
Materials include teacher guidance and recommendations for effective lesson delivery and facilitation using a variety of instructional approaches.

The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance and support for effective lesson delivery using a variety of instructional strategies. Each lesson provides scripted prompts, think-aloud suggestions, and structured routines to guide instruction. The grade 1 materials include digital collaboration tools and opportunities for student interaction. The Vocabulary Playground routine introduces and reinforces vocabulary with embedded opportunities for student discourse. The Reading Playground adds a technology-based element that supports lesson engagement and review. The grade 1 materials incorporate direct instruction, guided practice, independent work, scaffolded instruction, hands-on tasks, and digital activities. For example, in Unit 27, Lesson 5, guided reading, written workbook responses, and scaffolded text ("The Perfect Quirky Dessert") are included. The materials also include a quick check and digital games for additional practice. The grade 1 materials consistently apply varied instructional approaches across lessons to support student engagement and effective facilitation.

Evaluation for 3.2c
Materials support multiple types of practice (e.g., guided, independent, collaborative) and include guidance for teachers and recommended structures (e.g., whole group, small group, individual) to support effective implementation.

The grade 1 materials include multiple types of practice within each lesson. The Unit 16 Planner divides instruction into Direct Instruction, Practice to Mastery, Small Group Instruction, and Independent Practice. Each section provides a suggested time frame and guidance for lesson delivery. The grade 1 materials include explicit instruction, guided practice, independent tasks, collaborative group work, and digital activities. Picture icons embedded in each lesson identify the type of instructional routine. The unit planner defines each icon, including small groups, quick checks, and vocabulary playground activities. The grade 1 materials provide structured routines that support effective implementation. The lesson scripts follow the gradual release model to guide instruction. In Unit 2, Lesson 2, the script models the "Finger-Stretching Phonemes" strategy with step-by-step instructions. The grade 1 materials include guidance on using student data to form small groups. Instructional notes recommend when to reteach content and how to group students for additional support. The grade 1 materials consistently support whole group, small group, and individual structures. Lessons include clear routines, visual cues, and flexible planning tools to support effective instructional decisions.

Evaluation for 3.3a
Materials include teacher 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 grade 1 materials include guidance on providing linguistic accommodations aligned to the ELPS. The document titled ELPS Aligned Recommendations Based on Proficiency Levels outlines strategies based on language proficiency levels. The grade 1 materials include the document Leveraging the Reading Playground for English Language Learners, which offers recommendations for supporting ELs during gameplay. The materials suggest modeling the first example in each game in a whole group or small group setting, followed by independent completion. The materials also recommend allowing students to work with a partner during gameplay. The grade 1 materials provide differentiated guidance based on ELPS proficiency levels. In the Blast Foundations Supply Room under "Teacher Resources," the document Recommendations for Supporting Spanish-Speaking Students for Teachers outlines accommodations for nonsense word activities. For example, the materials recommend omitting nonsense word activities for newcomers and early intermediate ELs and using only real-word examples. For intermediate and advanced ELs, the materials suggest using nonsense words strategically and explicitly teaching that the words are not meaningful in English. The grade 1 materials include additional ELPS support in the Appendix of Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 2. The section titled "ELPS Alignment for 1st Grade Literacy Skills" lists each literacy skill along with corresponding TEKS and ELPS-aligned recommendations based on proficiency level.

Evaluation for 3.3b
Materials include implementation guidance to support teachers in effectively using the materials in state-approved bilingual/ESL programs.

The grade 1 materials include the English Learner Support Guide for Teachers, which identifies embedded supports for ESL and bilingual students. The grade 1 materials include the Recommendations for Supporting Native Spanish Speakers document, which provides guidance on using Spanish animations, adapted nonsense words, dictation supports, sound stories, and the Heart Word Generator. The grade 1 materials include virtual training videos, one-pagers, and handbooks that explain language acquisition best practices and implementation strategies.

Evaluation for 3.3c
Materials include embedded guidance for teachers to support emergent bilingual students in developing academic vocabulary, increasing comprehension, building background knowledge, and making cross-linguistic connections through oral and written discourse.

The grade 1 materials include the Vocabulary Playground, Deep Teach Lesson Plan, to support academic vocabulary development through oral and written discourse. The materials provide opportunities for oral repetition, phoneme awareness, and sentence-stem writing to reinforce new vocabulary. Oral schema-based vocabulary routines are used to build background knowledge. The materials consistently embed written discourse routines or written responses connected to background knowledge or comprehension. The grade 1 materials include Blast Decodable Passages (with Fluency Instruction) and provide five comprehension questions per passage. These questions address literal meaning, inference, and social connection to support oral comprehension. The grade 1 materials include crosslinguistic supports, such as alphabet cards that highlight shared sounds and cognates between Spanish and English. The materials also provide Spanish-English video animations and multisensory sentence completion activities to support language transfer and vocabulary development.

Evaluation for 3.3d
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 include systematic and sequenced instruction of phonics (sound-symbol correspondence) skills.

The grade 1 materials include systematic and sequenced instruction of phonics (sound-symbol correspondence) skills. The instructional sequence begins with basic skills and progresses to more complex concepts. For example, Unit 1 introduces short and long vowel phonemes, Unit 2 focuses on closed syllables, and Unit 4 introduces digraphs. Blast Online follows a structured progression that begins with identifying whether a group of letters forms a word and advances to short vowels, vowel teams, and contractions. Lesson objectives in the Blast Teacher Guide, Book 1 follow this sequence, beginning with short vowel identification in Unit 1, blending graphemes in Unit 5, and segmenting spoken words into syllables in Unit 14.

Evaluation for 4.1b
Materials include explicit (direct) and intentional ongoing practice opportunities for phonics (sound-symbol correspondence) skills, both in isolation and through decodable texts.

The grade 1 materials include explicit and intentional ongoing practice opportunities for phonics (sound-symbol correspondence) skills, both in isolation and through decodable texts. Scripted routines in Unit 2, Lesson 2, provide structured phoneme and letter identification practice using sound boxes and choral response. The Blast Foundations Student Workbook includes independent practice with phonics skills in isolation and connected text. For example, Unit 15 includes "Detective Work" activities and decoding practice with phrases and sentences. Blast Online offers decodable passages that reinforce sound-symbol correspondence in context. In Unit 5, "The Rush to Camp" supports decoding of words with short "u" and consonants "b," "n," and "c."

Evaluation for 4.2a
Daily lessons include explicit (direct) phonics instruction with teacher modeling.

The grade 1 materials include daily lessons with explicit phonics instruction and structured modeling routines. In Unit 4, Lesson 2, the lesson guides segmentation of the word "mat" into individual phonemes and identification of the short vowel sound. A visual chart supports vowel phoneme sorting by directing placement of checkmarks in the correct column. In Unit 15, Lesson 2, the lessons include teacher modeling routines to guide syllable segmentation using the word "gigantic." The routine uses SyllaBoards™ to represent each syllable. Movement is incorporated through the "Syllable Stomp" routine, including stomping for each syllable and blending by sweeping from left to right.

Evaluation for 4.2b
Daily lessons include opportunities for explicit (direct) guided instruction with guidance for immediate and corrective feedback.

The grade 1 materials include daily opportunities for explicit guided instruction with clear guidance for delivering immediate and corrective feedback. In Unit 5, Lesson 2, of the Blast Teacher Guide, Book 1, a sidebar provides corrective prompts such as asking, "How many phonemes do you hear?" when a student extends the incorrect number of sounds. The materials include steps for using Positive Error Correction to reinforce accurate phoneme segmentation. In Unit 5, Lesson 4, the materials prompt students to use thumbs-up signals to indicate correct decoding and a sideways thumb for errors. The teacher is directed to immediately redirect incorrect responses, supporting accurate word reading. In Unit 15, Lesson 3 of the Blast Teacher Guide, Book 2, the materials include a text box titled "Positive Error Correction Spelling Multisyllabic Words." This section outlines specific steps for addressing errors after the "You Do" activity in the "Spelling Words" lesson. These embedded supports ensure that daily lessons consistently include opportunities for guided instruction and immediate, corrective feedback.

Evaluation for 4.2c
Daily lessons include a variety of opportunities for students to practice phonics skills through collaborative learning and independent practice.

The grade one materials include daily lessons that offer varied opportunities for collaborative learning and independent practice of phonics skills. The Unit Planners in the Blast Supply Room outline a consistent lesson structure, including direct instruction, "Practice to Mastery," "Small Group Instruction," and "Independent Practice." In Unit 14, Lesson 3, the materials provide collaborative and independent tasks such as games, a cold read of the decodable passage "The Potluck," and spelling practice using the "Spell It! Template." Unit 15, Lesson 3, includes opportunities for small group and independent practice. Materials include a cold read of the decodable passage "The Attic," spelling word introduction and practice using the "Spell It! Template," and optional visual supports from the EL and Español Resources menu. Unit 21, Lesson 2 features a "You Do" section that prompts independent decoding of words containing the vowel phoneme /oo/ using the "Finger-Stretch" routine. The lesson structure supports repeated, independent application of previously taught phonics skills. The introduction of the Blast Teacher Guide, Book 1, describes the role of oral language and collaboration in foundational skills instruction. The materials include structured routines such as "Build a Word," "Read It," and "Phrases and Sentences to Read." These routines assign collaborative roles like Builder, Reader, and Checker to support shared learning and reinforce phonics concepts. In Unit 2, Lesson 3, a sidebar note reminds educators to implement the "Build a Word" routine using shared Student Phonics Kits. This supports peer collaboration and reinforces decoding accuracy through structured discussion and feedback.

Evaluation for 4.3a
Materials include intentional cumulative phonics review and practice activities throughout the curriculum.

Grade 1 materials include intentional, cumulative review and practice in each unit. The fifth lesson of every unit in the Blast Teacher Guide, Book 2, is a "Wrap Up & Show What You Know" lesson to reinforce phonics skills taught within and across units. For example, Unit 20, Lesson 5, provides cumulative practice of current and previously introduced concepts. The Introduction of Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, includes a section titled "Cumulative and Controlled Practice as Formative Assessment." This section describes how each unit's final lesson integrates cumulative review. Materials guide students to synthesize newly taught skills with previously learned concepts through structured practice and assessment activities.

Evaluation for 4.3b
Practice opportunities include only phonics skills that have been explicitly taught.

The grade 1 materials include practice tasks that align with phonics skills explicitly taught in prior lessons. In Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 2, Unit 22, introduces "igh" and "oa" in Lesson 1. Lesson 3 reviews these vowel teams and provides reading practice with one-syllable words. Lesson 4 applies the skills through marking and reading one-syllable words, phrases, and sentences. In Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, the materials explicitly teach closed syllables and short vowels "a" and "i" in Unit 2, Lesson 2. Lesson 3 provides practice opportunities by having students spell closed-syllable words using the reviewed short vowel sounds.

Evaluation for 4.3c
Decodable texts incorporate cumulative practice of taught phonics skills.

The grade 1 materials include decodable reading passages that support cumulative practice of previously taught phonics skills. In Blast Foundations Online, Unit 2 passages include short vowels a and i and consonants m, t, and s, with words such as Tim, Sam, and mat. By Unit 28, decodable texts incorporate more complex vowel teams such as oo, oi, ou, and aw in words like noisy, shouted, and lawn. The Blast Foundations Student Workbook 2 provides cumulative application through the "Sentences to Read" pages. For example, Unit 15 includes two-syllable closed-syllable words such as radish, picnic, and mantis. In later units, such as Unit 26, the materials include r-controlled vowels in words like clerk, skirt, and sharp, reinforcing phonics skills previously taught across the program.

Evaluation for 4.3d
Lessons include an instructional focus with opportunities for practice in isolation and decodable, connected text.

The grade 1 materials include an instructional focus with explicit opportunities to practice phonics skills both in isolation and in connected decodable texts. The Blast Foundations Student Workbook includes "Detective Work" in Unit 15, where students decode two-syllable words in isolation and then apply the same skill to phrases and sentences. The Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 2, includes lessons designed to target phonics skills in isolation before transitioning to application in context. For example, Unit 24, Lesson 2 focuses on segmenting and blending one-syllable words with the vowel phoneme /oo/. The lesson includes structured routines, such as modeling, guided practice, and independent activities to support mastery of the skill before applying it in connected text.

Evaluation for 4.4a
Materials include a variety of assessment tools that are developmentally appropriate.

The grade 1 materials include a variety of assessment tools that are developmentally appropriate. The Foundational Skills Surveys and Beginning, Middle, and End of Program assessments measure decoding abilities that progress from consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) and consonant-consonant-vowel-consonant (CCVC) words to long vowel patterns and multisyllabic words. The Blast 1:1 Decoding Progress Monitoring Check-ins and the Progress Monitoring Check-Ins document align with the instructional sequence and assess increasingly complex phonics skills, such as short vowels, blends, and two-syllable closed-syllable words. The "Blast Benchmark Scores" table tracks decoding and word recognition development across units, supporting data-informed instruction.

Evaluation for 4.4b
Materials include progress monitoring tools that systematically and accurately measure students' acquisition of grade-level phonics skills.

The grade 1 materials include the "1:1 Decoding Progress Monitoring Check-ins" in the Reading Playground, which align with the instructional sequence and assess specific phonics skills taught in earlier units. The grade 1 materials require oral reading of decodable words in the check-ins. These tasks reflect previously taught skills and support accurate tracking of phonics skill acquisition. The grade 1 materials provide an interactive platform in the Reading Playground that includes skill-aligned games and real-time performance tracking. The Teacher Dashboard displays data for ongoing instructional decisions. The grade 1 materials include "Beginning, Middle, and End of Program" assessments in the Reading Playground. These assessments follow a systematic progression from blending and vowel identification to schwa recognition, suffix identification, and phoneme manipulation.

Evaluation for 4.4c
Materials include assessment opportunities across the span of the school year aligned to progress monitoring tools.

The grade 1 materials include beginning, middle, and end-of-year summative assessments in the Reading Playground. The "Program Assessments in the Blast Reading Playground" document provides a recommended timeline for when to administer each assessment. The "Progress Monitoring Check-ins" occur throughout the year and align with the unit sequence. For example, Check-in 2 covers lessons 4–6, Check-in 5 covers lesson 13, and Check-in 10 covers lessons 23–24. The "Skills Analysis Report," available in the Reading Playground, links assessment data to instructional decision-making by analyzing individual skill and subskill scores.

Evaluation for 4.5a
Materials include data-management tools for tracking individual student progress to make appropriate instructional decisions to accelerate instruction.

The grade 1 materials include a "Skills Analysis" tool in the Blast Reading Playground that tracks student mastery of specific skills. The tool helps identify skill gaps and organize students by strengths and areas for improvement. The grade 1 materials include the "Grouping Matrix." The matrix organizes assessment data to form instructional groups and track progress over time. The matrix also features reports, graphs, and video tutorials that support data-based decision-making. The grade 1 materials provide a "Skills Analysis Report" with guidance on interpreting assessment trends. For example, red dots indicate a need for support, yellow dots indicate monitoring, and green or blue dots indicate no additional support is needed.

Evaluation for 4.5b
Materials include data-management tools for tracking whole-class student progress to analyze patterns and needs of students.

The grade 1 materials include the "Grouping Matrix," a tool that organizes assessment data to support targeted instruction. The matrix allows direct data entry and creates reports that group students and recommend appropriate instruction based on skills. The "Grouping Matrix" also includes tools for progress monitoring. The tool tracks individual and group performance through visual graphs and reports. Video tutorials are included to support use of the matrix. The grade 1 materials include a "Skills Analysis Report" that identifies next steps based on assessment scores. Red dots indicate that support is needed. Yellow dots signal a need for monitoring. Green or blue dots confirm that no action is required.

Evaluation for 4.5c
Materials include specific guidance on determining frequency of progress monitoring based on students' strengths and needs.

The grade 1 materials provide a schedule for progress monitoring. For example, Progress Monitoring Checks 1–4 occur after every three units, while later checks (e.g., 6, 8, 9, and 10,) cover two units each. The grade 1 materials state that the "1:1 Decoding Progress Monitoring Check-In" tool aligns with the phonics skills taught in grouped units and also helps track progress. The grade 1 materials offer specific guidance for adjusting the frequency of progress monitoring based on individual student strengths or needs. The "Foundational Skills Surveys" and "Grouping Matrix" organize students by decoding skill level and recommend instruction. The materials include guidance on adjusting monitoring frequency based on data.

Evaluation for 4.5d
Materials include guidance on how to accelerate learning based on the progress monitoring data to reach mastery of specific concepts.

The grade 1 materials state that the "Beginning of Program Assessment" identifies student knowledge in phonological awareness and phonics and helps anticipate support needs. The materials include guidance or tools for accelerating instruction based on this data. The grade 1 materials offer extension lessons and resources to use after completing the core program. The materials explain how to use progress monitoring data to implement these materials to accelerate learning during daily instruction. The grade 1 materials include activities designed for students who are nearing proficiency and for those who need extension. They include guidance on when and how to implement these activities.

Evaluation for 5.B.1a
Materials include explicit (direct) and systematic instructional guidance on developing oral language and oracy through a variety of methods (e.g., modeling, guided practice, coaching, feedback, and independent practice). (T)

The grade 1 materials provide explicit instruction to develop oral language using a variety of methods. In Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 2, Lesson 2, the materials include a finger-stretching activity to reinforce oral language. After stretching a word, the materials prompt students to say the vowel sound, identify if it is short or long, and give a reason. The materials provide explicit (direct) and systematic instructional guidance on developing oral language through a variety of methods. "Learn Vocabulary with Vocabulary Playground's Deep Teach Lesson Plan" offers a teacher-led, whole-class discussion and inference of new vocabulary introduced in the unit. The "Deep Teach Lesson Plan" provides teacher guidance, questions, and sentence stems to lead discussions about unit-specific vocabulary words. The grade 1 materials provide explicit (direct) and systematic instructional guidance on developing oral language through a variety of methods. The "Oral Language and Collaboration" section states that Blast Foundations supports the development of decoding and reading skills and emphasizes oral language growth through engaging and enriching vocabulary exercises. A specific icon is used to identify explicit oral language instruction. Throughout the materials, oral language opportunities are marked with a square text bubble. Oral language opportunities are included in Blast's phonemic awareness, phonics, handwriting, and vocabulary instruction. The materials provide explicit (direct) and systematic instructional guidance on developing oral language through a variety of methods. Explicit and systematic instructional guidance on developing oracy is included. The grade 1 materials address the oracy component outlined in the guidance. Instruction does include structured opportunities for students to develop spoken language skills through discussion, explanation, or communication for varied purposes and audiences.

Evaluation for 5.B.1b
Materials include opportunities for students to engage in social and academic communication for different purposes and audiences. (S)

The grade 1 materials provide opportunities for academic communication for different audiences and purposes. "Learn Vocabulary with Vocabulary Playground Deep Teach Lesson Plan" provides teacher-led, whole class discussion about, and inference of, new vocabulary introduced in the unit. The "Deep Teach Lesson Plan" provides teacher guidance questions and sentence stems to lead discussions about unit specific vocabulary words. The grade 1 materials provide opportunities to engage in academic communication for different purposes, including the importance of reading correctly. Section two, "Explain the Importance of Reading Correctly," includes opportunities for discussing the difference a single letter can have on meaning when reading accurately. The materials provide opportunities for academic communication with different purposes and audiences, and provide opportunities for students to engage in social communication.

Evaluation for 5.B.1c
Materials include authentic opportunities for students to listen actively, ask questions, engage in discussion to understand information, and share information and ideas. (S)

The grade 1 materials include authentic opportunities for students to listen actively, ask questions, participate in discussions to build understanding, and share ideas. For example, the Blast Foundations Supply Room under "Vocabulary" in the "Instructional Resources" section includes the Blast Deep Teach Vocabulary Lesson Plan, which prompts students to reflect on their prior knowledge of a word by asking questions such as whether they have heard the word before, and in what context. The grade 1 materials provide authentic opportunities to listen actively, engage in discussion to understand information, and share information and ideas. "Learn Vocabulary with Vocabulary Playground Deep Teach Lesson Plan" provides teacher-led, whole class discussion about, and inference of new vocabulary introduced in the unit. The "Deep Teach Lesson Plan" provides teacher guidance questions and sentence stems to lead discussions about unit specific vocabulary words. Section two, "Explain the Importance of Reading Correctly," in Blast Teacher Guide, Book 1, explains the importance of and gives students the opportunity to practice active listening, asking questions, engaging in discussion, and sharing ideas. Included are opportunities for discussing the difference a single letter can have on meaning when reading accurately.

Evaluation for 5.C.1a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing letter names and their corresponding sounds. (PR 2.A.1)

This guidance is not applicable to the product.

Evaluation for 5.C.1b
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction for teaching and developing student automaticity in the identification of the 26 letters of the alphabet (upper and lowercase) and their corresponding sounds. (PR 2.A.1) (T)

This guidance is not applicable to the product.

Evaluation for 5.C.1c
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) and systematic instruction for letter formation for the 26 letters of the alphabet (upper and lowercase). (PR 2.A & 2.A.3) (T)

This guidance is not applicable to the product.

Evaluation for 5.C.1d
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources (including the use of memory-building strategies) for students to develop, practice, and reinforce (through cumulative review) alphabet knowledge both in isolation and in the context of meaningful print. (PR 2.A & 2.A.3) (S).

This guidance is not applicable to the product.

Evaluation for 5.C.2a
Materials explicitly (directl), and systematically introduce letter-sound relationships in an order that allows for application to basic decoding and encoding. (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include systematically introducing letter-sound relationships in an order that allows for application to basic decoding and encoding. For example, in the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1 "Introduction," there is an illustration of the scope and sequence which shows how the units progress from single syllable to multisyllabic words. The materials review letter and sound recognition, and short and long vowels, before applying their knowledge in basic decoding and encoding, and then progressing to more complex skills. The grade 1 materials explicitly (directly) and systematically introduce letter-sound relationships in an order that allows for application of basic decoding and encoding of words in isolation and in connected text. Unit 10 provides opportunities to apply knowledge of decoding and encoding by reviewing alphabet knowledge, segmenting and building words, reading and spelling words with trigraphs in isolation and context. Unit 25 provides opportunities to apply knowledge of decoding and encoding by reviewing alphabet knowledge, segmenting and building words, reading and spelling words with two syllables in isolation and context.

Evaluation for 5.C.2b
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction focused on connecting phonemes to letters within words with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors and misconceptions. (PR 2.A & 2.A.2) (T)

The grade 1 materials include guidance for providing explicit (direct) instruction focused on connecting phonemes to letters within words, along with recommended explanatory feedback based on common errors. In the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1 appendix under "Positive Error Correction for Pop-Up," the materials outline steps for addressing decoding mistakes. The routine includes identifying any part of the word read correctly, prompting the student to try again, and offering specific feedback tied to the letter or sound. If the student corrects the error, the materials encourage celebrating the success with positive reinforcement. The grade 1 materials include guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction focused on connecting phonemes to letters within words with recommended explanatory feedback based on common errors, such as the information in "What You Need to Know" section of Unit 17, Lesson 2. The material states that direct, explicit instruction in phonics "prepares students to connect phonemes to letters within words, resulting in the development of fewer misconceptions." The materials give examples of misconceptions and how to address them. The materials provide feedback for common errors and guidance for addressing misconceptions.

Evaluation for 5.C.2c
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce (through cumulative review) their understanding of applying letter-sound correspondence to decode one syllable and multisyllable words in isolation and decodable connected text. (PR 2.A & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop their understanding of applying letter-sound correspondence to decode one-syllable and multisyllable words in isolation and decodable connected text. In Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 8, Lesson 3, the materials provide an interactive lesson where students identify the digraph "wh," determine the sound made, and its correlation to the /w/ made by the letter "w." Using letter tiles, students manipulate the digraph to spell words, noting that "wh" primarily appears at the beginning of words when spelling. In Unit 2, Lessons 3 and 4, the materials provide opportunities to decode CVC words in both isolation and context. After the lesson, the materials direct students to skill-based games for additional practice. Games 3 and 4 in the Blast Reading Playground reinforce identification of short a and i sounds in isolation and include decodable text to support continued practice with the targeted skill. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to practice their understanding of applying letter-sound correspondence to decode one-syllable and multisyllable words in isolation and decodable connected text. In the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide Book 1, Unit 8 Lesson 5, it states, "Lesson 5 is a wrap-up lesson. The wrap-up reviews and cumulatively practices the concepts taught in this unit (and in previously taught units). Lesson 5 contains wrap-up activities and the explanation on how to run these activities: Review of Letter Sounds, Review of High-Frequency Words, Sentences to Read, Spell It!" The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to reinforce (through cumulative review) their understanding of applying letter-sound correspondence to decode one-syllable and multisyllable words in isolation and decodable connected text. For example, in the Blast Foundations Supply Room, "Instructional Resources," "Blast Passages," "Blast Decodable Passages (with Fluency Instruction)" states that the decodable passages consist of words and phonics skills students have explicitly learned.

Evaluation for 5.D.1a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing phonological awareness activities in accordance with grade-level TEKS that begins with simple skills and larger units of sound (e.g., identifying and producing rhyming words, recognizing spoken alliteration, identifying the individual words in spoken sentences) and gradually transitions to more complex skills and smaller units of sound (e.g., adding, deleting, and substituting syllables). (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing phonological awareness activities following grade-level TEKS. The "Blast Scope and Sequence" provides the systematic sequence for introducing phonological awareness activities, as well as lists the TEKS that correlate to each activity. The materials review larger sound units, such as segmenting syllables, before transitioning to smaller sound units, such as isolating beginning, middle, and ending sounds. Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing phonological awareness activities. The Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1 "Introduction" provides an illustration of the scope and sequence, which shows how the units progress from single syllables to multisyllabic words. For example, students work with two-sound blends in Unit 13. In Unit 14, students begin segmenting syllables before moving onto blending syllables in Units 15 and 16. The grade 1 materials include phonological awareness opportunities in accordance with grade-level TEKS that begin with simple skills and larger units of sound and gradually transition to more complex skills and smaller units of sound. For example, Unit 23, Lesson 2, provides multiple scaffolded opportunities to segment, identify, blend, and substitute sound /ou/. Scaffolding instruction is used to build skills and boost learner confidence.

Evaluation for 5.D.1b
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction for teaching phonological awareness skills with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors and misconceptions. (PR 2.A & 2.A.2) (T)

The grade 1 materials include guidance on explicit instruction for teaching phonological awareness skills with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors, such as the instruction in section two, "Examine the Text in Blast Foundations Passages," which finds any words with the phonics concept focus, examining the words, and discussing the word before reading to prevent errors when reading. Recommended explanatory feedback for student errors is also provided. Materials include guidance on explicit instruction for teaching phonological awareness skills with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors in the "What You Need to Know" section of Unit 17, Lesson 2. The grade 1 materials include explicit instruction for teaching phonological awareness skills with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors, but it does not include explicit instruction with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on misconceptions.

Evaluation for 5.D.1c
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources (including the use of memory-building strategies) for students to develop, practice, and reinforce phonological awareness skills connected to grade-level TEKS (through cumulative review). (PR 2.A & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce phonological skills connected to grade-level TEKS. Decodable passages are available for each unit, which allows students the opportunity to use what they have learned in a phonological awareness lesson and use the skills to read a decodable text. Materials include a variety of activities to practice and reinforce phonological awareness. The Blast Introduction describes the activities used to practice and reinforce phonological awareness. In "Sound Swap," students identify the beginning sound of a word and then read the whole word. Students then swap the beginning sound with a different beginning sound to create a new word. An image of the new word appears as confirmation. The grade 1 materials provide a variety of digital opportunities to develop, practice, and reinforce phonological awareness skills connected to grade-level TEKS through interactive games. Unit 1, Game 2, "Short vs Long Vowels" in Blast Foundations Reading Playground provides opportunities for the development of phonological awareness and cumulative review by requiring recall of previously learned skills, building memory over time. The materials include a variety of activities to develop, practice, and reinforce phonological awareness skills connected to grade-level TEKS through teacher-guided practice. For example, Unit 15, Lesson 2 provides opportunities to concentrate on sounds by segmenting and blending spoken syllables, which is a necessary skill for decoding unfamiliar words.

Evaluation for 5.D.2a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing phonemic awareness activities that begins with identifying, blending, and segmenting phonemes, and gradually transitions to more complex manipulation practices such as adding, deleting, and substituting phonemes. (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing phonemic awareness activities that begins with identifying, blending, and segmenting phonemes, and gradually transitions to more complex manipulation practices such as adding, deleting, and substituting phonemes. The Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, "Introduction" provides an illustration of the scope and sequence, which shows how the units progress from single syllables to multisyllabic words. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities that gradually increase to more complex phonemic awareness skills. For example, in Unit 1, Game 5, in the "Supply Room," students are identifying phonemes, while in Unit 3, Game 8, they are isolating beginning sounds, then in Unit 7, Game 5, they are segmenting phonemes, and in Unit 14, Game 7, students are substituting phonemes. The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing phonemic awareness activities that begins with identifying, blending, and segmenting phonemes, and gradually transitions to more complex manipulation practices such as adding, deleting, and substituting phonemes. The "Blast Scope and Sequence" details the systematic sequence for introducing phonemic awareness activities that begin with simple skills and transition to more complex skills. For example, Unit 7, Lesson 2, students practice adding phonemes to create a new word. Unit 23, Lesson 2, provides multiple scaffolded opportunities to segment, identify, blend, and substitute sound /ou/. Scaffolding instruction is used to build skills and boost learner confidence.

Evaluation for 5.D.2b
Materials include explicit (direct) instruction for teaching phonemic awareness with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors and misconceptions. (PR 2.A & 2.A.2) (T)

The grade 1 materials include explicit instruction for teaching phonemic awareness with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors. For example, the materials provide a positive error correction routine for teachers. Positive Error Correction is when you tell students who have provided an incorrect response what they did correctly before focusing on their errors. For instance, when asked to say the sound associated with the symbol m, some students might say the name of the letter m ("em"), rather than the sound /m/. While these students have not answered the question correctly, they did demonstrate some knowledge. The recommended response is, "That is the name of the letter; can you tell me its sound?" The materials include explicit instruction for teaching phonemic awareness with recommended explanatory feedback for students based on common errors. The materials also provide recommended explanatory feedback to address misconceptions.

Evaluation for 5.D.2c
Materials include explicit (direct) guidance for connecting phonemic awareness skills to the alphabetic principle, to support students in the transition from oral language activities to basic decoding and encoding. (PR 2.A.1) (T)

The grade 1 materials include explicit (direct) guidance for connecting phonemic awareness skills to the alphabetic principle, to support students in the transition from oral language activities to basic decoding, providing a smooth progression in developing essential reading and writing skills. For example, Unit 24, Lesson 3 provides opportunities to decode and read words with inflectional endings, such as -er, -ed, -s, -es, and -ing. The materials include explicit (direct) guidance for connecting phonemic awareness skills to the alphabetic principle, to support students in the transition from oral language activities to basic encoding. For example, in the Blast Foundations Teacher Guide, Book 1, Unit 8 Lesson 5, it states, "Explain: You will hear a series of five words read aloud. First, you will listen for the number of phonemes in the word and will place a dot in one square for each phoneme you hear. Then, you will spell each sound by writing the letter or letters (grapheme) that spell each sound in the box." The grade materials include explicit (direct) guidance for connecting phonemic awareness skills to the alphabetic principle, to support students in the transition from oral language activities to basic encoding, providing a smooth progression in developing essential reading and writing skills. For example, Unit 24, Lesson 5 provides opportunities to encode words with a controlled set of previously taught concepts and phonemes.

Evaluation for 5.D.2d
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce phonemic awareness skills (through cumulative review). (PR 2.A & 2.A.3) (S)

The materials provide a variety of activities and resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce phonemic awareness skills. For example, in the "Reading Playground," games that are connected by skill and TEKS are included to practice, develop, and reinforce phonemic awareness skills taught in current and previous lessons. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce phonemic awareness skills. Lesson 5 of each unit is a wrap-up lesson. The wrap-up lesson reviews and cumulatively practices the concepts taught in this unit and in previously taught units. Lesson 5 contains wrap-up activities and teacher guidance on how to implement these activities: "Review of Heart Words," "Sentences to Read," and "Spell It!" Materials provide a variety of digital opportunities to develop, practice, and reinforce phonemic awareness skills connected to grade-level TEKS through interactive games. Unit 10, Game 7, "Vowel Sound Sort: Short /e/ vs. Short /a/" in Blast Foundations Reading Playground provides opportunities for the development of phonemic awareness and cumulative review by applying knowledge of previously learned skills, building memory over time. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities to develop, practice, and reinforce phonemic awareness skills connected to grade-level TEKS through teacher-guided practice. For example, Unit 21, Lesson 2 provides opportunities to concentrate on sounds by blending sounds to produce single-syllable words with the vowel team /oo/.

Evaluation for 5.E.1a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level sound-spelling patterns, as outlined in the TEKS. (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level sound-spelling patterns. For example, in Unit 2, students are learning about closed syllables. On day five, the "Spell It" activity has students spelling closed syllable constant-vowel (CV), CVC, and CVCC words. The materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level sound spelling patterns, as outlined in the TEKS. For example, the "Blast Scope and Sequence" includes a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level spelling patterns as outlined in the TEKS. The materials include lessons on how to decode and spell words with initial and final consonant blends after they have mastered spelling short-vowel words, as outlined in the "Blast Scope and Sequence." The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level sound-spelling patterns, as outlined in the TEKS with the Countdown Scope and Sequence. The section "Alignment with Texas State Standards" states there are opportunities for spelling skills such as digraphs, one-syllable words, and final "e."

Evaluation for 5.E.1b
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction for grade-level sound-spelling patterns. (PR 2.A.1) (T)

The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for grade-level sound-spelling patterns. For example, the "Blast Scope and Sequence" outlines the sound-spelling patterns that will be taught, as well as the unit and lesson numbers to find the teacher guidance for the lessons. The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for grade-level sound-spelling patterns. For example, Unit 15, Lesson 5, provides direct instruction for spelling two-syllable words with the activity Spell It! Unit 22, Lesson 5, provides direct instruction for spelling words with -igh and -oa through the activity "Spell It!"

Evaluation for 5.E.1c
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce grade-level sound-spelling patterns (through cumulative review). (PR 2.A.1) (T)

The grade 1 materials provide a variety of activities and resources allowing students to practice, develop, and reinforce grade-level sound-spelling patterns. For example, in the Blast Supply Room, Unit 12, Game 5, students are practicing short a, e, i, and u vowel spelling patterns. In Unit 13, Lesson 4, students work to read real words, identify the number of phonemes, and determine if the word contains a digraph or a two-sound consonant blend. The materials include a variety of activities and resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce grade-level sound spelling patterns. For example, the Reading Playground provides student games that correlate to the sound-spelling patterns taught in the lesson so that the skill can be reinforced. The "Blast Scope and Sequence" outlines the different games and activities that are provided for each unit to help develop, practice, and reinforce sound-spelling patterns. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce grade-level sound-spelling patterns (through cumulative review). For example, Unit 22, Lesson 5, provides direct instruction for spelling words with -igh and -oa through the activity Spell It!

Evaluation for 5.E.1d
Materials provide a variety of activities and/or resources to support students in decoding and encoding words that include taught sound-spelling patterns, both in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction (e.g., within sentences or decodable texts). (PR 2.A.1 & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials provide a variety of activities and resources to support students in decoding and encoding words that include taught sound-spelling patterns. For example, in Unit 20, Lesson 5, students are accurately reading sentences that contain the concepts, words, and phonemes taught in this unit and previous units. They are also accurately spelling words with a controlled set of previously taught concepts and phonemes. The "Blast Unit Planner" includes a decodable text, spelling list, and dictation sentences that include the sound-spelling patterns included in each unit. The grade 1 materials provide a variety of activities and resources to support students in decoding and encoding words that include taught sound-spelling patterns in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction. For example, after a lesson on vowel teams -igh and -oa, students will read the decodable text, "Trick or Treat," that builds on previous instruction. Unit 22, Lesson 5, provides encoding opportunities through the "Spell It!" activity.

Evaluation for 5.E.2a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing regular and irregular high-frequency words. (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing regular and irregular high-frequency words. The Blast Foundations "Scope and Sequence" contains a list of high-frequency words that are taught by unit. Heart word fluency begins in Unit 3. Students are explicitly taught to read five Heart Words in Lesson 1 of every unit (in Units 3–24) and they practice those words throughout the unit. Students are exposed to a wide variety of Heart Words from the Dolch 220 list in several of the student practice activities. The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing regular and irregular high-frequency words. In Unit 15, Lesson 1, students practice high-frequency words by playing the game "Look, Think, Say!" to learn new Heart Words.

Evaluation for 5.E.2b
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction for decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words. (PR 2.A.1) (T)

The grade 1 materials include guidance to provide explicit instruction for decoding and encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words. For example, in Unit 12, Lesson 3, students are working with digraphs. The teacher is guided to remind students that the two letters ck together are called a digraph. The teacher goes on to explain that a digraph is two letters together that spell one phoneme, and we use the spelling ck to spell the phoneme /k/ only when it comes right after a short vowel phoneme in a single-syllable word. The teacher also explains that we never use the spelling ck at the beginning of a word and then asks, "What other letters spell /k/?" The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for encoding regular and irregular high-frequency words. Heart Word Magic Spelling allows practice spelling Heart Words—high frequency words with irregular letter-sound relationships—by filling in a heart above the irregular part of the word that must be learned "by heart." The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for decoding regular and irregular high-frequency words. The Heart Word Generator allows practice decoding high-frequency words, which can improve sight word vocabulary and reading fluency.

Evaluation for 5.E.2c
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to decode and encode regular and irregular high-frequency words (through cumulative review). (PR 2.A.1 & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to decode regular high-frequency words. For example, in Unit 2, Lesson 3, the students use their Student Phonics Kit to complete a "Build A Word" activity. Students also practice Unit 2 Spelling Words using the "Spell It! Template." In Unit 13, Blast Game 4, students read words, and then they choose the correct group for that word. Students also have access to Heart Word cards, allowing them to practice words introduced in the current and past units. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to encode regular high-frequency words (through cumulative review). For example, in the Blast Off to Really Great Handwriting, Unit 7, Lesson 2, students are given explicit instructions on how to use the handwriting lines and sample words to write. Students are given words that meet the phonics lesson taught, as well as Heart Words. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to encode regular high-frequency words (through cumulative review). For example, in the Blast Off to Really Great Handwriting, Unit 11, Lesson 2, provides an extra practice section to dictate words or short phrases for students to write. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop skills to decode irregular high-frequency words. In the document, "Heart Word Magic Spelling," students practice, with teacher support, decoding irregular high-frequency words using a scripted lesson and a graphic organizer. The "Reading Playground" provides students with the opportunity to develop skills to decode irregular high-frequency words through the use of digital games. The games have students decoding, building, and spelling high-frequency words. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to encode irregular high-frequency words. Heart Word Magic Spelling allows practice spelling Heart Words high frequency words with irregular letter-sound relationships, by filling in a heart above the irregular part of the word that must be learned "by heart." The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to encode irregular high-frequency words. "Heart Word Magic: Dissect a Word" provides opportunities to dissect high-frequency words with irregular letter-sound relationships by listening to the individual phonemes in a word and then filling in the corresponding spellings.

Evaluation for 5.E.2d
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources (including the use of memory-building strategies) for students to read, and write high-frequency words in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in connected text (e.g., within sentences or decodable texts). (PR 2.A.1) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities for students to read and write high-frequency words in isolation and in connected text. In Unit 14, students are learning to read two-syllable words in which both syllables are closed. Students begin reading the word in isolation and then move to reading phrases and sentences with two-syllable words in which both syllables are closed. Students also have the opportunity to further practice by reading a decodable text found in the "Supply Room." The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to read and write high-frequency words in isolation and in connected text. After learning about and practicing high-frequency words in isolation, students are provided with decodable passages that include previously taught high-frequency words. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to read high-frequency words in isolation and in connected text. The "Heart Word Generator" allows practice decoding high-frequency words in isolation with activities such as "Look, Think, Say!" and "Pop Up" and practice decoding multiple words in activities such as "3-Up" and "Read a Row." The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to write high-frequency words in isolation and in connected text. For example, Unit 10 of the Blast Handwriting Teacher Guide allows practice writing high-frequency words in isolation with Lesson 3, and practice writing high-frequency words in phrases and sentences in Lesson 5.

Evaluation for 5.E.3a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level syllable types and syllable division principles, as outlined in the TEKS. (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level syllable types, as outlined in the TEKS. The "Overview" contains a graphic that identifies the various syllable types introduced during Blast Foundation, such as Units 1 through 10 focus on single-syllable words, and Units 11 through 28 focus on words with two syllables. The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level syllable types, as outlined in the TEKS. For example, the "Phonological and Phonemic Awareness" section outlines working with single-syllable words before multisyllabic words.

Evaluation for 5.E.3b
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction for applying knowledge of syllable types and syllable division principles to decode and encode one-syllable or multisyllabic words. (PR 2.A.1) (T)

The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for applying knowledge of syllable types and syllable division principles to decode and encode one-syllable or multisyllabic words. For example, in Unit 2, Lesson 3, the materials provide callouts in the margin of the teacher guide to alert teachers when to use syllable division skills. The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for applying knowledge of syllable types to decode and encode one-syllable words. For example, Unit 16, Lesson 3, provides opportunities to accurately read and spell one-syllable words. This lesson reviews the meaning of one-syllable words that are closed and introduces open syllables. Unit 16, Lesson 5, provides opportunities to accurately read one-syllable words (open and closed) independently and spell one-syllable words (open and closed) independently and with teacher guidance.

Evaluation for 5.E.3c
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice and reinforce skills to decode and encode one-syllable or multisyllabic words (through cumulative review). (PR 2.A.1 & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to decode and encode one-syllable words. For example, Unit 16, Lesson 3, provides opportunities to accurately read and spell one-syllable words. This lesson reviews the meaning of one-syllable words that are closed and introduces open syllables. Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to decode and encode one-syllable or multisyllabic words. For example, Unit 16 Lesson 5, provides opportunities to accurately read one-syllable words (open and closed) independently and spell one-syllable words (open and closed) independently and with teacher guidance. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce skills to decode and encode multisyllabic words. After Unit 14, Lesson 3, Blast Online provides an interactive video for students to learn how to read two two-syllable words. Each unit provides decodable texts that align with the target syllable type for that unit. These texts include a cumulative review. In Unit 16, students are working to segment spoken words into syllables and to accurately blend spoken syllables into words. In Lesson 2, students are breaking words into syllables using Syllaboards using a variety of strategies such as "Whale Talk," "Syllable Stomp," and "Syllable Stomp with Syllaboards." Students also have the Unit 16 games in the "Supply Room" to facilitate additional practice.

Evaluation for 5.E.3d
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to practice decoding and encoding one-syllable or multisyllabic words, using knowledge of syllable types and syllable division principles, in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction (e.g., within sentences or decodable texts). (PR 2.A & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and resources for students to practice decoding and encoding using their knowledge of syllable types and syllable division principles. For example, in Unit 19, Lesson 1, in "What You Need to Know," teachers are informed that there are six common syllable types. Students will learn four of these syllable types (Closed, Open, Vowel-Consonant-e [VCE], and Vowel Team) in Blast Foundations. The lesson also provides sidebar notations prompting teachers with strategies to support students. In Unit 5, Lesson 3, the teacher guides the students in building VC and CVC words, using Syllaboards. Sidebar notes are provided for the teacher to support students if needed. Students also read the decodable passage, "The Rush to Camp." A word list is provided in the "Supply Room" to facilitate practice of syllable types in isolation. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to practice decoding and encoding one-syllable or multisyllabic words, using knowledge of syllable types and syllable division principles, in isolation and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction. For example, in the Blast Student Workbook, Unit 17, students decode and sort words based on their knowledge of open and closed syllables. In Unit 19, students use their knowledge of open, closed, and VCE syllable types to decode and sort words based on syllable type. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to practice decoding and encoding one-syllable words, using knowledge of syllable types in isolation and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction. For example, Unit 16, Lesson 5, provides opportunities to accurately read one-syllable words (open and closed) independently and spell one-syllable words (open and closed) independently and with teacher guidance.

Evaluation for 5.E.4a
Materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level morphemes, as outlined in the TEKS. (PR 2.A.1)

The grade 1 materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level morphemes, as outlined in the TEKS, by organizing morphemes into small, conceptually related groups, such as vowel suffix -ed and inflectional endings. The materials include a systematic sequence for introducing grade-level morphemes. The Blast Supply Room includes a unit titled "Morphology." Included in the unit are animations explaining morphology, prefixes, suffixes, and compound words. The "Blast Scope and Sequence" provides a systematic sequence for introducing morphemes as outlined in the TEKS. In grade 1, instruction begins in Unit 23. Blast Online provides a document, "What are Morphemes," that outlines the systematic approach in which morphemes are taught within the curriculum.

Evaluation for 5.E.4b
Materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit (direct) instruction for supporting recognition of common morphemes and using their meanings (e.g., affixes, roots, and base words) to support decoding, encoding, and reading comprehension. (PR 2.A.1) (T)

The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for supporting recognition of common morphemes and using their meanings to support decoding, encoding, and reading comprehension. For example, in Unit 24, Lesson 4, "Detective Work," the teacher is provided with a detailed script to model identifying the base word and the suffix. The Blast Supply Room includes a unit titled "Morphology." Included in the unit are animations explaining morphology, prefixes, suffixes, and compound words. Also included in the unit is an "Extension Unit Student Book" and "Extension Unit Components." Prefixes used in these units are: un-, dis-, non-, pre-, and re-. Suffixes used in these units are all inflectional endings: -ed, -es, -s, -er, and -ing. The objective of "Morphology," Lesson 1, is to understand and define morphemes as the meaningful parts of words, using language such as prefix, suffix, and base word. The grade 1 materials include teacher guidance to provide explicit instruction for supporting recognition of common morphemes and using their meanings to support decoding, encoding, and reading comprehension. For example, "Morphology," Lesson 4, provides opportunities to understand the meaning of morphemes with the "Morpheme Math" activity to dissect words to discover the meaning and use the word in context.

Evaluation for 5.E.4c
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to develop, practice, and reinforce grade-level morphological skills (through cumulative review). (PR 2.A.1 & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities for students to develop, practice, and reinforce grade-level morphological skills. In Unit 24, Lesson 3, students are reading words with the suffixes -er, -ed, -s, -es, and -ing. The teacher reminds students that when we add these suffixes to a word, they change the meaning of the word or how it is used in a sentence. During the lesson, students begin with a base word, then add a suffix. They are determining how many syllables are in the base word "send." Then they add the -ing and determine how many syllables are in the word *sending*. The teacher explains that the suffix -ing can change the meaning of the base word by changing a verb slightly into another type of verb, like in "sending." The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities for students to develop, practice, and reinforce grade-level morphological skills. For example, Blast Morphology Students Handbook provides students opportunities to develop, practice, and reinforce morphological skills. In Lesson 2, "Detective Work," students are reading big words that have multiple morphemes. Students underline the base word, circle any prefix in green, and circle any prefix in purple.

Evaluation for 5.E.4d
Materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to decode and encode words with morphemes in isolation (e.g., word lists) and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction (e.g., within sentences or decodable texts). (PR 2.A.1 & 2.A.3) (S)

The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to decode and encode words with morphemes in isolation and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction. For example, the objective of Morphology, Lesson 1, is to understand and define morphemes as the meaningful parts of words, using language such as prefix, suffix, and base words. In Unit 24, Lesson 3, students are reading words with the suffixes -er, -ed, -s, -es, and -ing. The teacher reminds students that when we add these suffixes to a word, they change the meaning of the word or how it is used in a sentence. During the lesson, students begin with a base word, then add a suffix. They are determining how many syllables are in the base word send. Then they add the -ing and determine how many syllables are in the word sending. The teacher explains that the suffix -ing can change the meaning of the base word by changing a verb slightly into another type of verb, like in sending. After the lesson in Unit 24, students will read the decodable text, "Ruby's Dream," and circle the inflectional endings. The grade 1 materials include a variety of activities and/or resources for students to decode and encode words with morphemes in isolation and in decodable connected text that builds on previous instruction. "Spelling Lists" provide opportunities for decoding and encoding words with morphemes such as teaches, helper, and lifting in Unit 24 words.