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Grade 1 reading and writing skills
The reading, writing and language skills in our grade 1 courses (Reading and Writing), listed against the Common Core ELA standards. This is a comparison, not a claim of alignment: 19 of 41 standards are covered, 13 partly and 9 not covered.
- 19covered
- 13partly covered
- 9not covered
Why some skills are only partly covered: lessons teach the parts of an essay or a story and check them with questions and short typed answers, but children don't write and hand in whole pieces in the app, and speaking and listening with others happens away from the screen.
- Reading: Literature
- Reading: Informational Text
- Reading: Foundational Skills
- Writing
- Speaking and Listening
- Language
Reading: Literature RL · 9 standards · 7 covered, 1 partly covered
- RL.1.1
CoveredAsk and answer questions about key details in a story
- Reading · Unit 5 · Characters and Setting: Who Is in the Story?, What Characters Do
- Reading · Unit 13 · Problem, Solution and Retelling: The Problem
- RL.1.2
CoveredRetell stories and show understanding of their lesson
- Reading · Unit 13 · Problem, Solution and Retelling: Retell a Story, The Lesson of a Story
- RL.1.3
CoveredDescribe characters, settings and major events using key details
- Reading · Unit 5 · Characters and Setting (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- RL.1.4
CoveredFind words that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses
- Reading · Unit 17 · Feelings in Stories: Feeling Words, Clues About Feelings
- RL.1.5
CoveredExplain the difference between books that tell stories and books that give information
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: Story or Fact Text?
- RL.1.6
CoveredIdentify who is telling the story
- Reading · Unit 17 · Feelings in Stories: Who Is Telling the Story?
- RL.1.7
Not coveredUse pictures and details to describe characters, setting or events
Not taught as its own skill.
- RL.1.9
CoveredCompare the adventures and experiences of characters
- Reading · Unit 23 · Fluency and Year Review: Compare Two Stories
- RL.1.10
Partly coveredWith help, read prose and poetry of grade 1 complexity
A short story to read in many lessons; no longer texts are assigned in lessons (the Library has longer books).
- Reading · Unit 1 · Short a and Short i: Read It: Pam and the Pig
- Reading · Unit 2 · Short o, Short u and Short e: Read It: The Red Hen and the Bug
- Reading · Unit 23 · Fluency and Year Review (whole unit, 8 lessons)
Reading: Informational Text RI · 10 standards · 7 covered, 1 partly covered
- RI.1.1
CoveredAsk and answer questions about key details in a fact text
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: Key Details, Asking Questions About a Text
- RI.1.2
CoveredName the main topic and retell key details
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: The Main Topic, Retell the Facts
- RI.1.3
CoveredDescribe the connection between two people, events or ideas
- Reading · Unit 22 · Text Features and Connections: How Things Are Connected
- RI.1.4
CoveredAsk and answer questions to work out the meaning of words
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: Words in a Fact Text
- RI.1.5
CoveredUse text features: headings, tables of contents, glossaries
- Reading · Unit 22 · Text Features and Connections: Titles and Headings, Bold Words and Glossaries, Table of Contents
- RI.1.6
Not coveredTell information from pictures apart from information in the words
Not taught as its own skill.
- RI.1.7
Not coveredUse pictures and details to describe key ideas
Not taught as its own skill.
- RI.1.8
CoveredIdentify the reasons an author gives to support a point
- Reading · Unit 22 · Text Features and Connections: Reasons in a Text
- RI.1.9
CoveredFind what is the same and different in two texts on the same topic
- Reading · Unit 22 · Text Features and Connections: Two Texts, One Topic
- RI.1.10
Partly coveredWith help, read informational texts of grade 1 complexity
Short passages in lessons.
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: Read It: Bees
- Reading · Unit 22 · Text Features and Connections: Read It: Frogs Grow Up
- Reading · Unit 23 · Fluency and Year Review: Read It: How Plants Grow
Reading: Foundational Skills RF · 4 standards · 3 covered, 1 partly covered
- RF.1.1
CoveredKnow the features of a sentence: first word, capital letter, end mark
- Reading · Unit 3 · CVC Words and Sounds: Sentences Start and Stop
- Writing · Unit 1 · What Is a Sentence? (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 2 · Capital Letters (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 3 · End Marks (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- RF.1.2
CoveredHear and work with sounds: long and short vowels, blending and breaking words into sounds
- Reading · Unit 3 · CVC Words and Sounds (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 10 · Silent e: Long a and Long i: Short a or Long a?
- Reading · Unit 11 · Silent e: Long o, u and e: Short Vowel or Long Vowel?
- RF.1.3
CoveredUse phonics: digraphs, final -e, vowel teams, endings, two-syllable words, sight words
- Reading · Unit 4 · Sight Words, Set 1 (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 6 · Beginning Blends (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 7 · Ending Blends (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 8 · Digraphs: sh, ch, th, wh, ck (whole unit, 8 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 10 · Silent e: Long a and Long i (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 11 · Silent e: Long o, u and e (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 12 · Sight Words, Set 2 (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 14 · Vowel Teams ai and ay (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 15 · Vowel Teams ee and ea (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 16 · Vowel Teams oa and ow (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 18 · Bossy r: ar and or (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 19 · Bossy r: er, ir and ur (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 20 · Endings: -s, -es, -ed and -ing (whole unit, 8 lessons)
- Reading · Unit 21 · Two-Syllable Words (whole unit, 6 lessons)
- RF.1.4
Partly coveredRead grade 1 texts aloud accurately and smoothly, with understanding
Reading with expression is taught and texts are read for meaning, but the app doesn't listen to children read aloud.
- Reading · Unit 23 · Fluency and Year Review: Read with Expression
Writing W · 7 standards · 0 covered, 6 partly covered
- W.1.1
Partly coveredWrite an opinion with a reason and a closing
Each part is taught and practiced with short answers; children don't write and hand in whole pieces in the app.
- Writing · Unit 17 · Opinion Writing (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.1.2
Partly coveredWrite to name a topic, give facts and close
Taught step by step and practiced with short answers; no full pieces are written in the app.
- Writing · Unit 18 · Informative Writing (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.1.3
Partly coveredWrite about two or more events in order, with order words and an ending
Taught step by step and practiced with short answers; no full pieces are written in the app.
- Writing · Unit 12 · Telling a Story in Order (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 19 · Narratives with Feelings (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.1.5
Partly coveredWith help, add details to strengthen writing
Practiced on sample sentences, not the child's own writing.
- Writing · Unit 20 · Adding Details (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- W.1.6
Not coveredWith help, use digital tools to produce and publish writing
- W.1.7
Partly coveredTake part in shared research and writing projects
Finding facts is taught; no shared projects happen in the app.
- Writing · Unit 18 · Informative Writing: Finding Facts
- W.1.8
Partly coveredRecall information or gather it from sources to answer a question
- Writing · Unit 18 · Informative Writing: Finding Facts, Facts That Fit
Speaking and Listening SL · 6 standards · 0 covered, 1 partly covered
- SL.1.1
Not coveredTake part in conversations with classmates and adults
Speaking and listening with others happen away from the app.
- SL.1.2
Partly coveredAsk and answer questions about a text read aloud
"Read it to me" reads lessons aloud and children answer questions.
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: Asking Questions About a Text
- SL.1.3
Not coveredAsk and answer questions about what a speaker says
- SL.1.4
Not coveredDescribe people, places, things and events with details
- SL.1.5
Not coveredAdd drawings or other visuals to descriptions
- SL.1.6
Not coveredSpeak in complete sentences when it fits the situation
Language L · 5 standards · 2 covered, 3 partly covered
- L.1.1
CoveredUse grade 1 grammar: nouns, verbs and tenses, pronouns, adjectives, joining words, articles, sentence types
Printing letters by hand is not practiced in the app.
- Writing · Unit 5 · Naming Words: Nouns (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 6 · One and More Than One (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 7 · Action Words: Verbs (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 8 · Past, Present and Future (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 10 · Pronouns (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 11 · Describing Words: Adjectives (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 14 · Joining Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 15 · A, An, The, This and That (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 21 · Sentence Variety (whole unit, 8 lessons)
- L.1.2
CoveredCapitalize dates and names, use end marks and commas, and spell common patterns
- Writing · Unit 2 · Capital Letters (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 3 · End Marks (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 4 · Spelling Short Vowel Words (whole unit, 8 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 9 · Spelling Blends and Digraphs (whole unit, 8 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 13 · Commas in Dates and Lists (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 16 · Spelling Silent e Words (whole unit, 8 lessons)
- L.1.4
Partly coveredUse sentence clues, word parts and endings to work out word meanings
- Reading · Unit 9 · Main Topic and Key Details: Words in a Fact Text
- Reading · Unit 20 · Endings: -s, -es, -ed and -ing: Find the Base Word
- L.1.5
Partly coveredSort words, define them by category and tell shades of meaning
- Reading · Unit 17 · Feelings in Stories: Feeling Words
- Writing · Unit 7 · Action Words: Verbs: Picking Strong Verbs
- Writing · Unit 11 · Describing Words: Adjectives: Feeling Words
- L.1.6
Partly coveredUse words learned through conversations, reading and being read to
New words are taught; using them in speech isn't something the app can check.
- Writing · Unit 11 · Describing Words: Adjectives (whole unit, 7 lessons)
- Writing · Unit 14 · Joining Words (whole unit, 7 lessons)
See the lessons for yourself
Unit 1 of every course is free, with no credit card. The free check-up shows what your child already knows.
Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. The standard descriptions on these pages are KidUniversity's own short summaries, not the official text; read the full standards at thecorestandards.org. KidUniversity is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NGA Center or CCSSO.