Reading Curriculum
The reading curriculum covers the complete spectrum of skills from early literacy through advanced reading comprehension and analysis.
Reading Overview
College-ready reading skills can be grouped into four key areas:
- Command of Evidence - Identifying and using textual evidence
- Words in Context - Understanding vocabulary in context and rhetorical choices
- Analysis - Examining author's purpose, argument structure, and perspectives
- Information & Ideas - Comprehending main ideas, details, and relationships
Reading Skill Graph
Below is the complete reading skill graph, with foundational skills at the bottom progressing to college-ready skills at the top.
graph TD
COLLEGE-READY[COLLEGE-READY READING PROFICIENCY]
subgraph CommandOfEvidence [Command of Evidence]
IE[Identifying Evidence]
CA[Comparing Arguments]
SE[Synthesizing Evidence]
end
subgraph WordsInContext [Words in Context]
CC[Context Clues]
CD[Connotation & Denotation]
AV[Advanced Vocabulary]
end
subgraph Analysis [Analysis]
AA[Argument Analysis]
RA[Rhetoric Analysis]
AP[Author's Purpose]
end
subgraph InformationIdeas [Information & Ideas]
RID[Relationships Between Ideas]
MID[Main Idea & Supporting Details]
IC[Inference & Drawing Conclusions]
end
subgraph IntermediateReading [Intermediate Reading Skills]
CPA[Character & Plot Analysis]
TCI[Theme & Central Ideas]
LD[Literary Devices]
TS[Text Structures]
CCo[Compare & Contrast]
FO[Fact vs. Opinion]
end
subgraph BasicComprehension [Basic Comprehension]
RF[Reading Fluency]
Que[Questioning]
MP[Making Predictions]
Sum[Summarizing]
VB[Vocabulary Building]
TF[Text Features]
end
subgraph EarlyReading [Early Reading Skills]
Dec[Decoding]
Pho[Phonics]
SW[Sight Words]
SS[Sentence Structure]
RCS[Reading Comprehension Strategies]
WR[Word Relationships]
end
subgraph FoundationalLiteracy [Foundational Literacy]
PAw[Phonological Awareness]
LR[Letter Recognition]
PA[Print Awareness]
end
%% Connections
CommandOfEvidence --> COLLEGE-READY
WordsInContext --> COLLEGE-READY
Analysis --> COLLEGE-READY
InformationIdeas --> COLLEGE-READY
IntermediateReading --> CommandOfEvidence
IntermediateReading --> WordsInContext
IntermediateReading --> Analysis
IntermediateReading --> InformationIdeas
BasicComprehension --> IntermediateReading
EarlyReading --> BasicComprehension
FoundationalLiteracy --> EarlyReading
%% Styling
classDef top fill:#f9f,stroke:#333,stroke-width:2px;
classDef level1 fill:#ccf,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;
classDef level3 fill:#bdf,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;
classDef level4 fill:#cdf,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;
classDef level6 fill:#dfd,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;
classDef level7 fill:#ffc,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;
class COLLEGE-READY top;
class CommandOfEvidence,WordsInContext,Analysis,InformationIdeas level1;
class IntermediateReading level3;
class BasicComprehension level4;
class EarlyReading level6;
class FoundationalLiteracy level7;
Detailed Skill Breakdowns
Command of Evidence
Words in Context
Analysis
Information & Ideas
Intermediate Reading Skills
- Character and Plot Analysis
- Theme and Central Ideas
- Literary Devices
- Text Structures
- Compare and Contrast
- Fact vs. Opinion
Basic Comprehension
Early Reading Skills
Foundational Literacy
Progression Path
For optimal learning, we recommend mastering skills in this sequence:
- Start with Foundational Literacy for young learners (PreK-K)
- Progress to Early Reading Skills (Grades K-2)
- Move to Basic Comprehension (Grades 2-4)
- Advance to Intermediate Reading Skills (Grades 4-8)
- Study Analysis and Information & Ideas topics (Grades 8-10)
- Complete college-ready reading preparation with Command of Evidence and Words in Context (Grades 10-12)
Each skill page includes detailed examples and exercises appropriate to the learner's developmental stage.