Inquiry By Design Full Curriculum, Grades 9-12
Core Code Alignment
Language Arts
Language Arts Required Core
06020000040: Language Arts 9
Language Arts Required Core
06020000040: Language Arts 9
Recommendation
Recommended Teacher Resource
Evaluation
Overview: Series of inquiry-based units - detailed lesson plans. Each unit is built around challenging, grade-appropriate texts and spiraling cycles of work marked by reading, writing, and collaborative small-group and whole-class discussion. Close reading of “only interesting” texts and formal, genre-based writing instruction.
Collaboration: teach each other through small and whole groups.
Includes: all teacher print materials, 1 year teacher subscription to the digital toolkit, all student print materials. Student materials are consumables repurchased yearly as needed.
Because of the redundancy, time recommendations, and lack of formal assessments, we recommend this as an excellent teacher resource for high school language arts teachers to supplement their instruction with more inquiry-based instruction and student-led projects & discussions.
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Material Categories
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Rubric : English Language Arts
Compliance with State Law (Required)
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sensitive Materials and Prohibited Submission 53G-10-103, R277-628 | Does Not Violate Law | NA | NA | May Violate Law | ||
| Biases: (accessible for students regardless of background): American-centric, but includes a variety of American voices and perspectives. Commercial Free, including political interest: Units are all skill-centric rather than topic centric, making it easy for teachers to avoid sharing their biases or presenting biased information. Some texts include a specific point of view, but taken as a whole, there is no promotion of any political or institutional interest. legal compliance: Yes | ||||||
| Prohibited discriminatory practices 53G-2-103-5, 53B-1-118 and 67-27-107 | Does not violate law | N/A | N/A | May violate law | ||
| Variety of Settings/situations: Works for groups of a few students to a larger class; if the teacher eliminated some of the activities, could be adapted to individual instruction. Appropriate time frame: Easily and regularly updated. | ||||||
| Maintaining constitutional freedom in the public schools. 53G-10-202 | Does not violate law | N/A | N/A | May violate law | ||
| Does this require additional materials, assistance, hardware, software, etc?: No. Both print and digital materials provided, but need to be re-purchased every year. | ||||||
| Free from advertising, e-commerce, or political interest | This item has not been graded. | |||||
Content
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alignment | The content of this material is evidence-based and aligns with grade-level Utah core standards. It is current, well-researched, and referenced from reliable sources. | The content of this material is evidence-based or research-based. The material aligns with most grade-level Utah core standards but will need supplementary materials to ensure coverage of all the Utah core standards. | The content of this resource aligns with a few grade-level Utah core standards but is not evidence-based or research-based. | The content of this resource does not align with any of Utah's core standards. | ||
| Aligns with grade level Core Standards: Yes Current, Well-Researched, Reliably Sourced: Yes -- full explanation included in program for teachers Explicit, systemic, engaging: Technically, yes. However, by the higher grades, the lessons (not the texts) are more juvenile and take too long, making this program not rigorous enough for higher grade levels. phonics: No fluency: Yes - vocabulary and reading as part of the lessons comprehension: Yes oral language: Yes - many speaking and discussion opportunities and guidance Writing: Yes, scaffolded writing practice Text-Complexity (Lexile, etc): lexile levels identified with each text Text-Mix (lit/non-fiction): Balanced mix. | ||||||
| Navigation | Educators and students can navigate the material independently. Instructions are clear and understandable. The material is well organized. | The material contains instructions that are understandable and easy to navigate. Students may need educator support to navigate the material. | The material is only usable with direct educator support due to a lack of clear instructions. Students will need educator support to navigate the material. | The instructions in the material are unclear, and navigation is difficult. The material is unorganized. | ||
| Assistance for variety of Levels: Each lesson includes extension and modification ideas. Tasks are well-scaffolded for whole class instruction. "Student sharing/presenting: Several opportunities. More inquiry-based than I.R.E. (Initiate, Respond, Evaluate) - “students help each other get smarter together”. " | ||||||
| Instructional Support | This material goes beyond the content outlined in "Adequate" by providing problem or project-based content with integrated skills and concepts from various disciplines to help students make sense of the material. It also supports the learning needs of all students, including those with disabilities, multilingual learners, etc., by offering flexibility and maintaining high standards. | The material provides supplemental resources and some examples to educators of ways to deliver instruction. It contains a few of the following: scaffolding lesson plans, personalized/differentiated instruction, experiential learning, concept mapping, questioning techniques, and family involvement. | The material contains a limited amount of instructional support. | The material does not provide instructional support or examples for the educator. | ||
| Clear, easy, and understandable navigation: Yes, direct and easy navigation. Student Reader and what they are being asked to do is right along side the Teacher Manual guide. However, there are a lot of pieces and it depends on how the physical copies are organized how easy this program will be to navigate in terms of tying graphic organizers, etc. to texts and lessons. | ||||||
| Assessments | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Ethnic Studies Ethnic studies in core standards and curriculum should be a narrowly tailored incorporation of age-appropriate opportunities that naturally arise through education without pretextual effort in courses, programs, or activities where ethnic studies is not a primary focus. The material should incorporate a curriculum of people and cultures that reflect the state’s various demographics without commentary that seeks to violate the neutrality standard established in codes: 53B-1-118, 53G-2-103, 53G-2-104, 53G-2-105, 67-27-107, | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Shared Values and Character Traits | This item has not been graded. | |||||
Material Characteristics
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Characteristics | This material goes beyond the content outlined in "Adequate" by incorporating modern, up-to-date, and relatable visuals. | In physical terms, the material is interactive and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. | The material offers limited or low-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for students, but it is reusable. | The content either has low audio-visual quality or is not intended for reuse. | ||
| Durability and reliability: Consumable workbooks designed to last only one year. | ||||||
| Technical Standards | This material surpasses the content outlined in "Adequate" by ensuring the safeguarding of student data privacy and easy installation or access without technical assistance. Furthermore, any licensing information is clearly stated in the description. | The materials meet all the requirements of federal and state laws, as well as accepted technical standards such as ISTE Standards and VPAT Compliance. Additional technical specifications and limitations, including hardware requirements, bandwidth demands, and software/web access restrictions, are clearly outlined in the description. The design of the materials allows for error-free installation or access without the need to purchase additional components. | The material is constrained by specifications that require additional materials, technical assistance, hardware, software, or infrastructure. Access to resources within the material expires after a trial period. | Student data privacy is at risk. | ||
| Instructor Support: Nicely detailed instructions for instructors. Digital ToolKit: Text Writing, Audio Texts, Charts, Graphic Organizers, Professional Teaching Videos. | ||||||
| Adaptability | The material is currently relevant and adaptable for educators and students. The material can be customized for the needs of diverse learners. | Educators or students can utilize the material, but it may not be customizable for the needs of diverse learners. | The material has limited options to address adaptability for the needs of diverse learners. | The material is not suitable for different educational settings with diverse learners. | ||
| "Supplements Available: Extension and Modifications available. All materials for lessons provided. Fluency, Form, and Correctness Guide: Practices that promote good habits, Get students writing everyday, Not tied to a unit, As needed practices for what teachers see in their students reading, writing, and speaking, These practices are cross-referenced in the Teacher Manual" Supplements Referenced: Each unit includes a list of suggested references and optional materials. | ||||||
UTAH STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
250 East 500 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84111-3204
Phone: 801.538.7807