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Amplify CKLA 2nd Edition Pilot Packs
Pilot educator,
This is the beginning of the Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) 2nd Edition journey in your classroom! Making this important, evidence-based shift shows your commitment and dedication to your students. We truly appreciate the work you’re doing and are here to help you along the way.
We know it can be overwhelming to start a new curriculum, but we’re here to help! Within this site, you’ll find resources to help you get started before your implementation training, including a materials checklist, unit and domain summaries, support videos, and more! These tools will support your 6–12 weeks of core literacy instruction with Amplify CKLA. We hope this site is helpful in getting you started with your pilot.
Thank you for all you do,
—The Amplify CKLA team
Get started
To get started with your new pilot of Amplify CKLA, you’ll first want to review the following:
You may also find these documents helpful as you begin your pilot:
Pilot Pack components checklist
Below you’ll find the Amplify CKLA Pilot Pack components you should have received in your shipment, outlined by grade level and teacher/student materials. Please click your grade-level teacher materials and student materials to review the list and ensure that you received all of the materials.
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 5 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 6 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 7 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 5 Big Book: Ox and Man
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 6 Big Book: Kit
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 7 Big Book: Seth
Teacher materials
Skills Small Letter Card Set
Teacher materials
Skills Large Letter Cards
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 2 Teacher Guide: The 5 Senses
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 3 Teacher Guide: Stories
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Teacher Guide: Plants
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 2 Image Cards: The 5 Senses
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 3 Image Cards: Stories
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Image Cards: Plants
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 2 Flip Book: The 5 Senses
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 3 Flip Book: Stories
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Flip Book: Plants
Teacher materials
Sound Cards Sampler
Teacher materials
Sound Posters Sampler
Student materials
Skills Unit 6 Reader: Kit
Student materials
Skills Unit 7 Reader: Seth
Student materials
Skills Unit 5 Activity Book
Student materials
Skills Unit 6 Activity Book
Student materials
Skills Unit 7 Activity Book
Student materials
Chaining Folder
Student materials
Picture Reader Sampler
Student materials
Knowledge Domains 2, 3, and 4 Sampler
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 2 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 3 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 4 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 2 Big Book: Gran
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 3 Big Book: Fables
Teacher materials
Skills Vowel Code Flip Book
Teacher materials
Skills Large Letter Cards
Teacher materials
Skills Spelling Cards
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 2 Teacher Guide: The Human Body
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 3 Teacher Guide: Different Lands, Similar Stories
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 5 Teacher Guide: Early American Civilizations
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 2 Image Cards: The Human Body
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 3 Image Cards: Different Lands, Similar Stories
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 5 Image Cards: Early American Civilizations
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 2 Flip Book: The Human Body
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 3 Flip Book: Different Lands, Similar Stories
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 5 Flip Book: Early American Civilizations
Student materials
Skills Unit 2 Reader: Gran
Student materials
Skills Unit 3 Reader: Fables
Student materials
Skills Unit 4 Reader: The Green Fern Zoo
Student materials
Skills Unit 2 Activity Book
Student materials
Skills Unit 3 Activity Book
Student materials
Skills Unit 4 Activity Book
Student materials
Skills Individual Code Chart
Student materials
Knowledge Domains 2, 3, and 5 Sampler
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 2 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 3 Teacher Guide
Teacher materials
Skills Vowel Code Flip Book
Teacher materials
Skills Consonant Code Flip Book
Teacher materials
Skills Spelling Cards
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 1 Teacher Guide: Fairy Tales and Tall Tales
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Teacher Guide: Greek Myths
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 8 Teacher Guide: Insects
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Image Cards: Greek Myths
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 8 Image Cards: Insects
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 1 Flip Book: Fairy Tales and Tall Tales
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Flip Book: Greek Myths
Teacher materials
Knowledge Domain 4 Image Cards: Greek Myths
Student materials
Skills Unit 2 Reader: Bedtime Tales
Student materials
Skills Unit 3 Reader: Kids Excel
Student materials
Skills Unit 2 Activity Book
Teacher materials
Skills Unit 3 Activity Book
Student materials
Skills Individual Code Chart
Student materials
Knowledge Domains 1, 4, and 8 Sampler
Teacher materials
Unit 2 Teacher Guide: Animal Classification
Teacher materials
Unit 5 Teacher Guide: Light and Sound
Teacher materials
Unit 8 Teacher Guide: Native Americans: Regions and Culture
Teacher materials
Unit 5 Image Cards: Light and Sound
Teacher materials
Unit 8 Image Cards: Native Americans: Regions and Cultures
Student materials
Unit 2 Reader: Rattenborough’s Guide to Animals
Student materials
Unit 5 Reader: Adventures in Light and Sound
Student materials
Unit 8 Reader: Native American Stories
Teacher materials
Unit 2 Activity Book: Animal Classification
Student materials
Unit 5 Activity Book: Light and Sound
Student materials
Unit 8 Activity Book: Native Americans: Regions and Cultures
Teacher materials
Unit 3 Teacher Guide: Poetry
Teacher materials
Unit 5 Teacher Guide: Geology
Teacher materials
Unit 7 Teacher Guide: American Revolution
Student materials
Unit 3 Poet’s Journal
Student materials
Unit 5 Reader: Geology: The Changing Earth
Student materials
Unit 7 Reader: American Revolution: The Road to Independence
Student materials
Unit 5 Activity Book: Geology
Student materials
Unit 7 Activity Book: American Revolution
Teacher materials
Unit 2 Teacher Guide: Early American Civilizations
Teacher materials
Unit 3 Teacher Guide: Poetry
Teacher materials
Unit 4 Teacher Guide: The Adventures of Don Quixote
Student materials
Unit 2 Reader: Early American Civilization
Student materials
Unit 3 Poet’s Journal
Student materials
Unit 4 Reader: The Adventures of Don Quixote (trade book)
Student materials
Unit 2 Activity Book: Early American Civilization
Student materials
Unit 4 Activity Book: The Adventures of Don Quixote
Access the Amplify CKLA digital experience
You will receive your teacher demo account login information from your sales representative.
Welcome, Middle School Science Reviewers!
Thank you for taking the time to review Amplify Science for grades 6–8. On this site, you’ll find all the resources you need to learn more about this engaging and robust NGSS program. Plus, we make it easy to experience our program firsthand with a live demo account that features our interactive learning platform.
Overview
With Amplify Science, students don’t just passively learn about science concepts.
No matter where your students are learning—whether at school or at home—they take on the role of scientists and engineers to actively investigate and make sense of real-world phenomena. They do this through a blend of cohesive and compelling storylines, hands-on investigations, collaborative discussions, literacy-rich activities, and interactive digital tools.
Listen to these educators share how the program empowers students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers every day.
EdReports All-Green
Amplify Science for grades K–8 has been rated all-green by EdReports.
Program structure
Our cyclical lesson design ensures students receive multiple exposures to concepts through a variety of modalities.
As they progress through the lessons within a unit, students build and deepen their understanding, increasing their ability to develop and refine complex explanations of the unit’s phenomenon. It’s this proven program structure and lesson design that enables Amplify Science to address 100% of the NGSS in fewer days than other programs.
Unit Sequence
Our lessons follow a structure that is grounded in regular routines while still being flexible enough to allow for a variety of learning experiences.
In fact, our multi-modal instruction offers more opportunities for students to construct meaning, and practice and apply concepts than any other program. What’s more, our modular design means our units can be flexibly arranged to support your instructional goals.
Unit 1
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
Unit 2
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
Unit 3
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
Unit 4
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Unit 5
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
Unit 6
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Unit 7
Weather Patterns
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
Unit 8
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Unit 9
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
Unit 1
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Unit 2
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
Unit 3
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
Unit 4
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
Unit 5
Phase Change
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart
Unit 6
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
Unit 7
Chemical Reactions
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
Unit 8
Populations and Resources
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
Unit 9
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The biodome ecosystem has collapsed.
Unit 1
Harnessing Human Energy
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
Unit 2
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
Unit 3
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
Unit 4
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
Unit 5
Light Waves
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
Unit 6
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
Unit 7
Natural Selection
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
Unit 8
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
Unit 9
Evolutionary History
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Access program
Watch the video to the right plus the ones below showing you how to navigate our digital platform. When you’re ready, follow the instructions below to log into our live demo account.
- Click the orange button below to access the platform.
- Choose the resources you’d like to review.
- Pick your grade level from the drop-down menu.
- Scroll down to find additional grade-level resources.
Navigating an Engineering Internship (Part 1)
This Part 1 video demonstrates how Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Navigating an Engineering Internship (Part 2)
This Part 2 video demonstrates how to use the Futura Workspace to manage the immersive experience of the Engineering Internship units. This includes guidance on how to create student groups, how to review student work, and how to send students targeted feedback on their designs.
Navigating our reporting tools
Teachers of Amplify Science grades 6–8 have access to a feature called Reporting. When unit assessments are administered digitally, the Reporting tool enables teachers to analyze student performance on the unit assessments.
Differentiation post-assessment
Every core unit of Amplify Science 6–8 features a formal formative assessment opportunity at the mid-way point, or “Critical Juncture,” of the unit, which provides an important opportunity for differentiation.
Resources
Get in touch
Have questions? Bob McCarty is standing by and ready to help.
Robert “Bob” McCarty
Senior Account Executive
(435) 655-1731
rmccarty@amplify.com
Welcome, Jordan K-8 reviewers!
Welcome, Jordan K-8 reviewers!
Welcome, Utah K-8 reviewers!
Create transformation that lasts.
Embarking on educational change takes heart, intention, and determination. It also requires proven strategies and practical tools. With data, resources, and countless stories of successful implementations to guide us, we can take the first step toward true transformation together.
Principles for Educational Change Management
Whether you’re looking for transformative change in math, literacy, or science instruction, some essential principles apply across the board. As a teacher, administrator, or community leader, you’ll find these guiding principles can help you manage your new curriculum implementation and help each student reach their potential.
“This goes out to the interventionists, coaches, and administrators … support your staff. Lead staff trainings, provide push-in support, model and co-teach so that the staff will see that this is not ‘just another initiative.’ Remember, this is the start of a long, powerful journey. Take small steps, do them well, then use data to move on to the next small step.”
Leading instructional shifts across all disciplines
Make the shift to the Science of Reading.
Learn the key steps that will drive the success you need.
Change in math is different.
Managing change in math doesn’t have to mean starting over. It starts with a few simple shifts.
Be a science inspiration.
Intentional shifts help transform students into concerned global citizens ready to take on the world. Find out how.
Let data guide your transformation.
The right data at the right time is crucial in planning lasting instructional change. With specific metrics to guide your implementation, you’ll know exactly how to monitor your progress. Download our literacy assessment infographic as a model for the key data questions to ask at critical points in the school year.
Achieve implementation success.
Ready to navigate educational implementation with confidence? The following resources will help you discover practical strategies for decision-making, managing change, and engaging stakeholders.
Discover five steps to successful implementation.
Balancing decision-making, data collection, and transparent communication doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Discover the five essential steps to making implementation manageable.
Think like a leader.
Strategic leadership requires more than sharp management skills. Find out how the leadership brain model can help you, as a district leader, connect initiatives with your broader vision.
Turn plans into results.
Educational change requires intentional effort. Key leadership imperatives can provide the framework you need for effective implementation.
What district leaders are saying
“In the past we’ve adopted a resource and we’ve left it to the teachers and the buildings to use and to put into practice. I was determined that we needed to do more than just that for both our teachers and our students. That is really where…the leadership brain concept has come into play. [It] provided the framework and key questions that I needed so that I could reflect, process, and determine what was next throughout the first year of implementation.”
What district leaders are saying
“Through the guidance and collaboration of the Amplify Team, our stakeholders participated in thoughtful conversations, relevant hands-on learning, and the development of clear guidelines for moving forward [with Amplify CKLA]. This process led to the creation of our district commitments, which, together with the six leadership imperatives, remain central to the progress we continue to make today.”
What district leaders are saying
“[My advice to other leaders is to] stop trying to fix everything at once. Dig deep with systematic analysis to find your one high leverage problem; then build your entire system around solving it. You can have all the coaching and support in the world, but if you’re not focused on the right problem, those systems won’t translate to classroom impact.”
Educational leaders share their success.
Find out how educational leaders have transformed their districts through successful implementation, revealing the commitment and strategic approach that led to real academic improvements.
Change needs commitment.
Change is achievable when everyone commits to the process. See how one district turned collaboration into a successful implementation of Amplify CKLA.
Existing strengths need focused direction.
Strong district foundations require intentional focus. Learn how systematic analysis helped one district turn comprehensive resources into meaningful impact for teachers.
Shared responsibility transforms implementation.
Managing implementation alone limits success. Discover how one district leader used stakeholder mapping to create shared leadership and building-level ownership.
See implementation in action.
Learn how one district achieved positive test results across grades 1–5 within their first year of adopting Amplify CKLA.
Strategic change delivers results.
Results happen when change is managed strategically. Check out how one district turned thoughtful planning into successful Amplify CKLA adoption.
Curriculum evaluation leads to confident decisions.
Explore how one district implemented Amplify CKLA (after piloting seven different programs!) and achieved powerful kindergarten reading gains.
Regular communication fosters growth.
Structured coaching support transforms implementation outcomes. Find out how regular communication helped one district achieve consistency and sustained student growth with Amplify CKLA.
Preparation creates lasting results.
Comprehensive training creates the foundation for sustained success. Read about how strategic summer preparation and ongoing professional learning helped one county achieve significant academic improvements.
A closer look at grades 6–8
Amplify Science California is based on the latest research on teaching and learning and helps teachers deliver rigorous and riveting lessons through hands-on investigations, literacy-rich activities, and interactive digital tools that empower students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists.
In the 6–8 classroom, this looks like students:
- Collecting evidence from a variety of sources.
- Making sense of evidence in a variety of ways.
- Formulating convincing scientific arguments.
Is your school implementing the domain model? Click here.
Program structure
Our cyclical lesson design ensures students receive multiple exposures to concepts through a variety of modalities. As they progress through the lessons within a unit, students build and deepen their understanding, increasing their ability to develop and refine complex explanations of the unit’s phenomenon.
It’s this proven program structure and lesson design that enables Amplify Science California to teach less, but achieve more. Rather than asking teachers to wade through unnecessary content, we designed our 6–8 program to address 100% of the California NGSS in fewer lessons than other programs.
Scope and sequence
Every year our grades 6–8 sequence consists of 9 units, with each unit containing 10–19 lessons. Lessons are written to last a minimum of 45-minutes, though teachers can expand or contract the timing to meet their needs.
Unit types
Each unit delivers three-dimensional learning experiences and engages students in gathering evidence from a rich collection of sources, while also serving a unique purpose.
In grades 6–8, there are three types of units:
- One unit is a launch unit.
- Three units are core units.
- Two units are engineering internships.
Launch units
Launch units are the first units taught in each year of Amplify Science California. The goal of the Launch unit is to introduce students to norms, routines, and practices that will be built on throughout the year, including argumentation, active reading, and using the program’s technology. For example, rather than taking the time to explain the process of active reading in every unit in a given year, it is explained thoroughly in the Launch unit, thereby preparing students to read actively in all subsequent units.
Core units
Core units establish the context of the unit by introducing students to a real-world problem. As students move through lessons in a Core unit, they figure out the unit’s anchoring phenomenon, gain an understanding of the unit’s disciplinary core ideas and science and engineering practices, and make linkages across topics through the crosscutting concepts. Each Core unit culminates with a Science Seminar and final writing activity.
Engineering Internship units
Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. Students figure out how to help those in need, from tsunami victims in Sri Lanka to premature babies, through the application of engineering practices. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Units at a glance
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Weather Patterns
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
Phase Change
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
Chemical Reactions
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
Populations and Resources
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The biodome ecosystem has collapsed.
Harnessing Human Energy
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
Light Waves
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
Natural Selection
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
Evolutionary History
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Resources
A closer look at grades 6–8 (domain)
Amplify Science California is based on the latest research on teaching and learning and helps teachers deliver rigorous and riveting lessons through hands-on investigations, literacy-rich activities, and interactive digital tools that empower students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists.
In the 6–8 classroom, this looks like students:
- Collecting evidence from a variety of sources.
- Making sense of evidence in a variety of ways.
- Formulating convincing scientific arguments.
Is your school implementing the integrated model? Click here.
Program structure
Our cyclical lesson design ensures students receive multiple exposures to concepts through a variety of modalities. As they progress through the lessons within a unit, students build and deepen their understanding, increasing their ability to develop and refine complex explanations of the unit’s phenomenon.
It’s this proven program structure and lesson design that enables Amplify Science California to teach less, but achieve more. Rather than asking teachers to wade through unnecessary content, we designed our 6–8 program to address 100% of the California NGSS in fewer lessons than other programs.
Scope and sequence
Every year of our grades 6–8 sequence consists of 9 units, with each unit containing 10–19 lessons. Lessons are written to last a minimum of 45 minutes, though teachers can expand or contract the timing to meet their needs.
Unit types
Each unit delivers three-dimensional learning experiences and engages students in gathering evidence from a rich collection of sources, while also serving a unique purpose.
In grades 6–8, there are three types of units:
- One unit is a launch unit.
- Three units are core units.
- Two units are engineering internships.
Launch units
Launch units are the first units taught in each year of Amplify Science California. The goal of the Launch unit is to introduce students to norms, routines, and practices that will be built on throughout the year, including argumentation, active reading, and using the program’s technology. For example, rather than taking the time to explain the process of active reading in every unit in a given year, it is explained thoroughly in the Launch unit, thereby preparing students to actively read in all subsequent units.
Core units
Core units establish the context of the unit by introducing students to a real-world problem. As students move through lessons in a Core unit, they figure out the unit’s anchoring phenomenon, gain an understanding of the unit’s disciplinary core ideas and science and engineering practices, and make linkages across topics through the crosscutting concepts. Each Core unit culminates with a Science Seminar and final writing activity.
Engineering Internship units
Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. Students figure out how to help those in need, from tsunami victims in Sri Lanka to premature babies, through the application of engineering practices. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Units at a glance
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
Earth, Sun, and Moon
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Weather Patterns
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Populations and Resources
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: What caused the mysterious crash of a biodome ecosystem?
Natural Selection
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
Evolutionary History
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Harnessing Human Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
Phase Change
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart.
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
Chemical Reactions
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
Light Waves
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
Resources
Welcome to the Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition program review site!
We’re excited to share everything you need to review Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition, our K–5 core literacy program. On this site, you’ll find a range of materials, including Teacher Guides, Activity Books, and Student Readers, organized by grade and unit.
Please note that the files on this site are static representations of the high-quality materials you’ll receive with your purchase.
We hope you find the site helpful! If you have any questions, please reach out to your Amplify representative.
Reviewer resources
Access key materials designed to support your review of Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition.
- Program Guide
- Components Guide
- Choice Units Overview
- Text Types and Text Complexity Guide
- Writing Brochure
- Assessment Overview
- K–5 Knowledge Map
- Curriculum Maps by Grade and Strand:
- Scope and sequence by Grade and Strand:
- Text Types and Range of Writing by Grade:
Kindergarten
Explore all available resources for Kindergarten, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
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Unit 1: Star Light, Star Bright: Nursery Rhymes and Fables |
Unit 2: See, Hear, Smell, Taste, Touch: The Five Senses |
Unit 3: Underdogs and Heroes: Stories |
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Unit 4: See How They Grow: Plants |
Unit 5: Moo, Cluck, Oink: Farms |
Unit 6: Deep Roots: Introduction to Native American Cultures |
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Unit 7: All Around the World: Geography |
Unit 8 (Choice): Royal Tales: Monarchs |
Unit 8 (Choice): National Icons: Presidents and American Symbols |
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Unit 9 (Choice): Our Planet: Taking Care of the Earth |
Unit 9 (Choice): Rain and Rainbows: Seasons and Weather |
Unit 10: Shaped by Nature: Art and the World Around Us
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Skills Strand
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
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Unit 7 |
Unit 8 |
Unit 9 |
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Unit 10 |
Ancillary Components |
Grade 1
Explore all available resources for Grade 1, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
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Unit 1: The Moral of the Story: Fables and Tales |
Unit 2: From Nose to Toes: How Your Body Works |
Unit 3: Common Threads: Different Lands, Similar Stories |
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Unit 4: Reach for the Stars: Astronomy |
Unit 5: Charting the World: Geography |
Unit 6: A World of Homes: Animals and Habitats |
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Unit 7: A New Nation: American Independence |
Unit 8 (Choice): Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tales |
Unit 8 (Choice): Our Planet: The History of the Earth |
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Unit 9 (Choice): From Babylon to the Nile: Early World Civilizations |
Unit 9 (Choice): Early Americas: Maya, Aztec, and Inca |
Unit 10: Adventure Stories: Tales from the Edge
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Skills Strand
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
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Unit 7 |
Ancillary Components |
Grade 2
Explore all available resources for Grade 2, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
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Unit 1: Fortunes and Feats: Fairy Tales and Tall Tales |
Unit 2: The Birthplace of Democracy: Ancient Greece |
Unit 3: Legends and Heroes: Greek Myths |
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Unit 4: Our Planet: Cycles in Nature |
Unit 5: Butterflies, Bees, and Beetles: Insects |
Unit 6: A House Divided: The American Civil War |
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Unit 7: Sounds and Stanzas: Poetry |
Unit 8 (Choice): Journeys to America: Immigration |
Unit 8 (Choice): Making a Difference: Creating Change |
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Unit 9 (Choice): Building Blocks: All About Nutrition |
Unit 9 (Choice): Early Asian Civilizations: India and China |
Unit 10: Taking Flight: The Age of Aviation
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Skills Strand
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
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Ancillary Components |
Grade 3
Explore all available resources for Grade 3, organized by unit.
Core Units
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Unit 1: Timeless Tales: Classic Stories |
Unit 2: Fur, Fins, and Feathers: Animal Classification |
Unit 3: Rhythm and Rhyme: Poetry |
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Unit 4: Rise and Fall: Ancient Rome |
Unit 5: Our Solar System and Beyond: Astronomy |
Unit 6: Regions and Cultures: Native Americans |
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: Charlotte’s Web
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: Stella Díaz Has Something to Say
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Unit 8 (Choice): Systems and Senses: The Human Body |
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Unit 8 (Choice): From Glow to Echo: Light and Sound |
Unit 9: From Blues to Bebop: All That Jazz
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Supplemental Skills
Grade 3 Skills resources are included in core classroom kits, although the instruction isn’t required for Grade 3 standards coverage.
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Grade 4
Explore all available resources for Grade 4, organized by unit.
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Unit 1: My Story, My Voice: Personal Narratives |
Unit 2: Knights and Castles: Europe’s Middle Ages |
Unit 3: Meaning and Metaphor: Poetry |
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Unit 4: Eureka! Student Inventor |
Unit 5: Our Planet: Geology |
Unit 6: Road to Independence: The American Revolution |
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Season of Styx Malone
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Unit 8 (Choice): Crafting Stories: A World of Tales |
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Unit 8 (Choice): Adventure on the High Seas: Treasure Island |
Unit 9: Inspiration and Ingenuity: American Innovation
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Grade 5
Explore all available resources for Grade 5, organized by unit.
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Unit 1: In My Own Words: Personal Narratives |
Unit 2: Early Americas: Maya, Aztec, and Inca |
Unit 3: Visions in Verse: Poetry |
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Unit 4: A Knight’s Tale: Don Quixote
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Unit 5: The Deep Blue World: Oceans |
Unit 6: Cultures and Histories: Native Americans |
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Phantom Tollbooth
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Science of Breakable Things
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Unit 8 (Choice): Arts and Culture: The Renaissance |
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Unit 8 (Choice): Through the Forest: A Midsummer Night’s Dream |
Unit 9: Building Up the World: Global Architecture
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Digital platform
Amplify CKLA’s all-in-one platform offers essential tools that streamline instruction for teachers and engage students with meaningful content. Teachers can plan and deliver lessons efficiently, while students can access assignments, assessments, and fun practice games.
Presentation Screens
Deliver interactive lessons with ready-made, customizable slides for every lesson.
Auto-scored digital assessments
Assess vocabulary, comprehension, and knowledge development at the end of each K–2 Knowledge and 3–5 Integrated Unit.
Standards-based reports
Identify strengths and growth areas for individuals, small groups, or your entire class. Interactive dashboards offer detailed results from assessments and activities.
Skill-building practice games
Engage students with interactive games that reinforce concepts and make learning fun. Powered by Boost Reading™, these games align with lessons and provide real-time feedback.
eReader
Students access texts, take notes, and use audio-enabled eReaders to enhance their reading experience.
Sound Library
Students watch articulation videos and listen to songs for each sound to support phonological awareness.
Vocab App
Helps students in Grades 3–5 practice Amplify CKLA Tier 2 vocabulary words with fun, interactive games.
Intervention Toolkit
Offers user-friendly resources designed to aid educators in identifying and addressing deficiencies in students’ foundation skills.
Welcome, Indiana Department of Education!
Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition builds on the principles and instruction of previous editions to provide better-than-ever support for teaching and learning. The focus continues on delivering evidence-based instruction across a system of multi-tiered supports aligned with the Science of Reading and Writing.
We’re excited to share this site, where you’ll find a range of materials and literacy tools including Reviewer Resources and Teaching Materials (Teacher Guides, Activity Books, and Student Readers) organized by grade and unit.
We welcome your thoughts and questions!
Reviewer resources
Overview and program resources:
- Program Guide
- What’s New: CKLA 3rd Edition
- Choice Units Overview
- Text Types and Text Complexity Guide
- Writing Overview
- Assessments Overview
- K-5 Knowledge Map
Alignment and scope and sequence:
- Common Core State Standards (CCSS) Alignment
- K-2 Skills Scope and Sequence
- K-2 Knowledge Scope and Sequence
- 3-5 Integrated Scope and Sequence
Curriculum maps by grade:
- Kindergarten Knowledge | Kindergarten Skills
- Grade 1 Knowledge | Grade 1 Skills
- Grade 2 Knowledge | Grade 2 Skills
- Grade 3
- Grade 4
- Grade 5
Kindergarten
Explore all available resources for Kindergarten, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
Skills Strand
Grade 1
Explore all available resources for Grade 1, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
Skills Strand
Grade 2
Explore all available resources for Grade 2, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
Skills Strand
Grade 3
Explore all available resources for Grade 3, organized by unit.
Core Units
Explore all available resources for Grade 3, organized by unit.
Supplemental Skills Units
Grade 3 Skills resources are included in core classroom kits, although the instruction isn’t required for Grade 3 standards coverage.
Grade 4
Explore all available resources for Grade 4, organized by unit.
Grade 5
Explore all available resources for Grade 5, organized by unit.
Digital platform
In the 2025-26 school year, Amplify CKLA’s all-in-one platform will offer essential tools that streamline instruction for teachers and engage students with meaningful content. Teachers can plan and deliver lessons efficiently, while students can access assignments, assessments, and fun practice games.
Presentation Screens
Deliver interactive lessons with ready-made, customizable slides for every lesson.
Auto-scored digital assessments
Assess vocabulary, comprehension, and knowledge development at the end of each K–2 Knowledge and 3–5 Integrated Unit.
Standards-based reports
Identify strengths and growth areas for individuals, small groups, or your entire class. Interactive dashboards offer detailed results from assessments and activities.
Skill-building practice games
Engage students with interactive games that reinforce concepts and make learning fun. Powered by Boost Reading™, these games align with lessons and provide real-time feedback.
eReader
Students access texts, take notes, and use audio-enabled eReaders to enhance their reading experience.
Sound Library
Students watch articulation videos and listen to songs for each sound to support phonological awareness.
Vocab App
Helps students in Grades 3-5 practice Amplify CKLA Tier 2 vocabulary words with fun, interactive games.
Intervention Toolkit
Offers user-friendly resources designed to aid educators in identifying and addressing deficiencies in students’ foundation skills.
Program support resources
Additional program resource documents:
Welcome to the Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition program review site!
Welcome, Ohio educators!
Designed from the ground up to teach students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers, Amplify Science combines literacy-rich activities with hands-on learning and digital tools to engage students in exploring compelling phenomena in every unit.
Overview
Developed by UC Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science, our program features:
- A phenomena-based approach where students construct a more complex understanding of each unit’s anchor phenomenon.
- A blend of cohesive storylines, hands-on investigations, rich discussions, literacy-rich activities, and digital tools.
- Newly crafted units, chapters, lessons, and activities designed to deliver true 3-dimensional learning.
- An instructional design that supports all learners in accessing all standards.
Hear what these educators have to say about the program. >
Approach to literacy
[Video] Literacy in action (K–5)
Watch students use scientific text to obtain information and practice reading skills, while using writing prompts to create arguments using evidence.
[Video] Literacy in action (6–8)
Watch students use scientific text to obtain information and practice reading skills, while using writing prompts to create arguments using evidence.
Literacy-rich science instruction (K–5)
Immersing young students in reading, writing, and arguing like real scientists and engineers.
Elementary school
Get started by watching this class share what they’re figuring out with Amplify Science. >
In Grades K–3 we recommend the national grade level units of Amplify Science to provide students with the appropriate grade level literacy and background knowledge. Individual units are available to purchase.
When you’re ready:
- Find a summary of each unit below including each unit’s student role and anchor phenomenon.
- Download some helpful resources to support your review.
- Explore the digital Teacher’s Guide by clicking the orange “Review now” button.
Unit 1
Needs of Plants and Animals
Student role: Scientists
Phenomenon: There are no monarch caterpillars in the Mariposa Grove community garden ever since vegetables were planted.
Unit 2
Pushes and Pulls
Student role: Pinball engineers
Phenomenon: Pinball machines allow people to control the direction and strength of forces on a ball.
Unit 3
Sunlight and Weather
Student role: Weather scientists
Phenomenon: Students at one school are too cold during morning recess, while students at another are too hot during afternoon recess.
Unit 1
Animal and Plant Defenses
Student role: Marine scientists
Phenomenon: Spruce the Sea Turtle will soon be released back into the ocean, where she will survive despite predators.
Unit 2
Light and Sound
Student role: Light and sound engineers
Phenomenon: A puppet show company uses light and sound to depict realistic scenes in puppet shows.
Unit 3
Spinning Earth
Student role: Sky scientists
Phenomenon: The sky looks different to Sai and his grandma when they talk on the phone at night.
Unit 1
Plant and Animal Relationships
Student role: Plant scientists
Phenomenon: No new chalta trees are growing in the fictional Bengal Tiger Reserve in India.
Unit 2
Properties of Materials
Student role: Glue engineers
Phenomenon: Different glue recipes result in glues that have different properties.
Unit 3
Changing Landforms
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: The cliff on which Oceanside Recreation Center is situated appears to be receding.
Unit 1
Balancing Forces
Student role: Engineers
Phenomenon: The fictional town of Faraday is getting a new train. Unlike typical trains, this one floats, which is causing some concern among the town’s citizens.
Unit 2
Inheritance and Traits
Student role: Wildlife biologists
Phenomenon: An adopted wolf in Graystone National Park has some traits in common with one wolf pack in the park and other traits in common with a different pack.
Unit 3
Environments and Survival
Student role: Biomimicry engineers
Phenomenon: Over 10 years, a population of grove snails has changed. Populations with yellow shells have decreased, while those with banded shells have increased.
Unit 4
Weather and Climate
Student role: Meteorologists
Phenomenon: Three different islands, each a contender for becoming an orangutan reserve, experience different weather patterns.
Unit 1
Energy Conversions
Student role: System engineers
Phenomenon: The fictional town of Ergstown experiences frequent blackouts. Their electrical system seems to be failing.
Unit 2
Earth’s Features
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: A mysterious fossil is discovered in a canyon within the fictional Desert Rocks National Park.
Unit 3
Modeling Matter
Student role: Food scientists
Phenomenon: Some ingredients dissolve in a salad dressing while others, like oil and vinegar, appear to separate.
Unit 4
The Earth System
Student role: Water resource engineers
Phenomenon: East Ferris, a city on one side of the fictional Ferris Island, is experiencing a water shortage, while West Ferris is not.
Unit 1
Patterns of Earth and Sky
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An ancient artifact depicts what we see in the sky at different times of the day, but it appears to be missing a piece.
Unit 2
Vision and Light
Student role: Conservation biologists
Phenomenon: The population of Tokay geckos in a rain forest in the Philippines has decreased since the installation of new highway lights.
Unit 3
Waves, Energy, and Information
Student role: Marine scientists
Phenomenon: Mother dolphins in the fictional Blue Bay National Park communicate with their calves despite the distance between them.
Unit 4
Ecosystem Restoration
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The jaguars, sloths, and cecropia trees in a reforested section of a Costa Rican rain forest are not growing or thriving.
Middle school
Get started by watching this class share what they’re figuring out with Amplify Science. >
When you’re ready:
- Find a summary of each unit below including each unit’s student role and anchor phenomenon.
- Download some helpful resources to support your review.
- Explore the digital Teacher’s Guide by clicking the orange “Review now” button.
CORE
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
CORE
Phase Change
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
CORE
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
LAUNCH
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
CORE
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
LAUNCH
Harnessing Human Energy
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
CODING SCIENCE INTERNSHIP
Coding Science Internship: Coral Restoration (Optional)
Domains: Life Science, Coding Science
Unit type: Coding Science Internship
Student role: Coding science interns
Phenomenon: Implementing a restoration project to improve the health of coral reef populations in Hawaii.
CORE
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
CORE
Weather Patterns
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
CORE
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
CORE
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
CORE
Chemical Reactions
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
CORE
Light Waves
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
CORE
Populations and Resources
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
CORE
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The biodome ecosystem has collapsed.
CODING SCIENCE INTERNSHIP
Coding Science Internship: Coral Restoration (Optional)
Domains: Life Science, Coding Science
Unit type: Coding Science Internship
Student role: Coding science interns
Phenomenon: Implementing a restoration project to improve the health of coral reef populations in Hawaii.
LAUNCH
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
CORE
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
CORE
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
CORE
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
CORE
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
CORE
Natural Selection
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
CORE
Rock Transformations (optional)
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
CORE
Evolutionary History
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
CODING SCIENCE INTERNSHIP
Coding Science Internship: Coral Restoration (Optional)
Domains: Life Science, Coding Science
Unit type: Coding Science Internship
Student role: Coding science interns
Phenomenon: Implementing a restoration project to improve the health of coral reef populations in Hawaii.
Resources to support your review
Select a topic below to explore helpful resources with more information about Amplify Science, the program’s development, and pedagogy.
[Video] Planning in action (K–5)
Watch how easy it is for Amplify Science teachers to prep their 3-D instruction.
[Video] Planning in action (6–8)
Watch how easy it is for Amplify Science teachers to prep their 3-D instruction.
[Video] Simulations and modeling tools (K–5)
Watch how students investigate phenomena with the help of digital tools.
[Video] Simulations and modeling tools (6–8)
Watch how students investigate phenomena with the help of digital tools.
Summary of Investigations (K–5) coming soon
Explore the types of investigations that students conduct.
Summary of Investigations (6–8) coming soon
Explore the types of investigations that students conduct.
Remote and hybrid learning guide
Amplify is here to help! Amplify Science will soon feature product enhancements and new resources that will help manage the new landscape of back-to-school 2020.
Students ready for more
Learn how we make learning more rigorous for students ready for a challenge.
NGSS Benchmark assessments
Learn more about the Next Generation Science Standards Benchmark assessments created by Amplify.
Ready to explore with digital access and physical samples?
Start your digital review and request physical samples with these three easy steps.
- Note these Ohio specific login credentials for your digital access.
Username: t.ohscience@tryamplify.net
Password: AmplifyNumber1 - Click Review now.
- Complete the form and select Log in with Amplify to input the Ohio specific login.
Contact an Amplify representative
For any questions, fill out the form to the right and a member of our sales team will reach out to you soon.
Katie Cannon
Senior Account Executive
Casie Rayes
Account executive
Matt Paupore
Senior Account Executive
Amplify Reading for international partners
We’re thrilled you’re considering giving Amplify Reading a try! This site contains all the resources you’ll need to learn more about the program and to get started using it to support remote learning or classroom instruction. We’re confident you’re going to love how Amplify Reading provides targeted support for every student.
Getting started
What you need to know about Amplify Reading
Amplify Reading is a student-driven, digital literacy program that provides students with differentiated and adaptive practice in all key areas of literacy instruction. Teachers have access to rich data insights into student usage and progress they can use to inform remote instruction.
How does it work with other programs?
Amplify Reading is a great complement to any core or assessment program, especially Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) and mCLASS.
When and how to use Amplify Reading
We recommend students use the program independently for 30-45 minutes a week. This implementation model has led to student growth, especially for dual language learners.
Students will need access to one of the following devices: Windows Devices with Windows 7+, Chromebooks with Chrome OS, and Mac devices with OS 10.11+ or iOS 11+.
How do I get started with Amplify Reading?
Good news! You and your students now have access to Amplify Reading. To get started, you’ll need to sign in with your Amplify credentials at mclass.amplify.com. Next, you’ll want to distribute Amplify Reading credentials to your students.
Where do I find my credentials?
You should have received an email from noreply@amplify.com with your new account information. If you do not see it in your inbox, please check your spam folder.
How to download and distribute student credentials:
- How to download and distribute student login information [Article]
- Parent/guardian letter in English [PDF]
- Parent/guardian letter in Spanish [PDF]
How to support login at home:
You can direct parents to the following videos for an overview of the program and how to get started.
- How to get your child started with Amplify Reading (English)
- How to get your child started with Amplify Reading (Spanish)
After students start playing, you can check in on their progress via your teacher dashboard.
Printable extension activities
Consider sending the following activities home with your students as part of their weekly Amplify Reading routine. Each printable activity has instructions in both English and Spanish.
Packet 1
Activity Packet: Grade K | Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | Grade 4 | Grade 5
Answer Key: Grade 3 | Grade 4 | Grade 5
Access support
Intercom chat
Our Intercom feature gives you the ability to chat with customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams in real time directly from the digital platform. This ensures that issues that arise in the classroom can be addressed as quickly as possible. Support teams can be reached from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams can be reached by email at help@amplify.com from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Learn more
Review the resources below to dive deeper into what makes Amplify Reading unique
- The Missing Link in Reading Comprehension [PDF]
- Social Emotional Learning in Amplify Reading [PDF]
- What does growth mindset sound like? Hear students and teachers talk about Amplify Reading [Video]
- A Conversation with Anne Lucas about Comprehension Processes [Podcast]
Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community to discuss the latest in reading research and instructional practices.
Welcome, Nebraska educators!
Designed from the ground up for the NGSS to teach students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers, Amplify Science combines literacy-rich activities with hands-on learning and digital tools to engage students in exploring compelling phenomena in every unit.
Overview
Developed by UC Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science, our program features:
- A phenomena-based approach where students construct a more complex understanding of each unit’s anchor phenomenon.
- A blend of cohesive storylines, hands-on investigations, rich discussions, literacy-rich activities, and digital tools.
- Newly crafted units, chapters, lessons, and activities designed to deliver true 3-dimensional learning.
- An instructional design that supports all learners in accessing all standards.
Hear what these educators have to say about the program. >
Explore your grade level
Get started by watching this class share what they’re figuring out with Amplify Science. >
Then select your grade level below to learn more about how we make this type of rich learning accessible to all students at every grade.
Elementary school
When you’re ready:
- Find a summary of each unit below including each unit’s student role and anchor phenomenon.
- Download some helpful resources to support your review.
- Explore the digital Teacher’s Guide by clicking the orange “Review now” button.
Unit 1
Needs of Plants and Animals
Student role: Scientists
Phenomenon: There are no monarch caterpillars in the Mariposa Grove community garden ever since vegetables were planted.
Unit 2
Pushes and Pulls
Student role: Pinball engineers
Phenomenon: Pinball machines allow people to control the direction and strength of forces on a ball.
Unit 3
Sunlight and Weather
Student role: Weather scientists
Phenomenon: Students at one school are too cold during morning recess, while students at another are too hot during afternoon recess.
Unit 1
Animal and Plant Defenses
Student role: Marine scientists
Phenomenon: Spruce the Sea Turtle will soon be released back into the ocean, where she will survive despite predators.
Unit 2
Light and Sound
Student role: Light and sound engineers
Phenomenon: A puppet show company uses light and sound to depict realistic scenes in puppet shows.
Unit 3
Spinning Earth
Student role: Sky scientists
Phenomenon: The sky looks different to Sai and his grandma when they talk on the phone at night.
Unit 1
Plant and Animal Relationships
Student role: Plant scientists
Phenomenon: No new chalta trees are growing in the fictional Bengal Tiger Reserve in India.
Unit 2
Properties of Materials
Student role: Glue engineers
Phenomenon: Different glue recipes result in glues that have different properties.
Unit 3
Changing Landforms
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: The cliff on which Oceanside Recreation Center is situated appears to be receding.
Unit 1
Balancing Forces
Student role: Engineers
Phenomenon: The fictional town of Faraday is getting a new train. Unlike typical trains, this one floats, which is causing some concern among the town’s citizens.
Unit 2
Inheritance and Traits
Student role: Wildlife biologists
Phenomenon: An adopted wolf in Graystone National Park has some traits in common with one wolf pack in the park and other traits in common with a different pack.
Unit 3
Environments and Survival
Student role: Biomimicry engineers
Phenomenon: Over 10 years, a population of grove snails has changed. Populations with yellow shells have decreased, while those with banded shells have increased.
Unit 4
Weather and Climate
Student role: Meteorologists
Phenomenon: Three different islands, each a contender for becoming an orangutan reserve, experience different weather patterns.
Unit 1
Energy Conversions
Student role: System engineers
Phenomenon: The fictional town of Ergstown experiences frequent blackouts. Their electrical system seems to be failing.
Unit 2
Vision and Light
Student role: Conservation biologists
Phenomenon: The population of Tokay geckos in a rain forest in the Philippines has decreased since the installation of new highway lights.
Unit 3
Earth’s Features
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: A mysterious fossil is discovered in a canyon within the fictional Desert Rocks National Park.
Unit 4
Waves, Energy, and Information
Student role: Marine scientists
Phenomenon: Mother dolphins in the fictional Blue Bay National Park communicate with their calves despite the distance between them.
Unit 1
Patterns of Earth and Sky
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An ancient artifact depicts what we see in the sky at different times of the day, but it appears to be missing a piece.
Unit 2
Modeling Matter
Student role: Food scientists
Phenomenon: Some ingredients dissolve in a salad dressing while others, like oil and vinegar, appear to separate
Unit 3
The Earth System
Student role: Water resource engineers
Phenomenon: East Ferris, a city on one side of the fictional Ferris Island, is experiencing a water shortage, while West Ferris is not.
Unit 4
Ecosystem Restoration
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The jaguars, sloths, and cecropia trees in a reforested section of a Costa Rican rain forest are not growing or thriving.
Middle school
When you’re ready:
- Find a summary of each unit below including each unit’s student role and anchor phenomenon.
- Download some helpful resources to support your review.
- Explore the digital Teacher’s Guide by clicking the orange “Review now” button.
LAUNCH
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
CORE
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
CORE
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
CORE
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
CORE
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
CORE
Weather Patterns
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
CORE
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Engineering Internship
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
LAUNCH
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
CORE
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
CORE
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
CORE
Phase Change
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
CORE
Chemical Reactions
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
CORE
Populations and Resources
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
CORE
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The biodome ecosystem has collapsed.
LAUNCH
Harnessing Human Energy
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
CORE
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
CORE
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
CORE
Light Waves
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
CORE
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
CORE
Natural Selection
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
ENGINEERING INTERNSHIP
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
CORE
Evolutionary History
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Resources to support your review
Select a topic below to explore helpful resources with more information about Amplify Science, the program’s development, and pedagogy.
[Video] Planning in action (K–5)
Watch how easy it is for Amplify Science teachers to prep their 3-D instruction.
[Video] Planning in action (6–8)
Watch how easy it is for Amplify Science teachers to prep their 3-D instruction.
[Video] Simulations and modeling tools (K–5)
Watch how students investigate phenomena with the help of digital tools.
[Video] Simulations and modeling tools (6–8)
Watch how students investigate phenomena with the help of digital tools.
Students ready for more
Learn how we make learning more rigorous for students ready for a challenge.
[Video] Literacy in action (K–5)
Watch students use scientific text to obtain information and practice reading skills, while using writing prompts to create arguments using evidence
[Video] Literacy in action (6–8)
Watch students use scientific text to obtain information and practice reading skills, while using writing prompts to create arguments using evidence.
Literacy-rich science instruction (K–5)
Immersing young students in reading, writing, and arguing like real scientists and engineers.
NGSS Benchmark assessments
Learn more about the Next Generation Science Standards Benchmark assessments created by Amplify.
Remote and hybrid learning guide
Amplify is here to help! Amplify Science will soon feature product enhancements and new resources that will help manage the new landscape of back-to-school 2020.
Ready to start exploring with digital access?
Contact an Amplify representative
Laina Armbruster
larmbruster@amplify.com
(602) 791-4135
Bob McCarty
rmccarty@amplify.com
(435) 655-1731
Kristin McDonald
kmcdonald@amplify.com
(515) 240-0244
Welcome, K-5 LAUSD principals and teachers!
What’s new?
- The new CKLA LAUSD Delivery Guide provides guidance for receiving, staging, sorting, and reporting your Amplify CKLA and Caminos deliveries.
- The new CKLA LAUSD Classroom Materials Handbook will help classroom teachers understand and organize the materials included within their classroom kits.
Scroll down to learn how CKLA is uniquely designed to help all students make learning leaps in literacy.
Looking for LAUSD G6 ELA information and resources? Visit the LAUSD G6 ELA site.
Our promise
Developed in partnership with the Core Knowledge Foundation, Amplify CKLA promises:
- A unique research-based approach based on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills instruction with meaningful content knowledge.
- An instructional design that levels the playing field for every child.
- Superior results.
Before you explore the program on your own, watch this program walkthrough.
Built on the Science of Reading
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
What does the Science of Reading really mean? What does it tell us about how to teach? How can we bring those insights and practices into our classrooms (remote or otherwise)? We believe CKLA has the answers.
Supports Orton-Gillingham and LETRS
CKLA brings the instructional principles recommended by Orton-Gillingham and LETRS to life in the classroom.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected text with constant review and reinforcement
Watch a CKLA grade 1 Skills Lesson in action by clicking the video.
What students read
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills.
Reading and comprehension activities utilize:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
The missing piece
CKLA is aligned with programs you already know and use—mCLASSⓇ and Boost Reading—making the integration between systems, your implementation, and ongoing instructional planning more efficient, effective, and easy for your teachers.
Standards alignment and unit summaries
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Access the CKLA Teacher Resource Site
Watch the quick navigation video first, then login using the “Access CKLA Teacher Resource Site” button.
- Click the CKLA Teacher Resource Site below.
- Select the Log in with Amplify button.
- Enter the username: lausdreviewer@tryamplify.net
- Enter the password: AmplifyNumber1
- Select the desired grade level.
Access the CKLA Student Hub
Watch the quick navigation video first, then login using the “Access CKLA Student Hub” button.
- Click the CKLA Student Hub button.
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter the username lausdreviewer@tryamplify.net.
- Enter the password AmplifyNumber1.
- Select the desired grade level.
Contact us
Looking to speak directly with your LAUSD representative? Get in touch with a team member by emailing ckla.lausd@amplify.com or by calling us directly.
Shalonda Johnson
Customer Success Manager
(213) 310-0107
A closer look at grades 6–8
Amplify Science California is based on the latest research on teaching and learning and helps teachers deliver rigorous and riveting lessons through hands-on investigations, literacy-rich activities, and interactive digital tools that empower students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists.
In the 6–8 classroom, this looks like students:
- Collecting evidence from a variety of sources.
- Making sense of evidence in a variety of ways.
- Formulating convincing scientific arguments.
Is your school implementing the domain model? Click here.
Program structure
Our cyclical lesson design ensures students receive multiple exposures to concepts through a variety of modalities. As they progress through the lessons within a unit, students build and deepen their understanding, increasing their ability to develop and refine complex explanations of the unit’s phenomenon.
It’s this proven program structure and lesson design that enables Amplify Science California to teach less, but achieve more. Rather than asking teachers to wade through unnecessary content, we designed our 6–8 program to address 100% of the California NGSS in fewer lessons than other programs.
Scope and sequence
Every year our grades 6–8 sequence consists of 9 units, with each unit containing 10–19 lessons. Lessons are written to last a minimum of 45-minutes, though teachers can expand or contract the timing to meet their needs.
Unit types
Each unit delivers three-dimensional learning experiences and engages students in gathering evidence from a rich collection of sources, while also serving a unique purpose.
In grades 6–8, there are three types of units:
- One unit is a launch unit.
- Three units are core units.
- Two units are engineering internships.
Launch units
Launch units are the first units taught in each year of Amplify Science California. The goal of the Launch unit is to introduce students to norms, routines, and practices that will be built on throughout the year, including argumentation, active reading, and using the program’s technology. For example, rather than taking the time to explain the process of active reading in every unit in a given year, it is explained thoroughly in the Launch unit, thereby preparing students to read actively in all subsequent units.
Core units
Core units establish the context of the unit by introducing students to a real-world problem. As students move through lessons in a Core unit, they figure out the unit’s anchoring phenomenon, gain an understanding of the unit’s disciplinary core ideas and science and engineering practices, and make linkages across topics through the crosscutting concepts. Each Core unit culminates with a Science Seminar and final writing activity.
Engineering Internship units
Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. Students figure out how to help those in need, from tsunami victims in Sri Lanka to premature babies, through the application of engineering practices. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Units at a glance
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Weather Patterns
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
Phase Change
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
Chemical Reactions
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
Populations and Resources
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The biodome ecosystem has collapsed.
Harnessing Human Energy
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
Light Waves
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
Natural Selection
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
Evolutionary History
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Resources
A closer look at grades 6–8 (domain)
Amplify Science California is based on the latest research on teaching and learning and helps teachers deliver rigorous and riveting lessons through hands-on investigations, literacy-rich activities, and interactive digital tools that empower students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists.
In the 6–8 classroom, this looks like students:
- Collecting evidence from a variety of sources.
- Making sense of evidence in a variety of ways.
- Formulating convincing scientific arguments.
Is your school implementing the integrated model? Click here.
Program structure
Our cyclical lesson design ensures students receive multiple exposures to concepts through a variety of modalities. As they progress through the lessons within a unit, students build and deepen their understanding, increasing their ability to develop and refine complex explanations of the unit’s phenomenon.
It’s this proven program structure and lesson design that enables Amplify Science California to teach less, but achieve more. Rather than asking teachers to wade through unnecessary content, we designed our 6–8 program to address 100% of the California NGSS in fewer lessons than other programs.
Scope and sequence
Every year of our grades 6–8 sequence consists of 9 units, with each unit containing 10–19 lessons. Lessons are written to last a minimum of 45 minutes, though teachers can expand or contract the timing to meet their needs.
Unit types
Each unit delivers three-dimensional learning experiences and engages students in gathering evidence from a rich collection of sources, while also serving a unique purpose.
In grades 6–8, there are three types of units:
- One unit is a launch unit.
- Three units are core units.
- Two units are engineering internships.
Launch units
Launch units are the first units taught in each year of Amplify Science California. The goal of the Launch unit is to introduce students to norms, routines, and practices that will be built on throughout the year, including argumentation, active reading, and using the program’s technology. For example, rather than taking the time to explain the process of active reading in every unit in a given year, it is explained thoroughly in the Launch unit, thereby preparing students to actively read in all subsequent units.
Core units
Core units establish the context of the unit by introducing students to a real-world problem. As students move through lessons in a Core unit, they figure out the unit’s anchoring phenomenon, gain an understanding of the unit’s disciplinary core ideas and science and engineering practices, and make linkages across topics through the crosscutting concepts. Each Core unit culminates with a Science Seminar and final writing activity.
Engineering Internship units
Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. Students figure out how to help those in need, from tsunami victims in Sri Lanka to premature babies, through the application of engineering practices. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Units at a glance
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
Earth, Sun, and Moon
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Weather Patterns
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
Metabolism Engineering Internship
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Food engineers
Phenomenon: Designing health bars with different molecular compositions can effectively meet the metabolic needs of patients or rescue workers.
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Populations and Resources
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: What caused the mysterious crash of a biodome ecosystem?
Natural Selection
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
Natural Selection Engineering Internship
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Clinical engineers
Phenomenon: Designing malaria treatment plans that use different combinations of drugs can reduce drug resistance development while helping malaria patients.
Evolutionary History
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Harnessing Human Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
Phase Change
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart.
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
Chemical Reactions
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
Light Waves
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
Resources
Welcome to your Amplify Science California pilot!
We’re thrilled to welcome you to the Amplify family, and we look forward to making your experience with Amplify Science California successful from day one.
On this site, you’ll find resources, tips, videos, and other helpful information designed to support you throughout your pilot experience.
Tips for getting started successfully
It takes time to learn any new program and get used to its patterns and flow—time that you aren’t always afforded in a pilot situation. Based on our work with thousands of pilot teachers who are now happy users, we can tell you with 100% confidence that it gets easier. In no time, you’ll be preparing and delivering all your lessons with ease.
Until you become comfortable with the organization of each unit and how one lesson flows into the next, the following resources will be key in helping you prepare to teach your first unit.
Unit Guide
These short and sweet guides provide a big picture overview of each unit’s phenomenon and storyline, the key questions that guide learning, and how the storyline develops from chapter to chapter. We even spoil the big reveal at the end by pointing out ahead of time what students figure out throughout the unit.
Ready to download? Navigate to your grade level using the menu bar above, scroll to the Unit Types section, and then download the appropriate Unit Guide(s).
Lesson Overview
Reading this short summary is a great way to get a quick snapshot of the learning that will take place during the day ahead. It includes a short description of the lesson, student learning objectives, and an at-a-glance list of activities.
Where to find it? Log into the digital Teacher’s Guide and navigate to the lesson you want to teach by following this click path: Grade Level > Unit > Chapter > Lesson. Next, scroll to the Lesson Brief section and click Overview. This same information is also found in your printed Teacher’s Reference Guide.
Material and preparation tips
Also found in the Lesson Brief section of your digital Teacher’s Guide and printed Teacher’s Reference Guide is a complete list of materials that you’ll need to gather as well as step-by-step lesson preparation tips organized by:
- Before the Day of the Lesson
- Immediately Before the Lesson
- At the End of the Day
3-D Statements
Color-coded for easy readability and quick scanning, our 3-D Statements can be found at point-of-use for every unit and lesson, making it easy to pinpoint the exact SEPs, DCIs, and CCCs that will be targeted on any given day.
Where to find them? Log into the digital Teacher’s Guide and navigate to any Unit Guide or Lesson Brief and click the expandable box called 3-D Statements. A complete list of 3-D Statements can also be found in the back of any printed Teacher’s Reference Guide.
Coherence Flowcharts
These are another great tool for helping you visualize the flow of a unit and the connections between the questions that drive students’ experiences and:
- The evidence they gather
- The solutions they figure out
- The new questions they generate
Where to find them? Log into the digital Teacher’s Guide, navigate to your desired unit, scroll to the Unit Guide, and look in the Printable Resources section.
Support is always within reach
Your role as a pilot teacher is important. Your district is counting on you not only to evaluate how Amplify Science California works in your classroom, but also to pick a reliable and supportive long-term partner. We feel confident that we’re that partner, and we look forward to proving that to you during your pilot experience.
Just as it will be when you become a customer, support during your pilot will always be within reach through the following channels.
Pilot support coordinator
Your dedicated pilot support coordinator has extensive experience delivering training, rostering students, answering both pedagogical and technical questions, and delivering demonstration lessons. Said another way, he or she is here to help. So, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Who is my pilot support coordinator? Look for his or her contact information in the pilot support brochure that you received during your pilot implementation training.
Intercom chat
In addition to traditional lines of communication, our Intercom feature gives you the ability to chat with our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams in real time directly from the digital platform. This ensures that issues that arise in the classroom can be addressed as quickly as possible.
Support teams can be reached from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST, Monday through Friday.
Our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams can also be reached by email at help@amplify.com.
Support teams can be reached from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST, Monday through Friday.
Registration is now closed.
Thank you for your interest, but registration is unfortunately closed.
If you’re interested in hearing about other virtual learning opportunities this fall, please contact us at STEM@amplify.com.
About the event
The 1.5-day interactive retreat for math and science district leaders will be held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Chicago, Illinois from October 20–21, 2022. During the retreat, you will spend your time in interactive workshops while learning from thought-leaders, and will also have time to collaborate with other district leaders.
By attending, you will:
- Immerse yourself in the latest math and science education trends with thought leaders and subject-matter experts.
- Expand your leadership network while sharing challenges and success stories with other district leaders.
- Build action plans that you can bring back to your district in interactive workshops.
Logistics
We will have an optional welcome reception on the evening of October 19, and the event will run from 8 a.m. on Thursday, October 20 through 1 p.m. on Friday, October 21.
Participants will be provided breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks on the 20th and breakfast, lunch, and snacks on the 21st.
Amplify will cover on-site hotel and meal fees. Attendees are responsible for their own travel costs.
Meet a few of our speakers
Rebecca Abbott
Professional Learning Lead
UC Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science
Eric Cross
Middle school science educator
Host, Science Connections: The Podcast
Kristin Gray
Math Content Consultant
Amplify
Sunil Singh
Storyteller and author
Desiré Whitmore
Senior Physics Educator
The Exploratorium
Jason Zimba
Chief Academic Officer, STEM
Amplify
The fine print
While we’ve made every effort to ensure that this invitation is consistent with the gift and ethics rules adopted by most jurisdictions, we recognize that many public officials are subject to rules that do not permit acceptance of this offer or require approval of other officials at your agency. If you do plan to attend our event, please ensure that acceptance of our invitation is fully compliant with your local rules regarding travel, lodging, and meals for events with vendors. Please let us know if we can provide any additional information to support your determination.
Welcome to the Baltimore Tutoring Project!
Baltimore City Schools and Amplify have partnered to provide virtual reading tutoring services. Amplify Tutoring aligns with the mission of Amplify in extending the reach of classroom teachers and supporting rigorous and riveting learning experiences for students. The purpose of this high impact tutoring is to support and accelerate student achievement in foundational literacy skills in order to address unfinished learning and achievement gaps. Classroom teachers teach foundational literacy skills in whole group and small group settings; Amplify tutoring is one way to support teachers in meeting the needs of their students by providing additional opportunities for struggling students to work in small groups with a tutor.
Welcome, Baltimore Educators!
We’ve created this website with resources that will help ensure the success of your high-impact tutoring program.
Additional resources
Log In to Amplify Tutoring
Logging in with a personal device
- If you’re already logged into Clever, go to tutor.amplify.com and click Log In with Clever. You will be taken directly to Amplify Tutoring.
- If you’re NOT logged into Clever, go to tutor.amplify.com and click Log In with Clever.
- Scan the Clever badge OR enter your school name and your Clever username and password and click Log in
Logging in with a shared device
- If you’re using a shared device, go to tutor.amplify.com and click Log In with Amplify.
- Enter your Amplify Reading username and password.
- Click Log in.
Logging in for the first time
After you log in for the first time, scroll down to complete the welcome tutorial.
Join a Tutoring Session
- After you log in, click your class.
- Click Blackboard Collaborate and then click Join session.
- In the list that displays, click your class name to join the scheduled session. Note: You can only join a session at the time it is scheduled. If the scheduled session isn’t in progress, you will see “Room disabled” under Blackboard Collaborate.
- If you’re joining for the first time, click Allow to give your browser permission to use the microphone and camera. Check to make sure each is working.
- To stop seeing onscreen instructions: click Later under Start Tutorial, then click X on the next prompt.
You should now be able to see and hear your tutor and the other students in your session.
Test Session Audio and Video
- To test audio and video, you must first join a session. Audio and video settings can only be tested in a session.
- Open the Collaborate panel by clicking the purple icon in the lower-right corner of the page.
- Click the My Settings icon in the panel that opens.
- Click Set up your camera and microphone.
- Test your microphone, and grant permission to your microphone if asked.
- Test your camera, and grant permission to your camera if asked.
Your tutor and the other students in your session should now be able to see and hear you.
Webinars
View our latest webinars for more information
Student-friendly resources
Additional resources
Student inventory of devices
How to obtain an additional inventory of student devices PDF
Family Letter- Pivoting to Remote Learning
Here is an Amplify Family Letter- Pivoting to Remote Learning for your use.
Connect, Reflect, Share!
Complete this optional Google form to share highlights from tutoring. We would love to capture and share your a-ha moments, the practices/strategies/resources you have found helpful, and/or celebrations of your students’ growth as readers and your development as a tutor!
Please use the form below to alert us of issues and concerns. We will look at trends, solutions, and reach out to schools if needed.
Free K12 Teaching Lessons & Resources – Amplify Classroom
Welcome, Minnesota Educators!
Classroom -TEST PAGE
Apply for the 2026 Science of Reading Star Awards!
When you look up at the night sky, you see some stars that shine especially bright. They guide travelers, inspire wonder, and illuminate galaxies.
That’s how we think of the literacy educators who champion the Science of Reading. They brighten the path for countless students and light their way to lifelong literacy.
Making the shift to the Science of Reading is no small feat. It requires thoughtful engagement, systematic implementation, and the courage to change long-standing practices. Most importantly, it requires every part of an educational system to work in cosmic alignment for student success.
That’s why the Amplify Science of Reading Star Awards honor outstanding educators, schools, and districts who have transformed their classrooms with the Science of Reading.
We’re excited to celebrate another constellation of remarkable leaders in literacy development—and to invite you to be a part of it.
Leaders in early literacy skills at all levels
Successful Science of Reading implementation happens when everyone is on board. That means: classroom teachers mastering evidence-based teaching techniques, principals supporting school-wide initiatives, districts providing professional development, and entire communities supporting the shift.
Because this transformation requires such coordinated effort, our Science of Reading Star Awards recognize excellence across every level of education, with categories that reflect this multi-level approach.
Individual categories
- Teachers who exemplify Science of Reading principles in daily instruction
- Instructional coaches driving literacy transformation
- Administrators leading successful reading initiatives
School categories
- Schools demonstrating significant reading growth through Science of Reading implementation
- Educational teams working together to strengthen early literacy skills
District categories
- Districts orchestrating system-wide literacy development improvements
- Large-scale Science of Reading transformations with measurable results
How our educator awards honor the winners
All award winners receive a comprehensive package designed to support their leadership and amplify their impact. Recognition includes:
- Honorary Amplify Ambassadorship, which provides access to our community of literacy leaders.
- Your story featured on our website and social media.
- Science of Reading starter library of resources to continue your journey.
- Enrollment in Science of Reading: The Learning Lab (for you and a friend).
- Tons of swag, of course!
Grand prize winners in the District and School categories will also get access to an exclusive library of professional development resources. The grand prize winner in the Individual category will be our guest, all expenses paid, at the Reading League’s 10th annual conference in Chicago next fall.
How to nominate the literacy stars in your sky
Do you know educators whose Science of Reading work deserves recognition—like our 2025 winners? A school team that has transformed reading outcomes? A district that has successfully implemented evidence-based literacy practices system-wide?
These are the stars guiding us toward a future where every child can read with confidence and joy. Help us get to know them!
We are accepting nominations through Feb. 13, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET. Submit your nomination today!
More to explore
S4 – 03: LIVE from NCTM with Bethany and Dan
In this episode, co-hosts Bethany Lockhart Johnson and Dan Meyer are LIVE with more than one hundred Math Teacher Lounge listeners at the recent National Council of Teachers of Mathematics conference. Listen in as they answer the pressing question: Who is the best teacher in film or television?
Explore more from Math Teacher Lounge by visiting our main page.
Presenter (00:00):
Ladies and gentlemen, from Math Teacher Lounge, we have Bethany Lockhart Johnson and Dan Meyer! <cheering>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (00:08):
Doesn’t go well that the door was locked. Like, I could not get in! <Laugh>
Dan Meyer (00:12):
Yeah. Gotcha. All right. We’re gonna sit a little bit. Let’s see how that works—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (00:16):
Hi!
Dan Meyer (00:16):
Yeah. I think we’ll stand up? Or whaddaya think, sit…?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (00:19):
Should we stand? Hi.
Dan Meyer (00:22):
Hello. Great to see you folks. Yeah, I can hear you.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (00:25):
Can you hear me? That’s—I know YOU can me. Can you hear me OK? OK! We’re here. Hello. Thank you for like, lining up and coming out and being here. Thank you!
Dan Meyer (00:35):
Means so much to me that you could be here for me, on my show, with Bethany Lockhart Johnson, my co-host. <Audience laughs>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (00:40):
The hour has just started.
Dan Meyer (00:42):
We’re just getting going. Yeah. If you folks have heard the podcast, you don’t know how much gets cut out. And it’s like, mostly me just having, you know, anxious nerves and saying something silly and then we cut it out and we can’t do that here today. So it should be real fun for all of us, I think. Yeah.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (00:55):
It’s not true. It’s mostly dancing. “Bethany, can you stop talking? Bethany?” Cause it’s mostly—
Dan Meyer (00:59):
“It’s my turn. It’s my turn! Bethany <laugh>! I haven’t been heard for a while.”
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:02):
Dan. We’re at an in-person conference.
Dan Meyer (01:05):
In-person BIG conference, I would say. I’d say a big conference. Yeah.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:08):
And have you been to the Amplify booth?
Dan Meyer (01:11):
I have! Have these people? There’s a claw machine with free socks.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:16):
Yeah. You’re saving me socks, right? That’s what you’re saying. <Laugh> I mean, it’s exciting. How has your conference been so far?
Dan Meyer (01:21):
So far it’s been a blast. I feel fed. I feel like the community’s been awesome. How are you feeling about it?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:29):
OK. Let’s talk about me for just a second.
Dan Meyer (01:31):
Yeah. Talk about you.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:31):
Last night, Dan, was the very first night that I was away from my toddler. <Audience: Aw!>
Dan Meyer (01:38):
Big commitment being here. Thank you.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:40):
I got super-emotional walking back to the hotel after dinner, and then I got in my room, <laugh> I put on pajamas, and I turned on music. I slept so good!
Dan Meyer (01:50):
Yeah. <Audience laughs> Give it up for no kids! <Audience laughs> Hey!
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (01:55):
I love him so much. But I slept all the way through the night. Oh, by the way, I ordered room service in the morning.
Dan Meyer (02:01):
On Amplify.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (02:01):
That bill’s coming. But it’s been a great conference and I’m so delighted to be here in person and to get to share energy…and hopefully that’s all we’re sharing today. Y’all got your tests, right? Yep. Sharing energy and community today. Because we know it’s been hard. Hardness. Hard.
Dan Meyer (02:25):
Yeah.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (02:26):
Years. Hard. And to be in person, I know conferences reinvigorate me and I go back into my educational spaces feeling revitalized with new connections and new ideas to try. So yeah, I’ve been excited to be here. And thank you all for being here.
Dan Meyer (02:40):
Yep. I don’t care if I get six different strains of Covid here. I’m just thrilled to be here. <Audience laughs> I don’t know if you’ve had the same feeling, though, Bethany, you folks…I’m a little bit confused to some degree about what we’re doing. I just wanna be really transparent. This is my sarcastic voice but I’m being sincere here. It kind of feels like we’re in a little bit of a time capsule. Like we all got in a time capsule in 2019 and, you know, you open it back up and it’s like, OK, so we’re still, you know, talking about X, Y, or Z protocol for establishing classroom routines or whatever. And I’m like, OK! Like, I loved that in 2019! But I do admit, I’m still trying to figure out a little bit like, what are we doing now? What’s our relationship to the world out there? Things are very different. I have had some great sessions that I’ve enjoyed. I’m also like, still waiting for a session to draw a little blood. Do you know what I mean? Like there’s been sessions…no? OK. You’ve been in these sessions where it’s like, “Oh, ow.” Like, and you look down and there’s and there’s blood there. It’s like, I thought I knew what we were up to. Like, I thought I knew what teaching was and how we relate to the world. I dunno, like in any Danny Martin session in 2019, “Take a Knee” was one, where I was like, “Oh, OK. Like, I’m not as hot as I think I am here. Like, I’m part of a system.” That kind of thing for me draws blood. And I haven’t been in one of those yet. Been some great sessions. I’m a little hopeful that today we draw a little blood and think about what we’re doing here, is my hope here, if that’s OK. So Bethany’s gonna moderate that impulse and she’ll be the fun one and I’ll be the blood-drawing one.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (04:05):
No, I don’t…that metaphor doesn’t speak to me personally. But what I will say is, I get what you’re saying about really wanting to be in that room where there’s like this synergy happening. No promises about that today other than—
Dan Meyer (04:18):
I promise. <Audience laughs> Go on.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (04:20):
Other than I get what you’re saying. I’ll find my own metaphor that does not involve bloodshed, but.
Dan Meyer (04:25):
Sure. There’s a lot of ways we we could go about this today. And the one that I’m excited about is, you know, we could like, you know, analyze some results from students, and talk about what went into that. Look at classroom video. Lots of possibilities. But here’s what we’re up to today. Hope you’re into it. Which is, we are here in the heart of the entertainment industry. You know, Tinseltown! Um, the Big Apple! Uh…
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (04:47):
No!
Dan Meyer (04:47):
Come on. What do you got here? Um…
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (04:51):
It was daytime at night. Like the lights were so bright.
Dan Meyer (04:54):
The City of Lights.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (04:55):
There was a movie premiere outside my hotel room, which I was not invited to, unfortunately. But so what are we doing today?
Dan Meyer (05:01):
So here’s what we’re doing. We are gonna settle, once and for all, a question you have not asked yourself yet, perhaps, but will want to know the answer to in a moment. Which is: Who is the best teacher in all of film or television? OK? We’re gonna do that. It’ll be fun. But I hope that in debating this a little bit with a special guest we’ll bring up in a moment, that we will start to uncover some truths about what makes good teaching. How that’s different from teaching as we see it in movies and tv. Why middle-class America wants teachers to look a certain way in movies and tv. What all that means. And it’ll be awesome. I think. I’m hopeful it’ll be awesome. So what we did here is we’ve invited eight people. Eight folks you people may have known. You’ve been in their sessions today, in this conference, perhaps. And asked them: Who’s your fave? Like, we might have our favorites, but we wanted to democratize it a bit. So asked some cool people who you folks like, who are very smart and thoughtful about teaching: Who’s your favorite teacher?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (05:58):
A few of whom are in this room. Thank you for your submission.
Dan Meyer (06:00):
Thank so much. Yeah. We’ll see what happens here. <laugh>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:03):
As they shrink down.
Dan Meyer (06:03):
Yeah. Might draw some blood that I don’t mean to right now. We’ll see. OK.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:06):
That metaphor, what IS that??
Dan Meyer (06:07):
Yeah. Yeah. I love it. I’m still going with it. <laugh> And you folks will be a huge part of this. THE part of this, really. So what will happen is I’ll share with you our first nominees. A few of us will make a case for our favorites, or least favorites, as the case may be sometimes. And then by applause, by acclamation, you folks will decide who wins and advances to the next round. Start with eight, move to four. You folks know math.You know where this goes. OK.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:34):
No, keep going. Keep going.
Dan Meyer (06:36):
Two, then one.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:36):
Yeah. Got it.
Dan Meyer (06:37):
Then a half of it. No?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:38):
He had to school me on the making of brackets. But we got it. Yeah.
Dan Meyer (06:41):
How brackets work.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:41):
But we got it. March Madness, what?
Dan Meyer (06:44):
Yeah, in order to do this right, we had to bring up—all the folks that you’ll see are also former Math Teacher Lounge guests, or like, just fan favorites. And we’re also bringing up a former Math Teacher Lounge guest to help us decide this and debate this in a respectful manner.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (06:59):
New dad.
Dan Meyer (07:00):
New dad.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (07:01):
You see where my brain’s still at? I miss him. <Laughs>
Dan Meyer (07:03):
Friend from San Diego. Really cool teacher.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (07:06):
Incredible teacher.
Dan Meyer (07:06):
Works at Desmos and Amplify. And I just want you to welcome up your friend and mine. Chris Nho!
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (07:11):
Chris Nho!
Dan Meyer (07:13):
Come up, Chris. Let’s go, buddy. We didn’t talk about it, but did you want to do the cornball stuff too?
Chris Nho (07:22):
Wow. Would I love to do—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (07:23):
And then the door could be locked! And then you have to wait and like, just—
Chris Nho (07:27):
Yeah, I’ll skip that part.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (07:28):
Hi. Welcome. You’re here. We’re here in person.
Chris Nho (07:30):
Very glad to be here. Thank you all for having me.
Dan Meyer (07:33):
Tell me who you are.
Chris Nho (07:34):
My name is Chris Nho. I live in San Diego. I’m a new dad. A three month old, just had. Yeah, she’s actually here at the conference with us in the hotel room. And I promise you she is not by herself. She is with…come on. I was like, “Hey, just gimme one hour. I’ll be right back. I have to do very important work.” But yeah, I think I got invited here because I have opinions and I’m willing to draw…some…blood.
Dan Meyer (08:02):
There we go! Two outta three! We’re good on the metaphor now.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (08:06):
We’re so glad you’re here. If you haven’t listened to the episode where Chris and Molly and some other public math folks share their ideas and ideas of how to take math out into the world, please listen, because we had a blast.
Dan Meyer (08:19):
Inspiring work. Really inspiring work. Very cool. Cool. OK. Right on. OK.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (08:23):
Let’s do this!
Dan Meyer (08:24):
Let’s get started here. Yeah! <Audience cheers> Yeah. And we might ask you who your favorite teacher is, who’s missing from our list of eight? We might have forgotten some people. Anyway. All right. So here’s our first two. Our first two are nominated by way of, let’s see, um, Mandy Jansen is a professor at the University of Delaware. Got some awesome talks here this week, a Shadow Con talk last night. She’ll be nominating one. And also, um, Lani Horn is a professor at Vanderbilt, also extremely cool, prolific author and speaker, just all-around great human and friend of teachers everywhere. And she’ll nominate another in this bracket, which is the Northeastern Comedy bracket, Northeastern comedy bracket.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (09:06):
It just worked out that way.
Dan Meyer (09:07):
Yeah. Here it is. Here is Tina Fey in Mean Girls.
Tina Fey in Mean Girls (09:12):
“OK. Everybody close your eyes. All right. I want you to raise your hand if you have ever had a girl say something bad about you behind your back. Open your eyes. Now close your eyes again. And this time I want you to raise your hand if you have ever said anything about a friend behind her back. Open up. It’s been some girl-on-girl crime here.”
Lani Horn (09:52):
I am nominating Sharon Norbury from Mean Girls as the best movie math teacher. She is an awesome teacher who is always there for her kids. She always sees the best in them. She shows that she can forgive even some pretty bad behavior, if she sees that kids are trying. She’s a strong feminist who makes sure that smart girls don’t dumb themselves down just to impress boys.
Tina Fey in Mean Girls (10:22):
“Katie, I know that having a boyfriend may seem like the most important thing in the world right now, but you don’t have to dumb yourself down to get guys to like you.”
Lani Horn (10:30):
She’s also super hard-working. She works three jobs. She’s always there for the kids. She plays piano in the talent show and takes them to Mathlete competitions. And she’s also socially aware. And when things go really badly among the girls, she does some pretty creative things to try to get them to be kinder to each other.
Dan Meyer (10:54):
OK. That’s one.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (10:55):
Helen Case.
Dan Meyer (10:57):
All right. Settle down. Settle down. Settle down. All right.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (10:59):
Piano too!
Dan Meyer (11:00):
Bethany’s already trying to bias people here. All right. Chill out. Hold on. So next one is Mandy Jansen with Jack Black from School of Rock. Uh-oh. Uh-oh.
Jack Black in School of Rock (11:09):
“What was your name?”
Kid in School of Rock (11:10):
“Katie.”
Jack Black in School of Rock (11:11):
“Katie. What was that thing you were playing today? The big thing.”
Kid in School of Rock (11:14):
“Cello.”
Jack Black in School of Rock (11:15):
“OK. This is a bass guitar and it’s the exact same thing, but instead of playing like this, you tip it on the side. Chellooooo! You’ve got a bass! <Laugh> Try it on.”
Mandy Jansen (11:25):
And I’m nominating for best teacher in a film Jack Black as Dewey Finn playing Mr. Ned Schneebly in the film School of Rock. So why this portrayal? First of all, playing a longterm sub. Those are so hard to find right now. <Audience laughs> Really hard. And then he teaches using class projects. That’s brilliant. Integrated learning. And then love this. He gives students roles and tasks that are differentiated and align to the specific strengths that each student has.
Kid 2 in School of Rock (12:05):
“I can also play clarinet, you know!”
Jack Black in School of Rock (12:06):
“I’ll find something for you when we get back from lunch. I’ll assign the rest of you killer positions.”
Mandy Jansen (12:13):
And the film culminates in a performance of a collaborative song that they all wrote and performed together. And the students experience that collaboration and teamwork and creating something beautiful is much more important than winning first place. And finally, one of the songs that the character sings in the film is “Math is a Wonderful Thing.” Can’t beat that.
Dan Meyer (12:40):
All right. That’s tough. That’s tough. So here’s the deal. What we have right now is just a quick minute—so Bethany, you ranked, we all ranked our own faves here outta the list of eight. And Bethany put Jack Black in School of Rock a bit higher than Tina Fey in Mean Girls.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (12:54):
Missed the piano part though.
Dan Meyer (12:55):
And Chris, vice versa here. So Bethany, would you start us off and just make a quick case here for Jack Black versus Tina Fey?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (13:01):
OK. So here’s what I’m thinking. There’s been rumor that maybe they’re putting less than credentialed people into classrooms to fill teaching gaps. I mean, just rumor. And so here’s this guy who is a rocker. He is not a substitute. He has no teaching training. And yet he goes in there and it turns out that he has the ability to see students’ potential and to recognize their unique abilities. And like Mandy said, he really tapped into, like, he saw them and said, “No, more is possible for you than what you think is possible.” And there’s like real sub anxiety. When you walk in, you can either be like, happy there’s a sub, but I was usually really nervous. Right? And he goes in and he makes that classroom into a home.
Dan Meyer (13:53):
Wow.
Chris Nho (13:54):
Wow.
Dan Meyer (13:56):
Chris, speak on it. Tina Fey needs you. Chris.
Chris Nho (13:59):
Tina Fey. Here we go. I’m gonna argue here that—when was that movie made?
Dan Meyer (14:03):
T is for terrific. I is for Interesting.
Chris Nho (14:06):
Decades ago. And I’m gonna argue that Tina Fey was very progressive for her time. OK, let’s talk about social emotional learning. Hello. <Audience laughs> Love that. Right? Stand up if, I mean, she’s getting people to talk about their emotions. And there’s a curriculum. But let’s just pause, because that’s not what’s really happening in the classroom right now. So social emotional learning, I think she’s, she’s got that a lot. And then number two, you know, if you remember the plot of Mean Girls a little bit, she gets her name written in that Burn Book. Like she sees what they say about her. Restorative justice. Let’s go. <Audience laughs>.
Dan Meyer (14:38):
Whom amongst us. Yes.
Chris Nho (14:40):
You write Mr. Nho in the Burn Book?? Well, your grade book is gonna look like a Burn Book! OK? <Audience laughs> Tina Fey, Tina Fey, she was like, “No, you know, know what? I’m actually gonna spend more time with you. You’re gonna become a mathlete.” And Lindsay Lohan discovers—she drops the most iconic line in all of math education. “The limit does not exist.” Thank you, Tina Fey, for that. For that gift.
Dan Meyer (15:04):
Bless. Bless you. Tina Fey. Wow.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (15:05):
Oh, man. Wow.
Dan Meyer (15:09):
Let’s see what the people say here. I do wanna just add one quick thing about—it’s interesting to me how often in these movies—just kind of go in a little bit, zoom out just a minute—how often it’s a teacher who has no training as a teacher. <Bethany laughs> I am kind of curious why it is. Like, those are the movies that get hot, that get made. Again, these are all kind of a mirror of the taste of the moviegoing public. You know what I’m saying? Like, these, these are not movies—I wanna believe they are made for me and for us as teachers. But they are not. There’s not enough of us to justify, you know, Jack Black’s, you know, M&M budget or whatever he’s got going on in his trailer or whatever. That needs to be for everybody in middle-class America. So what is it about middle-class America that wants to see teaching as something that anybody can do? Just like, you know, just, just run up there in your van and make it happen.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (15:54):
Magic magically manifests.
Dan Meyer (15:56):
Yeah. Manifest. Yeah. That’s just interesting to me. I just toss that out there as some red meat. Let’s see what the people say here. All right, OK, so you’re ready. Let’s get the bracket going here. The question is Tina Fey versus Jack Black. You had a moment here. Just whisper to someone real fast who you’re going for here real quick. What are you thinking here? <Crowd murmuring> All right. Crowd’s buzzing. Crowd’s buzzing. Would you folks…? All right. Bring it back. Go ahead and make some noise for Tina Fey. <Crowd cheers> OK. OK. Make some noise for Jack Black! <Crowd cheers> Judges say Tina Fey. Tina Fey moves on. All right. All right.
Chris Nho (16:44):
Stunned. I’m stunned. I’m speechless.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (16:46):
Tina Fey moves on. Wow.
Dan Meyer (16:48):
This has exceeded my expectations in terms of having some fun, but also getting deep, getting deep and real about teaching. I’m into this right here. Yeah. What’s up?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (16:54):
That’s the goal. That’s the goal. OK. You wanted blood? Oooh, this next matchup might just be where that blood comes forth! OK. Stretch. Warm up. Dan Meyer, who’s up next?
Dan Meyer (17:11):
We’ve got the animated/animatronic round here in the Southeast. And repping the two contestants here, who do we have? We have Allison Hintz, professor, author outta Washington, as one of the two nominators. And the other nominator is one of my heroes, though we’ll find out very wrong about this nomination, Jenna Laib, who’s in the crowd, and I’m trying not to make eye contact here. <Laugh> And here are the two nominations. A couple minutes each. And then we’ll chat about it. And one of us will probably die. But we’ll see how it goes.
Allison Hintz (17:50):
A long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, MTL, we began learning from the Jedi Master of Teaching. With the Socratic and experiential approach. With unparalleled mindfulness, compassion, and humility. The best teacher in TV and film, Yoda is. <Audience laughs> Yoda lives the values we share as teachers and learners. He humbly comes alongside us as we construct new knowledge.
Yoda (18:29):
“You must unlearn what you have learned.”
Allison Hintz (18:32):
Yoda allows us to struggle and sees mistakes as critical to learning.
Yoda (18:39):
“The greatest teacher, failure is.”
Allison Hintz (18:43):
Yoda values curiosity and reminds us of the beauty and joy of teachers learning from children.
Yoda (18:52):
“Truly wonderful, the mind of a child is.”
Allison Hintz (18:59):
MTL! Join the Resistance! Let the force flow through you in declaring, the best teacher in TV and film, Yoda is.
Dan Meyer (19:18):
Give it up for Allison Hintz! All right! <Audience applauds>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (19:20):
Alison! And to have that on hand too, which Is kind of perfect.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (19:26):
Just to be clear, the helmet is not a part of a Zoom background.
Dan Meyer (19:29):
You may evaluate the quality of the nomination based on the costumes of the nominator. That is acceptable. That’s acceptable.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (19:35):
That is a REAL HELMET.
Dan Meyer (19:35):
All right. The next nominator here, this one is from Jenna Laib, math coach, all-around stellar human. Here we go. This is Ms. Frizzle.
Ms. Frizzle (19:42):
“Single file, class. Our rotten field trip has only just begun.”
Jenna Laib (19:47):
And I think that the best teacher from TV or movies is Ms .Valerie Frizzle from The Magic School Bus. First and foremost, Ms. Frizzle believes in her students. She encourages them to take an active role in their learning, and also to advocate for change in their local community. For example, there’s an episode where there is a logger who’s gonna cut down a rotting log that would benefit the local ecosystem. And the students figure out a way to convince him to leave the log so that all of the animals and the plant life can benefit. She orchestrates really challenging situations for these students, and she allows them the space to ask questions and engage in problem-solving and puzzle their way out of these really, really difficult scenarios. Ms. Frizzle has unmatched pedagogy. She’s bold, she’s innovative, and she’s a major proponent of experiential learning. So these students are heading straight into a storm to learn about weather systems. <Audience laughs> These students are heading into the human body to learn about digestion and disease. They literally get baked into a cake to learn about some chemistry and reactions.
Children in The Magic School Bus (20:54):
“What’s happening?” <Audience laughs> “Why is it suddenly getting so hot?” “Maybe it’s because the floor is on fire!” <Audience laughs>
Jenna Laib (21:02):
This pedagogy is all led by her outstanding catchphrase, which is:
Ms. Frizzle (21:06):
“Take chances; make mistakes; get messy!”
Jenna Laib (21:14):
From her pedagogy to the classroom community that she creates, Ms. Frizzle is an inspiration, and that is why I think that she is the best teacher from TV or film. <Audience applauds>
Dan Meyer (21:25):
Right on! Give it up for Jenna. Give it up for Jenna. All right. I’m gonna take first pass at this. Chris knows my argument already, so I’m gonna take this here. I see some of you are feeling how I’m feeling on this one. OK, so I don’t have tons to say in favor of Yoda. I think it was all true what Allison said. I think the costume was banging. It was awesome. So there’s all that, but I have more to say against Ms. Frizzle than for Yoda.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (21:48):
No, no, no. Wait a second!
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (21:49):
Let’s let it happen. Bethany, I’ve come prepared.
Dan Meyer (21:54):
I may have made a misstep here, I realize.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (21:56):
I’ve come prepared.
Dan Meyer (21:56):
So I think Jenna is all correct. I think those clips spoke for themselves. I think that what they add up to, to me, is not “great teacher,” but more “someone who should be locked up.” <Audience laughs> Or at the very minimum, “someone who should be kept away from children.” <Audience laughs> Do not let that woman around children. I mean, check it out. Look, I don’t wanna throw down credentials. I’ve been to grad school, though. I know how this works. When your brain is stressed, you get these—all the cortisol happens. Your working memory shrinks up. You cannot learn when you’re stressed. And those kids, like whatever lesson Ms. Frizzle is teaching by sending them into an oven, I repeat, an oven <audience laughs>, like, they’re not gonna learn anything ’cause their brains are freaking out with stress and fear. OK?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (22:41):
“What’s happening??”
Dan Meyer (22:43):
“What’s happening? Am I on fire? Well…I’m learning lots, though! Sure is magical!” <Audience laughs> It’s like, “No. Get that woman out of a classroom.” That’s my opening and closing argument. Right? There’s all it is.
Chris Nho (23:01):
All right. All right. All right.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (23:02):
Chris knows.
Chris Nho (23:03):
I’ve got, I’ve got lots to say. First off, I think Dan was in charge of the editing of those video clips. So let’s let that be—you know, let the record stand. <Audience laughs>
Dan Meyer (23:11):
Where’s the lie though? Where’s the lie?
Chris Nho (23:14):
And, you know, second, I think, um—this is the guy up here saying, “I wanna see blood.” You know? And then he has a teacher who literally takes the students into a blood cell and, and you get a little scared! You get a little worried for the students, you know? So I just don’t get it, Dan. This or that. OK? I think Ms. Frizzle—so I actually went to a project-based learning school. I taught at a project-based learning school. And the best thing about it is like, your learning, it doesn’t just stay in this box of math lesson or writing lesson, history lesson. And I think with Ms. Frizzle, like you can’t help but learn things because you are getting baked in a cake. <Audience laughs> Yeah, it is a little scary. And I imagine there’s cortisol and things happening, but guess what? Probably the next episode, they go into their own brains and explore what’s happening. That kind of thing. You know?
Dan Meyer (24:07):
The kids that survived, just be clear. <Audience laughs>
Chris Nho (24:10):
Yeah. OK. Would I want Nora, my three-month-old, to be babysat by Ms. Frizzle? Maybe not. <Audience laughs> But what I have to say about Yoda is Yoda maybe wins the best tutor award. Give it up for Yoda’s Best Tutor Award.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (24:24):
Oh, yeah…
Chris Nho (24:25):
That ratio’s looking really nice. I could teach the heck outta Luke Skywalker. OK? But 20 little Luke Skywalkers running around. I’m not sure. OK?
Dan Meyer (24:34):
Luke did survive the training, though. <Audience laughs> So that’s awfully nice to say about it. All right, Great words from Chris here. I’m still not convinced. We’ll see how you’re convinced here. Would you whisper to someone where you’re leaning here? Frizzle or Yoda? <Audience buzzing>
Chris Nho (24:47):
I tried. I tried.
Dan Meyer (24:53):
All right. That’s enough of that. Let’s hear it folks. Give it up for Yoda. <Audience cheers> Give it up. Give it up. You. Give. It. Up.
Chris Nho (25:05):
Hey, next. Next.
Dan Meyer (25:06):
All right. All right, all right. <Mutters> Give it up for Ms. Frizzle. <Audience cheers louder> I dunno, it’s pretty close. Call a tie. Maybe Yoda? Yoda by nose? <Audience laughs> All right. All right. Let’s…let me see who’s it. Let’s get the people advancing here. I’ll keep on moving here.
Chris Nho (25:26):
As you’re doing that. Um, Dan ranked Ms. Frizzle last in his personal ranking. And I ranked Ms. Frizzle very high, so we knew this one would be spicy,
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (25:36):
<laugh> Spicy it was. Are you having a good time so far? <Audience cheers> So while we love seeing these images and we love seeing these video clips, at the core, what are these things about how teachers are portrayed? And how accurate is that to our real lives? I mean, besides the cake part, right? That my chemistry class did often feel like I was on fire. I was so stressed in it. Um, we’re ready?
Dan Meyer (26:05):
Yep. Great. We’re ready, we’re up here. So the next two nominees are coming to you folks from Tracy Zager, who is the editor of my book, forthcoming in 2027 at the earliest and 2032 at the latest. And also your very own Zak Champagne from Florida, here in the room. Hey, Zak. Zak, let’s see who the nominations are. I’m gonna skip past that, didn’t work out so well for me. Here it is. This is Marshall Kane from the TV show Community.
Michael K. Williams in Community (26:32):
“You two complete your case to the class and let them decide your grades.”
Joel McHale in Community (26:37):
“Professor, thank you.”
Michael K. Williams in Community (26:40):
“It’s not a favor, Mr. Winger. Man’s gotta have a code.”
Joel McHale in Community (26:44):
“Awesome.”
Zak Champagne (26:46):
This is a pitch for an underdog. This teacher didn’t stand on desks or encourage his students to follow their musical passions. In fact, this teacher was seen only in a few episodes of my favorite TV show of all time, Community, Community has set at Greendale Community College in Colorado. And in season three, we get to meet Dr. Marshall Kane, a biology professor whose story is an inspiration to anyone who just takes the time to look and listen. Dr. Marshall Kane slowly earned his PhD while in prison, serving a sentence of 25 to life. In his classroom, he inspires students to love biology, question why LEGO has become so complicated, and randomly pairs his students for group projects to ensure no one feels left out. His greatest performance comes when a group of students believe their yam project was intentionally sabotaged. Dr. Kane took this as an opportunity for some trans-disciplinary real-world learning. So yes, at community college, he felt that a middle-school mock trial was the best way to determine who killed the yam. So let’s all pick the underdog and vote for Dr. Marshall Kane. After all, man’s gotta have a code. <Audience goes “oh!” and applauds>
Dan Meyer (27:53):
Thank you, Zak.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (27:54):
I have a code.
Dan Meyer (27:56):
Next up is Tracy Zager, nominating an unusual nomination, not a single person, but an ensemble performance. A bunch of people from a movie called Searching for Bobby Fisher. Here we go.
Rapid-fire movie dialogue (28:11):
“What’s that?” “Schleimann attack.” “Schleimann attack? Where’d you learn that from, a book?” “No, my teacher taught me.” “Aw, your teacher. Well, forget it. Play like you used to, from the gut. Get your pawns rolling on the queen’s side.”
Tracy Zager (28:26):
Hey, Math Teacher Lounge. This is Tracy Zager. I’m excited to share my nominee for the best movie teacher. But I have to admit that when I first got the email, I thought, oh, who am I gonna nominate? Because most movies about teachers are highly problematic. They usually have like a saviorism thing, usually white saviors. And I just felt like I couldn’t suggest any of those. So rather than nominate a movie about a single teacher, I wanted to nominate a movie that taught me something about teaching. And that movie is a deep cut. It’s Searching for Bobby Fischer. It’s a movie about a chess prodigy. And what I love about it is that all of the different adults in the movie are in teacher roles in some way. And the student, Josh, the chess player, is a fully realized character, not an empty pail, who pulls from the strengths of each one of those adults while also dealing with their flaws and humanity. And there’s just beautiful synergy in the way he gets the best out of everybody, but also has to overcome some of the barriers that they put in front of him. So I feel like it’s a much more authentic and humbling, but also inspiring, movie about the power of teaching. So if you haven’t ever seen it, check it out. And I can’t wait to see who the other nominees are. Thanks so much.
Dan Meyer (29:53):
Right on. Thank you, Tracy. Wherever you are. <Applause> We’ll move a little quicker here. I’m curious, Bethany, you put Marshall Kane pretty high. I put Bobby Fischer pretty high. What do you have to say about Marshall Kane for us here?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (30:04):
Well, I just wanna say two things. One is that, like Zak said, he has this code of conduct that he brings in. And he stays true to it no matter what happens. If you saw him in in Community, you know that he held himself up to such high esteem, but not just himself, his students as well. And he took accountability when he felt he had done wrong, even though, well, that’s controversy. But first—oh, the other thing, rest in peace, Michael K. Williams. Oh my gosh. The actor who plays Marshall K. And the thing that I wanna say most of all about it is that he brings his whole self to the classroom. He was in prison for decades. He brings his whole self and says, “This is who I was. This is who I am today. And this is how we can work together as a community.”
Dan Meyer (30:58):
That’s big. I love your comments about code of conduct too. It makes me wish that Ms. Frizzle had a code of conduct also.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (31:05):
I knew that was coming back!
Chris Nho (31:06):
Two slides ago, Dan. That was two slides ago.
Dan Meyer (31:08):
Can’t let it go. So yeah, I love what you said there. I have no strong beef here either way. Bobby Fischer’s a movie I have loved dearly and can’t be objective about it. I love that the kid in that movie, more than any other movie here, the kid teaches the adults so much through his innocence and how he challenges them and how they’re treating him. Dig all that so much. Will not, will not begrudge anyone any vote either way here. I do begrudge many of you your vote in previous rounds. <Audience laughs> So let’s just, let’s hear. We’re not gonna ask you folks at all to chitchat. We’re gonna move on this one. So would you folks make some noise here for Marshall Kane in Community? OK. OK. And would you make some noise here for Bobby Fischer, the kid in Bobby Fischer, the ensemble? <Audience cheers, applauds>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (31:56):
Marshall Kane.
Dan Meyer (31:57):
Marshall Kane takes it. All right. Good job, Marshall Kane! All right. Zak’s feeling good. Moving on to the final four here, Zak, right on. OK. Our last—the Northwest Division here is also the large urban district division here. We have a couple different teachers in sets of large urban schools. They’re nominated, they’re advanced by a couple people here. One is past president of NCTM, Robert Berry. And another is Fawn Nguyen, Southern California phenom. Great teacher and friend of lots of us. Um, let’s see who they nominated here. First from Robert Berry, let’s see, who is it here? Janine Teagues from Abbott Elementary.
Abbott Elementary dialogue (32:37):
“Hey, you know what? I’m probably probably gonna be Kenny’s second-grade teacher. Why don’t you just let him get a head start with me today?” “That’d be great.” “Yeah? OK. Hey, Kenny, would you like to be in my group today?” “Not really.” “That’s the spirit.”
Robert Berry (32:54):
My nomination is gonna be Quinta Brunson, the Emmy Award-winning Quinta Brunson from Abbott Elementary. Janine Teagues is the character. She exemplifies care not only from an affect way, but she also exemplifies care in the things that she does for her students. While the scenes in the show are entertaining, they do represent the challenges that teachers experience when they’re trying to meet the needs of her students. So she goes, goes all out for her students and finding resources. She accesses other people to get resources for her students. But the care shows up in the way that she is mindful of their needs. And so, for me, when I think about teachers and teaching, sometimes we can talk about pedagogy, but sometimes we also can talk about those kind of intangibles that makes a teacher a great teacher. It is apparent from her students that she cares about them, she supports them, and she goes all out 100% for her students. Janine Teagues, Quinta Brunson is, I think, is my choice of the best teacher on television because of the realism and the representation that she brings to this character of what teaching is about. <Applause>
Dan Meyer (34:28):
Right on. Right on. OK. OK. Next up, we’ve got, Fawn Nguyen is nominating Erin Gruwell from Freedom Writers. Here we go.
Hilary Swank in Freedom Writers movie (34:39):
“Look, you can either sit in your seats reading those workbooks or you can play a game. Either way, you’re in here till the bell rings. OK? This is called the Line Game. I’m gonna ask you a question. If that question applies to you, you step onto the line and then step back away for the next question. Easy, right? The first question. How many of you have the new Snoop Dog album? <kids move around> OK, back away. Next question. How many of you have seen Boys in the Hood?”
Fawn Nguyen (35:26):
We all learn about Miss G and her 150 students in the movie Freedom Writers starring Hilary Swank. All great teachers share a common set of traits. They care deeply about their students, have high expectations of them, and always believing wholeheartedly that they will succeed. Great teachers go above and beyond, not because they extraordinary—as Anne Gruwell would always refer to herself as an ordinary teacher—but because extraordinary things happen to people when we believe in them, give them hope, help them write their own story with a different ending. So what stood out for me with Miss G is the scope of her reach, the ever-expanding sphere of her humanity. The red tape she had placed on the classroom floor for the line game shows just how much we all have in common despite our differences. Her students didn’t just learn from her; they learned from one another. If you’d like to be part of this expanding sphere to give voice and hope, please check out Freedom Writers Foundation dot org.
Dan Meyer (36:38):
OK. This right here is a tough one for us. Thank you, Fawn. We collectively ranked—that’s our number one seed and number eight seed, which I hasten to say does not have to do with Erin Gruwell, a person, but the portrayal and the movie. So we don’t have like a whole lot of…there’s not a lot of defense we have to offer here of our eighth seed. And I heard like a kind of a little bit of a murmur over the crowd on Erin Gruwell. So I’m more interested than having a defense back and forth. I’d be curious what you, Bethany, think about what, like, what both movies have to say about like, what teaching is, especially teaching urban schools with black and brown kids and lower-class kids, for instance. They both have, I think, very different things to say about them. Do you have thoughts about that?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (37:19):
Well, it’s interesting because there is some overlap in the sense that the arguments that both Fawn and Robert Berry put out, they both care deeply about their students, right? We’re not gonna argue that. They care deeply. And something that I would say about Miss Teagues is there’s something about the way that she sees not only her classroom, her students, but she sees all of the students in the school as her students. And her idea of resource generation is really helping the teachers to generate resources from their community themselves, and to also realize that the students see themselves reflected in the teachers. And I think that—you know, again, this is not about the real person—but the movie portrayal, and we often see kind of this, for Freedom Writers, we often see this like, Great Last Hope whisked in and her personal sacrifices are what makes these students, these brown and black students’ transformation possible. Because of her sacrifices. Including her marriage. Including, you know, three jobs. And it’s just portrayed in a way that I think really celebrates her sacrifices rather than what the students have already brought—they already come into the room bringing so much as they are, already, without her intervention.
Dan Meyer (38:38):
I love the portrayal of the teacher as part of a community of teachers. Versus in so many of these movies, it’s the teacher as the only person who gets it, you know, oftentimes coming from outside of the world of teaching and everyone’s against them and wants ’em just to fall in line and do the thing we always do, and they’re the outlier. But in Abbott Elementary, it’s like we all rise and we fall together. And teachers are investing in each other’s success, especially with Gregory the longterm sub. We’re all rooting for his, you know, his flourishing. I love that. And yeah. That’s bigtime.
Chris Nho (39:09):
Yeah, I think one interesting thing is that Freedom Writers, when it came out, I think it was like a commercial success.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (39:17):
Oh, big time. Yeah. It was.
Chris Nho (39:18):
It probably influenced a lot of people to try teaching out. So I do wonder what it says about us, right? Like that we want teaching to fit this narrative, and we wanna be those people who could go into a classroom and <puts on “cool voice”> “Y’all listen to Snoop Dog?” and just have that question HIT. <laughter> And you know, I’ve taught in a large urban school district, and I’ve been that person and I’ve seen other people try and be that person. And I think stepping away from it a little bit, just—it’s a reflection of what people want out of teaching and what they think better education looks like.
Dan Meyer (39:57):
Yeah, yeah. This idea that, so I’m a middle-class person, let’s say, and like, there’s this idea, like, “I know what I would do if I was going into circumstances of impoverishment.” Like I have—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (40:06):
“All they really need is…”
Dan Meyer (40:07):
…for me to give ’em some real talk and tell ’em, you know, pull their pants up or whatever, listen to Snoop Dog, that kind of thing. And that will be the key. And that’s not how it is in, you know, in Jack Black in School of Rock or Tina Fey school, which are, you know, coded as largely like upper-class or largely white schools. And in those movies, it’s interesting, like how it’s about students discovering themselves, oftentimes. And the central figures are often students. And the students need to reject an oppressive parent figure or something and find themselves. But no, in Freedom Writers, it’s like, “You need to become more like the middle-class teachers who are coming in here to give you this wisdom.” It’s just interesting. I do find it—a pet peeve of mine is when movies portray teachers as only successful if you endure, for instance, the failure of your marriage, or even in Stand and Deliver, for instance, like Jaime Escalante, they depict him having a heart attack. And, like, the job oughta be…easier. <Audience laughs>
Chris Nho (41:04):
Truth.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (41:05):
That’s the barometer for how much….
Dan Meyer (41:09):
Like, no heart attacks and no divorces related to the job, that kind of thing. I do love how in Abbott—one last thing and we’ll vote and Abbott will win <audience laughs>—is like how, like there, there is a lot of degradation in Abbott, but it’s not a divorce or a heart attack—it’s the petty indignities of asking a student, “Do you wanna hang with me?” And a student says, “Nah, not really.” And that just spoke to me like how it’s not cinematic, but teaching, successful teaching, is like a collection of developing an immunity to students saying, “You’re not hot.” <Laugh> You know? And so I love that. I do wish that there was more depiction of students in Abbott Elementary. It’s a lot of adult stuff. Whatever. Give it up for Abbott, if you would, please. Let’s just get this done here. All right. That’s plenty. That’s plenty. Not gonna ask folks about Freedom Writers. OK, let’s move on to— all right, let’s hear it for Freedom Writers! Yeah. OK, cool. We go, yep.
Chris Nho (42:05):
Plot twist!
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (42:07):
OK, let’s see our final four. Cut and paste. Real time. Real time.
Audience member (42:12):
Where’s Dolores Umbridge?
Dan Meyer (42:14):
Oh….
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (42:16):
Hey, did you hear that? He said, “Where’s Dolores Umbridge?”
Dan Meyer (42:20):
All right. OK.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (42:20):
See, we missed so many. We could…
Dan Meyer (42:21):
So coming up here, we’ve got in the Eastern Conference, Tina Fey and Ms. Frizzle. Y’all know how I feel about that one. Let’s just get this one done. OK, let’s give it up for Tina Fey. Let’s hear it. <Audience cheers> OK. All right. Yes! Let’s give it up for menace to children everywhere, the terror, the Ms. Frizzle. <Audience cheers> One more time for Tina Fey. Let’s hear it. <Audience cheers> One more time for Ms. Frizzle. Let’s hear it. <Audience cheers>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (42:59):
Yeah. OK.
Dan Meyer (43:00):
It took ’em one round, but they made the right call in the end. <Laugh>
Chris Nho (43:04):
All it took was 10 minutes of constant Ms. Frizzle-bashing. <Laugh>
Dan Meyer (43:09):
Persevering and problem-solving, that’s my game. Yes. All right. So, do either of you want to influence the audience one way or the other?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (43:16):
That’s not how I play, Dan.
Dan Meyer (43:18):
Oh, OK. Yeah, that’s true. That’s true. You’re good. On Abbott versus Marshall Kane, should we just let ’em have it? All right. All right. Give it up For Abbott Elementary. Not bad. And for Marshall Kane. OK. OK. I hear Zak and five other people. All right, cool. <laugh> Right on. All right. We got our, we got our finals,
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (43:45):
We did it. We made it to two. And we know: We left out a lot of people. Right? And honestly, I kind of wish we could poll like everyone. I mean, think you put it on Twitter, right? Like, who would you pick? But I would say we had a pretty solid eight there. I’m excited to see who… Look at the little crown he put, you guys. Come on.
Dan Meyer (44:05):
I worked hard for you. For you. <Laugh> Yeah. I liked that it was a good bunch that had a lot of different kinds of qualities…and lack of qualities in some cases. And it allowed us that—I shouldn’t knock her while she’s down, and she IS down, it’s true. <Laugh> And I appreciate the conversation we’ve had, what they have revealed overall about teaching and what the world wants teaching to be versus what it actually is or actually should be. I appreciate that. So let’s settle this here. Give it up, if you would, for Abbott Elementary. <Audience cheers> And give it up for Tina Fey in Mean Girls. <Audience cheers>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (44:49):
Wow.
Dan Meyer (44:51):
That was close. I almost give that to Tina Fey.
Audience member (44:55):
Yeah, we do!
Dan Meyer (44:55):
I don’t know. That was a bracket-buster for me right there. Yeah. I lost money in the office pool off that right there. Maybe let’s just find out one more time here. One more time.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (45:03):
Last time.
Dan Meyer (45:03):
Time to summon up all your conviction on one or the other here. No half-measures right now. All right.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (45:07):
Emmy Award-winning Quinta Brunson.
Dan Meyer (45:09):
Yeah, you saw Robert Berry on that, right? He was like, “Oh, I got one more card to play. Emmy Award-winning.” That’s admissible. That’s admissible. We’ll take that. All right. So…give it up for Abbott Elementary, one last time. <Audience cheers> OK. All right. All right. And give it up for Tina Fey in Mean Girls. <Audience cheers>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (45:30):
Drumroll, please!
Chris Nho (45:33):
Best teacher is….
Dan Meyer (45:34):
Tina Fey in Mean Girls! Yeah. Not a bad pick.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (45:39):
I love it. And I think, too, I think we’re gonna have a little bit of a more reflective lens than we thought we did when we see depictions of teachers in film and television. And, you know, hopefully we’ll see some new tropes come in, right?
Dan Meyer (45:55):
Yep. Yeah. Every dollar we spend on movies with lousy teachers is just encouraging these people to make more lousy teacher movies, you know? Awesome. Thank you for being here for a live taping—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (46:06):
Thank you for being here.
Dan Meyer (46:06):
—of our podcast, Math Teacher Lounge, in a hot room. Appreciate that. Yeah, it’s been fun for us to have you here. Um, super-important, super-important final remark: Bethany loves Oprah and Oprah occasionally, in the show—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (46:18):
Is she coming?! Is she here?!
Dan Meyer (46:19):
Not here! Not here! Calm down. Calm down. Um, but we do have in Oprah fashion, not something—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (46:24):
Oh. Oh, OK. Oh, that’s, that’s OK. Sorry. I got, had really excited for a second. As if the Amplify playing cards, The Amplify t-shirts being chucked at you at high speed—I did try to get a t-shirt cannon, and that was quickly ruled out <laugh>. They didn’t know about my rocket arm, right?
Dan Meyer (46:46):
Yeah, you got a cannon. <Laugh>
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (46:47):
Yeah. Oh, that’s a compliment. Oh, is that a compliment? Thank you, Dan. Thank you. Look under your seat because we have five winners. We wanna thank you for being here in person. We wanna thank the folks who are listening. We wanna thank Amplify. Oh my God. Somebody just pulled off the chair tag. You get to take that chair home with you.
Dan Meyer (47:08):
Does anybody have a prize?
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (47:10):
OK, stand up if you…stand up if you…Yes! Stand up if you have one!
Dan Meyer (47:16):
Free set of classroom dry-erase boards, right here. Congratulations.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (47:22):
And for you who pulled off the chair tag, I don’t know. We gotta we gotta find something for you.
Dan Meyer (47:27):
Put that in your backpack.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (47:30):
Thank you again for being here. Thank you. Amplify. Thank you, Desmos. Thank you. Dan Meyer.
Dan Meyer (47:36):
Thank you folks. Chris, thank you buddy.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (47:38):
Chris! Chris Nho, everybody!
Dan Meyer (47:40):
We will be, we will be at—Bethany and I will be at the booth, if you wanna chit-chat and hang out, sign some stuff. Whatever. You wanna have Bethany sign you, she’ll do that. Um, come on down to the Amplify booth and we’ll—
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (47:50):
We’ll talk to you more about Ms. Frizzle.
Dan Meyer (47:52):
Fun and prizes. I will share with my real thoughts about Ms. Frizzle down there. I’d love to see you. Thanks for being here, folks.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson (47:57):
Thanks for listening. Bye.
Stay connected!
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Meet the guests
Dan Meyer
Dan Meyer taught high school math to students who didn’t like high school math. He has advocated for better math instruction on CNN, Good Morning America, Everyday With Rachel Ray, and TED.com. He earned his doctorate from Stanford University in math education and is currently the Dean of Research at Desmos, where he explores the future of math, technology, and learning. Dan has worked with teachers internationally and in all 50 United States and was named one of Tech & Learning’s 30 Leaders of the Future.
Bethany Lockhart Johnson
Bethany Lockhart Johnson is an elementary school educator and author. Prior to serving as a multiple-subject teacher, she taught theater and dance and now loves incorporating movement and creative play into her classroom. Bethany is committed to helping students find joy in discovering their identities as mathematicians. In addition to her role as a full-time classroom teacher, Bethany is a Student Achievement Partners California Core Advocate and is active in national and local mathematics organizations. Bethany is a member of the Illustrative Mathematics Elementary Curriculum Steering Committee and serves as a consultant, creating materials to support families during distance learning.
About Math Teacher Lounge: The podcast
Math Teacher Lounge is a biweekly podcast created specifically for K–12 math educators. In each episode co-hosts Bethany Lockhart Johnson (@lockhartedu) and Dan Meyer (@ddmeyer) chat with guests, taking a deep dive into the math and educational topics you care about.
Join the Math Teacher Lounge Facebook group to continue the conversation, view exclusive content, interact with fellow educators, participate in giveaways, and more!
You might also like:
Welcome to Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition, Utah Reviewers!
We’re excited to share everything you need to review Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition, our K–5 core literacy program. On this site, you’ll find a comprehensive collection of resources and overviews to get you started, as well as a range of materials to explore the program, including Teacher Guides, Activity Books, Student Readers, and more, organized by grade and unit.
Please note that the files on this site are static representations of the high-quality materials you’ll review on the digital platform.
Reviewer resources
Access key materials designed to support your review of Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition.
- Utah Instructional Strategies and Routines
- Utah Science of Reading Evidence-Informed Core Criteria Checklist
- Utah State Standards for English Language Arts and 3rd Edition Core Knowledge Language Arts Alignment
- Program Guide
- Components Guide
- Amplify Technology Requirements
- Choice Units Overview
- Text Types and Text Complexity Guide
- Writing Brochure
- Assessment Overview
- K–5 Knowledge Map
- Scope and Sequence by Grade and Strand:
- Text Types and Range of Writing by Grade:
Digital platform access
Amplify CKLA’s all-in-one platform offers essential tools that streamline instruction for teachers and engage students with meaningful content.
In order to access your digital materials, you’ll need to log into our platform using your unique login credentials found on the Start Here flyer inside of your Reviewer Binder. Once you have located the flyer:
- Click the orange button below to access the platform.
- Click “Log in with Amplify.”
- Enter the username and password provided on your Start Here flyer.
The video below will provide you with instructions on how to access and navigate the digital platform.
Teachers can plan and deliver lessons efficiently, while students can access assignments, assessments, and fun practice games within the CKLA digital platform. The digital experience includes:
Presentation Screens
Deliver interactive lessons with ready-made, customizable slides for every lesson.
Auto-scored digital assessments
Assess vocabulary, comprehension, and knowledge development at the end of each K–2 Knowledge and 3–5 Integrated Unit.
Standards-based reports
Identify strengths and growth areas for individuals, small groups, or your entire class. Interactive dashboards offer detailed results from assessments and activities.
Skill-building practice games
Engage students with interactive games that reinforce concepts and make learning fun. Powered by Boost Reading™, these games align with lessons and provide real-time feedback.
eReader
Students access texts, take notes, and use audio-enabled eReaders to enhance their reading experience.
Sound Library
Students watch articulation videos and listen to songs for each sound to support phonological awareness.
Vocab App
Helps students in Grades 3–5 practice Amplify CKLA Tier 2 vocabulary words with fun, interactive games.
Intervention Toolkit
Offers user-friendly resources designed to aid educators in identifying and addressing deficiencies in students’ foundation skills.
Kindergarten
Explore all available resources for Kindergarten, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
|
Unit 1: Star Light, Star Bright: Nursery Rhymes and Fables |
Unit 2: See, Hear, Smell, Taste, Touch: The Five Senses |
Unit 3: Underdogs and Heroes: Stories |
|
Unit 4: See How They Grow: Plants |
Unit 5: Moo, Cluck, Oink: Farms |
Unit 6: Deep Roots: Introduction to Native American Cultures |
|
Unit 7: All Around the World: Geography |
Unit 8 (Choice): Royal Tales: Monarchs |
Unit 8 (Choice): National Icons: Presidents and American Symbols |
|
Unit 9 (Choice): Our Planet: Taking Care of the Earth |
Unit 9 (Choice): Rain and Rainbows: Seasons and Weather |
Unit 10: Shaped by Nature: Art and the World Around Us
|
Skills Strand
|
Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
|
Unit 7 |
Unit 8 |
Unit 9 |
Grade 1
Explore all available resources for Grade 1, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
|
Unit 1: The Moral of the Story: Fables and Tales |
Unit 2: From Nose to Toes: How Your Body Works |
Unit 3: Common Threads: Different Lands, Similar Stories |
|
Unit 4: Reach for the Stars: Astronomy |
Unit 5: Charting the World: Geography |
Unit 6: A World of Homes: Animals and Habitats |
|
Unit 7: A New Nation: American Independence |
Unit 8 (Choice): Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tales |
Unit 8 (Choice): Our Planet: The History of the Earth |
|
Unit 9 (Choice): From Babylon to the Nile: Early World Civilizations |
Unit 9 (Choice): Early Americas: Maya, Aztec, and Inca |
Unit 10: Adventure Stories: Tales from the Edge
|
Skills Strand
|
Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
|
Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
|
Unit 7 |
Ancillary Components |
Grade 2
Explore all available resources for Grade 2, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
|
Unit 1: Fortunes and Feats: Fairy Tales and Tall Tales |
Unit 2: The Birthplace of Democracy: Ancient Greece |
Unit 3: Legends and Heroes: Greek Myths |
|
Unit 4: Our Planet: Cycles in Nature |
Unit 5: Butterflies, Bees, and Beetles: Insects |
Unit 6: A House Divided: The American Civil War |
|
Unit 7: Sounds and Stanzas: Poetry |
Unit 8 (Choice): Journeys to America: Immigration |
Unit 8 (Choice): Making a Difference: Creating Change |
|
Unit 9 (Choice): Building Blocks: All About Nutrition |
Unit 9 (Choice): Early Asian Civilizations: India and China |
Unit 10: Taking Flight: The Age of Aviation
|
Skills Strand
|
Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
|
Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
|
Ancillary Components |
Grade 3
Explore all available resources for Grade 3, organized by unit.
Core Units
|
Unit 1: Timeless Tales: Classic Stories |
Unit 2: Fur, Fins, and Feathers: Animal Classification |
Unit 3: Rhythm and Rhyme: Poetry |
|
Unit 4: Rise and Fall: Ancient Rome |
Unit 5: Our Solar System and Beyond: Astronomy |
Unit 6: Regions and Cultures: Native Americans |
|
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: Charlotte’s Web
|
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: Stella Díaz Has Something to Say
|
Unit 8 (Choice): Systems and Senses: The Human Body |
|
Unit 8 (Choice): From Glow to Echo: Light and Sound |
Unit 9: From Blues to Bebop: All That Jazz
|
Supplemental Skills
Grade 3 Skills resources are included in core classroom kits, although the instruction isn’t required for Grade 3 standards coverage.
|
Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
|
Unit 4 |
Grade 4
Explore all available resources for Grade 4, organized by unit.
|
Unit 1: My Story, My Voice: Personal Narratives |
Unit 2: Knights and Castles: Europe’s Middle Ages |
Unit 3: Meaning and Metaphor: Poetry |
|
Unit 4: Eureka! Student Inventor |
Unit 5: Our Planet: Geology |
Unit 6: Road to Independence: The American Revolution |
|
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
|
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Season of Styx Malone
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Unit 8 (Choice): Crafting Stories: A World of Tales |
|
Unit 8 (Choice): Adventure on the High Seas: Treasure Island |
Unit 9: Inspiration and Ingenuity: American Innovation
|
Grade 5
Explore all available resources for Grade 5, organized by unit.
|
Unit 1: In My Own Words: Personal Narratives |
Unit 2: Early Americas: Maya, Aztec, and Inca |
Unit 3: Visions in Verse: Poetry |
|
Unit 4: A Knight’s Tale: Don Quixote
|
Unit 5: The Deep Blue World: Oceans |
Unit 6: Cultures and Histories: Native Americans |
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Phantom Tollbooth
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Science of Breakable Things
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Unit 8 (Choice): Arts and Culture: The Renaissance |
|
Unit 8 (Choice): Through the Forest: A Midsummer Night’s Dream |
Unit 9: Building Up the World: Global Architecture
|
Welcome to the Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition program review site!
Four steps administrators can take to shift to the Science of Reading
Four steps administrators can take to shift to the Science of Reading
Free, high-quality lessons without the scavenger hunt.
Discover more than a thousand free lessons bursting with interactivity—across K–12 math, literacy, and science.
More than 300,000 teachers turn to Amplify Classroom for captivating lessons and virtual manipulatives.
Get your classroom buzzing with our powerful teaching tools.
Tailor lessons to fit your needs.
Easily customize premade lessons or create your own with our drag-and-drop lesson builder.
Share and celebrate student ideas.
Take snapshots of classwork to foster discussion and highlight student thinking.
Gain insights into student thinking.
Monitor your students’ ideas in real time so you can adapt instruction on the fly.
Control the flow of instruction.
Pace students to specific parts of the lesson, or pause to explore concepts more deeply.
What are people saying?
Martin Joyce
@martinsean
Love this #AmplifyClassroom kindergarten activity! First the octopus checks sums of 8 then the sea urchin comes out. Great job. I’ve been wary about making my kids not hate math (no drill n kill) and they’re asking can we do math on the computer before bed. Yes! Cc @ddmeyer
Traci Jackson
@traciteacher
After an audible groan b/c the activity was paused, Ss made sense of ordered pairs through a purposeful #AmplifyClassroom experience! This S pair wrote without any prompting. Great collaboration and learning in 5th grade today!
Mark Labuda
@mrmlabuda
Hands down the best virtual manipulatives I’ve ever come across.
Join our community
More than 30,000 educators share advice, lessons, wins, and more in our Amplify Classroom Educators Group. Be a part of the conversation!
Interested in learning about the benefits of being an Amplify customer?
Amplify Classroom FAQ
Amplify Classroom (formerly Desmos Classroom) is a free K–12 teaching platform that gives educators access to a library of high-quality, interactive lessons in math, literacy, and science. The platform is built with tools that promote student engagement and collaboration, while giving teachers real-time visibility into student thinking.
Amplify Classroom supports K–12 educators across math, science, and literacy. The platform offers more than 1,000 free interactive lessons, with content designed to build deeper understanding and student engagement at every grade level.
No. Teachers can create a free Amplify Classroom account and immediately access teaching tools and hundreds of lessons without a district license or subscription. Paid programs such as Amplify Desmos Math and Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) also run on Amplify Classroom, and you can access that content through the same platform if your school or district subscribes to these programs.
Some schools and districts require that specific URLs be added to their allowlist before teachers can access Amplify Classroom. A full list of permitted domains can be found at amplify.com/allowlist. Teachers should share this information with their school or district IT team.
Amplify Classroom offers built-in tools that promote real-time teacher visibility and student engagement. Key features include:
- Real-time student insights: See student responses and thinking as they happen, all in one easy-to-use teacher dashboard.
- Teacher pacing controls: Pause a lesson or advance all student screens simultaneously.
- Select and sequence student work: Highlight student ideas live by selecting and sharing student work during a discussion.
- Anonymous student sharing: Display student work to the class without showing students’ real names.
- Lesson customization: Copy and edit pre-built K–12 lessons or build your own from scratch using our drag-and-drop lesson builder.
- Class management tools: Create and manage multiple classes, add co-teachers, and organize rosters.
Yes. Teachers can customize our K–12 lessons or even create lessons from scratch to meet their students’ unique needs. This includes adding things like pre-made screens, images, multiple-choice questions, graphs, and more with our drag-and-drop lesson builder.
Yes. Many teachers use Amplify Classroom to supplement their existing curriculum. The platform can be integrated into any part of a teacher’s day, with a wide library of lessons and tools for core or supplemental instruction.
For schools seeking a full core curriculum, Amplify also offers paid programs including Amplify Desmos Math and Amplify CKLA, both fully integrated into the platform.
Yes. Amplify Classroom supports signing in with Google. Teachers can import class rosters directly from Google Classroom to streamline setup. For Amplify customers, Clever integration is available for school and district rostering. You can learn more about our integrations here.
Amplify Classroom is built to facilitate compliance with applicable student data privacy laws, including FERPA, COPPA and other applicable laws related to the collection and use of student data. To provide Amplify Classroom to students, Amplify receives Student Data as a “school official” in accordance with Section 99.31 of FERPA and COPPA guidance, and operates at the direction of the school. You can read more about this in our Acceptable Use Policy and Customer Privacy Policy.
Science testimonials
Whether science is just one of the subjects you teach or the subject you teach all day, you do amazing things in your classroom. We want to showcase those moments.
Help us champion science and shine a light on the future of learning by contributing your science testimonials.
Share your science story!
Use this form to let us know how you would like to share your story. You can submit your experiences (in words, photos, or even videos) directly through the form or express interest in serving as a reference or joining a research group, and we’ll be in touch!
USBE Data Analysis for K-3 Reading Assessment Program
Introduction
mCLASS Assessment: Acadience™ Reading
How it works: Quickly identify the needs of each student and inform next steps with instant analysis, reports, and instructional planning tools included in the only licensed mobile version of the research-based Acadience Reading assessment.
- Use short, 1-minute fluency measures for foundational reading skills.
- Replace manual calculations with instant results and recommended activities.
- Compare student progress with predictive, research-based benchmark goals.
- Track progress and target instruction to individual student needs.
- Support decision-making at every level using aggregate reports.
- Translate class- and student-level reports into individualized instruction using the Now What?Tools.
- Get a more complete view of early literacy skills with the new mCLASS:Early Literacy Measures (ELM).
Enrollment for mClass
Please review the Utah Enrollment for mCLASS document for important information about the rostering process for LEAs in Utah.
Benchmark Windows
The USBE has required that each Acadience Reading testing benchmark window occur within the below dates:
BOY — the first benchmark before October 14
MOY — the second benchmark between December 1 and February 5
EOY — the third benchmark between the middle of April and June 15
Benchmark windows for LEAs are set to the state benchmark window dates in mCLASS. Each LEA is to have 2-4 week benchmark period that is within the state benchmark window dates and LEA leaders are to share those dates with staff. The benchmark windows in mCLASS are set to the state benchmark window dates; not the LEA benchmark window dates and this can not be changed in mCLASS. If a student moves into your LEA and your benchmark window is closed, but the state benchmark period is still open, the student must be benchmarked. Should your LEA need an extension of a benchmark window beyond the close of the state benchmark windows, that must be approved by the USBE Assessment Department. Once the benchmark window closes, do not give the benchmark to a student, instead, educators can progress monitor the student on the measures they would have received a benchmark in order to get the students current instructional levels.
If you have questions regarding your current benchmark window dates, feel free to reach out to Amplify Customer Services at help@amplify.com.
Acadience Reading Benchmark Invalidations
Before you invalidate a benchmark probe, review the USBE’s list of acceptable reasons for invalidating on the Frequently Asked Questions: Acadience Reading Invalidations document. If a district/charter has a significant percentage of invalidations, contact and further action will be deployed. If you believe an invalidation is required, please contact your District/Charter Literacy Director. If they need support, they can contact Sara Wiebke, sara.wiebke@schools.utah.gov, to request an invalidation.
Progress Monitoring
The impact of progress monitoring
Progress monitoring is the most powerful tool we offer with regards to student achievement.
“Scores for Daze increase more slowly than they do for other Acadience Reading measures, so more frequent monitoring may not be as informative. For students who need to be monitored on Daze, we recommend monitoring once per month.”
Progress Monitoring with Acadience Reading
© Acadience Learning
October 2012
The Acadience Reading authors recommend progress monitoring students in the Well Below Benchmark category once every 7-10 days (and once every 10-12 days for students in the Below Benchmark category).
Progress monitoring is the practice of testing students briefly but frequently on the skill areas in which they are receiving instruction, to ensure that they are making adequate progress. When students are identified as at risk for reading difficulties, they can receive progress monitoring testing more frequently to ensure that the instruction they are receiving is helping them make progress. (Acadience Learning/October 2012, Progress Monitoring Guide)
The purposes of progress monitoring are:
- to provide ongoing feedback about the effectiveness of instruction,
- to determine students’ progress toward important and meaningful goals, and
- to make timely decisions about changes to instruction so that students will meet those goals.
How to progress monitor?
- Select students for progress monitoring
- Select Acadience Reading materials for progress monitoring
- Set progress monitoring goals
- Determine the frequency of progress monitoring
- Conduct progress monitoring assessment
- Access data through class and student reports
- Evaluate progress and modify instruction.
The key to progress monitoring: Instruction should link to progress monitoring and progress monitoring should link to instruction. They should run parallel and merge as one to confirm student growth in reading.
Check your progress monitoring fidelity report in mCLASS to ensure you are on track with these students. For more information regarding progress monitoring guidelines, visit the official progress monitoring guidelines.
Support Team
Amplify Customer Services
(800) 823-1969
Monday to Friday, 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. MT
help@amplify.com
Educational Support Team
Pedagogical Questions
(800) 823-1969
Monday to Friday, 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. MT
edsupport@amplify.com
For more information, please contact:
Sarah McCarty
Associate Director, Educational Partnership
(812) 593-5776
smccarty@amplify.com
Donna Bright
Educational Partnership Manager
(303) 960-3772
dbright@amplify.com
Robert McCarty
Regional Director of Educational Partnership
(435) 655-1731
rmccarty@amplify.com
Cydnee Carter
Assessment Development Coordinator
(801) 538-7654
cydnee.carter@schools.utah.gov
Liz Williams
Elementary ELA Assessment Specialist
(801) 538-7542
Liz.williams@schools.utah.gov
Sara Wiebke
Literacy Coordinator
(801) 538-7935
sara.wiebke@schools.utah.gov
Krista Hotelling
K-3 Literacy Specialist
(801) 538-7794
krista.hotelling@schools.utah.gov
Christine Elegante
K-3 Literacy Specialist
(801) 538-7551
christine.elegante@schools.utah.gov
Julie Clark
K-3 Literacy Specialist
801-499-2515
julie.clark@schools.utah.gov
Melissa Preziosi
Assessment Data Specialist
(801) 538-7949
melissa.preziosi@schools.utah.gov
Resources
Helpful tips and guides
- Implementation Roadmap Every school system has different objectives and needs, and this document is designed to help you define how the mCLASS system can best support you in achieving your goals.
- Checklist Use this checklist to ensure your staff is trained and your programmatic expectations are clearly communicated to all stakeholders. Completing each of these steps during the correlated benchmark window will help you realize the full value of your mCLASS assessment program.
- mCLASS: Online Help
- Acadience Reading Assessment Manual (Note: You will need to register as a user to get access to the materials; both registration and materials are available at no cost.)
- Acadience Reading Benchmark Goals and Composite Score
- Grouping Worksheets for Acadience Reading
- Acadience Reading Key Skills This document correlates the Acadience Reading measures to Basic Early Literacy Skills.
- The Big Ideas in Early Reading This document is a reference of the five Big Ideas in Early Reading.
- Acadience Reading Reminders A list of reminders the teacher can give to students while assessing Acadience Reading.
- USBE Literacy Framework
- Utah School Report Card: Early Literacy
- Utah State Board of Education Reading on Grade Level Targets for Acadience Reading K-6
- Five leadership practices that drive success in K-2 literacy
mCLASS:Acadience Reading tutorials
- mCLASS:Acadience Reading Next Scoring Practice
- mCLASS Now What? Tools Tutorial
- Pathways of Progress: Purpose
- ?Pathways of Progress: Setting Meaningful Goals
- Pathways of Progress: Highly Skilled Learners Criteria
- ?Goal Setting in mCLASS
- mCLASS How to calculate student pathways video
- Calculating Pathways from DYD Presentation
Technical resources
Amplify Enrollment This guide walks you through the necessary steps to complete enrollment using the manual enrollment tools on Amplify Home. It shows you how to manage staff, student, and class assignment information, and maintain the accuracy of your staff, student, and class assignments.
Devices & Requirements Ensure mCLASS is compatible with your devices and systems for optimal performance and support.
Remote Assessing
Videos:
Remote Assessment Guidance from the Acadience Team:
mCLASS®: Acadience® Reading (formerly known as DIBELS Next)
Key Points:
Before you assess:
1. Determine how you will show student materials and score in mCLASS at the same time.
| Description | |
|
Description Recommended set up |
|
| Modified set up |
Note: mCLASS app is optimized for touchscreen; scoring with a mouse may need more practice. |
2. Familiarize yourself with the digital copies of student materials.
3. Schedule virtual meetings with students. To communicate with English-speaking caregivers, consider sending this email or video. To communicate with Spanish-speaking caregivers, consider sending this email or video.
4. Determine how you will handle scenarios where there’s a lag:
| Description | |
| Record the meeting |
|
| Use a phone |
|
While you assess:
1. Take the opportunity to connect individually with your students as they experience so much change. Don’t make the session solely about testing, and remind caregivers and students that the assessment is a way to see how you can best tailor instruction.
2. Make student materials visible to your student.
For Maze, choose the model that works best for you:
Enter results into the mCLASS web reports
- Students complete online Maze during a video conference
- Put a link to the student assessment site (mclass.amplify.com/student) and the student’s credentials into the chat box (learn how to generate student credentials in this video)
- Ask your student to complete Maze.
- Students complete online Maze outside of a video conference (caregiver support is needed with log-in)
- Students complete Maze on paper
- Locate the benchmark Maze Acadience Learning’s site.
- Print a copy of the form you need (e.g. BOY) for each student in your class.
- Send the form home in a sealed envelope with students, mail the form to caregivers, or have caregivers get forms via school-based pick-up. Provide instructions not to open the envelope until the student is ready to take the assessment.
- Provide parents with instructions on how to proctor the assessment for their child. They need to:
- Give the form to their child
- Sit with their child and read the instructions and practice items
- Tell their child to stop when 3 minutes has elapsed
- Send screenshots of their child’s work via email or text, or return the completed form to the school in a sealed envelope provided by the school.
| Guidance | |
| Acadience:Reading |
Use the share screen feature to display student materials on your screen. Optional next step for measures that have student materials: Zoom users: grant your student control of your screen so you can see their cursor as they read:
Note: For Mac OSX, you will need to give Zoom access in the Accessibility tab in the Privacy and Security preferences of your Mac. For more information on giving Zoom access in Security and Privacy, click here. |
3. Score in mCLASS.
| Benchmark | Progress monitoring | |
| Acadience Reading (formerly known as DIBELS Next) | Available for free download on the Acadience Learning website | |
Welcome to the Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition program review site!
Amplify integrations
New and noteworthy updates to your Amplify programs!
This back-to-school season, explore new updates and exciting features that will save you time, extend your reach, and enhance your ability to deliver the types of rigorous and riveting learning experiences you and your students deserve.
Select an Amplify program below to learn what’s coming, and to read about other notable features to keep in mind as you head into a new year of learning!
Strengthening critical thinking with a content-first approach: How Amplify CKLA is closing gaps in an elementary classroom
In my first-grade classroom, we’ve been studying early world civilizations. My students and I have pretended to hop in our time machines and travel back—first to ancient Mesopotamia, then to ancient Egypt. We’ve written our names on clay tablets in cuneiform and learned what it means for a religion to be polytheistic. We’ve compared and contrasted early farming systems and places of worship. As I prepared to read aloud another lesson a few days ago, I mentioned to the class that it was the eleventh lesson in the unit of study, prompting widened eyes and a chorus of “Already!?”
I teach eighteen six- and seven-year olds in a Title I school, where half of the students are low-income, 75% are non-white, and over half are multilingual/English learners or speak another language at home. In my job, I’m honored to empower students who schools and society have not always served well. I became a teacher to help end that inequity—to close the knowledge gap and ensure that low-income, non-white, and immigrant children receive the tools they need to build a bright future. A growing body of research tells us that a strong base of content knowledge is essential for student growth and success in literacy. We also know that students who come from low-income backgrounds are less likely to come to school possessing the academic background knowledge of their peers, presumably because they have more limited opportunities to come across this type of knowledge at home. For this reason, I’m grateful that around a year and a half ago, my district adopted the knowledge-based literacy curriculum CKLA.
Scenes from a knowledge-based curriculum
What does knowledge-based learning look like in practice? Here’s one powerful example of how a knowledge-forward lesson helped my students succeed in practicing an important literacy skill. We were reading about Howard Carter, the British archaeologist who wanted to locate Tutenkhaman’s tomb. The lesson lends itself well to one of our state’s curriculum standards for the quarter: to make and confirm predictions about nonfiction text. Part one of the Read-Aloud ends on a cliffhanger: After a years-long search with no success, encountering dead ends and tomb robbers, Carter uncovers a hidden door marked with a royal seal.
“A prediction,” I explained, “is a careful guess about what you think might happen, based on the clues you already know. Think about what you know from the story, and predict what Carter might find behind the door.” We quickly reviewed some of the main points as I scribed on chart paper: Carter had been searching for Tutenkhaman’s tomb for six years, pharaohs were often buried with treasure or gold, the door they found was in the last possible place to look in the Valley of the Kings. I handed out papers I’d prepared with sentence frames for students to record or dictate their ideas. We hadn’t yet spent much time this year explicitly practicing prediction-making—in fact, I wondered how many of my students even knew what the word prediction meant—but I could see the wheels already turning behind most of my students’ eyes as they wiggled with excitement, envisioning gold, ghosts, King Tut’s tomb, or a pile of bones.
“Maybe nothing,” one student—a six-year-old who speaks primarily Spanish at home—told me with a shrug as I helped him write down his ideas. “Maybe the tomb robbers took it all.”
How to improve critical thinking—with knowledge
Even though my students might or might not have been familiar with the literacy skill of making and confirming predictions, the rich and meaty Read-Aloud set them up for success. It was rife with topics of interest to many a six- or seven-year-old—exploration, tomb robbers, golden treasure, mummies—which kept them engaged. And it included plenty of details through which they could actually draw a meaningful inference about what Carter might have found. I had to explain only once that a prediction should be based on information you already have—not a random guess—and every one of my eighteen students successfully generated a plausible idea.
This is the magic of a knowledge-based curriculum. It levels gaps in learning by generating a rich, shared base of content knowledge that supports the development of key literacy skills. My students were successful in plausibly guessing what might happen next in the story because they had a strong grasp of the information about Howard Carter. I might have chosen to teach an entire mini-lesson on prediction-making first and then asked my students to apply the skill to a less thoughtfully selected text, or to an independently selected book on their own, but if they weren’t already familiar with the topics it covered, my guess is that they would have been far less successful.
The curriculum standards for literacy in both the Common Core and Virginia (my school’s state) emphasize critical thinking skills and specific comprehension strategies, such as inferencing, over content knowledge. This is understandable: Students must learn to make meaning of a text in front of them, not just read the words on the page. But as Natalie Wexler puts it, “The ability to think critically…is inextricably linked to how much knowledge you have about the situation at hand” (The Knowledge Gap, 39). How could my students make a prediction about a future event in a text if they didn’t understand the textual clues they were given in the first place? Especially given that students from low-income homes are likely to possess less background knowledge about the curriculum they will encounter in school, a focus on teaching skills in isolation can contribute to a far-from-level playing field.
Teaching “comprehension skills” first and then expecting students to apply them is common practice in the method of literacy instruction frequently referred to as balanced literacy. Though the conversation about literacy is, thankfully, moving toward a research-backed approach focused on the Science of Reading, we still have a long way to go. While student teaching during my education master’s program less than three years ago, I was encouraged to teach mini-lessons on topics such as “finding the main idea” and “using topic headings to understand,” which students would then practice with independently selected texts. This approach is not supported by research as a best practice—and it assumes a shared base of cultural knowledge. In that way, it entrenches inequality by privileging students who may already possess more background knowledge, allowing our most vulnerable learners to fall even further behind.
By contrast, a knowledge-based curriculum creates that base together, giving all students a better chance at success. My own experience confirms the research. CKLA empowers my students to take ownership of their learning, expand their vocabularies, make connections, and passionately engage. I’m grateful to use an evidence-based curriculum designed to ensure that every student—including those too often left behind by our schools and other institutions—can learn to read.
More to explore
- Join thousands of educators like you and subscribe to Science of Reading: The Podcast!
- Science of Reading Star Awards: Meet and celebrate other educators who are leading the way!
Welcome, Michigan Committee for Literacy Achievement!
We’re excited to share everything you need to critically evaluate Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition, our K–5 core literacy program. On this site, you’ll find a range of materials and literacy tools, including Reviewer Resources and Teaching Materials (Teacher Guides, Activity Books, and Student Readers) organized by grade and unit.
We hope you find the site helpful. We welcome your thoughts and questions!
Reviewer resources
Key bid documents:
- ESSA Level Evidence Worksheet
- K-5 Reading League Curriculum Evaluation Tool
- K-2 EdReports Self-Evaluation
- 3-5 EdReports Self-Evaluation
Overview and program resources:
- Program Guide
- Choice Units Overview
- Text Types and Text Complexity Guide
- Writing Overview
- Assessment Overview
- K–5 Knowledge Map
Alignment and scope and sequence:
- Common Core State Standards (CCSS) Alignment
- K-2 Skills Scope and Sequence
- K-2 Knowledge Scope and Sequence
- 3-5 Instruction Scope and Sequence
Curriculum maps by grade:
- Kindergarten Knowledge | Kindergarten Skills
- Grade 1 Knowledge | Grade 1 Skills
- Grade 2 Knowledge | Grade 2 Skills
- Grade 3
- Grade 4
- Grade 5
Kindergarten
Explore all available resources for Kindergarten, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
Skills Strand
Grade 1
Explore all available resources for Grade 1, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
Skills Strand
Grade 2
Explore all available resources for Grade 2, organized by strand and unit.
Knowledge Strand
Skills Strand
Grade 3
Explore all available resources for Grade 3, organized by unit.
Grade 4
Explore all available resources for Grade 4, organized by unit.
Grade 5
Explore all available resources for Grade 5, organized by unit.
Skills Supplement (Grades 3-5)
These supplementary units for Grades 3-5 reinforce and build on K-2 foundational skills instruction.
Digital platform
In the 2025-26 school year, Amplify CKLA’s all-in-one platform will offer essential tools that streamline instruction for teachers and engage students with meaningful content. Teachers can plan and deliver lessons efficiently, while students can access assignments, assessments, and fun practice games.
Presentation Screens
Deliver interactive lessons with ready-made, customizable slides for every lesson.
Auto-scored digital assessments
Assess vocabulary, comprehension, and knowledge development at the end of each K–2 Knowledge and 3–5 Integrated Unit.
Standards-based reports
Identify strengths and growth areas for individuals, small groups, or your entire class. Interactive dashboards offer detailed results from assessments and activities.
Skill-building practice games
Engage students with interactive games that reinforce concepts and make learning fun. Powered by Boost Reading™, these games align with lessons and provide real-time feedback.
eReader
Students access texts, take notes, and use audio-enabled eReaders to enhance their reading experience.
Sound Library
Students watch articulation videos and listen to songs for each sound to support phonological awareness.
Vocab App
Helps students in Grades 3–5 practice Amplify CKLA Tier 2 vocabulary words with fun, interactive games.
Intervention Toolkit
Offers user-friendly resources designed to aid educators in identifying and addressing deficiencies in students’ foundation skills.
Program support resources
Additional program resource documents:
Welcome, Ohio Department of Education and Workforce!
Amplify CKLA 3rd Edition builds on the principles and instruction of previous editions to provide better-than-ever support for teaching and learning. The focus continues on delivering evidence-based instruction across a system of multi-tiered supports aligned with the Science of Reading and Writing.
We’re excited to share this site, where you’ll find a range of materials and literacy tools including Reviewer Resources and Teaching Materials (Teacher Guides, Activity Books, and Student Readers) organized by grade and unit.
We welcome your thoughts and questions!
Reviewer resources
- Program Guide
- What’s New: CKLA 3rd Edition
- Choice Units Overview
- Text Types and Text Complexity Guide
- Writing Overview
- Assessments Overview
- K-5 Knowledge Map
Alignment and scope and sequence
Core Comprehensive English Language Arts:
- Correlations to the Ohio Learning Standards for English Language Arts
- K-2 Knowledge Scope and Sequence
- 3-5 Integrated Scope and Sequence
Core Foundational Skills:
Curriculum maps
Core Comprehensive English Language Arts:
- Kindergarten Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
- Grade 1 Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
- Grade 2 Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
- Grade 3 Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
- Grade 4 Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
- Grade 5 Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
Core Foundational Skills:
- Kindergarten Core Foundational Skills
- Grade 1 Core Foundational Skills
- Grade 2 Core Foundational Skills
Kindergarten
Explore all available resources for Kindergarten, organized by strand and unit.
Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
|
Unit 1: Star Light, Star Bright: Nursery Rhymes and Fables |
Unit 2: See, Hear, Smell, Taste, Touch: The Five Senses |
Unit 3: Underdogs and Heroes: Stories |
|
Unit 4: See How They Grow: Plants |
Unit 5: Moo, Cluck, Oink: Farms |
Unit 6: Deep Roots: Introduction to Native American Cultures |
|
Unit 7: All Around the World: Geography |
Unit 8 (Choice): Royal Tales: Monarchs |
Unit 8 (Choice): National Icons: Presidents and American Symbols |
|
Unit 9 (Choice): Our Planet: Taking Care of the Earth |
Unit 9 (Choice): Rain and Rainbows: Seasons and Weather |
Unit 10: Shaped by Nature: Art and the World Around Us |
Core Foundational Skills
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
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Unit 7 |
Unit 8 |
Unit 9 |
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Unit 10 |
Ancillary Components |
Grade 1
Explore all available resources for Grade 1, organized by strand and unit.
Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
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Unit 1: The Moral of the Story: Fables and Tales |
Unit 2: From Nose to Toes: How Your Body Works |
Unit 3: Common Threads: Different Lands, Similar Stories |
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Unit 4: Reach for the Stars: Astronomy |
Unit 5: Charting the World: Geography |
Unit 6: A World of Homes: Animals and Habitats |
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Unit 7: A New Nation: American Independence |
Unit 8 (Choice): Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tales |
Unit 8 (Choice): Our Planet: The History of the Earth |
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Unit 9 (Choice): From Babylon to the Nile: Early World Civilizations |
Unit 9 (Choice): Early Americas: Maya, Aztec, and Inca |
Unit 10: Adventure Stories: Tales from the Edge |
Core Foundational Skills
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
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Unit 7 |
Ancillary Components |
Grade 2
Explore all available resources for Grade 2, organized by strand and unit.
Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
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Unit 1: Fortunes and Feats: Fairy Tales and Tall Tales |
Unit 2: The Birthplace of Democracy: Ancient Greece |
Unit 3: Legends and Heroes: Greek Myths |
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Unit 4: Our Planet: Cycles in Nature |
Unit 5: Butterflies, Bees, and Beetles: Insects |
Unit 6: A House Divided: The American Civil War |
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Unit 7: Sounds and Stanzas: Poetry |
Unit 8 (Choice): Journeys to America: Immigration |
Unit 8 (Choice): Making a Difference: Creating Change |
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Unit 9 (Choice): Building Blocks: All About Nutrition |
Unit 9 (Choice): Early Asian Civilizations: India and China |
Unit 10: Taking Flight: The Age of Aviation |
Core Foundational Skills
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Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
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Unit 4 |
Unit 5 |
Unit 6 |
|
Ancillary Components |
Grade 3
Explore all available resources for Grade 3, organized by unit.
Core Comprehensive English Language Arts
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Unit 1: Timeless Tales: Classic Stories |
Unit 2: Fur, Fins, and Feathers: Animal Classification |
Unit 3: Rhythm and Rhyme: Poetry |
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Unit 4: Rise and Fall: Ancient Rome |
Unit 5: Our Solar System and Beyond: Astronomy |
Unit 6: Regions and Cultures: Native Americans |
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: Charlotte’s Web |
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: Stella Díaz Has Something to Say |
Unit 8 (Choice): Systems and Senses: The Human Body |
|
Unit 8 (Choice): From Glow to Echo: Light and Sound |
Unit 9: From Blues to Bebop: All That Jazz |
Ancillary Components |
Supplemental Skills Units
Grade 3 Supplemental Skills units are included in core classroom kits, although the instruction isn’t required for Grade 3 standards coverage.
|
Unit 1 |
Unit 2 |
Unit 3 |
Unit 4
Grade 4 Core Comprehensive ELA
Explore all available resources for Grade 4, organized by unit.
|
Unit 1: My Story, My Voice: Personal Narratives |
Unit 2: Knights and Castles: Europe’s Middle Ages |
Unit 3: Meaning and Metaphor: Poetry |
|
Unit 4: Eureka! Student Inventor |
Unit 5: Our Planet: Geology |
Unit 6: Road to Independence: The American Revolution |
|
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler |
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Season of Styx Malone |
Unit 8 (Choice): Crafting Stories: A World of Tales |
|
Unit 8 (Choice): Adventure on the High Seas: Treasure Island |
Unit 9: Inspiration and Ingenuity: American Innovation |
Ancillary Components |
Grade 5 Core Comprehensive ELA
Explore all available resources for Grade 5, organized by unit.
|
Unit 1: In My Own Words: Personal Narratives |
Unit 2: Early Americas: Maya, Aztec, and Inca |
Unit 3: Visions in Verse: Poetry |
|
Unit 4: A Knight’s Tale: Don Quixote
|
Unit 5: The Deep Blue World: Oceans |
Unit 6: Cultures and Histories: Native Americans |
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Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Phantom Tollbooth |
Unit 7 (Choice): Novel Study: The Science of Breakable Things |
Unit 8 (Choice): Arts and Culture: The Renaissance |
|
Unit 8 (Choice): Through the Forest: A Midsummer Night’s Dream |
Unit 9: Building Up the World: Global Architecture |
Ancillary Components |
Digital platform
In the 2025-26 school year, Amplify CKLA’s all-in-one platform will offer essential tools that streamline instruction for teachers and engage students with meaningful content. Teachers can plan and deliver lessons efficiently, while students can access assignments, assessments, and fun practice games.
Presentation Screens
Deliver interactive lessons with ready-made, customizable slides for every lesson.
Auto-scored digital assessments
Assess vocabulary, comprehension, and knowledge development at the end of each K–2 Knowledge and 3–5 Integrated Unit.
Standards-based reports
Identify strengths and growth areas for individuals, small groups, or your entire class. Interactive dashboards offer detailed results from assessments and activities.
Skill-building practice games
Engage students with interactive games that reinforce concepts and make learning fun. Powered by Boost Reading™, these games align with lessons and provide real-time feedback.
eReader
Students access texts, take notes, and use audio-enabled eReaders to enhance their reading experience.
Sound Library
Students watch articulation videos and listen to songs for each sound to support phonological awareness.
Vocab App
Helps students in Grades 3-5 practice Amplify CKLA Tier 2 vocabulary words with fun, interactive games.
Intervention Toolkit
Offers user-friendly resources designed to aid educators in identifying and addressing deficiencies in students’ foundation skills.
Program support resources
Additional program resource documents:
Welcome, Idaho K-8 Science Reviewers!
Thank you for taking the time to review Amplify Science. On this site, you’ll find all the resources you need to learn more about this engaging and robust NGSS program. Below, you will also have the opportunity experience our program firsthand with a demo account to access the digital platform.
Amplify Science for grades K–8 has been rated all-green by EdReports. Read the review on EdReports.
Overview
With Amplify Science, students don’t just passively learn about science concepts. Instead, they take on the roles of scientists and engineers to actively investigate and make sense of real-world phenomena. They do this through a blend of cohesive and compelling storylines, hands-on investigations, collaborative discussions, literacy-rich activities, and interactive digital tools.
Listen to these educators share how the program empowers students to think, read, write, and argue like real scientists and engineers every day.
Grades K–5
Grades 6–8
Amplify Science Grades K-5 Tour for Idaho Educators
Amplify Science Grades 6-8 Tour for Idaho Evaluators
Program structure
Our cyclical lesson design ensures students receive multiple exposures to concepts through a variety of modalities. As they progress through the lessons within a unit, students build and deepen their understanding, increasing their ability to develop and refine complex explanations of the unit’s phenomenon. It’s this proven program structure and lesson design that enables Amplify Science to teach less, but achieve more.
Rather than asking teachers to wade through unnecessary content, we designed our program to address 100 percent of the NGSS and Idaho Standards in fewer days than other programs:
- In just 120 lessons at grades 6–8
- In just 66 lessons at grades K–2
- In just 88 lessons at grades 3–5
Unit types
Each unit delivers three-dimensional learning experiences and engages students in gathering evidence from a rich collection of sources, while also emphasizing a particular science and engineering practice.
Investigation units
Investigation units focus on the process of strategically developing investigations and gathering data to answer questions. Students are first asked to consider questions about what happens in the natural world and why, and are then involved in designing and conducting investigations that produce data to help answer those questions.
Modeling units
Modeling units provide extra support to students engaging in the practice of modeling. Students use physical models, investigate with computer models, and create their own diagrams to help them visualize what might be happening on the nanoscale.
Engineering Design units
Engineering design units provide opportunities for students to solve complex problems by applying science principles to the design of functional solutions, and iteratively testing those solutions to determine how well they meet preset criteria.
Argumentation units
Argumentation units are introduced at grade 3 and provide students with regular opportunities to explore and discuss available evidence, time and support to consider how evidence may be leveraged in support of claims, and independence that increases as they mount written arguments in support of their claims.
Launch units
Launch units are the first units taught in each year of Amplify Science. The goal of the Launch unit is to introduce students to norms, routines, and practices that will be built on throughout the year, including argumentation, active reading, and using the program’s technology. For example, rather than taking the time to explain the process of active reading in every unit in a given year, it is explained thoroughly in the Launch unit, thereby preparing students to read actively in all subsequent units.
Core units
Core units establish the context of the unit by introducing students to a real-world problem. As students move through lessons in a Core unit, they figure out the unit’s anchoring phenomenon, gain an understanding of the unit’s disciplinary core ideas and science and engineering practices, and make linkages across topics through the crosscutting concepts. Each Core unit culminates with a Science Seminar and final writing activity.
Engineering Internship units
Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. Students figure out how to help those in need, from tsunami victims in Sri Lanka to premature babies, through the application of engineering practices. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Idaho Science Standards Alignment
Amplify Science was built from the ground up to fully embrace the instructional shifts outlined in A Framework for K-12 Science Education (2012), the same framework on which Idaho Science Content Standards were founded. Most grade levels’ respective set of Amplify Science units therefore fully address the necessary Idaho Science Content Standards (see correlation). Grade 1 teachers should plan to also use the companion mini-lesson provided below to achieve full standards coverage for their grade.
Grade 1 Companion
Standard: 1-LS-1.3 Use classification supported by evidence to differentiate between living and non-living things.
Recommended placement: Following Lesson 1.1 of the Animal and Plant Defenses unit.
Resources: Classroom Slides
Science (Middle School Physical Science) Evaluation Form
Science (Middle School Life Science) Evaluation Form
Science Evaluation Form Middle School Earth and Space Science
Needs of Plants and Animals
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Investigation
Student role: Scientists
Phenomenon: There are no monarch caterpillars in the Mariposa Grove community garden since vegetables were planted.
Pushes and Pulls
Domains: Physical Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering design
Student role: Pinball engineers
Phenomenon: Pinball machines allow people to control the direction and strength of forces on a ball.
Sunlight and Weather
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Modeling
Student role: Weather scientists
Phenomenon: Students at Carver Elementary School are too cold during morning recess, while students at Woodland Elementary School are too hot during afternoon recess.
Animal and Plant Defenses
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Modeling
Student role: Marine scientists
Phenomenon: Spruce the Sea Turtle lives in an aquarium and will soon be released back into the ocean, where she will survive despite ocean predators.
Light and Sound
Domains: Physical Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering design
Student role: Light and sound engineers
Phenomenon: A puppet show company uses light and sound to depict realistic scenes in puppet shows.
Spinning Earth
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Investigation
Student role: Sky scientists
Phenomenon: The sky looks different to Sai and his grandma when they talk on the phone.
Plant and Animal Relationships
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Investigation
Student role: Plant scientists
Phenomenon: No new chalta trees are growing in the fictional Bengal Tiger Reserve in India.
Properties of Materials
Domains: Physical Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering design
Student role: Glue engineers
Phenomenon: Different glue recipes result in glues that have different properties.
Changing Landforms
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Modeling
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: The cliff that Oceanside Recreation Center is situated on appears to be receding over time.
Balancing Forces
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Modeling
Student role: Engineers
Phenomenon: The town of Faraday is getting a new train that floats above its tracks.
Inheritance and Traits
strong>Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Investigation
Student role: Wildlife biologists
Phenomenon: An adopted wolf in Graystone National Park (“Wolf 44”) has some traits that appear similar to one wolf pack in the park and other traits that appear to be similar to a different wolf pack.
Environments and Survival
Domains: Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering design
Student role: Biomimicry engineers
Phenomenon: Over the last 10 years, a population of grove snails has changed: The number of grove snails with yellow shells has decreased, while the number of snails with banded shells has increased.
Weather and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Argumentation
Student role: Meteorologists
Phenomenon: Three different islands, each a contender for becoming an Orangutan reserve, experience different weather patterns.
Energy Conversions
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering design
Student role: System engineers
Phenomenon: The fictional town of Ergstown experiences frequent blackouts.
Vision and Light
Domain: Physical Science, Life Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Investigation
Student role: Conservation biologists
Phenomenon: The population of Tokay geckos in a rain forest in the Philippines has decreased since the installation of new highway lights.
Waves, Energy, and Information
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Modeling
Student role: Marine scientists
Phenomenon: Mother dolphins in the fictional Blue Bay National Park seem to be communicating with their calves when they are separated at a distance underwater.
Patterns of Earth and Sky
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Investigation
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An ancient artifact depicts what we see in the sky at different times — the sun during the daytime and different stars during the nighttime — but it is missing a piece.
Earth’s Features
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Argumentation
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: A mysterious fossil is discovered in a canyon within the fictional Desert Rocks National Park.
Modeling Matter
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Modeling
Student role: Food scientists
Phenomenon: Chromatography is a process for separating mixtures. Some solids dissolve in a salad dressing while others do not. Oil and vinegar appear to separate when mixed in a salad dressing.
The Earth System
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering Design
Student role: Water resource engineers
Phenomenon: East Ferris, a city on one side of the fictional Ferris Island, is experiencing a water shortage, while West Ferris is not.
Ecosystem Restoration
Domains:Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Argumentation
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The jaguars, sloths, and cecropia trees in a reforested section of a Costa Rican rain forest are not growing and thriving.
Geology on Mars
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: An astrophotographer can only take pictures of specific features on the Moon at certain times.
Thermal Energy
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: One of two proposed heating systems for Riverdale School will best heat the school.
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Weather Patterns
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: In recent years, rainstorms in Galetown have been unusually severe.
Populations and Resources
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The size of the moon jelly population in Glacier Sea has increased.
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science, Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Ecologists
Phenomenon: The biodome ecosystem has collapsed.
Traits and Reproduction
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Microbiome
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body may keep the body healthy.
Metabolism
Domain: Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Medical researchers
Phenomenon: Elisa, a young patient, feels tired all the time.
Force and Motion
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: The asteroid sample-collecting pod failed to dock at the space station as planned.
Force and Motion Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing emergency supply delivery pods with different structures can maintain the integrity of the supply pods and their contents.
Plate Motion
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean, even though the Mesosaurus species once lived all together.
Rock Transformations
Domain: Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from the Great Plains and from the Rocky Mountains — regions hundreds of miles apart — look very different, but have surprisingly similar mineral compositions.
Natural Selection
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Biologists
Phenomenon: The newt population in Oregon State Park has become more poisonous over time.
Evolutionary History
Domains: Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Paleontologists
Phenomenon: A mystery fossil at the Natural History Museum has similarities with both wolves and whales.
Harnessing Human Energy
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Launch
Student role: Energy scientists
Phenomenon: Rescue workers can use their own human kinetic energy to power the electrical devices they use during rescue missions.
Phase Change
Domains: Physical Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Chemists
Phenomenon: A methane lake on Titan no longer appears in images taken by a space probe two years apart.
Phase Change Engineering Internship
Domains: Engineering Design, Physical Science
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Chemical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Designing portable baby incubators with different combinations of phase change materials can keep babies at a healthy temperature.
Chemical Reactions
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Forensic chemists
Phenomenon: A mysterious brown substance has been detected in the tap water of Westfield.
Magnetic Fields
Domain: Physical Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Physicists
Phenomenon: During a test launch, a spacecraft traveled much faster than expected.
Light Waves
Domains: Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Spectroscopists
Phenomenon: The rate of skin cancer is higher in Australia than in other parts of the world.
Earth’s Changing Climate
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Life Science
Unit type: Core
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Domains: Earth and Space Science, Engineering Design
Unit type: Engineering internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
Access program
In addition to the grade-level sample boxes that we provided, we’ve also created custom demo accounts just for Idaho reviewers.
To access the digital portion of the program, click the link below, select “Log In with Amplify,” and then refer to the Start here digital access flyer for your personalized login credentials.
Tutorial videos
Check out these videos for support on how to navigate the Amplify Science curriculum website, teacher’s guide, materials kits, and more!
Resources
Welcome, Fairfax reviewers!
Amplify Desmos Math supports teachers in building students’ lifelong math proficiency. The program:
- Supports social classrooms, invites mathematical creativity, and evokes wonder, creating a welcoming learning space where students are empowered to see themselves and their classmates as having brilliant mathematical ideas.
- Provides teachers with clear step-by-step moves to build systematically from students’ prior knowledge to grade-level learning.
- Connects students to each other’s thinking and to an understanding that they can use math to make sense of the world.
- Enables access to grade-level understanding for every student, every day
Math that motivates
Picture a classroom where are so engaged in a math lesson that they protest when the teacher pauses their work on a problem. A classroom is buzzing with the sounds of natural curiosity. This is what we regularly see with Amplify Desmos Math. This is math that motivates.
Experience Amplify Desmos Math
Explore our digital program to review content from all grades, K–8.
To log in, click the orange “Review now” button below, select “Log in with Amplify” and use the following login credentials:
Username: fairfax-reviewer@tryamplify.net
Password: AmplifyNumber1
Support
Support is always within reach. Our team is dedicated to supporting you throughout your review and can be reached at any time by emailing or calling us directly.
- Live chat: Click the orange icon while logged in to get immediate help.
- Phone: Call our toll-free number: (888)-960-0380.
- Email: Send an email to help@amplify.com. In the message body, please include your name and question. Provide as much detail as possible, so we can more quickly help you find a solution.
Welcome, Arizona educators!
Dear Arizona educator,
Thank you for your interest in Amplify’s core, assessment, intervention, and supplemental programs. Amplify’s resources are different to make a difference—and the results are undeniable. Explore our unique, research-based approaches built right into our high-quality instructional materials. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
With great respect for what you do,
The Arizona Amplify team
Early Literacy Suite
Based on 20 years of experience with the Science of Reading, Amplify’s early literacy suite combines the crucial elements of core curriculum, intervention, and personalized learning. Our programs ensure that all educators have what they need to support every student within an aligned system based on research and effective practices. Amplify CKLA received all-green ratings from EdReports. Read the review on EdReports.
Amplify ELA
Amplify ELA is a blended curriculum designed specifically for grades 6–8. At the heart of every lesson is the text. We enable teachers to teach skills texts and develop their students’ muscles for building meaning through reading. With Amplify ELA, students learn to attack any complex text and make observations, grapple with interesting ideas, and find relevance for themselves. Rated all green by EdReports, Amplify ELA earned perfect scores across all gateways. Read the review on EdReports.
Amplify Science
Amplify Science empowers students to think, read, and write like real scientists and engineers. Amplify Science K–8 received all-green ratings in EdReports’ review of national middle-school science curricula. Read the review on EdReports.
Contact us
Support is always available. Our team is dedicated to helping you and can be reached at any time by emailing or calling us directly.
Eastern, Western, Southern AZ
Tommy Gearhart
Senior Account Executive
(505) 206-7661
State-approved | Grades 6–8 and Algebra 1
Amplify Math for Idaho
Dear Idaho math educators,
We’re honored that you’re reviewing Amplify Math for use with your middle school students.
We’re confident you’ll find this Idaho-approved program to be a powerful tool for getting all your students talking and thinking about math concepts together.
On this site, you’ll find a variety of resources to guide you in your review, including demo account access. We look forward to meeting you and showing you what makes this program so unique.
Yvonne Rhode and Kristen Rockstroh
Idaho Account Executives
Virtual Caravan Stop
Amplify Math isn’t your traditional core math program. It’s different to make a difference—and the results are simply undeniable. Watch our virtual caravan presentations to the right and learn about the research-based approaches built right into this high-quality solution. Plus, see how Amplify Math brings student-centered learning to life for students in grades 6–8.
What it is
Amplify Math is a brand-new program based on the highly-rated Illustrative Mathematics curriculum IM K–12 Math™️.
It’s designed around the idea that a core math curriculum needs to serve 100 percent of students in accessing grade-level math every day. To that end, Amplify Math delivers:
- Engaging, discourse-rich math lessons that are easier to teach.
- Flexible, social problem-solving experiences both online and off.
- Real-time insights, data, and reporting that inform instruction.
How it works
Amplify Math delivers the instructional power of student-centered learning packaged in a lesson format that is easy and manageable. With easy-to-follow instructional supports, implementing a problem-based program becomes more effective and enjoyable for both you and your students. Paired with our digital experience, math class becomes fun and dynamic, with plenty of opportunities for students to talk through their reasoning, work with their peers, and gain new understandings.
Featuring Desmos and more
Desmos digital lessons
Digital lessons should be powerful in their ability to surface student thinking and spark interesting and productive discussions. We’ve partnered with Desmos to bring this vision to life with our complete library of social, collaborative lessons powered by Desmos technology.
Engaging student experience
Relevant content and interactive math tools create an intuitive and engaging student experience. Plus, working together in real time allows them to see that communicating their ideas and learning from each other are important parts of math class.
Visibility into student thinking
Imagine having more visibility into your students’ mathematical thinking. Now imagine students have access to this same information. With Amplify Math’s collaborative lesson interface and teacher dashboard, students can’t hide. What’s more, they have visibility into the thinking of their peers—exposing them to a wider variety of approaches to solving the same problem.
Pre-requisite skill building
Power-ups provide just-in-time support to help student strengthen pre-requisite skills before engaging in whole-class activities. Power-ups ensure all students have a chance to experience success in the day’s lesson even if they might be several years behind. Not teaching online? They’re available in the Teacher Edition, too.
Ready-to-teach lesson slides
Every lesson of Amplify Math includes ready-to-teach lesson slides complete with step-by-step teaching notes, suggested student and teacher responses, options for differentiating instruction, links to useful resources, and tips for supporting students through common trouble-spots. Teacher can also customize their lesson slides, adding their own flavor, flair, and favorite problems—enabling them to truly make the lesson their own.
Presentation sync and student pacing
Being able to control what slides students see and when gives teachers the ability to control the pace of the lesson to suite the needs of the class. When Presentation Sync is turned on, students can access all the slides in the lesson. When it’s off, it ensures students’ screens follow the teacher’s. Teachers can also set a range of slides, which allows students to work at their own pace within the unlocked slides only.
Standards-level reports
Not only do our reports show progress toward standards mastery, they include detail on how students performed against the standard in the past and how many more encounters are yet to come. This feature alone helps teachers prioritize instruction and intervene with additional resources when necessary.
Focus on math identify
Helping students develop strong, healthy, and flexible math identities is a cornerstone of Amplify Math. Throughout the program, students are taught that they themselves are mathematicians, that today’s math was largely shaped by a diverse range of mathematicians who deserve to be learned about, and that learning is never finished.
Access demo
Ready to explore the program? Follow these simple instructions to access our program digitally.
- Watch the video to the right or use this document to learn how to navigate our print and digital components.
- Click the Access demo button.
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter the login credentials found on the unique login flyer provided. If no login flyer was provided, use the following credentials:
- Username: t1.idahomath8@demo.tryamplify.net
- Password: Amplify1-idahomath8
- Click on any of the six units to explore.
Contact us
Support is always within reach. Our team is dedicated to supporting districts across Idaho and can be reached at any time by emailing HelloIdaho@amplify.com or by calling us directly.
Kristen Rockstroh, M.Ed.
Account Executive
Districts under 4,700 students
(480) 639-8367
Welcome, Nebo SD, to Amplify CKLA!
Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts® (CKLA) is a state-approved core ELA curriculum designated as a primary core program that fully meets the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Truly built on the Science of Reading, Amplify CKLA helps all teachers implement the Utah Core Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy by translating the science of reading into manageable, engaging, and effective classroom practices.
Scroll down to learn how CKLA is uniquely designed to help all your students make learning leaps in literacy.
Recognized Quality
Amplify CKLA is one of only a few high-quality, knowledge-building literacy curricula recognized by the Knowledge Matters campaign. Our shared message: Background knowledge is essential to literacy and learning.
Science of Reading Approved by USBE
Amplify CKLA is a content-rich literacy curriculum that systematically braids knowledge-building with skills instruction. Click below to see our state submission rubric on how Amplify CKLA addresses the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Independently and rigorously reviewed
Amplify CKLA not only received an all-green rating from the rigorous evaluators at EdReports, but it was also recently recognized by the Knowledge Matters Campaign as a literacy program that excels in building knowledge.
Intentional knowledge-building
The Science of Reading reveals knowledge as an essential pillar of reading comprehension and lifelong literacy. Hear from author Natalie Wexler and CKLA customers on edWebinar about the importance of knowledge-building in reading instruction.
Program Overview
Amplify CKLA is a core ELA program for grades K–5 that delivers:
- A unique research-based approach truly built on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills with meaningful knowledge building.
- Embedded support and differentiation that gets all students reading grade-level texts together.
- Opportunities for students to see the strengths and experiences that all people share while also celebrating each others’ unique identities and experiences.
- Authentic Spanish language arts instruction with Amplify Caminos.
Amplify CKLA for Grades K–2
After watching the K–2 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
Amplify CKLA for Grades 3–5
After watching the 3–5 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
How it works
Amplify CKLA teaches both foundational skills and background knowledge in K–2 and combines them in 3–5, as required by the science of reading.
- In grades K–2, students complete one full lesson that builds foundational reading skills, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge.
- In grades 3–5, student complete one integrated lesson that combines skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater writing emphasis.
Rich topics
Amplify CKLA builds knowledge coherently across subjects and grades.
Students make connections from year-to-year by exploring grade-appropriate subject-area knowledge and vocabulary in history, science, literature, and the arts while learning to read, write, and think creatively and for themselves.
Diverse text
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills.
More than that, we ensure the texts students read represent the world around them. With a diverse range of authors, topics, and characters, all students have ample access to both windows and mirrors. Our texts include:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
Aligned to LETRS and Orton Gillingham
Amplify CKLA aligns with the instructional principles recommended by Orton Gillingham and LETRS.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected texts with constant review and reinforcement
Universal access
We believe we have a responsibility to provide literacy instruction that gives every student the same opportunity to succeed and excel.
We know that early reading affects achievement throughout school and beyond—well into college and career. Yet most literacy programs continue to fall short of supporting early literacy success. That’s why we’re so proud that CKLA is helping close the reading gap between students within diverse communities.
Complete curriculum
A strong literacy program is not just about a reading program or an assessment tool: it brings together curriculum, instruction, regular practice, intervention, and assessments.
Amplify has brought these components together in our early literacy suite of curriculum, ensure that you have what you need for multi-tiered support.
Science of Reading Resources
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
As you consider your next core ELA program, it’s critically important to understand what the Science of Reading really means and what it tells us about how to teach more effectively. Unlike other programs, Amplify CKLA was built upon these insights and practices, making it easier for teachers to implement this proven approach.
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Explore the CKLA Teacher Digital Resources
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right. Then, follow the directions below.
- Go to: learning.amplify.com or click the Access CKLA Teacher Digital button below
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: t1.nebocklak5@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-nebocklak5
- Click the CKLA button
- Select your desired grade level from the Program drop down
Explore the CKLA Student Digital Resources
Follow the directions below to access the Student Resource Site:
- Go to: learning.amplify.com or click the Access CKLA Student Digital button below
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: s1.nebocklak5@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-nebocklak5
- From the main page, click the backpack in the top right corner.
- Click on the grade level to select your desired grade.
Welcome to Amplify CKLA!
Welcome to Amplify CKLA!
Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts® (CKLA) is a state-approved core ELA curriculum designated as a primary core program that fully meets the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Truly built on the Science of Reading, Amplify CKLA helps all teachers implement the Utah Core Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy by translating the science of reading into manageable, engaging, and effective classroom practices.
Scroll down to learn how CKLA is uniquely designed to help all your students make learning leaps in literacy.
Recognized Quality
Amplify CKLA is one of only a few high-quality, knowledge-building literacy curricula recognized by the Knowledge Matters campaign. Our shared message: Background knowledge is essential to literacy and learning.
Science of Reading Approved by USBE
Amplify CKLA is a content-rich literacy curriculum that systematically braids knowledge-building with skills instruction. Click below to see our state submission rubric on how Amplify CKLA addresses the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Independently and rigorously reviewed
Amplify CKLA not only received an all-green rating from the rigorous evaluators at EdReports, but it was also recently recognized by the Knowledge Matters Campaign as a literacy program that excels in building knowledge.
Intentional knowledge-building
The Science of Reading reveals knowledge as an essential pillar of reading comprehension and lifelong literacy. Hear from author Natalie Wexler and CKLA customers on edWebinar about the importance of knowledge-building in reading instruction.
Program Overview
Amplify CKLA is a core ELA program for grades K–5 that delivers:
- A unique research-based approach truly built on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills with meaningful knowledge building.
- Embedded support and differentiation that gets all students reading grade-level texts together.
- Opportunities for students to see the strengths and experiences that all people share while also celebrating each others’ unique identities and experiences.
- Authentic Spanish language arts instruction with Amplify Caminos.
Amplify CKLA for Grades K–2
After watching the K–2 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
Amplify CKLA for Grades 3–5
After watching the 3–5 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
How it works
Amplify CKLA teaches both foundational skills and background knowledge in K–2 and combines them in 3–5, as required by the science of reading.
- In grades K–2, students complete one full lesson that builds foundational reading skills, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge.
- In grades 3–5, student complete one integrated lesson that combines skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater writing emphasis.
Rich topics
Amplify CKLA builds knowledge coherently across subjects and grades.
Students make connections from year-to-year by exploring grade-appropriate subject-area knowledge and vocabulary in history, science, literature, and the arts while learning to read, write, and think creatively and for themselves.
Diverse text
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills. Our texts include:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
More than that, we ensure the texts students read represent the world around them. With a diverse range of authors, topics, and characters, all students have ample access to both windows and mirrors.
Aligned to LETRS and Orton-Gillingham
Amplify CKLA aligns with the instructional principles recommended by Orton Gillingham and LETRS.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected texts with constant review and reinforcement
Universal access
We believe we have a responsibility to provide literacy instruction that gives every student the same opportunity to succeed and excel.
We know that early reading affects achievement throughout school and beyond—well into college and career. Yet most literacy programs continue to fall short of supporting early literacy success. That’s why we’re so proud that CKLA is helping close the reading gap between students within diverse communities.
Complete curriculum
A strong literacy program is not just about a reading program or an assessment tool: it brings together curriculum, instruction, regular practice, intervention, and assessments.
Amplify has brought these components together in our early literacy suite of curriculum, ensure that you have what you need for multi-tiered support.
Science of Reading Resources
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
As you consider your next core ELA program, it’s critically important to understand what the Science of Reading really means and what it tells us about how to teach more effectively. Unlike other programs, Amplify CKLA was built upon these insights and practices, making it easier for teachers to implement this proven approach.
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Explore the CKLA Teacher Digital Site
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right. Then, follow the directions below to access the CKLA Teacher Digital Site.
- Go to learning.amplify.com or click Access CKLA Teacher Digital below
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: t1.utahckla@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-utahckla
- Click the CKLA button on the left hand side
- Select your desired grade level from the Program drop down
Explore the CKLA Student Digital Site
Follow the directions below to access the CKLA Student Digital Site.
- Go to learning.amplify.com or click Access CKLA Student Digital below
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: s1.utahckla@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-utahckla
- Answer the question.
- Click “Go” to get to the Hub!
Welcome to Amplify CKLA!
Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts® (CKLA) is currently the only state-approved core ELA curriculum designated as a primary core program that fully meets the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Truly built on the Science of Reading, Amplify CKLA helps all teachers implement the Utah Core Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy by translating the science of reading into manageable, engaging, and effective classroom practices.
Scroll down to learn how CKLA is uniquely designed to help all your students make learning leaps in literacy.
Recognized Quality
Amplify CKLA is one of only a few high-quality, knowledge-building literacy curricula recognized by the Knowledge Matters campaign. Our shared message: Background knowledge is essential to literacy and learning.
Science of Reading Approved by USBE
Amplify CKLA is a content-rich literacy curriculum that systematically braids knowledge-building with skills instruction. In fact, according to the Utah SBE, Amplify CKLA fully meets the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Independently and rigorously reviewed
Amplify CKLA not only received an all-green rating from the rigorous evaluators at EdReports, but it was also recently recognized by the Knowledge Matters Campaign as a literacy program that excels in building knowledge.
Intentional knowledge-building
The Science of Reading reveals knowledge as an essential pillar of reading comprehension, and even lifelong literacy. That’s why leading scientists say knowledge-building must be incorporated into reading instruction from the beginning—and with Amplify CKLA, it is.
Program Overview
Amplify CKLA is a core ELA program for grades K–5 that delivers:
- A unique research-based approach truly built on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills with meaningful knowledge building.
- Embedded support and differentiation that gets all students reading grade-level texts together.
- Opportunities for students to see the strengths and experiences that all people share while also celebrating each others’ unique identities and experiences.
- Authentic Spanish language arts instruction with Amplify Caminos.
Amplify CKLA for Grades K–2
After watching the K–2 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
Amplify CKLA for Grades 3–5
After watching the 3–5 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
How it works
Amplify CKLA teaches both foundational skills and background knowledge in K–2 and combines them in 3–5, as required by the science of reading.
- In grades K–2, students complete one full lesson that builds foundational reading skills, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge.
- In grades 3–5, student complete one integrated lesson that combines skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater writing emphasis.
Rich topics
Amplify CKLA builds knowledge coherently across subjects and grades.
Students make connections from year-to-year by exploring grade-appropriate subject-area knowledge and vocabulary in history, science, literature, and the arts while learning to read, write, and think creatively and for themselves.
Diverse text
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills.
More than that, we ensure the texts students read represent the world around them. With a diverse range of authors, topics, and characters, all students have ample access to both windows and mirrors. Our texts include:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
Aligned to LETRS and Orton-Gillingham
Amplify CKLA aligns with the instructional principles recommended by Orton-Gillingham and LETRS.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected texts with constant review and reinforcement
Equitable instruction
We believe we have a responsibility to provide literacy instruction that gives every student the same opportunity to succeed and excel.
We know that early reading affects achievement throughout school and beyond—well into college and career. Yet most literacy programs continue to fall short of supporting early literacy success. That’s why we’re so proud that CKLA is helping close the reading gap between students within diverse communities.
Complete curriculum
A strong literacy program is not just about a reading program or an assessment tool: it brings together curriculum, instruction, regular practice, intervention, and assessments.
Amplify has brought these components together in our early literacy suite of curriculum, ensure that you have what you need for multi-tiered support.
Science of Reading Resources
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
As you consider your next core ELA program, it’s critically important to understand what the Science of Reading really means and what it tells us about how to teach more effectively. Unlike other programs, Amplify CKLA was built upon these insights and practices, making it easier for teachers to implement this proven approach.
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Explore the CKLA Teacher Resource Site
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right. Then, click the “Access CKLA Teacher Resource Site” button to log in.
- Click the CKLA Teacher Resource Site button
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: t1.slcsd-ckla-1@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-slcsd-ckla-1
- Select the desired grade level
Welcome to Amplify CKLA!
Amplify CKLA is the only Oregon-approved elementary ELA curriculum truly built on the Science of Reading.
Not only that, it helps all teachers implement the Oregon English Language Arts and Literacy Standards by translating the science of reading into strong instructional resources. As a result, teachers can fully focus on their students and the kind of teaching they love.
Virtual Caravan Stop Ahead!
If this is your first stop on your virtual caravan, start with the video presentations below.
Watched them already? Click here to skip ahead.
Virtual Caravan Stop
Amplify CKLA for Grades K–2
After watching the K–2 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
Amplify CKLA for Grades 3–5
After watching the 3–5 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
What it is
Amplify CKLA is a core ELA program for grades K–5 that delivers:
- A unique research-based approach truly built on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills with meaningful knowledge building.
- Embedded support and differentiation that gets all students reading grade-level texts together.
- Opportunities for students to see the strengths and experiences that all people share while also celebrating each others’ unique identities and experiences.
- Equitable and authentic Spanish language arts instruction with Amplify Caminos.
How it works
Amplify CKLA teaches both foundational skills and background knowledge in K–2 and combines them in 3–5, as required by the science of reading.
- In grades K–2, students complete one full lesson that builds foundational reading skills, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge.
- In grades 3–5, student complete one integrated lesson that combines skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater writing emphasis.
See pages 30-65 of the CKLA Program Guide below to learn more.
What students explore
Amplify CKLA builds knowledge coherently across subjects and grades.
Students make connections from year-to-year by exploring grade-appropriate subject-area knowledge and vocabulary in history, science, literature, and the arts while learning to read, write, and think creatively and for themselves.
Download the at-a-glance resources below to learn more.
What students read
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills.
More than that, we ensure the texts students read represent the world around them. With a diverse range of authors, topics, and characters, all students have ample access to both windows and mirrors. Our texts include:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
Download the lists below to explore specific grade-level texts.
Access and equity
We believe we have a responsibility to provide literacy instruction that gives every student the same opportunity to succeed and excel.
We know that early reading affects achievement throughout school and beyond—well into college and career. Yet most literacy programs continue to fall short of supporting early literacy success. That’s why we’re so proud that CKLA is helping close the reading gap between students within diverse communities.
Explore how we make learning equitable for all learners with the resources below.
Built on the Science of Reading
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
As you consider your next core ELA program, it’s critically important to understand what the Science of Reading really means and what it tells us about how to teach more effectively. Unlike other programs, Amplify CKLA was built upon these insights and practices, making it easier for teachers to implement this proven approach.
Download the resources below to dive deeper into the Science of Reading.
Supports Orton-Gillingham and LETRS
Amplify CKLA aligns with the instructional principles recommended by Orton-Gillingham and LETRS.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected texts with constant review and reinforcement
A comprehensive and cohesive solution
A strong literacy program is not just about a reading program or an assessment tool: it brings together curriculum, instruction, regular practice, intervention, and assessments.
Amplify has brought these components together in our early literacy suite of curriculum, ensure that you have what you need for multi-tiered support.
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Explore the CKLA Teacher Resource Site
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right. Then, click the “Access CKLA Teacher Resource Site” button to log in.
- Click the CKLA Teacher Resource Site button
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: t.orcklak5@tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: AmplifyNumber1
- Select the desired grade level
Contact us
Looking to speak directly with your Oregon representative? Get in touch with a team member by emailing hellooregon@amplify.com or by calling us directly.
Kristen Rockstroh
Oregon Account Executive
Districts under 4,500 students
(480) 639-8367
Overview Videos
Amplify CKLA and Caminos for K–2
After watching the K–2 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
Amplify CKLA and Caminos for 3–5
After watching the 3–5 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
What it is
Amplify CKLA is a core ELA program for grades K–5 that delivers:
- A unique research-based approach truly built on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills with meaningful knowledge building.
- Embedded support and differentiation that gets all students reading grade-level texts together.
- Opportunities for students to see the strengths and experiences that all people share while also celebrating each others’ unique identities and experiences.
- Equitable and authentic Spanish language arts instruction with Amplify Caminos.
How it works
Amplify CKLA teaches both foundational skills and background knowledge in K–2 and combines them in 3–5, as required by the science of reading.
- In grades K–2, students complete one full lesson that builds foundational reading skills, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge.
- In grades 3–5, student complete one integrated lesson that combines skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater writing emphasis.
What students explore
Amplify CKLA builds knowledge coherently across subjects and grades.
Students make connections from year-to-year by exploring grade-appropriate subject-area knowledge and vocabulary in history, science, literature, and the arts while learning to read, write, and think creatively and for themselves.
Download the at-a-glance resources below to learn more.
What students read
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills.
More than that, we ensure the texts students read represent the world around them. With a diverse range of authors, topics, and characters, all students have ample access to both windows and mirrors. Our texts include:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
Download the lists below to explore specific grade-level texts.
Access and equity
We believe we have a responsibility to provide literacy instruction that gives every student the same opportunity to succeed and excel.
We know that early reading affects achievement throughout school and beyond—well into college and career. Yet most literacy programs continue to fall short of supporting early literacy success. That’s why we’re so proud that CKLA is helping close the reading gap between students within diverse communities.
Explore how we make learning equitable for all learners with the resources below.
Built on the Science of Reading
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
As you consider your next core ELA program, it’s critically important to understand what the Science of Reading really means and what it tells us about how to teach more effectively. Unlike other programs, Amplify CKLA was built upon these insights and practices, making it easier for teachers to implement this proven approach.
Download the resources below to dive deeper into the Science of Reading.
Supports Orton-Gillingham and LETRS
Amplify CKLA aligns with the instructional principles recommended by Orton-Gillingham and LETRS.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected texts with constant review and reinforcement
A comprehensive and cohesive solution
A strong literacy program is not just about a reading program or an assessment tool: it brings together curriculum, instruction, regular practice, intervention, and assessments.
Amplify has brought these components together in our early literacy suite of curriculum, ensure that you have what you need for multi-tiered support.
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Explore the CKLA Teacher Resource Site
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right. Then, click the “Access CKLA Teacher Resource Site” button to log in.
- Click the CKLA Teacher Resource Site button
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username to explore as a teacher: t1.kentcaminos2021@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this username to explore as a student: s1.kentcaminos2021@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-kentcaminos2021
- Select the desired grade level
Contact us
Have questions? Your dedicated Account Executive, Patrick Momsen, is standing by and ready to help.
Patrick Momsen Senior
Account Executive
Districts over 4,500 students
(541) 207-2148
Welcome to the Interactive Classroom trial!
Welcome to Amplify CKLA!
Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts® (CKLA) is a state-approved core ELA curriculum designated as a primary core program that fully meets the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Truly built on the Science of Reading, Amplify CKLA helps all teachers implement the Utah Core Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy by translating the science of reading into manageable, engaging, and effective classroom practices.
Scroll down to learn how CKLA is uniquely designed to help all your students make learning leaps in literacy.
Recognized Quality
Amplify CKLA is one of only a few high-quality, knowledge-building literacy curricula recognized by the Knowledge Matters campaign. Our shared message: Background knowledge is essential to literacy and learning.
Science of Reading Approved by USBE
Amplify CKLA is a content-rich literacy curriculum that systematically braids knowledge-building with skills instruction. Click below to see our state submission rubric on how Amplify CKLA addresses the Science of Reading requirements outlined in SB 127.
Independently and rigorously reviewed
Amplify CKLA not only received an all-green rating from the rigorous evaluators at EdReports, but it was also recently recognized by the Knowledge Matters Campaign as a literacy program that excels in building knowledge.
Intentional knowledge-building
The Science of Reading reveals knowledge as an essential pillar of reading comprehension and lifelong literacy. Hear from author Natalie Wexler and CKLA customers on edWebinar about the importance of knowledge-building in reading instruction.
Program Overview
Amplify CKLA is a core ELA program for grades K–5 that delivers:
- A unique research-based approach truly built on the Science of Reading.
- A combination of explicit foundational skills with meaningful knowledge building.
- Embedded support and differentiation that gets all students reading grade-level texts together.
- Opportunities for students to see the strengths and experiences that all people share while also celebrating each others’ unique identities and experiences.
- Authentic Spanish language arts instruction with Amplify Caminos.
Amplify CKLA for Grades K–2
After watching the K–2 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
Amplify CKLA for Grades 3–5
After watching the 3–5 video below, scroll down to learn even more, download resources, and access a demo.
How it works
Amplify CKLA teaches both foundational skills and background knowledge in K–2 and combines them in 3–5, as required by the science of reading.
- In grades K–2, students complete one full lesson that builds foundational reading skills, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge.
- In grades 3–5, student complete one integrated lesson that combines skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater writing emphasis.
Rich topics
Amplify CKLA builds knowledge coherently across subjects and grades.
Students make connections from year-to-year by exploring grade-appropriate subject-area knowledge and vocabulary in history, science, literature, and the arts while learning to read, write, and think creatively and for themselves.
Diverse text
Amplify CKLA puts a variety of texts in the hands of students every day to build and strengthen background knowledge and vocabulary, listening and reading comprehension, and decoding and fluency skills.
More than that, we ensure the texts students read represent the world around them. With a diverse range of authors, topics, and characters, all students have ample access to both windows and mirrors. Our texts include:
- Authentic books.
- Authentic text passages.
- Student Readers.
- Novel Guides (grades 3–5).
Aligned to LETRS and Orton Gillingham
Amplify CKLA aligns with the instructional principles recommended by Orton Gillingham and LETRS.
- Structured–Concepts are taught through consistent routines
- Sequential–Concepts are taught in a logical, well-planned sequence
- Systematic–Phonemes are taught from simplest to most complex
- Explicit–Decoding and encoding concepts are taught directly and explicitly
- Multi-sensory–Instruction is delivered through visual, auditory, and kinesthetic-tactile pathways
- Cumulative–Concepts are applied in decodable, connected texts with constant review and reinforcement
Universal access
We believe we have a responsibility to provide literacy instruction that gives every student the same opportunity to succeed and excel.
We know that early reading affects achievement throughout school and beyond—well into college and career. Yet most literacy programs continue to fall short of supporting early literacy success. That’s why we’re so proud that CKLA is helping close the reading gap between students within diverse communities.
Complete curriculum
A strong literacy program is not just about a reading program or an assessment tool: it brings together curriculum, instruction, regular practice, intervention, and assessments.
Amplify has brought these components together in our early literacy suite of curriculum, ensure that you have what you need for multi-tiered support.
Science of Reading Resources
Watching students learn to read: magic. Knowing how they get there: science.
As you consider your next core ELA program, it’s critically important to understand what the Science of Reading really means and what it tells us about how to teach more effectively. Unlike other programs, Amplify CKLA was built upon these insights and practices, making it easier for teachers to implement this proven approach.
Access demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Explore the CKLA Teacher Digital Site
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right. Then follow the directions below:
- Go to learning.amplify.com or click Access CKLA Teacher Digital
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: t1.davislangarts@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-davislangarts
- Click the CKLA button on the left hand side
- Select your desired grade level from the Program drop down
Explore the CKLA Student Digital Site
To access the student digital site follow the directions below:
- Go to learning.amplify.com or click Access CKLA Student Digital
- Select Log in with Amplify.
- Enter this username: s1.davislangarts@demo.tryamplify.net
- Enter this password: Amplify1-davislangarts
- From the Home page, scroll down to the robot and “Click to go to the Hub“
- From the Hub, click the Grade button to select the grade.
Boost Close Reading Trial Support Site
We’re thrilled you’ve decided to give our Boost Close Reading a try! We’re confident you’re going to love how Boost Close Reading engages your middle school readers and helps them strengthen their close reading skills.
This site contains all the resources you’ll need to learn more about the program and to get started using it to support remote learning or classroom instruction.
Resources to support your use of the program
What is Boost Close Reading?
Boost Close Reading is a digital reading program that provides middle school students with rich instruction and practice around the critical work of close reading.
No matter the setting or core curriculum in place, Boost Close Reading offers a personalized, differentiated experience that helps students learn how to deeply analyze complex informational and literary texts, in just 45 minutes of independent practice a week.
How do I get started with Boost Close Reading?
Good news! Boost Close Reading has already been enabled within your Amplify account. To get started with the program, you’ve got only two steps left: adjusting your students’ support levels (Core or Extra Support) and setting up your student devices. The video below will walk you through how to complete both steps.
What else can you tell me about Boost Close Reading?
Unlike other reading supplementals which rely solely on assessment questions and feedback, Boost Close Reading seamlessly weaves digital instruction with assessment within an immersive story where the analysis of text is a critical element in the plot. What’s more, with optional scaffolding designed specifically for EL students and struggling readers, every student can experience the same story from beginning to end.
Where to get support
Getting started webinar
Everything you need to get started with the program is provided above. However, if you prefer learning through webinars, we have those too! A pre-recorded, on-demand webinar is available anytime at the link below. Live webinar dates are currently being scheduled. Check back for days and times!
Intercom chat
Our Intercom feature gives you the ability to chat with customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams in real time directly from the digital platform. This ensures that issues that arise in the classroom can be addressed as quickly as possible. Support teams can be reached from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams can be reached by email at help@amplify.com from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Welcome, G6 LAUSD principals and teachers!
Looking for TK-5 LAUSD CKLA information and resources? Visit the TK-5 LAUSD CKLA site.
Scroll down to learn how ELA is uniquely designed to help all your sixth graders make learning leaps in literacy.
Our promise
Developed specifically for the needs of students entering the middle grades, Amplify ELA is a blended curriculum that promises:
- A structured, yet flexible approach.
- Carefully crafted, age-appropriate materials and activities that aren’t too “babyish” or too mature.
- Complex, content-rich literature and informational texts that ensure ample opportunities for students to encounter both “windows and mirrors”.
- Highly engaging lessons that keep adolescents plugged in and motivated to learn.
- An instructional design that levels the playing field for every student.
- Superior results.
Before you explore the program on your own, watch the program intro video on the right.
Access, engagement, and equity
Every student has the right to read, engage in class, and have an equal chance at success.
It’s this principle that guides our content creation and curation, and our dedication to reaching every student where they are.
In Amplify ELA, all students read the same text with the help of differentiated supports. In other words, we don’t dumb things down; we bring students up. Our robust collection of texts and research-based approach to instruction not only engage students, but build confidence.
General English Learners
With Amplify ELA’s integrated and designated ELD support, general English learners are given a chance to shine.
Embedded supports enable students to engage with and participate in discussions of grade-level texts with their grade-level peers.
Access Demo
Ready to explore on your own? Follow the instructions below to access your demo account.
Access the ELA Digital Platform
First, watch the quick navigation video to the right.
Then log in using the button below.
- Select: Log In with Amplify,
- Enter Username: lausdreviewer@tryamplify.net,
- Enter Password: AmplifyNumber1,
- Click the ELA Teacher Platform button
Contact us
Looking to speak directly with your LAUSD representative?
Get in touch with a team member by emailing ela.lausd@amplify.com or by calling us directly.
Welcome to Grade 6
Amplify Science California is so effective you can cover 100% of the NGSS in half the time of other programs.
Plus, you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing we give you enough materials to support 200 students. In fact, our material kits:
- Support small groups of 4-5 students.
- Make organization and finding materials easy.
- Last longer with only one of the nine kits requiring refills.
What students learn
Lauren Learner loves science. Watch this video to find out what she learns in sixth grade. >
When you’re ready:
- Find a summary of each unit below including each unit’s student role and anchor phenomenon.
- Click on the orange “See how the unit works” link to download a helpful Unit Guide. These guides make great companions to busy reviewers looking for a big-picture understanding of how each unit works.
Unit 1
Microbiome
Student role: Microbiological researchers
Phenomenon: The presence of 100 trillion microorganisms living on and in the human body keeps the body healthy.
Unit 2
Metabolism
Student role: Medical students
Phenomenon: Elisa, a teenager, is tired all the time. In fact, she can’t get through the day without feeling exhausted.
Unit 3
Spinning Earth
Student role: Sky scientists
Phenomenon: The sky looks different to Sai and his grandma when they talk on the phone at night.
Unit 4
Traits and Reproduction
Student role: Biomedical students
Phenomenon: Darwin’s bark spider offspring have different silk flexibility traits, even though they have the same parents.
Unit 5
Thermal Energy
Student role: Thermal scientists
Phenomenon: Riverdale School needs a new heating system. Only one of two proposed systems is the best choice.
Unit 6
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Unit 7
Weather Patterns
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: The strong storms in Galetown didn’t just begin. They have become more and more severe over the years.
Unit 8
Earth’s Changing Climate
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Unit 9
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
How teachers teach
Tom Teacher feels confident delivering 3-D instruction with our resources by his side. Watch this video to learn more. >
When you’re ready:
- Scroll down and take a closer look at your classroom resources.
- Click on the orange links below each component to see grade-specific samples.
Classroom Slides
These customizable PowerPoints are available for every lesson of the program and make delivering instruction a snap with visual prompts, colorful activity instructions, investigation set-up videos and animations, and suggested teacher talk in the notes section of each slide.
Teacher’s Reference Guide
Available digitally and in print, our unit-specific reference guides are chock full of helpful resources, including scientific background knowledge, planning information and resources, color-coded 3-D Statements, detailed lesson plans, tips for delivering instruction, and differentiation strategies.
Login to platform below to access
Materials Kits
Our kits include enough non-consumable materials to support 200 student uses. In other words, you have enough materials to support all five periods and small groups of 4-5 students each. Plus, our unit-specific kits mean you just grab the tub you need and then put it all back with ease.
Simulations and Practice Tools
Our digital Simulations and Practice Tools are powerful resources for exploration, data collection, and student collaboration. They allow students the ability to explore scientific concepts that might otherwise be invisible or impossible to see with the naked eye.
Consumable Notebooks
Available for every unit, our Student Investigation Notebooks contain instructions for activities and space for students to record data and observations, reflect on ideas from texts and investigations, and construct explanations and arguments.
Mystery Science
Our exclusive partnership with Mystery Science means you get our NGSS core curriculum plus two years of free access to Mystery Doug and his extensive library of captivating videos that deepen students’ understanding of each unit’s phenomenon.
Coming Soon
Unlike other publishers, we don’t make you wait until your next adoption to get the latest and greatest from Amplify. We’re always launching new and exciting features. What’s more, we’ll push them out to you even after you adopt us!
Navigating the program
Watch this video showing you how to navigate our digital platform. Then following the instructions below. >
- Click the orange button below to access the platform.
- Choose the resources you’d like to review.
- Pick your grade level from the drop-down menu.
- Scroll down to find additional grade-level resources.
Navigating a Launch Unit
Launch units are the first units taught in each year of the program. The goal of a Launch unit is to introduce students to norms, routines, and practices that will be built on throughout the year.
Navigating an Engineering Internship
Engineering Internship units invite students to design solutions for real-world problems as interns for a fictional company called Futura. In the process, they apply and deepen their learning from Core units.
Navigating a Core Unit
Core units introduce a real-world problem and support students as they figure out the anchoring phenomenon and gain an understanding of the unit’s DCIs, SEPs, and CCCs.
Navigating Classwork and Reporting
Classwork is our new online grading tool that gives you quick and easy access to unreviewed work, student portfolios of work, and automatically generated differentiation groups.
Welcome to Earth and Space Science
Amplify Science California is so effective you can cover 100% of the NGSS in fewer lessons than other programs.
Plus, you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing we give you enough materials to support 200 students. In fact, our material kits:
- Support small groups of 4-5 students.
- Make organization and finding materials easy.
- Last longer with only one of the nine kits requiring refills.
What students learn
Lauren Learner loves science. Watch this video to find out what she learns in sixth grade. >
When you’re ready:
- Find a summary of each unit below including each unit’s student role and anchor phenomenon.
- Click on the orange “See how the unit works” link to download a helpful Unit Guide. These guides make great companions to busy reviewers looking for a big-picture understanding of how each unit works.
Unit 1
Geology on Mars
Student role: Planetary geologists
Phenomenon: Analyzing data about landforms on Mars can provide evidence that Mars may have once been habitable.
Unit 2
Plate Motion
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Mesosaurus fossils have been found on continents separated by thousands of kilometers of ocean.
Unit 3
Plate Motion Engineering Internship
Student role: Mechanical engineering interns
Phenomenon: Patterns in earthquake data can be used to design an effective tsunami warning system.
Unit 4
Rock Transformations
Student role: Geologists
Phenomenon: Rock samples from different U.S. regions look different, but have similar mineral compositions.
Unit 5
Earth, Moon, and Sun
Student role: Astronomers
Phenomenon: Pictures of specific features on the Moon can only be taken by an astrophotographer at certain times.
Unit 6
Ocean, Atmosphere, and Climate
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: During El Niño years, the air temperature in Christchurch, New Zealand is cooler than usual.
Unit 7
Weather Patterns
Student role: Forensic meteorologists
Phenomenon: The strong storms in Galetown didn’t just begin. They have become more and more severe over the years.
Unit 8
Earth’s Changing Climate
Student role: Climatologists
Phenomenon: The ice on Earth’s surface is melting.
Unit 9
Earth’s Changing Climate Engineering Internship
Student role: Civil engineers
Phenomenon: Designing rooftops with different modifications can reduce a city’s impact on climate change.
How teachers teach
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S1-01: The journey from student to SpaceX engineer: Juan Vivas
In this episode, we join Eric Cross as he talks to supply chain engineer Juan Vivas of SpaceX about his experiences growing up as a Latino in STEM. Juan shares his story of moving to the United States to study engineering and becoming successful in his career as a scientist. Juan openly discusses the experiences that made a difference in his life and the teachers that inspired him along the way. He also shares his experience as an engineer in different fields, as well as what it’s like to work in the supply chain during COVID.
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Juan Vivas (00:00):
But to me, based on my experience so far, I think the best way to put it: An engineer is a technical problem-solver.
Eric Cross (00:28):
Welcome to Science Connections. I’m your host, Eric Cross. My guest today is Juan Vivas. Juan is a supply chain engineer for SpaceX. His career in STEM has pivoted from chemical engineering to working on foods like Cinnamon Toast Crunch to his current role at SpaceX, where he’s responsible for his work on Starlink, a technology that uses low-orbit satellites to provide internet access across the world. In this episode, Juan shares his story of how he became an engineer and how a thoughtful teacher used robotics to inspire him. I hope you enjoy this great conversation with Juan Vivas. Juan, thanks for being here.
Juan Vivas (01:14):
Yeah, yeah, of course! Super-excited to be here.
Eric Cross (01:19):
Hey, and starting off, I kind of like to ask your origin story. We were talking earlier about Marvel, and your journey of one working for…what I consider the closest thing that we have to SHIELD in the Marvel stories is SpaceX. Like with my own students, we talk about SpaceX like it’s a fictional thing, and we watch the rocket launches together and we watch the recovery and it’s so cool.
Juan Vivas (01:45):
Yeah.
Eric Cross (01:46):
And so when I knew that we were gonna be able to talk to you, I was excited. Like, I felt like I was a kid.
Juan Vivas (01:51):
<Laugh>
Eric Cross (01:51):
So I’d love to hear your origin story of you ultimately landing at SpaceX. And begin wherever kind of seems most natural to you.
Juan Vivas (01:59):
Yeah, yeah, of course. You know, I wasn’t one of those kids at from a young age I said “Oh, I’m gonna be an engineer.” Right? “I want to go and build all these things.” Where I grew up, and the social circle that I had, a lot of people were like doctors or lawyers. Just figured, you know, I’ll go to med school and go down the same path that 90% of like everyone else was gonna take. But in high school, I actually got into robotics. And, kind of like I mentioned, I wanted to do med school, that is what I figured I would end up doing. And then I got into robotics in high school. And I think that was what really kind of like changed my perspective of what I wanted to do, because basically these competitions were just—it was full-on driven by students. So we designed, programmed, and manufactured, like, the entire robot itself. And so through that I ended up doing a summer engineering program at the University of Maryland, the summer before going into my senior year in high school. And there we worked on a competition with underwater robots. And so we spent the entire summer, kind of similar scenario, designing a robot, manufacturing it, programming it. And then in the end it was like a competition in the buoyancy tank with different teams. And, you know, I think one thing that was really neat about that experience is that I got to hear Dr. John C. Mathers, who is a Nobel Prize physicist, speak to us in a room with, like, only 10 high school students. And just hearing his experience of where he started and the accomplishment that he’s been able to do, down in the STEM path, was really neat. And that summer was my final decision that I’m “OK, I know I want to be an engineer.” What’s interesting is I ended up choosing chemical engineering, instead of mechanical, which a lot of people, you know, based on all the experience that led me up to be an engineer, they asked me why I didn’t choose mechanical engineering. And I think one of the reasons why I chose chemical engineering is it’s very process-based. So one thing needs to happen, and there’s different inputs to that one step, and that step has an end-to-end reaction to it, right? So certain things need to happen in step one in order for step two to occur. And however the inputs happen in step one, it’s gonna affect the rest of the process. Honestly, very different than what I thought it was really gonna be. But what’s neat about chemical engineering is that it’s one of the most versatile engineering majors that you can have. Chemical engineering, because you work with a lot of process bases. Everything has a process, right? Everything needs to start with step one, and with, you know, step 10, whatever. And it’s all about optimization and improvement along those processes. So you can really take chemical engineering principles and apply ’em to different areas of a career, which is essentially the experience that I had in college. I had three internships with Dow Chemical where I did environmental health and safety, production, and supply-chain improvement. I then did research and development with Clorox. And then I did manufacturing engineering with General Mills. So really different job roles, different aspects, but same methodology applied.
Eric Cross (05:36):
I feel like there’s so much that you just said, <laugh> and I was trying to always, “I wanna ask him about that!” And in there, what I heard was there was a real pivotable, pivot moment in your life. Was the club…or was it a club, the robotics program? Or was that a class?
Juan Vivas (05:53):
You know, it was actually…it was VEX Robotics, specifically.
Eric Cross (05:56):
It was VEX! OK. Yeah, yeah. Really popular. And they still have it; I think we actually have some downstairs. So it was a club, and not necessarily a formal environment, where you were able to build. And it’s both collaborative and competitive, right? Like, there’s both aspects.
Juan Vivas (06:11):
Yep. Yep.
Eric Cross (06:11):
And, and then you had access to one of the only two facilities in the country that have these…were they buoyancy tanks?
Juan Vivas (06:20):
Buoyancy tanks, yep.
Eric Cross (06:21):
And there’s this book, Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers, and then another similar book called Balance. It talks about how some of these innovators, like Steve Jobs and, and Bill Gates, they had access to things that other people didn’t. So, like, Bill Gates, I think at the University of Washington, had a computer that, you know, no one else did. And Jobs had one at, like, Hewlett-Packard. So it gave you this awesome headstart, where you’re able to test things in a real-life environment that kind of transfers into real-world skills. And then a few internships, so like, internships and mentors. So you had these people in the industry or people who were front-runners that were able to pour into you and give you these opportunities. And so it’s really neat to see how a program that starts as a club, kind of a competitive thing that introduced you to it and hooked you, then led to unfolding all of these opportunities that ultimately led you up to being here. And there’s one part—in looking at your LinkedIn profile, there’s a couple of really cool things that stand out. There’s a lot of cool things, but there’s two that really stood out. So one, working at SpaceX, and we’ll talk more about that, but I wanna go to General Mills and Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Because Cinnamon Toast Crunch is amazing.
Juan Vivas (07:39):
Yeah.
Eric Cross (07:39):
And you were part of the supply chain for that. In my head, I’m thinking, OK, like, what is he like responsible for? Like, getting the cinnamon and sugar?
Juan Vivas (07:51):
<Laugh>
Eric Cross (07:51):
What was, what did your job entail, when you were running that?
Juan Vivas (07:55):
There, I didn’t even know what I was gonna be doing until my first day. It was just, whatever the business need is, that’s where you’re gonna be put. So this was actually a high-priority plan for General Mills. And the production line that made Cinnamon Toast Crunch was split up into processes. So you have, they call it the process-process side, which is like literally raw materials, like making the cereal from scratch, baking it, adding the sugar, and then sending it to be packaged. And then you have the packaging-process side. so I was then placed as a packaging process lead, for the packaging side of that production line. So I was accountable for two packaging lines that packed out Cinnamon Toast Crunch. And that is where—that was actually my first real, you know, call it “real job,” like graduated college, going straight into the industry. I was a process lead for the packaging side of Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Eric Cross (08:54):
So you went from cereal to rockets, <laugh>, which which is an amazing trajectory to have.
Juan Vivas (09:03):
Yeah. Yeah.
Eric Cross (09:04):
And when you kind of mentioned, back in your story about medical school, and, you know, it’s kinda like, what you see people doing, and you’re “OK, this is what I think I wanna do.” And then we have a perception in our mind about what a certain job’s gonna be like. And then reality hits. I think a lot of—when I ask my students, “What do you wanna do?” They think, like, “lawyer!” and when they think “lawyer!” they’re like, “I’m good at arguing!” Right? And until they find—until they talk to some lawyers and they find out like what that career can look like.
Juan Vivas (09:28):
Yeah.
Eric Cross (09:28):
You’re not just in the courtroom showing off your arguing skills. But, like, an engineer, when I talk to my students about what does it mean to be an engineer, often it’s very linear. It’s “I build bridges,” or, you know, maybe cars, but you’re a supply chain engineer. And, and that’s something that I think, now more than ever, it’s probably an incredibly critical role, especially considering that all of these supply constraints. Can you—what is a supply chain engineer? And what does it look like in your day-to-day? How is engineering rolled into that?
Juan Vivas (10:03):
Yeah, yeah. I think that’s an excellent question. I, too, once thought that engineering was just “I’m gonna be actually making something physical,” and like being super engineer-y about it. But, to me, based on my experience so far, I think the best way to put it: An engineer is a technical problem solver. As a supply chain engineer, specifically right now in my role at SpaceX…you know, as you can guess, the supply chain in the entire world is crazy. There’s no raw materials anywhere, and nothing can ever get on time. And so what I work on is I help our suppliers develop processes to meet the design criteria that we set up for like a specific part. As my job as a supply chain engineer, it’s “Can I take this design and make it manufacturable?” Right? “Can I go to any supplier and can they actually make this to the tolerance that the design engineer set them to be?” Nine out of 10 cases, the answer is no, essentially, is the best high-level way to put it.
Eric Cross (11:10):
When you’re solving these problems, is it this iterative process of going back and forth? Or is it just this aha-moment when you finally figure things out? ‘Cause I imagine they’re coming up with a design; you’re going back and saying, “Can this be manufactured?” or “Can it be done?” They’re saying no 90% of the time. And then are you the one responsible for kind of iterating on this, or changing it and then going back to them and telling them, asking them, until you get a yes? Is that—
Juan Vivas (11:33):
Yep. Yep, yep. Exactly. So we go through a process called Design for Manufacturing, DFMing. And where I essentially take, you know, the design engineer’s proposal, and then I have conversations with the suppliers, and then, that’s where the iteration begins. Where we go back and forth, back and forth, until we kind of meet in the middle to have something that can be manufacturable. Most of the times, in my experience, suppliers will always tell you no, just because they always want something that is manufactured really easily. And so you just gotta learn through experience. Like, when are they actually telling you something that’s a fact, versus when they’re just trying to you know, get out of a tolerance, or that “all right, all right, they mentioned that would just like make their jobs a little bit more difficult.”
Eric Cross (12:17):
So I’m hearing like there’s soft skills that are woven into the technical skills that you also need to be able to have.
Juan Vivas (12:23):
Oh, yes, absolutely. Yeah. I think, you know, as an engineer—and this is something, again, that I feel like you can only learn through experience—you’re gonna see that it’s not just you working to solve this one problem. Especially for a supply chain engineer. You’re talking with marketing; you’re talking with an industrial design team; you’re talking with logistics; you’re talking with procurement, materials management—just a whole set of people that don’t necessarily have technical background. Right? So sometimes, depending on the audience that I’m targeting, I’m always very, very peculiar on what is my target audience, right? How can I—how deep in my technical knowledge do I need to go? Because if I just, you know, talk straight Engineer, they either don’t care or they’re gonna be really confused about what I’m saying. So there is a stronghold of soft skills that definitely go into engineering, which I think are really important to communicate, you know, to, let’s say, students that are really interested in engineering. So you can be extremely smart and intelligent and really good at problem-solving, but if you don’t have those soft skills that you apply in the real world—’cause in the real world, you’re never only gonna be working with engineers, no matter like where you’re at—so having those soft skills to be able to manage with different backgrounds and different sort of people and different ways of thinking, it’s, I feel, really critical, for, for an engineer in the real world.
Eric Cross (13:50):
No, I think that’s a great point. It reminds me of teaching! And so many other professions where your ultimate goal is to really pour into this person in front of you and help develop them and create a sense of inquiry and wonder and personal growth and inspiration. But you’re also working within constraints and people and relationships. You know, you have your other teachers, you have parents, you have administrators, you have a district, you have communities, stakeholders. You have all of these different dynamics that you have to kind of navigate in order to ultimately help this child thrive. Versus just, like, being in the classroom: “OK, I just got <laugh>, the hundred or 200 students, just you and me. That’s it.” But that’s not the real world. And there’s this report that came out, I think Google ran it, Project Oxygen and Project Aristotle, and they asked the question, “What are the most effective traits of a good team and a manager?” And the top seven skills were all soft skills. So it is like exactly what you’re saying, where, yeah, it’s great that you have this technical aptitude, but if you’re not able to work with other people, problem-solve together, work with people of different backgrounds and perspectives, then you’re gonna run into some roadblocks. And that kind of dovetails, like, looking at things like if you looked at education from the perspective of an engineer. So you’re all about optimizing, right? Optimizing, working with what you got. When you look at education, are there any things that you would optimize to help improve the experience of students? Like, looking back, that you would fine-tune, that you think could provide better outcomes in the classroom?
Juan Vivas (15:28):
You know, I feel…I don’t know. Obviously I’m not a teacher. And I’m sure teachers just have so much stuff going on. But I think just like, finding…giving a chance to those students that you see a lot of potential in and really taking the time to mold them. You know, I did have a teacher who was able to mold me and give me that kind of one-on-one personal experience, right? I think honestly to me it just comes down to mentorship, and motivating students on what, you know, they’re passionate for. Like, putting them in front of engineers, right? Like finding engineers to come volunteer and explain to them. I genuinely believe it just takes one spark to really get a student on a trajectory where they can make an impact in the future. So to me, it comes down to, really, exposure. How much are you really exposing your students to…you know what, something I’ve learned, when I joined SpaceX, is that Elon doesn’t believe—well, you know, there there’s a lot of things that Elon believes and not believes in; there’s a whole different type of conversation!—but he doesn’t think that you can just take a curriculum, let’s say, and just apply it massively to everyone and expect like everyone to be it. That’s just naturally not how it works, right? Students learn at different paces; they have different sort of interests. This is actually why he created his own school for his kids in LA, called Ad Astra. You know, if you take that mentality, what that school is doing is that they’re working at the students’ pace and at the student’s interests, right? And I actually have a coworker who has his kids in that school. And I mean, these are one of the most brilliant kids I’ve ever known. Like, they are taking differential equations in the eighth grade. And I didn’t know what differential equations was until I was in college already and they told me, “This is a class you have to take.” <Laugh>. But it’s finding that crossway where, where is the curiosity of the student? What are they really interested in? and exposing them to that.
Eric Cross (17:51):
Yeah. And what I’m hearing of that is, in teacher-speak, a lot of personalized learning. Like you were talking about…is it Ad Astra?
Juan Vivas (17:59):
Ad Astra? Yep.
Eric Cross (18:01):
Ad Astra. You know, every student learns in their own way and they develop knowledge in their own way. And being able to personalize learning according to the students’ abilities and needs, and then accelerate or slow down, really produces some amazing effects. I know this is something that we as teachers try to do with the classroom. Scaling it is the challenge. But it’s great because even with people who are in charge of policy or people who have decision-making ability, hearing people from the top down saying, “Hey, look, this is what worked for me. This is how I was able to become successful. I had a teacher that was able to be a mentor to me because they knew me, they had a relationship with me, they were able to tap into my passions and use those passions to drive me to do or put me in programs that I might not have known about because they, they knew who I was.” And it’s not one-size-fits-all for everyone. So having—maybe it’s curriculum or learning experiences that are kind of modular, where students are able to maybe try on different things and get that exposure, I’m a big, big believer, like you are, in mentorship. That was a huge, huge thing in my life. Having mentors. It’s the reason why I became a science teacher. In seventh grade, I had a mentor who had us doing college-level science, you know, at UC San Diego. And it completely changed the trajectory of my life, in a direction that I wouldn’t have had without him. So I think that’s great. And it’s something that we as teachers would appreciate hearing. Going back to what you said…earlier you said your wife is a supply chain engineer as well. And so that means that there’s two people who are process-minded in the household. And this is kind of a lighter question, but I gotta wonder, do you have the most optimized flow for grocery shopping? <Laugh> Because…
Juan Vivas (19:49):
Yeah, I think we don’t spend more than like 20 minutes at a grocery store. Mind you, we only shop at Trader Joe’s and we have a very specific list before going in. And if you ever shop at Trader Joe’s, you just know where everything is ’cause it’s always there and it’s small, right? But yeah, like we’re, we’re in and out in like 15, 20 minutes. It’s great.
Eric Cross (20:11):
I love it. I love it. I feel like I’m that way by design. I go in with a purpose and this is exactly what I want. I know where the cookie butter is, <laugh>, I know where my coffee is, and then, OK, I’m in and out. Apple Pay or whatever I’m using. And then we’re good to go. Do you think…so as someone listening to this or some people even just becoming aware of supply chain engineering, what advice would you give someone that’s interested in pursuing this career path? If you maybe reverse-engineered your process, knowing what you know now, you were gonna give advice, you were that mentor, what are just some kind of tips or ideas or thoughts or trajectories that you’d think that they should aim for? I’m assuming like robotics….
Juan Vivas (20:56):
Yeah. You know, I think I would say definitely finding some sort of program that exposes you to a lot of things that you won’t be exposed to, like on a day-to-day basis, or something that you just can’t be exposed to naturally at school. And mentorship, honestly. I was born in Colombia and my parents were both—they’re still both professionals, but they were both professionals in Colombia. And when we moved to this country, this was like December of 1999. My parents started from scratch, and so they didn’t really grow up in the States, right? So when it was my time to go to college and do all of this stuff, it was just like me on my own figuring this stuff out. And, you know, they definitely made some mistakes when it came to college applications and whatnot. But once I was in college, I knew that the best way for my success was gonna be through mentorship. And that’s when I joined the, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, which is a nationwide organization. And each college, well, most college campuses, have their own chapter. In joining that, I was exposed to resume workshops, mock interviews—basically how do you even talk to a recruiter? Which is so critical, right? And personally that that organization was really what molded my actual professional career.
Eric Cross (22:19):
There’s this theme that I’m hearing, kind of weaving through this. And in addition to—as we’re talking about STEM and technical skills, in addition to that, there’s this thread that I’m receiving of…being able to form relationships with other people, for our students, is an important skill to teach and should be taught explicitly. Which isn’t…it’s not really a curriculum, right? Like, you don’t get tested on your ability to….conflict resolution or how to write an email or how to develop a relationship. And then the other part in I think what you just said is the aspect of community. Through this organization, you learned kind of some of these hidden rules, maybe I would call it.
Juan Vivas (23:04):
Yep.
Eric Cross (23:04):
It’s not that you didn’t have the…you had the aptitude. You had the drive. But there were these kind of hidden rules, and from moving to the US, you needed a community to be able to show you, so that you can kind of go through the proper steps.
Juan Vivas (23:16):
Exactly.
Eric Cross (23:17):
And so that created a lot of value for you.
Juan Vivas (23:19):
Yep.
Eric Cross (23:20):
Well, the last question that I have is, is just kind of a wondering. You have this awesome story, and the story continues to unfold. I gotta say, <laugh> I’m gonna be following your LinkedIn profile, because I think you just have kind of the coolest trajectory of going from, you know, General Mills, working in chemical engineering, and then ultimately it’s SpaceX. And every time I see the rocket taking off and landing, I’m gonna be thinking, thinking about you. So cool!
Juan Vivas (23:47):
Yeah. Yeah.
Eric Cross (23:49):
And personally, I have a hope that one day, one of my students will be at a company, you know, like SpaceX or Tesla or wherever, and one day I get to interview them and talk to them and see what they say. But the last question I want to ask is, is there, is there a teacher who inspired you, or a memorable experience that you have that made an impact on you?
Juan Vivas (24:16):
Yeah, yeah, of course. It was kind of you know, middle school going into high school. The way my school worked, everything was divided from pre-kindergarten, whatever, first to sixth grade, and then seventh grade to 12th grade. So I had a high school science teacher, Ms. Brown, Ms. Velda Brown, who, came from a small little island town on the east coast of Canada. Somehow landed, in the high school that I went to, to teach science. Going back to the beginning of the story where I mentioned that I figured whatever, I’ll go to med school. I played soccer, basketball, and, you know, I said, “I’ll figure it out once I graduate.” It might have been like life science in the eighth grade or something like that. But then she went on to teach me chemistry and physics as well. And when I was in the 10th grade, she approached me and she asked me if I wanted to join the robotics club. And I remember saying robotics? I don’t know. You know, naturally, in school, it’s different sorts of crowds: people that play sports and people that are like in like STEM clubs or whatever. And I was, “Ah, I don’t know; I don’t know how I feel about robotics; not really my thing….” But somehow she convinced me to join robotics. It’s me, coming into this group of kids that already knew each other, and they were all working on robotics. And I’m, “Yeah, I mean, I guess I’m just here to try this thing out.” It was a thing where we met every single Saturday at like seven in the morning. And there were times where I literally had to choose, “Do I go to like a soccer game or do I go to you help my team with robotics?” And I completely loved it. Like, I fell in love with the aspect of building something from scratch, and just making it operative. And she ended up just being a huge mentor for me in high school, actually. With her, with the help of her, I ended up opening the robotics club at my school. And before I left, we opened it up to middle schoolers. And then, you know, later, years later down the road when I was in college, I found out that it was now a whole-school thing. So there was an elementary robotics club at the school, the middle school one, and then the high school one were still a thing like years after I left. And that was like just so amazing to hear. But yeah, it was Ms. Velda Brown, my high school science teacher, that really took her time to mold me and get me into robotics, and really mentor me. And honestly, I’m sure you as teachers, you guys probably hear about it a lot, but you can have a lot of power in shaping a kid by just telling—believing in them, right? She believed in me so much that I would go on to be a successful engineer. And I’m. “OK, yeah, yeah, you’re just saying it.” But she spoke life into her students up to this day. I still speak about it with my wife, and when I’m in conversations about this, that if it wasn’t for my high school science teacher, I would not—well, no, I would probably not be an engineer right now.
Eric Cross (27:38):
Wow. Shout out to Ms. Velda Brown <laugh>. Would you say she spoke…I think one thing that just resonated with me is when you said she “spoke life” into you.
Juan Vivas (27:46):
Yeah.
Eric Cross (27:46):
That was really powerful. And I think we as teachers have that power and we don’t realize it. Because, you know, we get so we’re so familiar and living day-to-day, but we do have the power of life, speaking life, into our young people. And, yeah, that was—
Juan Vivas (28:03):
Absolutely, yeah. You know, I think obviously people grew up with different backgrounds, different communities, life situations, right? So imagine having like a student that is similar in that environment and then they just hear someone at their school, like, “Hey, you’re really good at this. why don’t you consider doing this?” And that’s when I feel teachers have that power. Where like they don’t necessarily know the background, but they can make that opportunity, or make that decision in the moment, to really shape a student’s life.
Eric Cross (28:37):
And we need to hear that. And I think, I hope that other teachers listening to this will be reminded that many times we don’t get to reap the harvest. We don’t get to see the <laugh> Juan Vivases at SpaceX. They just kind of go, and they disappear, and we hope for the best, and we get a new group. But every once in a while they come back, and we get to see what our watering or seed-planting was able to produce. And so, just know that you sharing your story for educators, and for definitely Ms. Brown, makes a huge difference and is a huge encouragement. So.
Juan Vivas (29:11):
You know, I think we touched on earlier, you know, how do I end up going from cereal to rockets, right? And I think it ties along with what I mentioned earlier of just taking—as an engineer, you’re really a critical problem solver, right? And you think that methodology. And if you find a way, you can apply it to different sectors. When I was doing a lot of like the packaging process stuff at General Mills, being a lead on a high-volume manufacturing line, what I do for SpaceX specifically, right now, I’m actually on the Starlink project. So if you’re up to date with Starlink, it’s, it’s essentially high reliable, fast internet that we’re providing to areas where usually people don’t have access to internet, right? Or maybe they do, but it’s extremely expensive. Because to an internet provider company, the benefit is not there, if they extend an entire internet fiber line out to their place because it’s only directed to them, right? So that’s, that’s essentially what Starlink is trying to solve. And this is the first time that SpaceX is facing a consumer packaging scenario. Before it was just rockets. And now they’re selling a product to consumers. They had never done that before, especially in a high-volume manufacturing setting. And so I am the supplier development engineer for all the consumer-facing packaging for the Starlink product itself. And that’s essentially how all those thoughts connected, where I had this experience coming from General Mills and packaging high-volume manufacturing. And then when Starlink started, they’re all, “Right, well, who knows anything about packaging?” Right? “We know so much about rockets, we need someone with this technical background.” And that’s essentially how I bridge over to SpaceX.
Eric Cross (31:11):
And so while you’re working at SpaceX, you’re working on Starlink, which I know you mentioned that—you said that it’s providing internet globally, which in and of itself, we—especially those of us that live in major cities—we kind of take for granted. Internet is like a utility. But we don’t maybe realize that in many parts of the world, internet is not reliable or even accessible.
Juan Vivas (31:33):
Right. Right.
Eric Cross (31:34):
I see every once in a while, I think, the StarlinK satellites sometimes are visible?
Juan Vivas (31:38):
Yep.
Eric Cross (31:39):
Low orbit?
Juan Vivas (31:39):
Yeah. Yeah. You can go—they’ll kind of be like a little train of bright stars that move along together. Yep.
Eric Cross (31:46):
And that must—that must feel…I mean, we all have jobs and we’re all doing different things, but you’re working on a project and you’re engineering something that actually can provide a lot of opportunities or close a gap in some parts of the world where they don’t have access to internet. They’re gonna be able to have access and be connected all over. I dunno, the word would be “existential.” Existential value. Like, what you’re doing is actually providing a service for people. Humanity. Like, addressing a critical need in many, many places around the world.
Juan Vivas (32:26):
Yeah. We’ve had stories where we have sent Starlink kids to a small school in a village in rural Chile, right in South America. And for the first time ever, they’ve had internet. We have supported disaster relief in Europe. I think this past summer, Europe had really bad floods. We sent Starlink kits out there. You know, the vision of working at an Elon Musk company and SpaceX and Starlink—this is all stuff that is being done for the first time in history. We have never, ever done anything like this before until now. And to be able to provide those that don’t have the access to—to your point, it’s kind of wild, right? Like we, we just take it for granted. “Oh yeah, I just have internet. Let me log on.” There are people on Earth right now that have never been on the internet. Or don’t even know what the internet is. And that’s essentially the, the gap that Startlink is starting to close.
Eric Cross (33:26):
Yeah. We think about that while my students are doing TikTok dances. <Laugh> And there are people who, you know, never, never been connected. And, it kind of makes me more like, just inside, if I can ask: What’s it like working at SpaceX? I showed my students what it’s like working at some of the Silicon Valley companies. ‘Cause just to show them there’s slides and food and, you know, they kind developed this ecosystem inside so that it’s really kind of homey to kind of keep you there, you know. When you’re working and there’s bikes and things like that. And that’s a very Silicon Valley type of thing. But, you know, in listening to you talk about SpaceX and Elon, you know, you’re with a really visionary kind of company, and when I hear you talk about it, there’s I can hear this passion, this, “we’re doing something.” Is that culture, like, pervasive everywhere? Are you around folks that kind of are on that same wavelength? Because I definitely get it from you as you talk about what you do.
Juan Vivas (34:28):
Yeah, yeah. Definitely. I think, as an engineer, you know, going to SpaceX and working at SpaceX, it’s essentially—personally, I believe right now in the US it’s like the mecca of engineering, right? Like, it is where engineering in this most, you know, shape and manner, it’s being applied. I think what’s really interesting is that the way that Elon looks at it is just iterate, and iterate fast, right? Like, fail and fail fast. I think as an engineer, you always want to have things perfect, right? And so you spend a lot of time in making a decision or investigating something or whatever. And working at SpaceX is the complete opposite. It’s just you know, “Assume, state your assumptions—like, what are you assuming right now? What are the risk at it? And just make a decision and then see what the result is.” You know, so it’s an environment where you learn, really quick.
Eric Cross (35:28):
You said something that I think was powerful and I hope, I think <laugh>, this is definitely, I’m gonna get a clip of this <laugh> of you saying it. Because it speaks directly to, I think, what a lot of students struggle with in the classroom, is there’s this competition or feeling that you always need to be right. And you need to be right the first try, on the first time. And a lot of times it’s because students will compare themselves to each other, or there’s a tremendous amount of pressure to be successful. But you said, “Fail and fail fast, iterate, state your assumptions.” And it sounds like this critical part of being an engineer or in what you do, like there’s no room for ego or attaching your identity or your sense of value or worth or ability to whether you’re able to solve a problem in the first try.
Juan Vivas (36:13):
Yep.
Eric Cross (36:14):
Like, you have to be OK with the cycle, is kind of what I’m hearing from you. Is that, is that right?
Juan Vivas (36:19):
Yep. Exactly. It only took six months to develop the product from scratch and launch it to the public, which is insane. Nowhere in the world will any company ever iterate that fast and come up with a brand-new project. But it’s because of that mentality—like you’re saying, it’s not about like just trying to make it perfect and have all this information. And I think Elon has learned this personally, you know, through Tesla and the beginning of SpaceX. It’s, “I can wait to have all this information, and most likely I’m still gonna be wrong after I make the decision.” So it’s, “Might as well take the risk, do the decision, and then just see where you learn from it, right?” And then you keep applying that, applying that. So it’s like you iterate, iterate, iterate, iterate until you get what you want.
Eric Cross (37:00):
I think this is even, like, great advice. I’m taking this personally because I get paralysis by analysis <laugh>.
Juan Vivas (37:06):
Yep.
Eric Cross (37:07):
You know, I’ll research something to death but then not actually execute. Like, I need to make a decision and do it and then course-correct along the way. Somebody once told me it’s a lot easier to turn a moving car than it is a car that’s sitting still. And so as you’re kind of flowing, you’re just making these adjustments along the way until you end up on the path that you want to be. So I think that there’s so many gems in the things that you’re saying right now. What I’m thinking through the lens of my seventh graders that want to work in any STEM field—I mean, really, any field in general, but especially engineering, especially the STEM fields—knowing that, pick it, make a decision, move forward, and then course-correct along the way. That’s what science looks like in the real world.
Juan Vivas (37:49):
Yep. Exactly. Yep. And definitely most important—and I feel like this is sometimes where, not necessarily education in general, but it’s just, we want students to, “OK, you need to get it right the perfect time, right?” But it’s like, every student is gonna think differently. A student is gonna take a different assumption based on their background and experiences. And I mean, you know, we can go a lot deeper in that, but the way a student is shaped, they’re gonna take certain assumptions. So that’s where it gets interesting. OK, why are you assuming that? Where’s your thought process in this?
Eric Cross (38:25):
And we all come from different backgrounds and mindsets and filters and biases that cause us to look at something a certain way. And it’s not just like calling it out, just going, “Hey look, this is what it is.” Like autopsy without blame, this is what I’m working with. Let’s discuss it openly. Right? And if we started that process earlier, you know, younger, in classrooms, we can de-stigmatize the right answer being the best answer more, as opposed to focusing on process as opposed to outcome. And then you kinda get used to wanting to go through the process. I look at it like video games and I talk to my students. I say, “You know, you don’t pick up a video game that’s brand-new and then play it and then you die once and you’re ‘Ah, I’m never gonna play this game again.’ You know, it just doesn’t work that way. You’re going through this iterative process, and no matter what you play, you’re trying things differently. You’re data collecting. And then you’re making new decisions based on the data that you collected.” And for some of my kids, they’ll just raise their hands, say, “No, I just get mad and throw the controller across the room.” <Laugh> But I go, “Yeah, and then you’ll try it again.”
Juan Vivas (39:33):
The best way to know how not to do something is to fail. And so you already…I mean, what is that famous quote? I think that’s why Thomas Edison’s, “Oh, I, did not fail 99 times. Right? I only found 99 times…” I mean, that is that is true. And I feel like at work in a SpaceX, that is something that probably the core of it comes from there. It’s you know, any failure, quote unquote, that you may take it as a failure, it’s really not. You’re just “OK, we, we tried that. It didn’t work. Like what are we gonna do next?” So it’s just like taking that learning and like moving off with it quickly.
Eric Cross (40:09):
I heard a couple of teachers say, “Things fail: First Attempt In Learning: F A I L.” And then another teacher, one of my mentor teachers, she said, “There’s no such thing as failure, just data, in science.”
Juan Vivas (40:20):
Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Exactly. Yep.
Eric Cross (40:23):
And so I’ve always taken that to heart. And I share that with my own students, just, “A ‘no,’ a lot of times, will tell you more information than a ‘yes.’” ‘Cause if something works in the first try, you may not exactly know why it worked. It just did.
Juan Vivas (40:34):
Yeah. Yep.
Eric Cross (40:37):
So yeah. Well, I went on your time, brother. Dude. <laugh>. The time flew. It was…
Juan Vivas (40:46):
Yeah.
Eric Cross (40:47):
There were so many things I was trying to write out as you were talking, that I just felt like, “This guy is sharing so many gems!” But yeah, I want to thank you for taking time outta your day and for sharing that information for your passion for what you do. And, I don’t know, I think that students and teachers that listen to this will get an insight from a perspective that really matters. ‘Cause ultimately we’re, we’re trying to really prepare our students for real life. Maybe I’ll email you privately if I order a Tesla, if you can move me higher up the Cybertruck line. <laugh>
Juan Vivas (41:22):
Yeah. No promises.
Eric Cross (41:24):
<laugh>
Juan Vivas (41:25):
Yeah. No, I appreciate you guys having me, having me here, and be able to speak on my experience. And hopefully it sparks a couple, one, even if it’s just one teacher that will spark another student, that is already success there. So.
Eric Cross (41:42):
Well I know, I know what you said resonates with me and it fills my cup. And I’m excited. So I’m already thinking of some ideas of things that I can do, just because of this conversation, and I know other people will as well. And, again, this is Juan Vivas, who’s a supply development engineer at SpaceX. He’s worked at some amazing places. And someone who believes deeply in not only the power of the technical skills, but the heart skills, and how community makes a huge impact in his life. It made a huge impact in him ultimately becoming a scientist, and now working on a project at SpaceX, Starlink, that is going to provide access to the world, to the web. And that’ll ultimately help us solve more problems and innovate and create some solutions that will benefit everybody. Thank you, sir. Appreciate you.
Juan Vivas (42:30):
Yeah, thank you. Thank you so much, Eric. Appreciate it.
Stay connected!
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Meet the guest
Juan Vivas is a chemical engineer currently working as a Supplier Development Engineer at SpaceX. Juan got his start at the University of Florida, where he led the Society of Hispanic Engineers (SHPE) as vice president. He’s worked for companies like Clorox, Dow Chemical, and General Mills. Juan lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife and two dogs.
About Science Connections: The podcast
Welcome to Science Connections: The Podcast! Science is changing before our eyes, now more than ever. So…how do we help kids figure that out? We will bring on educators, scientists, and more to discuss the importance of high-quality science instruction. In this episode, hear from our host Eric Cross about his work engaging students as a K-8 science teacher.
Welcome to your Amplify Science California pilot!
We’re thrilled to welcome you to the Amplify family, and we look forward to making your experience with Amplify Science California successful from day one.
On this site, you’ll find resources, tips, videos, and other helpful information designed to support you throughout your pilot experience.
Tips for getting started successfully
It takes time to learn any new program and get used to its patterns and flow—time that you aren’t always afforded in a pilot situation. Based on our work with thousands of pilot teachers who are now happy users, we can tell you with 100% confidence that it gets easier. In no time, you’ll be preparing and delivering all your lessons with ease.
Until you become comfortable with the organization of each unit and how one lesson flows into the next, the following resources will be key in helping you prepare to teach your first unit.
Unit Guide
These short and sweet guides provide a big picture overview of each unit’s phenomenon and storyline, the key questions that guide learning, and how the storyline develops from chapter to chapter. We even spoil the big reveal at the end by pointing out ahead of time what students figure out throughout the unit.
Ready to download? Navigate to your grade level using the menu bar above, scroll to the Unit Types section, and then download the appropriate Unit Guide(s).
Lesson Overview
Reading this short summary is a great way to get a quick snapshot of the learning that will take place during the day ahead. It includes a short description of the lesson, student learning objectives, and an at-a-glance list of activities.
Where to find it? Log into the digital Teacher’s Guide and navigate to the lesson you want to teach by following this click path: Grade Level > Unit > Chapter > Lesson. Next, scroll to the Lesson Brief section and click Overview. This same information is also found in your printed Teacher’s Reference Guide.
Material and preparation tips
Also found in the Lesson Brief section of your digital Teacher’s Guide and printed Teacher’s Reference Guide is a complete list of materials that you’ll need to gather as well as step-by-step lesson preparation tips organized by:
- Before the Day of the Lesson
- Immediately Before the Lesson
- At the End of the Day
3-D Statements
Color-coded for easy readability and quick scanning, our 3-D Statements can be found at point-of-use for every unit and lesson, making it easy to pinpoint the exact SEPs, DCIs, and CCCs that will be targeted on any given day.
Where to find them? Log into the digital Teacher’s Guide and navigate to any Unit Guide or Lesson Brief and click the expandable box called 3-D Statements. A complete list of 3-D Statements can also be found in the back of any printed Teacher’s Reference Guide.
Coherence Flowcharts
These are another great tool for helping you visualize the flow of a unit and the connections between the questions that drive students’ experiences and:
- The evidence they gather
- The solutions they figure out
- The new questions they generate
Where to find them? Log into the digital Teacher’s Guide, navigate to your desired unit, scroll to the Unit Guide, and look in the Printable Resources section.
Support is always within reach
Your role as a pilot teacher is important. Your district is counting on you not only to evaluate how Amplify Science California works in your classroom, but also to pick a reliable and supportive long-term partner. We feel confident that we’re that partner, and we look forward to proving that to you during your pilot experience.
Just as it will be when you become a customer, support during your pilot will always be within reach through the following channels.
Pilot support coordinator
Your dedicated pilot support coordinator has extensive experience delivering training, rostering students, answering both pedagogical and technical questions, and delivering demonstration lessons. Said another way, he or she is here to help. So, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Who is my pilot support coordinator? Look for his or her contact information in the pilot support brochure that you received during your pilot implementation training.
Intercom chat
In addition to traditional lines of communication, our Intercom feature gives you the ability to chat with our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams in real time directly from the digital platform. This ensures that issues that arise in the classroom can be addressed as quickly as possible.
Support teams can be reached from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST, Monday through Friday.
Our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams can also be reached by email at help@amplify.com.
Support teams can be reached from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST, Monday through Friday.
Boost Reading for mCLASS® partners
We’re thrilled you’re considering giving Boost Reading a try! This site contains all the resources you’ll need to learn more about the program and to get started using it to support remote learning or classroom instruction. We’re confident you’re going to love how Boost Reading puts your mCLASS data to work.
Resources to support your use of the program
What is Boost Reading?
Boost Reading is a digital reading program that complements ELA programs with adaptive and targeted practice in foundational reading skills. While it can be used on its own, Boost Reading also integrates with mCLASS, which means that you get extra benefits like automatic rostering and placement in the program based on a student’s mCLASS composite score. From that point forward, the program takes every student on a personalized journey that addresses gaps and bolsters foundational skills at a pace that supports their individual development.
How do I get started with Boost Reading?
Good news! Boost Reading has already been enabled within your mCLASS account. To get started with the program, you’ve got only two steps left: adjusting your student login settings and setting up your student devices. The resource below will walk you through how to do both.
- [Video] Boost Reading quick start tutorial
- [Article] How to download and distribute student login information
After students start playing, you can check on their progress via your teacher dashboard.
How do I get families started with Boost Reading?
We will be releasing more resources to support at-home usage of Boost Reading, as well as communication between educators, students and parents/guardians. To start, you can direct parents to the following video and letters for an overview of the program and how to get started.
- [Video] How to get your child started with Boost Reading
- [PDF] Parent/guardian letter in English
- [PDF] Parent/guardian letter in Spanish
When and how to use Boost Reading
We recommend students use the program independently for 30-45 minutes a week. This implementation model has led to student growth, especially for dual language learners.
Students will need access to one of the following devices: Windows Devices with Windows 7+, Chromebooks with Chrome OS, and Mac devices with OS 10.11+ or iOS 11+.
What else can you tell me about Boost Reading?
Review the resources below to dive deeper into what makes Boost Reading such a unique and powerful companion to mCLASS.
- [PDF] The Missing Link in Reading Comprehension
- [PDF] Social Emotional Learning in Boost Reading
- [Video] What does growth mindset sound like? Hear students and teachers talk about Boost Reading
- [Podcast] A Conversation with Anne Lucas about Comprehension Processes
Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community to discuss the latest in reading research and instructional practices.
Where to get support
Intercom chat
Our Intercom feature gives you the ability to chat with customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams in real time directly from the digital platform. This ensures that issues that arise in the classroom can be addressed as quickly as possible. Support teams can be reached from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams can be reached by email at help@amplify.com from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Welcome to Boost Reading: Remote Learning Edition!
Amplify is committed to helping school and district partners make instructional resources like Boost Reading: Remote Edition available to students who may be unable to attend school.
This site contains all the resources you’ll need to get started using Boost Reading: Remote Edition with your students as soon as possible. We’re confident that as a community, we can continue to support learning to read remotely.
Are you an mCLASS® user? Click here to get started.
Getting started
What you need to know about Boost Reading
Boost Reading is a student-driven, digital literacy program that provides students with differentiated and adaptive practice in all key areas of literacy instruction. Teachers have access to rich data insights into student usage and progress they can use to inform remote instruction.
How does it work with other programs?
Boost Reading is a great complement to any core or assessment program, especially Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA) and mCLASS.
When and how to use Boost Reading
We recommend students use the program independently for 30-45 minutes a week. This implementation model has led to student growth, especially for dual language learners.
Students will need access to one of the following devices: Windows Devices with Windows 7+, Chromebooks with Chrome OS, and Mac devices with OS 10.11+ or iOS 11+.
How do I get started with Amplify Reading?
Good news! Amplify Reading has already been enabled within your mCLASS and Acadience Reading accounts. To get started with the program, you’ve got only two steps left: creating your class code and setting up your devices.
- [Video] How to access Amplify Reading from within mCLASS and Acadience Reading
- [Video] How to enable class login
- [Video] How to create shortcuts on devices
- [PDF] Amplify Reading launch packet
Note: Amplify Reading works on most classroom devices, including Windows Devices with Windows 7+, Chromebooks with Chrome OS, and Mac devices with OS 10.11+ or iOS 11+.
What else can you tell me about Amplify Reading?
As students engage in skill practice, their paths through the game world adapt to meet their unique learning needs. Amplify Reading includes more than 40 standards-aligned games that build language, foundational skills, and comprehension skills, while also developing:
- Phonological awareness
- Phonics
- Vocabulary
- Text analysis
- Comprehension
- Microcomprehension (i.e., the smaller aspects of comprehension that make up the reader’s mental model of a text)
Some additional resources that you might find helpful:
How do I get started with Boost Reading?
Good news! You and your students now have access to Boost Reading. To get started, you’ll need to sign in with your Amplify credentials at mclass.devamplify.wpengine.com. Next, you’ll want to distribute Boost Reading credentials to your students.
Where do I find my credentials?
You should have received an email from noreply@devamplify.wpengine.com with your new account information. If you do not see it in your inbox, please check your spam folder.
How to download and distribute student credentials:
- [Article] How to download and distribute student login information
- [PDF] Parent/guardian letter in English
- [PDF] Parent/guardian letter in Spanish
How to support login at home:
You can direct parents to the following videos for an overview of the program and how to get started.
- [VIDEO] How to get your child started with Boost Reading (English)
- [VIDEO] How to get your child started with Boost Reading (Spanish)
After students start playing, you can check in on their progress via your teacher dashboard.
Printable extension activities
Consider sending the following activities home with your students as part of their weekly Boost Reading routine. Each printable activity has instructions in both English and Spanish.
Packet 1
Access support
Intercom chat
Our Intercom feature gives you the ability to chat with customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams in real time directly from the digital platform. This ensures that issues that arise in the classroom can be addressed as quickly as possible. Support teams can be reached from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Our customer support, technical support, and pedagogical support teams can be reached by email at help@devamplify.wpengine.com from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, Monday through Friday.
Learn more
Review the resources below to dive deeper into what makes Boost Reading unique.
- [PDF] The Missing Link in Reading Comprehension
- [PDF] Social Emotional Learning in Boost Reading
- [Video] What does growth mindset sound like? Hear students and teachers talk about Boost Reading
- [Podcast] A Conversation with Anne Lucas about Comprehension Processes
Join our Facebook group Science of Reading: The Community to discuss the latest in reading research and instructional practices.
LITERACY CHAMPIONS
The Science of Reading Star Awards
Making the shift to the Science of Reading is no small feat. Every day, educators like you are successfully improving student outcomes in schools and communities, and we’re eager to celebrate your accomplishments with the Science of Reading Star Awards.
We’re no longer accepting submissions for this year’s Star Awards cycle. See you next year!
Get excited for the prizes!
Exceptional accomplishments deserve to be rewarded.
All award winners will receive:
- Honorary Amplify Ambassadorship.
- Amplification on our website and social media.
- A Science of Reading starter library.
- Enrollment in Science of Reading: The Learning Lab for each winner and a friend.
- Tons of swag!
The grand prize winners in the District and School categories will receive access to an exclusive library of professional development resources. The grand prize winner in the Individual category will be given full conference registration and associated travel costs to The Annual Conference of The Reading League.
Recognizing leaders in education
Learning to read is nothing short of a transformation—and at the heart of this transformation are literacy educators harnessing the Science of Reading to ignite lifelong learning.
Science of Reading Star Award winners shine bright, going above and beyond to light the path for students nationwide. Be part of the celebration—help us recognize these heroes!
“Receiving this award is really an honor. It’s an amazing feeling to be recognized for work that I care so deeply about. At the same time I have to dedicate this award to the amazing educators that I work with, and the supportive administrators that we’ve had along the way.”
An award category for everyone!
District:
The District Captain
This award honors a district that exemplifies strong Science of Reading practices across the board.
School:
The Literacy Legend
This award honors a school that has seen significant reading gains among their students school-wide when using the Science of Reading.
Individual:
The Background Knowledge Builder
This award is for showing the world that the Science of Reading empowers students with knowledge, context, and vocabulary from elementary through middle school.
Individual:
The Changemaker
This award is for showcasing exemplary Science of Reading routines and practices, and serving as an inspiration to others on the journey.
Individual:
The Comprehension Champion
This award is for fostering deep understanding and critical thinking by expertly guiding students to make meaning from complex texts, ask thoughtful questions, and connect reading to their world and experiences.
Individual:
The Data Dynamo
This award is for expertly using data to drive instruction within an MTSS framework, identifying student needs with precision, and implementing targeted interventions that accelerate literacy growth for every learner.
Individual:
The Language Luminary
This award is for outstanding success in developing the skills and strengths of emergent bilingual students and multilingual/English learners.
Individual:
The Science of Reading Rookie
This award is for a teacher in their first three years of teaching, already making strides with the Science of Reading.
Individual:
The Writing Whiz
This award is for integrating writing instruction with the Science of Reading, cultivating articulate and confident writers through innovative and effective practices.
“I’ve been teaching for 17 years, so getting this award after starting to integrate the Science of Reading really validated what I was doing, solidified it in my classroom, and made me realize that I was doing the right thing after all.”
Submit a nomination to the Science of Reading Star Awards!
Entry is quick and simple—just provide the required information and an overview of the nominee you think deserves recognition.
- You may submit multiple entries, but please nominate for only one category at a time.
- Your submission can include an overview of the educator, school, or district’s journey with the Science of Reading; how they overcame challenges; how they are empowering their students with the Science of Reading; how they implemented strong Science of Reading practices; and/or what results they are seeing.
- The more specific you can be in your submission, the better! If data is a big part of your story, we’d love to hear about it.
- As part of your entry, you agree to allow us to contact you about the details of your application.
- A member of the team will be in contact by March 2026 if you are short-listed as a finalist.
Amplify Desmos Math New York
Amplify Desmos Math New York supports teachers in building students’ lifelong math proficiency. The program:
- Supports social classrooms, invites mathematical creativity, and evokes wonder, creating a welcoming learning space where students are empowered to see themselves and their classmates as having brilliant mathematical ideas.
- Provides math teachers with clear step-by-step moves to build systematically from students’ prior knowledge to grade-level learning.
- Connects students to each other’s thinking and to an understanding that they can use math to make sense of the world.
- Enables access to grade-level understanding for every student, every day.
Math that motivates
Picture a classroom where students are so engaged in a math lesson that they protest when the teacher pauses their work on a problem. A classroom is buzzing with the sounds of natural curiosity. This is what we regularly see with Amplify Desmos Math. This is math that motivates.
Review program samplers (Grades K–5)
Experience the beautiful, easy-to-use print components that add to the power of Desmos Classroom technology and instruction by downloading the print samplers below. The samplers include print pages from Amplify Desmos Math New York lessons.
Grade 1
- Teacher Edition sampler
- Student Edition sampler
- Ancillary sampler
- Assessment Resources, Unit 3
- Centers, Unit 3
- Mini-Lessons, Unit 3
Grade 3
- Teacher Edition sampler
- Student Edition sampler
- Ancillary sampler
- Assessment Resources, Unit 2
- Centers, Unit 2
- Mini-Lessons, Unit 2
Grade 5
Review program samplers (Grades 6–8)
Experience the beautiful, easy-to-use print components that add to the power of Desmos Classroom technology and instruction by downloading the print samplers below. The samplers include print pages from Amplify Desmos Math New York lessons.
Grades 6–8
Mini-Lesson sampler
Grade 6
Teacher Edition sampler
Student Edition sampler
Assessment Guide sampler
Grade 7
Teacher Edition sampler
Student Edition sampler
Assessment Guide sampler
Grade 8
Teacher Edition sampler
Student Edition sampler
Assessment Guide sampler
Experience Amplify Desmos Math New York
Explore our digital program to review content from grades K–8. Watch our quick walkthrough videos for helpful navigation tips: Grades K–5 and Grades 6–8.
To log in, click the orange “Review now” button below, select “Log in with Amplify” and use the following login credentials:
Username: t1.ny-state-adm@demo.tryamplify.net
Password: Amplify1-ny-state-adm
Standards
Once you’ve logged in to your reviewer account, download the documents correlating Amplify Desmos Math New York to the New York State Next Generation Math Learning Standards.
Personalized learning
Amplify Desmos Math includes digital, adaptive practice that provides the personalized support a student needs to access grade-level math every day. Boost Personalized Learning activities target a skill or concept aligned to the day’s core lesson, with each student receiving personalized scaffolds based on what they already know. This technology complements daily learning and provides another layer of support to the in-lesson differentiation and instructional guidance provided to teachers. Try out free Boost Personalized Learning activities.
The Fluency Practice of Amplify Desmos Math uses an evidence-based approach to memory retention—spaced repetition—for the basic operations. Students around the world have answered more than 120 million multiplication questions within our application. Try it now!
Help
Support is always within reach. Our team is dedicated to supporting you throughout your review and can be reached by email or phone 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET.
- Live chat: Once logged into the program, click the orange icon to get immediate help.
- Phone: Call our toll-free number: (888) 960-0380.
- Email: Send an email to help@amplify.com. In the message body, please include your name and question. Provide as much detail as possible, so we can more quickly help you find a solution.
Amplify Desmos Math New York
Amplify Desmos Math New York supports teachers in building students’ lifelong math proficiency. The program:
- Supports social classrooms, invites mathematical creativity, and evokes wonder, creating a welcoming learning space where students are empowered to see themselves and their classmates as having brilliant mathematical ideas.
- Provides teachers with clear step-by-step moves to build systematically from students’ prior knowledge to grade-level learning.
- Connects students to each other’s thinking and to an understanding that they can use math to make sense of the world.
- Enables access to grade-level understanding for every student, every day.
Math that motivates
Picture a classroom where are so engaged in a math lesson that they protest when the teacher pauses their work on a problem. A classroom is buzzing with the sounds of natural curiosity. This is what we regularly see with Amplify Desmos Math. This is math that motivates.
Experience Amplify Desmos Math New York
Explore our digital program to review content from all grades, K–5. Watch our quick walkthrough video for helpful navigation tips. To log in, click the orange “Review now” button below, select “Log in with Amplify” and use the following login credentials:
Username: t.nycadmsample-01@tryamplify.net
Password: AmplifyNumber1
To log in as a student, use the following credentials (you must first log out if you have already logged in as a teacher):
Username: s.nycadmsample-01@tryamplify.net
Password: AmplifyNumber1
About the program
To learn more about Amplify Desmos Math New York, including pedagogical philosophy, origins, implementation examples, and independent, nationally-recognized reviews, download the following documents:
Standards
Once you’ve logged in to your reviewer account, download our program scope and sequence and a document correlating Amplify Desmos Math New York to the New York State Next Generation Math Learning Standards.
Grades K–5 standards correlation
The program is well aligned with the expectations outlined in the New York City Department of Education Definition of Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education and the New York State Culturally Responsive-Sustaining Education Framework. Download the CR-SE alignment.
The program is also well aligned with the research-informed math practices outlined in the New York City Public Schools Shifts in Mathematics. Download the program’s alignment to the Shifts in Mathematics.
Personalized Learning
Amplify Desmos Math includes digital, adaptive practice that provides the personalized support a student needs to access grade-level math every day. Personalized Learning activities target a skill or concept aligned to the day’s core lesson, with each student receiving personalized scaffolds based on what they already know. This technology complements daily learning and provides another layer of support to the in-lesson differentiation and instructional guidance provided to teachers. Try out a sample Boost Personalized Learning activity.
The Fluency Practice of Amplify Desmos Math uses an evidence-based approach to memory retention—spaced repetition—for the basic operations. Students around the world have answered more than 120 million multiplication questions within our application. Try it now!
Help
Support is always within reach. Our team is dedicated to supporting you throughout your review and can be reached at any time by emailing or calling us directly.
- Live chat: Click the orange icon while logged in to get immediate help.
- Phone: Call our toll-free number: (888)-960-0380.
- Email: Send an email to help@amplify.com. In the message body, please include your name and question. Provide as much detail as possible, so we can more quickly help you find a solution.
Our programs
At Amplify, we support teachers in delivering inspiring, impactful lessons that celebrate and develop the thinking of all their students. See how we build high-quality programs.
Leading the way in high-quality, next-generation curriculum and assessments
Amplify collaborates with educators to create learning experiences that are rigorous and riveting for all students. Amplify creates K–12 core and supplemental curriculum, assessment, and intervention programs for today’s students.
Our impact
A pioneer in K–12 education since 2000, Amplify delivers next-generation curriculum and assessment on an intuitive, integrated platform that includes thousands of free lessons. Today, Amplify serves 18 million students and teachers worldwide. Read about our purpose and commitment.
Leadership
Amplify’s executive team includes proven leaders from the fields of education, technology, business, and media.
Our team
We are passionate about the work we do at Amplify. If you want to help make schools great places to teach and exciting places to learn, please get in touch.
A purpose-driven culture
At Amplify, we are dedicated to ensuring that all students and teachers have access to the highest quality instructional materials. This purpose informs everything we do every day. To this end, we hire and develop people with the broadest range of talents, life stories, and experiences, and together we build a cohesive, purpose-driven team.
Our programs
Our captivating core and supplemental programs in ELA, math, and science support teachers in engaging all their students in rigorous learning and inspiring them to think deeply, creatively, and for themselves. Our formative assessment products help teachers provide the targeted instruction students need to build a strong foundation in early reading and math.
Science of Reading Essentials: Dyslexia
Transcripts and additional resources:
Meet Our Guest(s):
Francisco Usero-González, Ph.D.
Francisco Usero-González, Ph.D., is a multilingual and education consultant specializing in culturally and linguistically responsive approaches for Hispanic bilingual students. Through his scientific training and teaching experience—nationally and internationally—he has increased his knowledge of biliteracy program design and implementation, participated in national and international educational conferences, and published several papers in international educational journals.
Margaret “Margo” Malaika Weaver
Margo Weaver had unplugged from school and retreated into the corners of her environment until her diagnosis of dyslexia helped her make sense of things. She went from being on academic probation to regularly landing on the Honor Roll and Dean’s List. She became a two-time California All-State Softball player and now plays for Bowie State University in Maryland, where she studies Digital Art Animation.
Elijah Valencia
Elijah Valencia’s story is a testament to the power of perseverance and an indictment of systems intended to help young people prepare for society. Without the ability to read well, Elijah was unable to keep his life on track. While incarcerated, he was diagnosed with dyslexia and given the support needed to develop his reading skills. Upon release, he earned an associate’s degree and has become a youth counselor and hotel manager.
Sally Shaywitz, M.D.
Sally E. Shaywitz, M.D., is Audrey G. Ratner Professor in Learning Development at Yale University and co-director and co-founder of the Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity. A leading expert on dyslexia, she has authored over 350 scientific papers, delivered a Congressional keynote, and was elected to the National Academy of Medicine.
Tim Odegard, Ph.D.
Tim Odegard, Ph.D., holds the Katherine Davis Murfree Chair of Excellence in Dyslexic Studies at Middle Tennessee State University. He leads the efforts of the Tennessee Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia, serves as editor-in-chief of Annals of Dyslexia and consulting editor of the Journal of Learning Disabilities, and is a former editor at large for Perspectives on Language and Literacy. He is also a reading therapist, having completed a two-year dyslexia specialist training program at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas.
Nadine Gaab, Ph.D.
Nadine Gaab, Ph.D., studies typical and atypical learning trajectories from infancy to adolescence, with a special emphasis on language, reading, and literacy development, and the role of the environment in shaping these trajectories. Her work is at the intersection of developmental psychology, learning sciences, neuroscience, educational technology, and educational policy within a learning disability framework. She’s interested in multifactorial frameworks of learning differences with an emphasis on early identification, and “preventative education.” One key aspect is the translation of research findings to address contemporary challenges in educational practice and policy.
Hadyn Fleming
Hadyn Fleming is a student featured on Science of Reading: The Podcast who openly shares his experiences growing up with dyslexia. In his episode, he discusses his journey to becoming a confident reader and debunks common dyslexia myths. His story offers valuable insight into the profound impact educators can have on a student’s success and self-belief.
Meet our host, Susan Lambert
Susan Lambert is Chief Academic Officer of Literacy at Amplify and host of Science of Reading: The Podcast. Throughout her career, she has focused on creating high-quality learning environments using evidence-based practices. Lambert is a mom of four, a grandma of four, a world traveler, and a collector of stories.
As the host of Science of Reading: The Podcast, Lambert explores the increasing body of scientific research around how reading is best taught. A former classroom teacher, administrator, and curriculum developer, she’s dedicated to turning theory into best practices that educators can put right to use in the classroom, and to showcasing national models of reading instruction excellence.
Quotes
“The knowledge has been out there for decades, and still we have so many students in classrooms who are not identified and not supported. And it's a shame, because the impact of living with dyslexia—especially when it's not identified—can be profound.”
“What we know is prevention is always the best, and you can't prevent somebody from being dyslexic. But what you can do is you can prevent them from having compounding struggles in learning how to read.”
“When you have something, but it doesn't have a name, it leads to anxiety. So when you know that you have something and it has a name, that makes such a difference.”
“You don't wanna just screen the whole world or your whole district and then not do anything about it. Good screening needs to be followed by a good evidence-based response to screening.”
“In this world of intervention, we need to take responsibility for getting students the intervention that they need to have, so they're not leaving us in this next grade and the next grade and the next grade still being non-readers.”
“That old mindset of having something or not having something, black or white, is a real hindrance to actually making sure that we have protections for all students, regardless of if they fit this ‘you have dyslexia or not.’ We have a structural and systems challenge now.”
“Kiddos start to learn to read, and just at a basic preK level of understanding, you can identify some level of risk there and intervene appropriately. You can screen early and you can intervene just as early, to help close those gaps.”
Para enseñar se necesita confianza, con Luz Selenia Muñoz
Meet Our Guest(s):
Luz Selenia Muñoz
Luz S. Muñoz es maestra de Segundo grado en un programa de educación en dos idiomas. Ha enseñado por 20 años. Entre sus responsabilidades diarias está planificar lecciones en español, desarrollar sus estrategias para la clase y reunirse con las familias o cuidadores de los estudiantes, así como conocerlos mejor cada día al conectar con ellos.
Durante su tiempo libre fuera del salón de clases, puedes ver a Luz caminando al aire libre o con un libro en la mano. Le gusta divertirse con su familia y crear ideas que hagan la enseñanza más divertida para sus estudiantes. También le gusta compartir esas ideas con otros maestros. Puedes encontrar a Luz en Instagram como @lucecitalunera y en Facebook como @sonrisas.que.inspiran.dual.language.
Conozca a nuestra presentadora, Ana Torres
Ana ha trabajado en educación por 30 años, tanto en K–8 como en educación superior. Ha ejercido como administradora e instructora en diversas universidades e institutos públicos y privados. También ha sido maestra de lenguaje e idiomas, de matemáticas y de intervención para la lectura en programas bilingües y de educación en dos idiomas, así como coach de enseñanza de lenguaje e idiomas, vicedirectora y directora en escuelas de K–8. Actualmente, Ana se especializa en programas bilingües y de educación en dos idiomas en el departamento de Product de Amplify, desde donde ofrece presentaciones sobre lectoescritura y lectoescritura bilingüe por todo el país. La pasión y el apoyo a la educación multicultural y bilingüe que Ana desarrolla la ha llevado a educar tanto a líderes como a maestros y padres sobre el impacto positivo que estas áreas tienen en nuestro mundo.
Transcripts and additional resources:
Quotes
“Yo diría que algo que se ha quedado grabado es hacer conexiones. Hacer conexiones con los estudiantes, conocer quiénes son, de dónde vienen, qué les gusta. Y al hacer eso haces tu vida como maestro más fácil y más sencilla.”
“Yo creo que le diría que tenga paciencia. Paciencia. Que respire. Que las cosas van a mejorar cada día.”
Cultivating critical thinkers in your classroom, starring Mitchell Brookins, Ph.D.
Transcripts and additional resources:
Meet Our Guest(s):
Mitchell Brookins, Ph.D.
Mitchell Brookins, Ph.D., has over 20 years of experience in K–12 as a teacher, coach, administrator, district leader, and thought leader. As a school administrator, he achieved impressive gains, including raising DIBELS® scores from 43% to 72%. He has spoken at top literacy events, including Amplify’s symposia, the Black Literacy Matters Conference, the Dyslexia Alliance for Black Children annual conference, and others. He leads a citywide fellowship supporting 25 literacy leaders in New Orleans, and serves as Managing Director of Leading Educators. He also serves on the Board of Directors for The Reading League. He holds a B.A. in elementary education, an M.A. in teacher leadership, and a Ph.D. in educational administration.
Meet our host, Susan Lambert
Susan Lambert is chief academic officer of literacy at Amplify and host of Science of Reading: The Podcast. Throughout her career, she has focused on creating high-quality learning environments using evidence-based practices. Lambert is a mom of four, a grandma of four, a world traveler, and a collector of stories.
As the host of Science of Reading: The Podcast, Lambert explores the increasing body of scientific research around how reading is best taught. A former classroom teacher, administrator, and curriculum developer, she’s dedicated to turning theory into best practices that educators can put right to use in the classroom, and to showcasing national models of reading instruction excellence.
Quotes
“When you are a school administrator, you can't be confused as to what your identity is. People expect you to step in with voice, with passion, with vision, and direct the path.”
“When we talk about knowledge building, when we talk about knowledge acquisition, it's actually predicated on critical thinking. That critical thinking thinking is not just a higher-level task that we have kids do. It's deep thinking.”
“[Critical thinking] is actually cognitive support. It's a mental act of process in which you acquire knowledge and understanding.”
“During academic discussion, I'm not expecting the teacher to be quiet. I'm expecting the teacher to orchestrate thinking, to hold the pacing of the discussion. You know when to slow the class down, and let them think about this critical idea. You know when to ask that probing question that makes kids think, ‘Hmm.’ I'm looking for those discourse moves that teachers make.”
“When I see questioning that really probes, that's how I know I'm in a classroom where a teacher honors students' thinking. It is an honor to hear what children have to think.”
“That's how you know you're in a classroom with critical thinking: We're not rushing the conversation. We're enjoying it.”
“There's an art and science to teaching, and I think that they're two different things.”
“The importance of modeling can’t be overstated.”
“If we want to get to these higher levels of rigor or higher levels of thinking, that has to be built on a foundation. And when we connect that to something meaningful, the knowledge and the learning get deeper.”
“If you're engaged emotionally, that's going to help you be engaged cognitively.”