Arts & Letters: Reading Foundations — K–5 Curriculum
Build Skilled Readers Through Explicit Phonics Instruction Connected to Meaningful Reading
Arts & Letters™: Reading Foundations provides systematic phonics and word recognition instruction aligned with Arts & Letters™: Language Arts. Students build decoding proficiency while applying their learning to connected texts and knowledge building.
Explicit Phonics Instruction Requires a Program Built for Consistency
Districts face growing pressure to ensure students read proficiently by the end of first grade. Inconsistent implementation of foundational skills programs makes that hard to guarantee. Leaders need a coherent program that drives strong reading outcomes across schools.
A Curriculum That Connects Decoding to Knowledge Building
Arts & Letters: Reading Foundations is a K–5 foundational skills curriculum that provides explicit, systematic instruction in phonics and word recognition as part of a coherent literacy system. Designed to work alongside Arts & Letters: Language Arts, Reading Foundations ensures that decoding and fluency development connects directly to knowledge building.
Foundational Skills Instruction That Builds Knowledge
Decoding skills are built and applied directly to the texts and topics students are already exploring in Language Arts.
Explicit, Systematic Phonics Instruction
Foundational knowledge builds cumulatively, supporting accurate and automatic reading, to ensure consistent, research-aligned phonics instruction across classrooms.
Coherent Language Arts Connections
Knowledge builds over time, strengthening comprehension of complex texts, to ensure lasting student impact.
Aligned Practice and Decodable Texts
Skills are applied in authentic reading contexts, strengthening transfer beyond isolated practice while streamlining instruction.
Reading Foundations Overview
See how Reading Foundations brings explicit phonics and fluency instruction into the content that students cover in Language Arts.
Purposeful Practice That Strengthens Memory
Cumulative reviews, skill reinforcement, and aligned practice work together so skills develop and lasting knowledge builds.
Cumulative Review of Phonics
Previously learned phonics patterns are revisited and applied in varied contexts, so skills develop and stick over time.
New and Prior Skill Reinforcement
Students build on what they know while adding new skills, improving retention without requiring additional planning.
Aligned Practice
Aligned practice across print and digital tools, such as Magpie Literacy™, reinforces phonics and fluency consistently so students build automaticity through meaningful, connected work every day.
Maximize Instructional Time
Efficient routines, embedded assessment, and responsive small-group teaching keep every minute focused on what students need most.
Structured Daily Routines
Instructional routines are aligned with reading development across K–2 and 3–5 so that instructional time is focused on what matters most at each stage.
Embedded Assessment Within Instruction
Evidence of student learning is gathered in real time and used immediately, so separate assessment systems aren’t needed.
Small Group Responsive Teaching
Targeted support happens without interrupting core instruction, so teachers can respond to student needs without having to manage multiple programs.
Reading Foundations Components
Discover the components that make up Arts & Letters, and how each one supports knowledge building and skills development.
Designed for Use with Arts & Letters: Language Arts
Reading Foundations is implemented alongside Language Arts to provide a complete literacy system.
Support That Grows With You
Through workshops, coaching, consulting, and on-demand tools, we help teachers deepen their practice, strengthen lesson execution, and build sustainable systems for growth. Every partnership is tailored to a district’s evolving needs—whether launching a new program or refining established practices—with one shared goal: lasting success for teachers and students.
Tools That Strengthen the System
Arts & Letters works with Magpie Literacy to extend foundational skills practice through digital practice, giving teachers visibility into student progress, so they can make smarter decisions about small-group instruction.
Magpie LiteracyTM
Aligned digital practice reinforces phonics and fluency through connected, meaningful work.
Embedded Assessment
Embedded assessments provide actionable insights without interrupting instruction.
Continue Learning
Explore resources designed to support the use of Arts & Letters.
Decodables Book List
Explore the full range of decodable texts that students read across grades K–5 in Arts & Letters: Reading Foundations. The texts are aligned with the phonics progression.
Language Arts Module Map
See how Reading Foundations connects directly to Arts & Letters: Language Arts topics, supporting a coherent literacy system across the full instructional block.
Magpie Overview
Learn how Magpie Literacy’s digital practice tool reinforces phonics and fluency, builds automaticity, and gives teachers actionable insights into student progress through a validated screener.
