CommonLit 360 Schools & Districts Everything You Need to Know about CommonLit's All-Green EdReports Rating for Grades 6-8

EdReports is a nonprofit organization that independently reviews instructional materials for K-12 education. With the mission of supporting educators in identifying high quality instructional materials, the EdReports content review team is made up of expert teachers and educational leaders at the district and state level.

We’re proud to announce that CommonLit 360 for grades 6-8 has received a top rating from EdReports, with a green score in each gateway. A green score represents the highest possible rating through EdReports’ review process, indicating that our curriculum meets expectations of each gateway. These gateways include:

• Text Quality and Complexity, and Alignment to Standards with Tasks Grounded in Evidence
• Building Knowledge with Texts, Vocabulary, and Tasks
• Instructional Supports and Usability

Read the full review of the CommonLit 360 middle school curriculum on EdReports.org

Gateway 1: Text Quality and Complexity

The first gateway of EdReports’ review process evaluates “text quality and complexity and alignment to the standards with tasks and questions grounded in evidence.” Below is an excerpt from the formal report summarizing how CommonLit 360 meets the expectations for these criteria:

Anchor texts are well-crafted, content-rich, and rich in language and academic vocabulary; texts reflect the distribution of text types and genres required by the standards… The materials provide students with opportunities to respond to text-specific and text-dependent questions and tasks that require students to collect textual evidence.

The program provides varied protocols to support students in speaking and listening skills. Throughout the course of the year, students participate in turn and talks, whole class discussions, small group discussions, debates, and culminating discussions.

Throughout the program, there are various on-demand and process writing opportunities that cover a year’s worth of instruction. There are frequent opportunities across the school year for students to learn, practice, and apply writing using evidence with explicit teacher instruction.

What does this mean for CommonLit 360?

"Our curriculum is designed to empower students to be active, critical readers who can engage with texts at a deep level,” CommonLit Chief Academic Officer, Anna Hodges, shared. “The EdReports review highlighted the consistent inclusion of thought-provoking, text-dependent questions throughout our reading lessons. Whether students are analyzing during independent practice, sharing ideas in lively discussions, or finding evidence to support their arguments, they are constantly challenged to grapple with the text in meaningful ways. It's an approach that builds crucial skills for lifelong learning.”

For example, in 6th grade Unit 1, Characters Who Change and Grow, students read thought-provoking short stories like “The Scholarship Jacket” by Marta Salinas and “The Medicine Bag” by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve. These texts feature complex characters who undergo profound transformations, providing rich opportunities for students to analyze character development and themes.

Gateway 2: Building Knowledge

The second gateway of EdReports’ review process evaluates “building knowledge with texts, vocabulary, and tasks.” Below is an excerpt from the formal report summarizing how CommonLit 360 meets the expectations for these criteria:

The materials are grouped around topics/themes across six units to grow students’ knowledge over the course of the school year. The sequence of texts and activities helps students build knowledge over the course of each unit.

What does this mean for CommonLit 360?

Hodges shared, “Our curriculum is designed around the core belief that students learn best when they can explore big ideas across multiple texts and perspectives. The intentional thematic connections woven throughout each unit and across the school year create a framework for deep, meaningful learning. We're so thrilled that EdReports has recognized the power of this approach; helping students build rich, nuanced understandings of complex topics is at the heart of preparing them to engage in college, careers, and real life.”

Take 8th grade Unit 1, The Art of Suspense, for instance. In this unit, students explore the psychology of suspense across captivating texts by masters of craft like Edgar Allan Poe and Roald Dahl. As they analyze how authors use techniques like point of view, conflict, and irony to build tension, students develop a nuanced understanding of this complex literary genre. “It's a perfect example of how our thematic approach invites deep learning about topics that are both academically rigorous and highly engaging for adolescent readers,” shared Hodges.

Gateway 3: Usability

The third gateway of EdReports’ review process evaluates usability. Below is an excerpt from the formal report summarizing how CommonLit 360 meets the expectations for these criteria:

The materials provide comprehensive teacher guidance and correlation information to the ELA standards. In addition, the materials include explanations of the instructional approaches and include and reference research-based strategies.

What does this mean for CommonLit 360?

“We've designed CommonLit 360 to be a true instructional partner for teachers,” shared Hodges. “Our comprehensive teacher guides provide simple-to-use lesson plans with built-in instructional strategies, making it easy for educators to implement the curriculum effectively. Embedded formative assessments and unit culminating tasks offer a clear, user-friendly system to track student progress and inform instruction. We're committed to ensuring that our high-quality materials are highly usable, so teachers can focus on what matters most - supporting their students' growth and success.”

Want to learn more about our all-green ELA curriculum?

Connect with our team to explore how CommonLit 360 could work for your school or district.