What’s included in our grades K–2 language arts curriculum
Amplify Core Knowledge Language Arts® (CKLA) is a comprehensive early literacy curriculum, grounded in the Science of Reading. The K–2 curriculum sequences deep content knowledge-building with research-based foundational skills. With Amplify CKLA, you’ll have the instruction and guidance of proven, evidence-based practices to help all of your students become strong readers, writers, and thinkers.
Choose Level
Year at a glance
The Amplify CKLA curriculum is modeled after proven research in early literacy that supports a two-strand approach to literacy instruction in the early years. With this approach, students in Grades K–2 complete one full lesson per day that builds foundational reading skills in the Skills Strand, as well as one full lesson that builds background knowledge in the Knowledge Strand. The deep content knowledge is sequenced together with research-based foundational skills in Grades K–2 so that students develop the early literacy skills necessary to help them become confident readers, as well as build the context to understand what they’re reading.
In Grades 3–5, lessons combine skills and knowledge with increasingly complex texts, close reading, and a greater emphasis on writing. Students start to use their skills to go on their own independent reading adventures, further opening up their worlds.
Units & domains at a glance
The number of days to complete each Skills Unit and Knowledge Domain varies based on instructional purpose.
Knowledge Domain 1
Nursery Rhymes and Fables
Well-known fables introduce students to new vocabulary, build phonological awareness, and prompt discussion of character, virtues, and behavior.
Number of Lessons: 12
Knowledge Domain 2
The Five Senses
Students explore how they learn about the world using their five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 3
Stories
Students develop an awareness of language and recurring themes in children’s literature, including classic stories, trickster tales, and fiction from other cultures.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 4
Plants
Read-aloud texts introduce students to basic knowledge of ecology, parts of plants, how plants grow, and the interdependence of all living things.
Number of Lessons: 11
Knowledge Domain 5
Farms
Students identify several farm animals and crops and contrast how plants make their food with how animals get their food.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 6
Native Americans
Students explore cultures of three Native American groups, as well as how conditions in different geographical regions influence their ways of life.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 7
Kings and Queens
Students listen to read-aloud texts, both fiction and nonfiction, about kings, queens, and royal families, which build students’ understanding of royal customs.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 8
Seasons and Weather
This is an introduction to weather and the seasons, where students learn that regions of Earth experience different characteristic weather patterns throughout the year.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 9
Columbus and the Pilgrims
A look at the first contact between Europe and the Americas and some of its results.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 10
Colonial Towns and Townspeople
Students are introduced to the early history of the United States as they explore what life was like for people in colonial times.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 11
Taking Care of the Earth
Students are introduced to the importance of environmental awareness and conservation as they become familiar with the earth’s natural resources.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 12
Presidents and American Symbols
Students learn about the legacies of five famous presidents, several national symbols, the branches of government, the role of the president, and elections.
Number of Lessons: 9
Skills Unit 1
Students build phonological awareness through environmental noises, words within sentences, and sounds within words. They learn basic strokes used to form letters.
Skills Unit 2
Students learn how to blend syllables together to form multisyllabic words. They orally produce two- and three-sound words by blending sounds.
Skills Unit 3
Students learn eight new sounds and practice blending them into words. They learn how to write letters that represent the new sounds.
Skills Unit 4
With oral language games, chaining exercises, and shared reading, students practice blending eight new sounds into words and writing the sound-letter correspondences.
Skills Unit 5
Eight new sounds are introduced, including a spelling alternative for /k/. Students continue to practice previously learned sound-letter correspondences.
Skills Unit 6
Students are introduced to consonant clusters, letter names, and rhyming words. Students begin to read text independently using decodable Student Readers.
Skills Unit 7
Students learn about various digraphs. Students practice blending and segmenting the sounds through phonemic awareness and phonics activities, chaining exercises, and reading.
Skills Unit 8
This unit introduces students to double-letter spellings for consonant sounds, as well as seven new high-frequency Tricky Words.
Skills Unit 9
Students practice writing uppercase letters and learn 17 new Tricky Words. Students answer comprehension questions about stories in the Student Reader.
Skills Unit 10
Students learn the basic code spelling for the five long vowel sounds. Students are administered a cumulative end-of-year assessment.
Knowledge Domain 1
Fables and Stories
Students are introduced to fables and stories, increase vocabulary and reading comprehension skills, and become familiar with the key elements of a story.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 2
The Human Body
Students are introduced to the systems of the human body, care of the body, germs and disease, vaccines, and keys to good health.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 3
Different Lands, Similar Stories
Students encounter cultures from around the world as they explore the ways in which folktales from different lands treat similar themes or characters.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 4
Early World Civilizations
Students explore Mesopotamia and Egypt and learn about the importance of rivers, farming, writing, laws, art, and beliefs.
Number of Lessons: 16
Knowledge Domain 5
Early American Civilizations
Students compare and contrast key features of the early civilizations of the Maya, Aztec, and Inca, and explore the development of cities.
Number of Lessons: 11
Knowledge Domain 6
Astronomy
In this introduction to the solar system, students learn about Earth in relation to the moon, other planets, the sun, and the stars.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 7
The History of the Earth
Students learn about the geographical features of Earth’s surface, the layers of the earth, rocks and minerals, volcanoes, geysers, fossils, and dinosaurs.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 8
Animals and Habitats
Students focus on the interconnectedness of living things as they learn what a habitat is and explore specific types of habitats.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 9
Fairy Tales
Students learn about the Brothers Grimm, identify common elements of fairy tales, make interpretations, and compare and contrast different tales.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 10
A New Nation: American Independence
Students are introduced to important historical figures and events in the story of how the 13 colonies became an independent nation.
Number of Lessons: 12
Knowledge Domain 11
Frontier Explorers
Students are introduced to exploration of the American West, its key figures, and how colonists spread westward, including their interactions with native peoples.
Number of Lessons: 11
Skills Unit 1
Unit 1 provides a review of the sounds/spellings taught in the CKLA Kindergarten curriculum. Teachers administer the beginning-of-year assessment.
Skills Unit 2
Students read and write words with long vowel spellings and learn new Tricky Words. The unit also includes grammar lessons on nouns.
Skills Unit 3
Work continues on vowel sounds and their spellings. Grammar focus is on verbs and verb tense. Formal instruction in the writing process begins.
Skills Unit 4
Students work with /r/-controlled vowel sounds. Students practice segmenting two-syllable words. Adjectives are introduced as students practice descriptive writing.
Skills Unit 5
Students work with spelling alternatives for sounds. Students also learn to identify sentence types. They plan, draft, and edit opinion letters.
Skills Unit 6
Students continue to work with several spelling alternatives for sounds. Students review nouns and pronouns. They plan, draft, and edit personal narratives.
Skills Unit 7
Students focus on spelling alternatives for sounds. Students plan, draft, and edit an informative/explanatory text. Students are administered an end-of-year assessment.
Knowledge Domain 1
Fairy Tales and Tall Tales
Students consider characteristic elements of fairy tales and tall tales and consider problems faced by the characters and lessons each story conveys.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 2
Early Asian Civilizations
Students are introduced to Asia, specifically India and China. In addition, students are introduced to related folktales and poetry.
Number of Lessons: 14
Knowledge Domain 3
Ancient Greek Civilization
Students explore the civilization of ancient Greece, which lives on in many ways—in our language, government, art, architecture, the Olympics, and more.
Number of Lessons: 12
Knowledge Domain 4
Greek Myths
Building on the Ancient Greek Civilization domain, students explore common characteristics and story elements of several well-known Greek myths and mythical characters.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 5
The War of 1812
Students are introduced to major figures and events in the War of 1812, sometimes called America’s “second war for independence.”
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 6
Cycles in Nature
Students are introduced to natural cycles that make life on Earth possible, such as seasonal cycles, life cycles, and the water cycle.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 7
Westward Expansion
Students are introduced to an important period in the history of the United States—the time of westward expansion during the 1800s.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 8
Insects
Students learn about the helpful and harmful characteristics of insects, insect life cycles, and social insects such as bees and ants.
Number of Lessons: 8
Knowledge Domain 9
The U.S. Civil War
Students learn about the controversy between the North and the South over slavery and about key historical figures during that time.
Number of Lessons: 11
Knowledge Domain 10
Human Body: Building Blocks and Nutrition
Students learn about the human body, including body systems, good nutrition, keys to good health, and the advances in microbiology made by Anton van Leeuwenhoek.
Number of Lessons: 9
Knowledge Domain 11
Immigration
Students explore the idea of e pluribus unum and the importance of immigration in the history of the United States.
Number of Lessons: 10
Knowledge Domain 12
Fighting for a Cause
Students explore the connection between ideas and actions, and see how people can do extraordinary things to change the dominant ideas and actions of an entire nation.
Number of Lessons: 9
Skills Unit 1
Sound-spellings with an emphasis on consonant sounds, one- and two-syllable words, and Tricky Words are reviewed. The beginning-of-year assessment is administered.
Skills Unit 2
The unit focus is on various sound-spellings and words with one- and two-syllables. Students begin the writing process, writing narratives and opinions.
Skills Unit 3
Practice with spelling alternatives continues. Grammar focuses on capitalization, quotation marks, ending punctuation, and common and proper nouns. Students write personal narratives.
Skills Unit 4
Students practice a range of spelling alternatives. Students practice persuasive writing as part of a friendly letter. Students learn more about nouns and verbs.
Skills Unit 5
Students practice chunking sounds as they read multisyllabic words. Grammar work includes adjectives, subjects, and predicates. Writing includes rewriting a story ending.
Skills Unit 6
Students review advanced phonics and grammar skills. Students are introduced to expository/report writing. Students take an end-of-year assessment.
Program components
The program includes instructional guidance and student materials for a year of instruction, with lessons and activities that keep students engaged every day.
Component
FORMAT
Knowledge Strand Teacher Guide
Knowledge Strand Teacher Guides contain Amplify CKLA’s cross-curricular read-alouds and application activities, all of which are standards-based to build mastery of content knowledge and literacy skills. There is one Teacher Guide per Knowledge Domain.
Print or digital
Knowledge classroom materials
Amplify CKLA includes oversized Flip Books and smaller Image Cards that bring each topic to life through vivid visuals.
Print or digital
Skills Strand Teacher Guide
Amplify CKLA Skills Strand Teacher Guides include comprehensive research-based instruction in phonological and phonemic awareness, phonics, print concepts, the alphabetic principle, grammar, writing mechanics, comprehension, spelling, and other critical foundational literacy skills.
Print or digital
Hands-on Skills ancillaries
Dynamic classroom materials include student Chaining Folders, Small and Large Letter Cards, Spelling Cards, Sound Cards, Big Books, Vowel and Consonant Code Flip Books, Code Charts, and more.
Print or digital
Assessment and Remediation Guide
The unit-by-unit Assessment and Remediation Guide provides thousands of pages of activities for reteaching, differentiation, and additional practice.
Print or digital
Digital experience
The Amplify CKLA digital experience delivers ready-made, customizable, slides-based lesson presentations to enhance instruction and save time. Everything needed to plan and present high-quality, engaging early literacy instruction is in one convenient place.
Digital
Component
FORMAT
Knowledge Strand Activity Books
Knowledge Strand Activity Books provide students with the opportunity to deepen world and word knowledge by responding to text in a diversity of ways.
Skills Strand Student Reader
Unique decodable Student Readers provide direct practice with just-learned sound-spelling patterns, using compelling stories and characters to integrate phonics and comprehension.
Skills Strand Activity book
Skills Strand Activity Books support the program’s connected approach to reading and writing, providing ample opportunities to respond to text while building core skills.
Digital experience
The Amplify CKLA digital experience delivers ready-made, customizable, slides-based lesson presentations to enhance instruction and save time. Everything needed to plan and present high-quality, engaging early literacy instruction is in one convenient place.
Digital
Explore more programs
Our programs are designed to support and complement one another. Learn more about our related programs.
