Open Court Reading Program is a comprehensive 
reading, writing and learning program.

Open Court Reading develops confident and fluent readers through print and phonemic awareness activities with explicit and systematic phonics instruction. It engages students in constructing  meaning through the teaching and application of comprehension skills, strategies and
discussions. Open Court incorporates writing, language art skills, spelling, vocabulary and penmanship through explicit instruction and meaningful practice applications. It also includes excellent, thought provoking literature that helps to create a classroom environment in which students explore, discuss and research ideas. Open Court Reading Program develops research and study skills that provide students with the tools to become independent, self directed learners.

Goals by Grade Level
Kindergarten
The children will:
Learn about the alphabet and how it works.
Develop phonemic awareness.
Learn to connect sounds and letters.
Develop print and book awareness.
Have successful early reading experiences.
Explore concepts of science, social studies, literature and the arts.
Understand story elements.

Grade 1
The children will:
Have a solid foundation in phonemic awareness.
Learn the spellings of the common English sounds.
Learn strategies for reading unfamiliar words.
Develop fluency.
Read literature confidently and with understanding.
Become fluent writers with the ability to use writing as a tool 
for inquiry and communication.
Take responsibility for their own work as they pursue personal 
paths of inquiry.

Grades 2-5
The children will:
Review phonics knowledge and skills developed in the previous grade.
Continue work on developing fluency.
Read fiction and non-fiction selections organized in meaning based 
units which revolve around important concepts from across the curriculum.
Refine writing skills to communicate knowledge.
Pursue personal and collaborative  inquiry through study and 
research by identifying and accessing information needed.
Communicate inquiry research findings to their classmates.

County Assessment
If  your child  is in grades 2-5, a county assessment will be given
at the end of the first unit, mid-year,
and at the end of the year to monitor their progress and prepare them 
for the Maryland State testing.
Periodically, lesson assessments will be administered to monitor your 
child's progress with the 
lessons.  An end of the unit assessment will also be given to monitor growth in reading.

Unit Assessment
The following components of Open Court will allow teachers to assess student progress on a regular basis.

Progress Assessment
Comprehension and Language Arts Skills
Spelling and Vocabulary Skills
Writer's Workbook
Inquiry Journal
Reteach
Challenge
Writer's  Notebook