2024 English Language Arts Instructional Materials Adoption

May 9, 2024 Update: Seattle School Board Approves 6-8 ELA Adoption of Inquiry By Design
April 2024 Update: 6-8 ELA Adoption Committee selected a finalist
6-8 ELA Instructional Materials Update
Community Curriculum Review
IMC Approved Documents
English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 Digital Instructional Materials Adoption
6-8 ELA Adoption Timeline
Adoption Committee Schedule and Timeline
Adoption Committee Vision, Purpose, and Goals
Digital Materials Adoption Committee Membership and Selection

Grades 6-8 ELA Digital Instructional Materials Adoption

The English language arts content area of Curriculum, Assessment, and Instruction is launching an English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 Digital Instructional Materials Adoption in the 2023-24 school year. The digital instructional materials adoption process will follow the Seattle Public Schools Selection and Adoption of Instructional Materials, Policy No. 2015. If approved by the Seattle School Board, the new digital instructional materials will be ready for implementation by the 2024-25 school year.

May 9, 2024 Update: Seattle School Board Approves 6-8 ELA Adoption of Inquiry By Design

All 6th through 8th grade ELA general education teachers will be provided professional learning opportunities to understand and begin planning with the new materials to get ready for a fall 2024 implementation. Learn more about Inquiry By Design.

April 2024 Update: 6-8 ELA Adoption Committee selected a finalist

The English Language Arts (ELA) Department has been facilitating the adoption process with a committee of SPS staff and families since September 2023 and has received approval for their adoption process by the Instructional Materials Committee. The ELA Department will advance Inquiry By Design as the finalist for the 6-8 ELA instructional materials adoption. We anticipate this recommendation will be introduced to the SPS School Board at their April 25th meeting and voted on in May.

6-8 ELA Instructional Materials Update

After an extensive review, the 6-8 ELA adoption committee has named three finalists in the instructional materials adoption process. The finalists are:

Into Literature, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Inquiry By Design, Middle School ELA
Study Sync, McGraw Hill

During the month of February, 2024, these resources will be field tested in middle school classrooms across our district. The selected field test teachers will represent all five regions of the city.

Community Curriculum Review

Seattle Public Schools is choosing new instructional materials for grades 6-8 in English Language Arts (ELA). We are accepting feedback from parents and community members from February 1 – March 6, 2024.

You are invited to provide feedback on one or several choices the committee is considering. Please complete one form per instructional material choice. Your feedback will be shared with the adoption committee. We appreciate your time in completing the survey because your voice is very important to us.

Staff Feedback Survey

Community/Parent Feedback Survey

SOMALI Feedback Survey

AMHARIC Feedback Survey

CHINESE Feedback Survey

VIETNAMESE Feedback Survey

SPANISH Feedback Survey

McGraw Hill Education Login

Enter the following credentials

Username: SeattleStudySync

Password: studysync68MH

Inquiry by Design Review

Go to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

For State: Type EVALUATOR

For District: Type REVIEW Into Literature v2-91008320

Enter USERNAME and PASSWORD:

User View	Username	Password
User View	Username	Password
Teacher View	Teacher76_91008330	E!8azaleas
Student View	Student76_91008330	E!8azaleas

IMC Approved Documents

English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 Digital Instructional Materials Adoption

This adoption is for digital resources only. SPS is a 1 to 1 district with laptops available for at-school and at-home use. This digital adoption is funded through the 2022 Buildings, Technology, and Academics/Athletics Capital Levy V (BTA V). The adoption will include all student materials and teacher resources that will be accessed through an online platform or learning management system. The adoption will not include the purchase of hard copies of textbooks or workbooks.

6-8 ELA Adoption Timeline

May 2023: Request for Information released
May 23, 2023: RFI closed
May 23, 2023: Committee applications close (opened June 5)
June 5-30, 2023: Needs assessment for teachers, family, community
June 26 , 2023: Committee members selected 
June 29, 2023: IMC meets to review/approve timeline, committee members, and communication plan
June 30, 2023: Adoption Committee members notified of acceptance to the committee
Sept. 16, 20, 23 2023: Committee meets and develops selection criteria categories and develops rubrics
Sept. 25-29, 2023: Selection criteria approved by IMC
October 23, 2023: Request for Proposals (RFP) released
November 21, 2023: RFP closes
Nov. 30, Dec. 2, 9, 2023: Committee reviews materials and selects finalists for field test
December 2023: Materials displayed online for community review
December 4, 2023: Field Test Teacher application released (closes Dec. 15)
December 12, 2023: Second Request for Proposal released
January 5, 2024: Field Test Teachers notified of acceptance
January 23, 2024: Second RFP closes
January 2024: Field Test Teacher training
Feb. 1 – March 1, 2024: Materials displayed online for community review for finalists
Feb. 1 – March 8, 2024: Field test conducted
March 6, 2024: Panel Discussion with field test teachers and committee
March 14, 2024: Committee makes final recommendation

Adoption Committee Schedule and Timeline

The committee will meet several times between September 2023 and February 2024. Saturday meetings will be help in-person at the John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence. The Wednesday meeting will be held virtually through Teams.

Initial review and selection for field test:

Stage 1: Initial review and selection for field test:

Final review and selection for recommendation to Superintendent and School Board: May 2024

Committee members will prepare for meetings by reviewing provided materials in advance of scheduled meetings, and attend and participate in schedule meetings. Missing two consecutive meetings will result in an automatic opt-out of committee participation.

Adoption Committee Vision, Purpose, and Goals

The 2023-24 English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 Digital Instructional Materials Adoption Committee will represent the diverse voices of the Seattle Public Schools (SPS) community. The committee will review and make a recommendation for a high-quality, standards-aligned, culturally relevant, rigorous digital instructional materials for English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 courses that embodies the SPS 2019-24 Strategic Plan, Seattle Excellence. In particular, educators, families, and communities who represent Students of Color further from educational justice will have meaningful voice on the English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 Digital Instructional Materials Adoption Committee.

The English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 Digital Instructional Materials Adoption Committee will study all instructional materials presented to them as options through the processes outlined in Superintendent Procedure 2015SP.B and determine a final selection which should be, in the opinion of the adoption committee, the instructional materials best aligned to the focus and goals of Seattle Excellence; i.e. providing high-quality instruction and learning experiences that accelerate growth for Students of Color furthest from educational justice.

Develop the selection criteria to be approved by the Instructional Materials Committee which are anchored in Seattle Excellence and Policy 0030
Review submitted materials for potential bias
Evaluate submitted materials using the approved selection criteria
Review staff and community feedback with a particular focus on feedback from staff, families, and communities who represent Students of Color furthest from educational justice
Narrow selection of materials to be field-tested
Review results of the field test with a particular focus on the experience of Students of Color furthest from educational justice
Submit final selection to the Instructional Materials Committee for approval and recommendation to the Superintendent and School Board
Recommend the professional development training for educators and school staff to support successful implementation of the newly adopted English Language Arts 6, 7, 8 digital instructional materials to ensure high-quality instruction and learning experiences that accelerate growth for Student of Color furthest from educational justice
Engage district staff, educators, principals, and community to ensure that the review and selection process includes input and feedback from the voices of our community, especially those furthest from educational justice

Digital Materials Adoption Committee Membership and Selection

The committee will be made up of approximately 15-20 members who provide either subject matter expertise or perspectives of family members with current and/or past students in English Language Arts 6, 7, 8. The committee will include:

Middle school ELA teachers and leaders representing a cross section of middle and K-8 schools
ML, SpEd, elementary and high school teachers with experience and/or expertise in ELA curriculum and instruction
Parents, guardians, or other family members of current or former secondary students who are furthest from educational justice representing a wide range of schools and programs in SPS
Members of the community-at-large with relevant expertise or experience, and/or representatives or higher education with expertise in English language arts or equitable English language arts instruction
Although students are not included in the adoption committee, there will be opportunities for student to provide input to the adoption committee about the instructional materials

Members will be selected and appointed in accordance with School Board Policy 4110: Family & Community Advisory and Oversight Committees, and Procedure 4110SP. The district shall provide public notice to individuals and organizations that may reasonably be interested in serving on the adoption committee.

A standardized application is posted below with an application due date and appointee notification date.