This past year, we have been working hard to make our item banks even more insightful for teachers. We know you need questions that do more than just check a box; you need tools that truly show what your students know and where they might be struggling.
To do this, we’ve focused on two big goals: supporting our youngest learners, and adding more "hands-on" thinking to science. This work is part of a huge update that brings our total collection to over 137,000 items.
Supporting Our Youngest Students: K–2 Expansion
We understand that the first few years of school are some of the most important. To help teachers track progress right from the start, we’ve added more than 1,240 new items across Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade. These are designed to be age-appropriate and fun for younger students. We've not only expanded ELA and Math coverage, but also created new items for assessing Science progress; and we are actively developing Social Studies items for a future release.
Where are these available? Teachers in the following states will see these new K–2 items right away. We are working quickly to add more states as we align these new questions to local standards.*: Common Core, NGSS, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia
Thinking Like Scientists: New Science Clusters
Science isn't just about memorizing facts; it’s about solving mysteries. That’s why we’ve added 148 Science Cluster Sets spread across all grade levels. Instead of answering one random question, students look at a "cluster" like a chart, an experiment, or a story about nature, and then answer a few questions about it. This helps students show they can actually use what they’ve learned to solve a problem.
Where is this available? These new science clusters are ready to use in the majority of states. We are continuing to add any remaining states as we align these items to more standards.*
Looking Ahead
Our goal is to give every teacher across the country the best possible content to support student growth. We are excited to keep building these high-quality resources to help you and your students succeed in the classroom every single day.
*Please note that items may not align to all standards across all states. This means that a given state standard set may not align to all of the new items, and some items may not appear in your specific curriculum view.
