Arizona K–5 Literacy and Math Resources: Phonics, Handwriting, Fluency and Grade 3–4 Math
Arizona K–5 Literacy and Math Resources: Phonics, Handwriting, Fluency and Grade 3–4 Math
Arizona teachers plan around the 2016 ELA and math standards, the grade 3 reading goal of Move On When Reading, and a cursive expectation that runs through grade 5. This page sorts our K–5 units by grade and explains where each one fits.
Browse the K–5 reading and writing resources →Resources for Arizona classrooms
Seven units for phonics, handwriting, fluency and grade 3–4 math
These seven cover early reading for the K–3 years Move On When Reading focuses on, print and cursive handwriting, and the grade 3–4 math and fluency work.
Phonemic Awareness Daily Routines | 36 Weeks of Oral Sound Routines | Kindergarten
A daily oral sound routine; children answer with sounds, not letters.
Decodable Readers Grade One | 20 Stories with Word Work & Comprehension | Grade 1
Stories built from taught patterns, so children blend instead of guess.
Manuscript Handwriting | Basic Strokes & A–Z Letter Practice | Grades K–1
Basic strokes, then a model for every letter.
Cursive Writing | Strokes, Letters a–z & Joining Words | Grades 2–3
Stroke families, all lowercase letters and joins in ten lessons, a starting point for Arizona's grade 5 cursive expectation.
Multiplication Fact Fluency | Strategies, Fact Families & Array Labs | Grade 3
Hard facts built from easier ones, with array labs.
Multi-Digit Multiplication and Division | Area Model, Partial Products & Partial Quotients | Grade 4
Area model and partial products before the algorithm.
Reading Fluency Passages | 24 Original Passages with Meaning Checks | Grade 4
Twenty-four passages, each with a meaning check.
Arizona standards in plain terms
What Arizona expects in K–5 reading, writing and math
Arizona teaches to the Arizona English Language Arts Standards and the Arizona Mathematics Standards, both adopted in 2016, along with the state's own science standards. Students take state tests in the spring; check your district's testing calendar for the grades and subjects that apply to your class.
We don't tag pages with standard codes. Each unit is written for a US grade and focuses on one skill: hearing sounds in words, decoding, letter formation, multiplication strategies or reading with meaning. Compare the lesson list on each product page with the Arizona standards and your district's pacing guide.
Grade bands
Which resource fits which Arizona grade
Each unit is listed at the grade it is written for. These are practice and lesson sets to use alongside your district's core program, not a state-adopted curriculum.
| Grade | Resource | Arizona note |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten |
Phonemic Awareness Daily Routines Manuscript Handwriting K–1 |
Oral sound work for K screening under Move On When Reading. |
| Grade 1 |
Decodable Readers Grade One Heart Words |
Decodable text and word mapping on the way to the grade 3 reading goal. |
| Grades 2–3 | Cursive Writing Grades 2–3 | Cursive is in the Arizona ELA Standards, with mastery by the end of grade 5. |
| Grade 3 | Multiplication Fact Fluency | The grade 3 reading year; fact strategies support the math side. |
| Grade 4 |
Multi-Digit Multiplication and Division Reading Fluency Passages |
Multi-digit methods and fluency for upper elementary. |
| Grades 3–5 |
Multisyllabic Word Decoding Text Evidence and Constructed Response |
Practice for students on a literacy plan who stall on long words. |
Early reading
Move On When Reading
Arizona's Move On When Reading law (A.R.S. 15-701 and 15-211, from 2010) sets the goal that students read proficiently by the end of grade 3. Schools screen in K–3 and write literacy plans for students who need support. That puts weight on Kindergarten through grade 2, when there is still time to close gaps.
In Kindergarten, the Phonemic Awareness Daily Routines give you a few minutes of oral blending and segmenting a day. In grade 1, the Decodable Readers and Heart Words keep children blending and mapping words instead of guessing. For grade 3 and older students on a literacy plan, the multisyllabic decoding lessons and the Dyslexia-Friendly Reading Support Pack give you a routine that repeats from lesson to lesson.
Handwriting
Cursive in the Arizona ELA Standards
In December 2016, the Arizona State Board of Education added cursive to the ELA standards, with mastery expected by the end of grade 5. A cursive bill that year was vetoed, so the expectation comes from the standards, not from a statute. When to start is set locally; check your district's pacing.
Our Cursive Writing unit is written for grades 2–3. It starts with posture and movement, works through the stroke families, gives each lowercase letter its own page, and then joins letters into words. That leaves grades 4 and 5 for speed and real writing, which is where mastery comes from. Before cursive, the Manuscript Handwriting K–1 set gives children print letters with clear stroke direction.
Classroom use
How to use these units in a K–5 week
Teachers can use these sets in small groups, an intervention block or a short daily routine.
- Read the teacher guide firstIt explains the routine and where children usually get stuck.
- Pick the grade by skill, not only by ageA grade 3 student on a literacy plan may need grade 1 decodable stories or the multisyllabic lessons rather than grade 3 passages. Place units by the skill gap, then move up.
- Keep sessions shortSound routines take a few minutes a day; handwriting works best as ten-minute practice several times a week.
- Edit the DOCXChange names, examples or word lists to match your class.
- Print on US LetterThe A4 PDFs print on US Letter with fit-to-page.
By subject: K–2 phonics, grades 1–4 math, grades 3–6 reading and K–3 handwriting.
Questions teachers ask
Frequently asked questions
Do these resources match the Arizona standards?
We don't claim alignment or approval from the state. Each unit is written for a US grade and sits closest to the skills in the grade-level Arizona ELA and Mathematics Standards. Compare the lesson list with the standards and your district materials.
Does Arizona require cursive?
Yes, through the standards. The State Board added cursive to the Arizona ELA Standards in December 2016, with mastery expected by the end of grade 5. There is no separate cursive statute.
What do I get when I buy a unit?
A classroom material PDF, a teacher guide PDF, an editable DOCX and an editable PowerPoint. Page counts are on each product page.
Do these work for charter and private schools in Arizona?
Yes. Each unit stands on its own with a teacher guide, so it does not depend on a particular core program. They work well for small groups or as a short daily routine.
Will these replace my district curriculum?
No. They are focused sets for practice and intervention, used next to your core program.
Planning for an Arizona classroom
For every subject and grade we cover, the Arizona Teaching Resources & Worksheets (Grades K–12) page collects it in one place.
See the elementary math resources →