CPM: Can I get a list of the letters that will be on the Circle Progress Monitoring assessment?
Answer:
Focusing instruction solely on the specific letters included in the assessment does not support comprehensive literacy development, nor does it guarantee that children will meet the benchmark. This approach may lead to teaching to the test, which can affect the outcomes and potentially result in misrepresentation of a child’s true learning progress.
Instead, educators are encouraged to foster letter knowledge through rich, integrated literacy experiences across the school day. Children benefit most from multisensory learning—seeing, hearing, and interacting with letters in meaningful contexts such as shared reading, writing activities, and playful exploration.
By embedding letter recognition into daily routines and using data from the assessment to guide instruction, teachers can support authentic learning and ensure that progress monitoring reflects a child’s natural development. This approach aligns with best practices in early childhood education and supports valid, reliable assessment outcomes.
The Circle Progress Monitoring (CPM) Toolkit webpage allows the locating of various materials and resources, each tailored to support the understanding and implementation of CPM.
Here are some additional resources to help you navigate beginning, middle, and end-of-year testing:
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