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California: Transitioning to the Science of Reading

California: Transitioning to the Science of Reading

How LitLab supports California schools and districts as they shift toward evidence-based early literacy instruction.

5/13/2026 · LitLab Team

With the adoption of Assembly Bill 1454, California is entering a major transition in early literacy instruction by shifting away from “balanced literacy” and toward best practices grounded in the science of reading [1]. The timing is particularly important given California’s well-documented struggles with reading outcomes and literacy proficiency [2].

Districts and teachers across the state are now reevaluating their approach to foundational literacy instruction. It is not an easy shift, especially for educators who were trained for years in different instructional philosophies, but the emerging data is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore: only states that adopted science-of-reading reforms showed meaningful reading gains from 2023 to 2025 [2]. California is making a difficult, but necessary, transition toward evidence-based literacy instruction.

This is not a challenge unique to California. Across the country, schools are adopting high-quality instructional materials and structured literacy curricula such as UFLI, CKLA, Fundations, Benchmark, and Reading Horizons. These programs place a stronger emphasis on explicit phonics instruction, decodable text, oral reading fluency, spelling, and progress monitoring — all key components of evidence-based reading instruction.

But this transition is about more than simply selecting a new curriculum. Successful implementation requires systems that support day-to-day classroom instruction and help students consistently practice the skills they are learning during Tier 1 instruction.

Implementing the science of reading requires aligned daily practice

The science of reading is not a single curriculum, but a large interdisciplinary body of research on how students learn to read most effectively [3].

Research on reading development consistently emphasizes the importance of repeated exposure to taught phonics patterns. Students develop reading proficiency not only through direct instruction, but through opportunities to apply those skills across decoding, spelling, fluency, and comprehension activities.

During curriculum transitions, teachers often need additional aligned practice opportunities that reinforce the instructional sequence students are actively learning in class. This can be difficult to manage consistently across classrooms, particularly when students need differentiated levels of support.

Schools also need ways to monitor whether students are successfully applying newly taught skills during independent and guided practice. As districts implement new literacy systems, maintaining alignment between instruction, student practice, and assessment becomes increasingly important.

LitLab was designed for this instructional context

LitLab was built to make reading practice more curriculum-aligned, differentiated, and engaging for students, directly following practices founded in the science of reading.

The platform aligns to widely used structured literacy programs including UFLI, CKLA, Fundations, and Reading Horizons, helping teachers provide reading practice connected directly to the phonics progression students are learning in the classroom.

Teachers can browse a large library of decodable texts or generate custom stories aligned to specific phonics skills and instructional sequences. Rather than functioning separately from core instruction, LitLab is designed to reinforce and extend the literacy systems schools are already implementing.

For districts adopting structured literacy programs, this allows teachers to provide additional reading practice without abandoning alignment to the curriculum sequence already in place.

Supporting differentiated instruction while maintaining alignment

One of the challenges schools face during science of reading implementation is balancing differentiation with consistency. Students need varying levels of support and repeated exposure as they develop foundational reading skills, but teachers also need to maintain alignment to the core instructional sequence.

LitLab allows teachers to generate differentiated decodable practice while preserving alignment to the target phonics progression. Teachers can customize text length, vocabulary, story content, and scaffolds while remaining connected to the instructional sequence students are actively learning.

This flexibility helps educators personalize reading practice without sacrificing curriculum alignment. Students can receive additional exposure and support while still practicing the phonics patterns and decoding skills tied directly to classroom instruction.

Connecting reading practice to instructional decision-making

LitLab combines student reading practice with ongoing mastery and fluency data designed to support instructional decision-making.

Students engage in oral reading, spelling, comprehension, and decodable reading activities tied to specific phonics skills. As students practice, teachers can monitor fluency analysis, review recordings, and view classwide skill maps connected directly to the curriculum progression.

This allows educators to identify where students may need additional reinforcement, which skills are becoming secure, and when students are ready to progress to new concepts.

By connecting reading practice to actionable instructional data, LitLab aims to help schools reduce the gap between assessment, intervention, and daily classroom instruction.

Supporting engaging and meaningful reading experiences

Effective foundational skills practice also depends on student engagement and meaningful reading experiences.

LitLab includes customizable stories, student-created texts, oral reading activities, spelling practice, and comprehension supports designed to keep practice motivating while maintaining appropriate decodability constraints.

Students can create stories aligned to teacher-assigned phonics skills, helping increase ownership and excitement around reading practice while still reinforcing core instructional goals.

The goal is to help students spend more time engaged in successful reading experiences connected directly to the skills they are learning in class.

What to do next

Here are a few ways to get started with LitLab:

References

[1] California Governor Gavin Newsom Signs AB 1454 into Law (Science of Reading / Early Literacy Reform Context)
https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/10/08/governor-newsom-signs-literacy-package-to-strengthen-early-reading-instruction/

[2] Harvard Graduate School of Education — New Education Scorecard Finds U-Shaped Recovery
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/ideas/news/26/05/new-education-scorecard-finds-u-shaped-recovery

[3] Stanford University — How the Science of Reading Is Reshaping Literacy Education
https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2026/02/science-of-reading-literacy-education-legislation-research

LitLab serves 5000+ school sites and 400,000+ students across K–5. It is ESSA Tier IV certified and aligns to UFLI Foundations, CKLA, Fundations, Reading Horizons, Superkids, Benchmark, and other major phonics programs. 👉 Learn More to see how it fits with your current program.