CPM Benchmarks (English)
Circle Progress Monitoring (CPM) benchmarks are age-dependent. CPM assigns an age group as of September 1st of the current school year, and students stay in that age group for the entire school year.
If the student scores at or above these benchmarks, the student is considered “On Track”, if students score below benchmarks, they fall under “Monitor” (for students younger than 4) or “Needs Support” (for students older than 4).
The Children’s Learning Institute conducts routine analyses to monitor CPM benchmarks and make applicable updates. Current benchmark tables are listed below.
Rapid Letter Naming
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| Wave 2 | *** | 7 | 11 | 12 |
| Wave 3 | *** | 8 | 14 | 14 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Rapid Vocabulary
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-or above |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 4 | 10 | 16 |
| Wave 2 | 9 | 11 | 18 |
| Wave 3 | 10 | 12 | 19 |
Phonological Awareness
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0 or above |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 14 | 18 |
| Wave 2 | *** | 16 | 19 |
| Wave 3 | *** | 19 | 24 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Letter Sound Correspondence
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | *** | *** | *** |
| Wave 2 | *** | *** | 1 | 2 |
| Wave 3 | *** | *** | 3 | 5 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Math
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0 or above |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 10 | 28 |
| Wave 2 | *** | 9 | 25 |
| Wave 3 | *** | 10 | 28 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Story Retell Comprehension
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Book and Print Awareness
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Wave 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Wave 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
Science
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 15 |
| Wave 2 | 11 | 13 | 16 | 17 |
| Wave 3 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 19 |
Early Writing Skills
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Wave 2 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 10 |
| Wave 3 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 13 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Approaches to Learning Expanded
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 9 |
| Wave 2 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 14 |
| Wave 3 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 |
Physical Development and Health
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 12 |
| Wave 2 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 16 |
| Wave 3 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 21 |
Speech Production and Sentence Skills
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Wave 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 |
| Wave 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 7 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Motivation to Read
| Wave | Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Wave 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Wave 3 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
***Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
This document was last modified on: November 12, 2026
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