This district-level benchmark guide is to assist in your decision-making processes. The details in this guide will help with the following:
- Understanding how long each measure takes to assess
- Understand the interplay between each measure and ECDS requirements
- Having a firm grasp of which measures are total scores and the components of the total score
- Evaluating which fields to identify as required for your district
- Creating a list of validated measures
- Determining which measures to use for growth metrics
- Making decisions on which fields to use in board goals and why
- Determining which metrics to use for other KPIs
While reviewing the benchmarks, please keep the following in mind.
- Student’s age as of Sept 1st were used to establish benchmarks. All benchmarks in this document are for the “On track” indicator. Any score below the “On track” cut-point will receive an indicator of “Monitor” or “Support” for ages 3.0 – 4.0 and 4.0+, respectively.
- Cut point differences are due to a variety of factors:
- The statistical analysis of the CLI Engage assessment tool over time
- Considerations for English and Spanish instruction
- Considerations for the unique linguistic characteristics of English and Spanish
- A child’s age as of September 1st
- Items without a benchmark due to insufficient data at this time are marked “***”.
- Most districts use 3-wave assessment (BOY, MOY, EOY) on CLI Engage. If your district is administering a 4-wave assessment, use this guide to align benchmarks from the tables on the following pages:
- Wave 1: as-is
- Wave 2: as-is
- Wave 3: repeat Wave 2 benchmarks
- Wave 4: use Wave 3 benchmarks
Rapid Vocabulary
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0 or above | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 1 | 6 | 6 | |
| Wave 2 | 6 | 8 | 14 | |
| Wave 3 | 7 | 9 | 16 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Domain for ECDS: Language and Communication
• Administration Time core tasks: 2.5 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Story Retell and Comprehension
English
| 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 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Wave 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Spanish
| 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 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Wave 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Administration Time core tasks: 10 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Speech Production and Sentence Skills
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| 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 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| Wave 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Observable
• Administration Time core tasks: 2 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Rapid Letter Naming
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Wave 2 | *** | 5 | 8 | 9 |
| Wave 3 | *** | 6 | 10 | 13 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Domain for ECDS: Emergent Literacy: Reading
• Administration Time core tasks: 2.5 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Phonological Awareness
English
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0 or above | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 15 | 19 | |
| Wave 2 | *** | 17 | 20 | |
| Wave 3 | *** | 21 | 26 |
*** Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0 or above | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 12+ | 15 | |
| Wave 2 | *** | 16+ | 19 | |
| Wave 3 | *** | 18+ | 21 |
***Nota: No hay suficientes datos para establecer puntos de referencia en este momento.
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct Assessment
• Administration Time core tasks: 10 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Letter-Sound Correspondence
English
| 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.
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | *** | *** | *** |
| Wave 2 | *** | *** | 1-12 | 3 |
| Wave 3 | *** | *** | 5-12 | 7 |
*** Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Administration Time core tasks: 5 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Motivation to Read
English
| 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.
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Wave 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Wave 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
*** Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Measure Information
• Measure type: Observable
• Administration Time core tasks: 2 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Early Writing Skills
English
| 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.
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Wave 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 9 |
| Wave 3 | 4 | 7 | 12 | 14 |
*** Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Measure Information
• Measure type: Observable
• Domain for ECDS: Emergent Literacy: Writing
• Administration Time core tasks: 2 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Book and Print Awareness
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Wave 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
| Wave 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 8 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Administration Time core tasks: 5 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Math
English
| 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.
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0 or above | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | *** | 8 | 18 | |
| Wave 2 | *** | 8 | 18 | |
| Wave 3 | *** | 7 | 17 |
*** Note: Insufficient data to establish benchmarks at this time.
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Domain for ECDS: Mathematics
• Administration Time core tasks: 5 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Science
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 |
| Wave 2 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 16 |
| Wave 3 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 19 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Administration Time core tasks: 10 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Social Studies
English
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| Wave 2 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Wave 3 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 |
| Wave 2 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| Wave 3 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 10 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Direct assessment
• Administration Time core tasks: 8 minutes
• A validated benchmark
Social Emotional Behaviors
English
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 14 |
| Wave 2 | 19 | 26 | 29 | 31 |
| Wave 3 | 30 | 32 | 37 | 43 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 |
| Wave 2 | 19 | 26 | 27 | 31 |
| Wave 3 | 30 | 32 | 38 | 44 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Observable
• Domain for ECDS: Health and Wellness
• Administration Time core tasks: 10 minutes
• A validated benchmark
• Includes: Positive Social Behaviors, Classroom Community & Safety,
Emotion & Behavior Regulation, Self-Care, Approaches to Learning
Approaches to Learning Expanded
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| Wave 2 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 14 |
| Wave 3 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 18 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Observable
• Administration Time core tasks: 6 minutes
• A validated benchmark
• Includes: Initiative & Curiosity, Flexibility, Art/Creativity & Dramatic Play
Physical Development and Health
English
| 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 |
Spanish
| Age 3.0-<3.5 | Age 3.5-<4.0 | Age 4.0-<4.5 | Age 4.5 or above | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave 1 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 9 |
| Wave 2 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 14 |
| Wave 3 | 12 | 16 | 20 | 21 |
Measure Information
• Measure type: Observable
• Administration Time core tasks: 6 minutes
• A validated benchmark
• Includes: Fine & Visual Motor, Gross Motor, Health Status
This document was last modified on: August 14, 2026