Every Arkansas public school district must select its K-5 reading program from the state’s approved reading curriculum list, maintained by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). The list is organized into core literacy programs, foundational skills supplements, reading intervention programs, and dyslexia intervention programs, and it is published on the DESE website. As of March 2026, DESE is conducting a comprehensive review of all programs on the approved core list, so the current version on the DESE site is the only reliable source for whether a specific program is approved today.
Where to Find the Official List
DESE posts the approved programs on its Approved Science of Reading Curriculum page.1Arkansas Department of Education. Approved Science of Reading Curriculum The main resource is a combined High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) spreadsheet covering approved core K-6 literacy programs. Two separate lists cover K-12 approved dyslexia intervention programs and K-12 approved reading intervention programs. Districts can also search approved programs through the Arkansas EdReports portal.
Programs have been added and removed over time. Core Knowledge Language Arts (Amplify Education), Open Court English Language Arts (McGraw Hill), and The Superkids Reading Program (Zaner-Bloser) have previously appeared on the approved core list, but with the comprehensive review underway, current status should be confirmed directly with DESE before any purchasing decision.1Arkansas Department of Education. Approved Science of Reading Curriculum
What a Program Has to Do to Be Approved
Two legal standards drive approval. The Right to Read Act, passed in 2017 and significantly amended in 2021, required DESE to build an approved list of programs supported by the science of reading; starting with the 2021–2022 school year, districts purchasing a reading curriculum must choose from that list.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 6-17-429 – Right to Read Act The Arkansas LEARNS Act (Act 237 of 2023) then set a goal of 100 percent adoption of HQIM aligned to the science of reading across all districts, with particular focus on K-2 classrooms.3Arkansas State Legislature. SB294 – To Create the LEARNS Act
To qualify, a program must be grounded in the science of reading, which Arkansas law defines as the study of the relationship between cognitive science and educational outcomes.4Legal Information Institute. Arkansas Code 005.28.24 Ark. Code R. 007 – DESE Rule Governing the Right to Read Act Instruction within the program must follow a structured literacy approach: explicit, systematic, cumulative, and diagnostic. Skills are taught directly and in sequence, each lesson builds on the previous one, and teachers use ongoing assessment to adjust instruction.
DESE reviews programs for alignment with the five recognized components of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Statute requires the list to include three distinct categories: evidence-based core reading programs, evidence-based reading intervention programs, and dyslexia programs that are evidence-based and either aligned with structured literacy or grounded in the Orton-Gillingham methodology.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 6-17-429 – Right to Read Act
What Is Disqualifying: The Three-Cueing Ban
Arkansas was the first state to ban the three-cueing method of reading instruction, doing so in 2021.5ExcelinEd In Action. From Policy to Action – Why 8 States Banned Three-Cueing from K-3 Reading Instruction Under the Right to Read Act, no district may use a K-2 instructional program that relies on the three-cueing system, visual memory as the primary basis for teaching word recognition, or the meaning-structure-visual (MSV) model.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 6-17-429 – Right to Read Act Three-cueing teaches children to guess at words using pictures, sentence context, or syntax rather than sounding them out.
If the State Board of Education determines a district is still using a three-cueing-based program, it will notify the district, which then has 60 days to fix the violation.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 6-17-429 – Right to Read Act
Can a District Use a Program That Is Not on the List?
Yes, but the path is narrow. A district that wants to use a reading program not on the DESE list must submit a written rationale for choosing the alternative program along with evidence-based research supporting it.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 6-17-429 – Right to Read Act DESE provides a fillable form and a separate request for approval that districts must complete.6Arkansas Department of Education. Literacy Curriculum Approval Process
Transparency is built in. Since the 2023–2024 school year, any district using a program that is not on the approved list must notify all parents in writing and post the information on the district’s website.2Justia Law. Arkansas Code 6-17-429 – Right to Read Act If you have not received such a notice and nothing is posted, your district is representing that its program is approved.
How to Check What Your Child’s School Is Using
Ask the school or district office directly which core reading program they use in K-5, then cross-check that program name against the current list on the DESE Approved Science of Reading Curriculum page. If the program appears, it is approved. If it does not, look for the required written notice to parents and the disclosure on the district website; a district using an unapproved program is obligated to tell you.
Each year, every district superintendent and charter school chief academic officer must submit a written Statement of Assurance confirming compliance with Arkansas education law, including the literacy curriculum requirements, by September 1.7Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education. Statement of Assurance Districts must also maintain a literacy plan as part of their annual school-level improvement plan, covering both the curriculum program and professional development aligned with the science of reading.4Legal Information Institute. Arkansas Code 005.28.24 Ark. Code R. 007 – DESE Rule Governing the Right to Read Act These documents are the paper trail behind what the district is actually teaching.
One boundary worth knowing: the approved curriculum requirement applies to public school districts and open-enrollment charter schools. Private schools and homeschool families are not bound by the DESE approved list.