Raleigh, NC — April 28, 2026 — EdReports, an independent nonprofit that provides free, evidence-rich reviews of instructional materials, today released its inaugural pre-K curriculum reports, extending its educator-led evaluation model into early learning.

With more than $250 million spent annually on pre-K materials and more states increasing access to publicly funded pre-K, the need for transparent information about curriculum quality is clear and pressing. The launch of EdReports’ pre-K reviews also advances two core priorities of the organization’s newly released strategic plan: innovating through expansion while maintaining the rigorous, transparent approach to curriculum review that has defined EdReports’ work in K-12.

“As EdReports looks to its next decade of impact, this work reflects both where we’ve been and where we’re going,” said Courtney Allison, chief academic officer at EdReports. “We helped the field build a clearer understanding of quality in K-12 curricula, and now we’re bringing that same commitment to pre-K. High-quality instructional materials matter from the very start, and this launch is part of our broader vision to help the field make better decisions throughout students’ learning journeys.”

Findings from the Inaugural Reviews

EdReports pre-K reviews are organized into three sections, called gateways:

• Gateway 1, Meeting the Needs of All Students, covers responsive practices and supports for diverse students such as multilingual learners. 
• Gateway 2, Quality of Core Content, covers social-emotional development, language and literacy, math, science, social studies, fine arts, physical and motor development, curriculum approach and design, and cognitive processes and approaches to learning.
• Gateway 3, Teacher and Student Supports, covers learning environment, intentional teaching, assessment, and implementation support. 

The three products reviewed in EdReports’ inaugural pre-K release achieved the following gateway ratings:

Every Child Ready (AppleTree Institute for Education Innovation)

• Gateway 1: Partially Meets Expectations
• Gateway 2: Meets Expectations
• Gateway 3: Meets Expectations

Frog Street (Frog Street Press, LLC)

• Gateway 1: Partially Meets Expectations
• Gateway 2: Partially Meets Expectations
• Gateway 3: Meets Expectations

The Creative Curriculum® for Pre-K (Teaching Strategies)

• Gateway 1: Meets Expectations
• Gateway 2: Partially Meets Expectations
• Gateway 3: Meets Expectations

The three reports show that widely used pre-K materials offer strong foundations in some areas of early learning, but uneven quality across the full range of knowledge and skills young children need.

Areas of broad strength include social-emotional development and language and literacy, materials’ research foundations, play-based approaches to learning, and design for multiple instructional entry points.

However, the quality of the approach to mathematics instruction was varied, with opportunities for some products to better match activities to how children develop math understanding over time. Social studies showed room for improvement across the board, particularly in strengthening alignment between learning goals and instructional activities. All three materials also had gaps in the quality of detailed guidance to support the needs of diverse students, such as multilingual learners.

“Research on early childhood interventions and public preschool programs has shown how important it is for educators and leaders to have access to high-quality, trustworthy information about the materials they use with young children,” said Christina Weiland, professor at the Marsal Family School of Education and Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan. “These inaugural reports are an important step toward helping the field better understand what quality looks like in pre-K curriculum and why it matters for children’s earliest learning experiences.”

EdReports selected the three products for this inaugural review based on several factors, including market share and publisher readiness to participate in the review process. Together, the three reports provide an early look at quality across materials shaping the pre-K landscape. Additional pre-K reports will be released on a rolling basis.

New Report Experience Designed for Usability

Because pre-K curriculum products differ meaningfully in structure and focus from K-12 materials, EdReports developed a new report design specifically for this inaugural launch. Informed by extensive user research and testing, the pre-K design gives educators, state and district leaders, and other stakeholders a clear overview of each product’s strengths and gaps. It also helps them better understand key indicators of quality so they can make curriculum decisions aligned to local needs.

“As someone who has coached pre-K teachers and led early learning initiatives, I’ve seen how much educators need reliable information about the materials they use with young learners,” said Shana Weldon, Ed.D., director of pre-K at EdReports. “I’m deeply grateful to the educator reviewers whose expertise, care, and time made these inaugural reports possible. Their work brings greater clarity to how these materials are designed to support learning across pre-K domains and gives educators and leaders useful information to inform local curriculum decisions.”

Explore the inaugural pre-K reports in the Reports Center and visit EdReports Resources to learn more about the pre-K review process and reviewers.

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About EdReports

With the firm belief that what is taught matters and that all students deserve standards-aligned, research-based materials tailored to diverse needs, including multilingual learners, EdReports publishes free, evidence-rich reviews of instructional materials. Since its launch in 2015, EdReports has trained over 1,000 educators to conduct rigorous reviews of instructional materials and has released over 1,200 reviews of math, ELA, and science curricula in K-12 as well as multi-domain pre-K products. The organization's work has been instrumental in helping educators across the country make informed decisions about the materials they use in their classrooms.