I have followed the creation of the Common Core State Standards and support the goals of this initiative. My hope, as I read the first drafts, was that communities across the states would find in the final product some guidance, with specific examples, to help them build school plans that ensure that all students have equal access to the same content, knowledge, skills, and high academic expectations. The final 2010 document does provide that guidance.

However, the Common Core State Standards, like many state standards, make general statements: "establish and maintain a formal style...;" "produce clear and coherent writing...;" "actively engage in group reading activities...;" and more. The documents available here show how Step Up to Writing strategies, methods, and tools can be used to move forward from the general statements to specific work completed in K-12 classrooms.