STATE List for 2nd Grade: Time, Guidelines, Bluebonnet, Truths and Contradictions...And CITATIONS.

Here's the bottom line...at the top: If we spent 15-20 minutes of each block on actual reading for these interactive requirements, it would take 29--39 days, nearly two full months of instruction - just so complete this Wind in the Willows - a SINGLE book on the state's list. To do the whole list? With no interactive anything? 95-126 school days to just READ all the words the 2nd grade list. 

The Great Reading Disparity: Instructional vs. Actual Time

In second grade, the TEKS Guide (Texas Education Agency, n.d.) mentions a target rate of 90 words correct per minute is often cited as appropriate, a better measure is 100 WCPM for an independent level at the end of 2nd grade. It is also common for Educational Service Centers through the TALA academies (University of Texas System & Texas Education Agency, 2010) to recommend the 50th percentile norm to screen students to determine if they are "on track." 

However, when we apply that rate to the proposed 2nd-grade "literary works," a massive time gap emerges.

Grade Level	Hasbrouck & Tindal Rate (WPM)	State "Interactive" Mandate
2nd Grade	100 WCPM (Spring)	25–35 mins per lesson

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The Full Proposed 2nd Grade List: 30 Works & The Time Trap

The following table reflects the entire 30-book draft list. It compares the State’s Instructional Time (a single scripted lesson) against the Actual Reading Time it would take a student to read the full text at 100 WPM.

Text Title	Genre	State Lesson Time	Actual Reading Time
The Mouse and the Motorcycle	Realistic Fiction	35 min	~3 hrs 56 min
Charlotte’s Web	Realistic Fiction	35 min	~5 hrs 20 min
Harriet Tubman: Freedom Fighter	Biography	25 min	15 min
Clara Barton: Angel of the Battlefield	Biography	25 min	25 min
The Legend of Johnny Appleseed	Folktale	20 min	10 min
The Parable of the Prodigal Son	Parable	15 min	5 min
The Tower of Babel	Myth	15 min	3 min
The Pied Piper of Hamelin	Poetry/Folktale	25 min	15 min
Cinderella	Fairy Tale	25 min	18 min
Beauty and the Beast	Fairy Tale	25 min	9 min
The Blind Men and the Elephant	Fable	20 min	1 min
The Boy Who Cried Wolf	Fable	20 min	2 min
Casey at the Bat	Poetry	20 min	6 min
The Emperor’s New Clothes	Fairy Tale	25 min	17 min
The Fisherman and His Wife	Fairy Tale	25 min	22 min
How the Camel Got His Hump	Tall Tale	20 min	11 min
I Have a Dream (excerpts)	Speech/Bio	25 min	5 min
I, Pencil	Informational	25 min	40 min
The Magic Paintbrush	Folktale	20 min	5 min
The Nightingale	Fairy Tale	25 min	12 min
Paul Bunyan	Tall Tale	20 min	8 min
Pecos Bill	Tall Tale	20 min	9 min
Peter Pan	Fantasy/Classic	30 min	~15 min (abridged)
The Princess and the Pea	Fairy Tale	20 min	4 min
The Rainbow Serpent	Myth/Folktale	20 min	6 min
The Star-Spangled Banner	Poetry/Anthem	15 min	1 min
The Sword in the Stone	Legend	25 min	15 min
The Ugly Duckling	Fairy Tale	25 min	25 min
Where the Red Fern Grows	Realistic Fiction	35 min	~7 hrs 30 min
Wind in the Willows	Fantasy/Classic	35 min	~9 hrs 40 min

The 100 WCPM Benchmark: Reality vs. Expectation

To understand why this list creates such a massive time deficit, we have to look at the expected reading rates for 2nd graders. While the TEKS Guide notes a year-end target of 90 words per minute, Texas Education Service Centers and state-led training initiatives (like TALA) often point to 100 WCPM as the threshold for "Independent Level" reading.
This 100 WCPM figure is pulled directly from the Spring 50th percentile of the Hasbrouck & Tindal (2017) norms—a benchmark used by Texas districts to determine if a student is "on track". Even at this "average" speed, finishing the state’s proposed 30-book list is an impossible task within the allotted 35-minute instructional blocks.

35 Minutes? Where did that come from? 

Well. It came from Bluebonnet. AKA: TEA. In their implementation guidelines, the 35 minute time frame comes from, the Knowledge-Building/Interactive Read-Aloud segment of all their lessons: 

• Bluebonnet Learning Program Guide: The TEA’s implementation guides for the new state-owned curriculum (formerly called OER) specify daily instructional time allocations for each lesson segment to ensure "standardized delivery" across the state.

• HB 1605 "Interactive" Requirement: The law mandates that the list of literary works be taught in an "interactive" manner, which includes pre-selected pauses for vocabulary and background knowledge building.

• Instructional Reality: During the January 2026 SBOE meeting, board members and educators discussed the "time bucket" issue, noting that a single lesson—designed to fit within the standard daily schedule—typically allows for only 25–35 minutes of focused work on a specific literary text after accounting for foundational skills (phonics) and writing.

The "Time Trap" Logic: The State's Goal: Finish a "work" (like Charlotte's Web) within a designated unit of the Bluebonnet curriculum: There's not that much time. 

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Impact Analysis: High Stakes, Low Minutes

    The data shows a critical instructional disconnect. For longer "works" like Wind in the Willows, the state allocates only 35 minutes for an "interactive" lesson—less than 6% of the time required for a student to actually read the book. Are we supposed to break up Wind in the Willows up into 35 minute lessons? This would take 16.57 lessons at 35 minutes. -just to read what's there. We don't have that kind of time. 

Conversely, for shorter works like The Star-Spangled Banner, the "interactive" mandate (vocabulary and background building) consumes nearly 90% of the lesson time.

Truths and Contradictions: Missing 2017 TEKS Genres

Despite the volume of texts, the list still fails to provide coverage for several mandated categories under the 2017 TEKS:

• Drama: Missing (Required for dialogue and stage direction study).

• Multimodal Texts: Missing.

• Digital Texts: Missing (TEKS 2.9.B.ii).

Let's Make it Worse: 54 Day Minimum Warning

Let's break down the mathematical conflict between the state's allocated time and the actual word count of the proposed list.

The 54-day minimum represents the absolute fastest a class could possibly finish reading these 30 works—assuming every second of the instructional block is spent reading without pausing for a single question or definition.

• The Total Word Count: The 30 proposed works for 2nd grade total approximately 189,166 words.

• The Reading Rate: Using the Hasbrouck & Tindal (2017) Spring norm of 100 Words Correct Per Minute (WCPM), it takes 1,892 minutes of pure, uninterrupted reading to finish the list.

• The Time Block: The Bluebonnet Learning Implementation Guide (the state-owned curriculum) allocates a 35-minute daily block for the Knowledge-Building/Read-Aloud segment.

• The Division: 1,892 total minutes divided by 35 minutes per day equals 54 school days.

Why 54 Days is the "Best Case" (and unlikely) Scenario

The state doesn't just want students to read; House Bill 1605 mandates an "interactive" approach. According to the Draft Rule Text, teachers must include:

1. Direct Vocabulary Instruction: Specific focus on Tier 2 and Tier 3 words.

2. Embedded Questioning: Pausing to build background knowledge and check comprehension.

3. Analytic Talk: Discussions to align with the Bluebonnet Learning framework.

The Real Impact: If these "interactive" requirements take up just half of your 35-minute block (17.5 minutes), the time required to finish the list doubles to 108 school days. That is more than half of the entire 180-day Texas school year dedicated to just 30 titles.

Even Worse: 

Scenario	Daily Reading Time	Days to Finish List	% of School Year
"Best Case" (No Pausing)	35 Minutes	54 Days	~30%
"Interactive" (Reality)	17.5 Minutes*	108 Days	~60%

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Reference List

• Hasbrouck, J., & Tindal, G. (2017). An update to compiled ORF norms (Technical Report No. 1702). University of Oregon, Behavioral Research and Teaching.

• Texas Education Agency. (n.d.). ELA.2.4 | TEKS Guide. https://teksguide.org/teks/ela24/overview.

• Texas Education Agency. (2017). Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Grade 2.

• Texas Education Agency. (2026a). Draft Rule Text for Agency Recommendations to the SBOE for Literary Works List.

• Texas Education Agency. (2026b). SBOE TEA Proposed Literary Works List: Pre-read to Support Review.

• Texas Education Agency. (2024). Bluebonnet Learning: K–5 RLA Program and Implementation Guide. https://tea.texas.gov/academics/instructional-materials/house-bill-1605/house-bill-1605-and-imra.

• Texas State Board of Education. (2026, January 28). Committee of the Full Board: Item 4.

• University of Texas System & Texas Education Agency. (2010). TALA—Effective Instruction for Middle School Students With Reading Difficulties: Accuracy and Rate Guidelines. Version 2.0..

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