Understanding Arkansas’s New Third Grade Reading Law for 2025 to 2026
Arkansas is implementing major changes to third grade reading requirements beginning in the 2025 to 2026 school year. These updates will affect promotion decisions, intervention planning, and how schools support early literacy at every grade level. The goal is simple but significant: ensure all students can read on grade level by the end of third grade.
Below is a complete guide to what is changing, why the state is making this shift, and what schools can do to prepare.
What Is the Issue?
Beginning in 2025 to 2026, third grade reading performance on the ATLAS assessment will determine whether a student is ready for promotion. ATLAS places students into four achievement levels:
- Level 1: Limited skills
- Level 2: Basic understanding
- Level 3: Proficient understanding
- Level 4: Advanced understanding
Students scoring below Level 2 will automatically enter a support process. This includes an approved reading screener, an Individual Reading Plan (IRP), targeted intervention, and summer learning opportunities when required or recommended based on student need.
The most notable change is that students scoring in Level 1 are at risk of retention. Level 1 reflects limited foundational skills, including difficulty decoding, reading fluently, and comprehending grade-level text, which signal that additional time and support may be needed before advancing.
Retention is not immediate or automatic. It is used only after documented intervention and only if a student does not qualify for one of Arkansas’s good cause exemptions, which include:
- Students with disabilities or pending special education referrals
- English language learners
- Students with IEPs or 504 plans
- Students previously retained
- Students enrolled in intensive literacy intervention programs
These exemptions help ensure the policy does not unfairly penalize students whose needs require more specialized support.
However, the impact could still be far-reaching. Based on historical data, more than 30 percent of Arkansas third graders score below Level 2, and NAEP results show nearly 40 percent of Arkansas fourth graders score below basic in reading. This underscores the urgency behind the state’s shift.
How Did We Get Here?
The new requirements reflect years of statewide effort to strengthen early literacy.
Arkansas Right to Read Act (2017)
This legislation began Arkansas’s transition to the science of reading. It established the training and instructional expectations now common across the state. It required:
- K-6 teacher proficiency in science of reading practices
- Evidence-based literacy instruction in all classrooms
- Early screening for reading difficulties
- Foundational literacy skill development
Literacy Changes Under the LEARNS Act (2023)
LEARNS expanded and intensified literacy expectations. The components most relevant to third grade promotion include:
- Third Grade Retention Starting in 2025 to 2026
Retention applies only when students do not demonstrate reading proficiency and do not qualify for exemptions.
- Literacy Coaches for K-3 Teachers in D and F Rated Schools
Coaches help teachers strengthen foundational literacy instruction, phonics routines, small-group planning, intervention systems, and data use.
- Individual Reading Plans for Students in K-4
Any student not proficient in reading must have an IRP with diagnostics, intervention schedules, progress monitoring, and parent communication.
- Literacy Tutoring Grants
A $500 grant program helps families access additional tutoring support.
- Stronger Accountability and Enforcement
Schools must use state-approved screeners, document intervention efforts, and show evidence of science of reading aligned practice.
Why This Is Happening: Arguments For and Against
The Case for the New Requirements
Arkansas is modeling its approach after Mississippi, which produced one of the most dramatic literacy turnarounds in the country in recent years. Mississippi rose from 49th nationally in fourth grade reading in 2013 to among the top 20 states by 2023, credited to:
- Early screening
- Third grade retention policies
- Literacy coaching
- Systematic foundational literacy instruction
- Strong parent communication
Supporters believe Arkansas can replicate Mississippi’s success by adopting similar structures.
The Case Against
Critics worry the policy is too broad and could affect too many students immediately. Retention can create academic and social challenges when implemented at scale. Concerns also center on transitions from year to year if retention numbers are too high and overload certain grade levels compared to others.
State leaders have emphasized that retention is a last resort, and that screeners, IRPs, summer school, tutoring grants, and exemptions are designed to prevent widespread retention while still promoting stronger early literacy. Their idea isn’t simply to indiscriminately retain students based on test scores, it’s to meet students where they are with the right support.
Understanding ATLAS and What Level 1 Means
ATLAS plays a central role in promotion decisions, so understanding what it measures helps schools prepare effectively. ATLAS is part of the statewide Arkansas assessment system developed by the University of Kansas’s ATLAS division, and it replaces the former ACT Aspire assessment.
ATLAS assesses:
- Phonological awareness
- Phonics and word recognition
- Fluency
- Vocabulary
- Literary and informational comprehension
- Text analysis and evidence use
Students scoring in Level 1 typically show limited decoding ability, weak fluency, difficulty with grade-level text, and gaps in vocabulary and comprehension.
Compared to earlier state assessments, ATLAS offers a clearer picture of foundational skills, allowing teachers to identify needs earlier and align instruction and intervention more efficiently.
What Can Schools Do To Prepare?
Arkansas provides strong support for districts preparing for the new requirements. Schools can begin building readiness now.
Use the State’s Third Grade Promotion Toolkit
The toolkit includes timelines, IRP templates, screening guidance, sample parent letters, and clear expectations for documentation. This is the most comprehensive roadmap for preparing districtwide systems.
Leverage Literacy Coaches in D and F Rated Schools
Coaches can support phonics instruction, foundational literacy routines, small-group instruction, MTSS structures, and progress monitoring systems. They are a key resource for aligning instruction to the science of reading.
Strengthen Individual Reading Plans Early
IRPs should begin as soon as risk is identified in K-4. Strong plans include diagnostic data, targeted reading goals, scheduled interventions, family communication, and frequent checkpoints.
Prioritize Science of Reading Instruction
Foundational literacy should be central to daily instruction. Schools should reinforce:
- Phonological and phonemic awareness
- Explicit, systematic phonics
- Decoding and encoding practice
- Fluency routines
- Vocabulary development
- Comprehension through knowledge-rich texts
Tools such as Progress Learning can support these efforts by reinforcing science of reading aligned foundational literacy and phonics practice within daily instruction.
Build Strong Intervention Systems
A clear MTSS structure helps schools respond quickly when students show risk. Intervention should be scheduled intentionally, use evidence-based materials, and include frequent progress checks. Platforms like Progress Learning can strengthen intervention by providing adaptive practice that identifies specific skill gaps and guides targeted remediation.
Use Standards Aligned Practice and Data Tools
Consistent, high quality practice helps solidify foundational literacy and prepares students for ATLAS tasks. High quality tools, including Progress Learning, provide standards aligned practice proven to strengthen reading performance and give teachers real-time data to adjust instruction.
The new third grade reading requirements mark a significant shift for Arkansas schools, but they also present an opportunity to strengthen early literacy statewide. While retention policies receive the most attention, the state’s true focus is improvement through early identification, effective instruction, and targeted intervention.
Schools that begin preparing now will be better positioned to support students well before they reach the high stakes third grade reading threshold. With strong instructional systems and high quality tools, Arkansas educators can help every child build the foundational skills needed for long-term success.
Schedule time to meet with Progress Learning’s Arkansas experts below.
