Most would agree that the concept of failing schools and failing children is not an acceptable one. The authors of this series conducted research pertaining to causal factors of poor student academic performance and found that the primary cause is attributable to instructional gaps. The result of their research and work was a proven method of increasing student performance on summative and formative assessments, implemented in numerous schools and districts across the country. In each instance student performance increased exponentially, with more than 70% of the schools realizing stellar increases when following this system. Keeping it Real is a series capturing essential elements of this system and is designed to provide teachers, principals and curriculum specialists with the tools to improve student academic performance in all content areas. More importantly, however, it eliminates the guesswork associated with curriculum alignment and ensures that key standards are emphasized and assessed.