Together, GOLD and Finch offer a fuller picture of each child’s development to drive individualized, developmentally appropriate learning.

GOLD
Observational assessment data captured from teachers and families

Finch
Foundational, Formative, and Fun INteractive CHild game-based assessment
Three groundbreaking assessment tools in one
Capture Observations With GOLD
For children from birth to third grade
The most widely used, whole-child observational assessment tool, GOLD empowers teachers to capture observations in the moment throughout the day.
- Easily upload photos, notes, and schoolwork to inform daily instruction
- Address each child’s needs based on developmentally appropriate milestones
- Make data-driven decisions to improve learning outcomes and individualize instruction


NEW Finch Literacy Screener
For children grades pre-K to kindergarten
Identify children who may be at risk for dyslexia and other reading difficulties with our groundbreaking universal literacy screener.
- Leverages advanced speech recognition to capture and score data for each child
- Generates reports and updates GOLD automatically, informing instruction while saving teachers time
- Allows for early intervention to support emerging literacy-based learning challenges
NEW Finch Formative Games
For children grades preschool to kindergarten
Obtain a fuller picture of each child’s learning and development using fun, child-facing, age-appropriate games.
Available in English and Spanish
- Takes only 5 minutes per child per week
- Captures data that directly feeds GOLD and drives easier individualization of instruction
- Reduces the pressure on teacher observations for evidence of learning and development

6 Reasons to Love GOLDFinch
Assessment made easier
Upload observations in the moment and capture data through child-facing games to fuel comprehensive assessments and individualized instruction.
Game-based and age-appropriate
Child-facing formative games capture developmental data directly in just 5 minutes of play per child per week.
Literacy and dyslexia screener
An integrated literacy screener with automated speech recognition helps identify children who are at risk for reading difficulties and/or dyslexia, allowing for early intervention.
Individualized learning made easier
Deeper, data-driven insights and automatic recommendations go beyond measurement to help teachers more easily individualize instruction for each child.
Uniquely comprehensive data
Multiple sources of evidence offer a fuller picture of each child’s progress and increase the quality of developmental data.
English and Spanish available
Game-based assessment tool has English and Spanish options to help fuel high-quality data.
Frequently Asked Questions
GOLDFinch is Teaching Strategies’ comprehensive assessment solution, combining GOLD observational assessment with Finch game-based assessment and an integrated literacy screener. It gives teachers three connected sources of child development data – teacher observation, child-facing games, and literacy screening – in one system instead of three separate tools. GOLDFinch is built for programs serving children from ages three to six.
GOLDFinch combines the most widely used and industry-leading observational assessment tool, GOLD, with new child-facing, game-based assessment and a new literacy screener. Together, they offer a comprehensive view of every child’s learning, development, and school readiness and provide educators with actionable data and insights to drive individualized learning.
GOLD observational assessment supports children from birth to third grade. The literacy screener is designed for children ages 4 to 6. The child-facing game-based assessment is designed for children ages 3 to 6.
GOLD is the observational assessment component alone – teachers document what they see children do throughout the day. Finch is the game-based assessment and literacy screener- child-facing games and an automated speech-recognition screener that capture data directly from children. GOLDFinch is the combined solution: it bundles GOLD and Finch together so observation-based and child-facing data feed the same system. Programs that want only teacher observation can use GOLD by itself; GOLDFinch is for programs that want both data sources working together.
Yes, our new universal literacy screener identifies children who may be at risk for early reading challenges, including dyslexia.
Our formative, game-based assessments capture developmental data directly through just 5 minutes of play per child per week.
Yes. GOLDFinch increases the quality of developmental data by combining multiple sources of evidence – teacher observation and child-facing game data – with literacy-focused screening that goes beyond observation alone.
Yes, GOLDFinch is available in Spanish. The child-facing formative games and literacy screener are available in both English and Spanish. Teacher observation in GOLD can be documented in the language the teacher uses. Both teacher-facing platforms are also available in English and Spanish.
Yes. Because GOLDFinch’s observational component is GOLD, it follows the same checkpoint structure programs already use for reporting and progress monitoring. Finch data updates GOLD automatically, so game and screener results appear within the same checkpoint reporting a program is already used to – no separate reporting calendar to manage.
Current GOLD customers are not required to switch – GOLD continues to work as a standalone product. Finch Formative Games and Literacy Screener can be added to an existing GOLD subscription, to increase the quantity and quality of their data.
