During the spring and summer of 2008 representatives of the Californians Together attended two California Department of Education trainings for the Instructional Materials Advisory Panel members and had over seventeen experts observe the textbook deliberations. Each of the observers learned much about the process and the materials and was impressed with the commitment of the panel members, the commissioners and staff. More importantly, the observers walked away with a better understanding of the adoption process, and the challenge of selecting instructional materials that best serve the instructional needs of all students, including English learners.Based upon our observations of the work of the advisory panels, Californians Together offers the attached findings on the process, criteria and content of the materials with recommendations.