Reading Levels
Reading Levels have been very popular in elementary and middle school classrooms. Reading Levels are system that describe books in a way that can show how challenging and or supportive a text may be. While many teachers, schools and districts rely heavily on reading levels to make instructional decisions, there are still some major considerations for when and how to use reading levels. Please remember that reading levels are one tool for describing texts and should be used to support you in your understanding of what your child may encounter in a text.
Reading levels can be used in fantastic ways and, like any tool, they can be used in unhelpful ways. I have watched how some expert teachers know the reading levels so well that they can expertly guide a child through understanding a challenging book and know precisely where that child might need help.
For parents, I think reading levels can help you understand what your child is able to do and what might be challenging for them in the books they are currently reading. Knowing reading levels can also help you know
* what kinds of books will be most supportive for your child,
* what kinds of challenges they might have, and
* how you can best support your child as they read.
Please remember, levels are simply a descriptive tool for some books. Your child should have access to a variety of books which includes books that may be above or below the level they are currently reading proficiently.
Reading levels are not labels for children. Your child should not say, “I am a level F” or “I can only read level F books”
Reading Levels
Reading levels can be a beneficial tool for supporting readers as they are able to read more difficult texts. Reading levels can also help us know how to support readers and what kinds of things to look and listen for as they are becoming better readers over time.
However, I have also seen reading levels hold kids back or limit the books they can read. I have even had a very adamant six-year-old tell me that she would not read her homework book (a book that was on the reading level she was currently proficiently reading) because it was boring and in the next sentence tell me she was so excited to read Not Quite Narwal (which is well above her independent reading level (K)). This is not an isolated incident and illustrates how a child can read a challenging text when they are really interested in the topic or if they have background knowledge about the subject.
What Makes a Book a Certain Level?
Reading levels are being used in many classrooms across the country and can now even be found on Scholastic order forms and in bookstores. Since reading levels are so prevalent and they can be a helpful tool, let’s talk a little about what makes a reading level, some considerations, and what it means for reading at home.
There are numerous reading leveling systems, however, reading levels represented by letters A-Z are commonly used. When I was a Literacy Specialist for a large urban school district, we chose to use the A-Z levels because there was more teacher support available for the A-Z leveling system and more publishers using the A-Z leveling system for their materials and books for kids. Additionally, there were several major assessments capitalizing on the A-Z leveling system.
To describe the reading levels, Fountas and Pinnell (source) consider these 10 characteristics:
* Genre
* Text Structure
* Content
* Themes and Ideas
* Language and Literacy Features
* Sentence Complexity
* Vocabulary
* Words
* Illustrations
* Book and Print Features
Things to Think About When Choosing a Text
Choose non-fiction texts with interesting topics, images, and descriptions that will appeal to your child.
Choose texts that have great examples of high-quality writing.
For younger readers, look at the illustrations to make sure that nonfiction texts include simple graphics that will help your child learn how to blend the information from the graphics and the text.
For readers who are reading more difficult texts, look at the illustrations to make sure that nonfiction texts include complex graphics that will help your child learn how to combine information from the graphics and the words in the text.
Make sure that fiction texts have high quality illustrations (if applicable) that add to the meaning of the text and communicate the mood.
Select texts that have deeper messages (like honesty, friendship, empathy, or kindness) so your child can think deeply about a text.
Want to learn more about the Reading Levels and how you can specifically help your child read better at each level?
Click on the button underneath the boxes below to learn about the kinds of books at each level, what readers typically need to be able to do at each level, and book recommendations at each level.
A-D
(Typically
Kindergarten)
E-J
(Typically
1st Grade)
K-M
(Typically
2nd Grade)
N-S
(Typically
3rd-4th Grade)
T-Z
(Typically
5th Grade and Above)
Want to learn more about Reading Levels visit Scholastic or the F&P Text Level Gradient.
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