Reading
Levels A-D
Children reading books at levels A and B are just beginning to learn the relationship between sounds and letters and how print works. They will read and recognize some high frequency words and words that are familiar. They are also learning to make meaning from pictures and how to construct stories.
When children begin reading books at level C, they automatically read from left to right across a page and know to sweep back to the left at each new line of print. Readers reading books at this level begin reading with expression. They also begin to move away from needing to point to each word as they read. Children reading books at this level will use their understanding of letter-sound relationships to read and monitor their reading accuracy.
Readers at level D, can now read 2-6 lines per page without using their finger to point. They also begin to notice a range of punctuation marks.
This reading level information is based on the work of Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell. To learn more about their work check out the Literacy Continuum (2016)
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About Level A/B Books
Books leveled A and B, typically have the following:
* Clear illustrations that fully support the meaning of the book
* Short, usually 16 pages (with typically 8 pages of print)
*Print is usually large and written in a simple font
* Periods are usually the only punctuation used
* There are typically larger spaces between words and lines
Some of our favorite A/B level books:
– Worm is Stuck – Wow, It’s Worm: Brand New Readers Set
– Worm Smells – Wow, It’s Worm: Brand New Readers Set
– Piggy’s Bath – Piggy and Dad: Brand New Readers Set
– Piggy’s Bedtime – Piggy and Dad: Brand New Readers Set
– Chalk by Bill Thomson
– Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie dePaola
– Animal Antics Series by Scholastic
Scroll down to learn specific steps to help your child if they are reading these types of books.
About Level C Books
Books leveled C, typically have the following:
* Simple plots with a problem and a solution
* Simple dialogue
*More than one sentence pattern repeated in the same book
* Some sentences are questions
* There are some words with apostrophes
Some of our favorite C level books:
– Cat and Mouse – Mouse Has Fun Brand New Readers Set
– The Chase – Hey Tabby Cat!: Brand New Readers Set
– Cat Bath – Hey Tabby Cat!: Brand New Readers Set
– Camping – Mouse Goes Out: Brand New Readers Set
– Flying by Donald Crews
– Patterns by Samantha Berger
– It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles G. Shaw
– I Went Walking by Sue Williams
– Panda’s Playtime – Animal Antics Set, Scholastic
– What a Sight I Saw Last Night – Animal Antics Set, Scholastic
Scroll down to learn specific steps to help your child if they are reading these types of books.
About Level D Books
Books leveled D, typically have the following:
* Simple narratives with a clear beginning, a simple series of episodes, and an ending
* May contain some content that is beyond your child’s immediate experiences
*Humor that is easy to understand
* Sentences that are longer than one line
* There are some simple possessives (dog’s tail)
Some of our favorite D level books:
– Bump! Thump! Splat! – Hey Tabby Cat!: Brand New Readers Set
– Worm is Hot – Wow, It’s Worm: Brand New Readers Set
– Sledding – Piggy and Dad Play: Brand New Readers Set
– Clifford Makes a Friend by Norman Bridwell
– Feathers for Lunch by Lois Ehlert
– Otis’s Busy Day by Loren Long
– Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle
Scroll down to learn specific steps to help your child if they are reading these types of books.
Remember: the levels are a tool for describing texts.
Providing access to books from a variety of levels, a variety of topics, and a variety of genres will be beneficial as your child learns to become a more proficient reader.
How to Help Your Child When They are Reading at These Levels
If you notice your child needs help paying attention to text features:
* Encourage your child to follow these steps when they begin reading a new book (read the title, look at the images, and think “What might this book be about?”)
* Encourage your child to look on the back of the book to see if there is a back blurb (or preview) of the book. Help them refine their ideas about the book based on this information (if available).
* Make sure your child understands how you use these things beyond simply saying “this is the cover, this is the title, this is the title page.” Identifying these are important, however, it is even more important that kids know how to use them.
If you notice your child needs help rereading to find information or read a word correctly:
* Show your child how to reread a sentence and think about what would make sense or sound right.
* Encourage them by saying something like, “Try that again and think about what would make sense.”
If you notice your child needs help with reading words they already know:
* Tell your child a high-frequency word and have your child find it and put their finger on it. If your child needs more support, you can write it on a piece of paper or make it with magnetic letters and then have them locate it in the book.
* Expect and compliment instant recognition of easy high-frequency words.
If you notice your child needs help with using the letters and the sounds they know to read a word:
*Show your child how to read the sentence and start reading a challenging word. You could say something like, “You can get your mouth ready to read this word.” Then show them how you would read the first sound
* Encourage your child by saying “get your mouth ready for the first sound.”
If your child needs help with reading fluently:
* Show your child how to point under words, if needed.
* Tell your child that when they come to the end of one line, move to the beginning of the next one. (You may need to show them how to do this)
* Encourage your child to touch under a word, read it, and move quickly to the next word.
* Compliment your child when they read in a voice slow enough to demonstrate crisp pointing under each word without long pauses.
* Read a sentence and show your child how your voice goes down when you reach the end of the sentence and how you pause when you get to a period.
* Read a question and show how your voice goes up at the end of a question.
If your child needs help with understanding a book:
* Prompt your child to tell what the whole book is about. (Show them how to think about this by talking through how you would think about each part and/or significant event to tell about the whole book, if needed)
* Periodically stop and ask questions such as, “what are you thinking?”, “what happened?” and “what do you think will happen next?”
* Ask your child, “How does the story go?”
* Demonstrate how you find information in the story (or pictures) to support your ideas about the story.
* Encourage your child to show you evidence in the book that show why they have an idea.
If your child needs help sharing their ideas about a book:
* Ask your child what they thought about the story/text?
* Ask your child to find a part they thought was (funny, interesting, etc.)
If you want to help your child check their reading:
* When your child makes a guess when figuring out a tricky word, you can ask them something like, “What letter would you expect to see at the beginning of _____?” If your child’s guess matches the first part of the word but doesn’t match the end, you could say, “What letter would you expect to see at the end of _____?”
* Explain how you could think about what’s happening in the story and the picture on the page to help figure out a tricky word. Talk through each detail with your child so they know the kinds of things they should be thinking about when they read and come to a challenging word.
* To encourage their problem-solving and independence, ask your child, “What could help you figure that out?”
* You can tap the picture to encourage your child to look at the picture to help them figure out a word.
* Show your child how to check their reading by reading a sentence incorrectly and then talking about how you noticed it didn’t make sense (or look right) so you went back and fixed it so that it sounded right and made sense.
* If your child reads a word or sentence incorrectly, you can ask questions like:
Were you right?
Does that match?
Does that make sense?
Does that sound right?
Does that look right?
* Tell your child that when they read, it needs to make sense and sound right.
* Encourage your child to use more information by saying things like:
-That makes sense, but does it sound right?
– That makes sense, but does that word look like (the word your child said)?
* Ask your child, “Could it be (your child’s response) or (actual text)?
* If you child says the wrong word, point to the word and ask your child, “If that was the word _____ what letter would you expect it to start with?” or ““If that was the word _____ what letter(s) would you expect it to end with?” or “If that was the word _____ what letter(s) would you expect to be in the middle?”
* Encourage your child to notice the repeating words/pattern in the text.
Want to know more about supporting your child’s strategy use?
Check out the Strategic Action Series.
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