Reading
Levels T-Z
Children reading texts at levels T to Z are processing a very wide range of texts. Most of their reading will be silent since their fluency is well established at these reading levels. Across these levels, your child will become more skilled at understanding more sophisticated genres with different perspectives. Your child will continue to expand their academic and discipline-specific vocabulary. Your child will also make connections across fiction and non-fiction texts.
This reading level information is based on the Literacy Continuum (2016).
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About Level T Books
Books leveled T, may have the following:
* A main plot and subplots
* A circular plot (a story that begins in the same place it began) or parallel plots (two or more plots linked by a common element)
* Symbolism
*Content that your child will need to think critically about to judge how authentic and/or accurate they think it is
Some of our favorite T level books:
* Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
* Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo
* Bridge to Terebithia by Katherine Patterson
* Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe
Scroll down to learn specific steps to help your child if they are reading these types of books.
About Level U/V/W Books
Books leveled U, V, or W, may have the following:
* Content that requires emotional and social maturity
* Literary language that is used to enhance the meaning or mood
* Some non-sentences (literary effect)
* Some words used ironically
* May contain high fantasy or science fiction (Level V/W)
* Language that indicates the author’s attitude or feelings toward a subject/topic (Level V/W)
* Multiple themes that your child may uncover in many layers (Level W)
Some of our favorite U/V/W level books:
* The Watsons go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis
* Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
* Holes by Louis Satire
* Wonder by R. J. Palacio
* Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
* On the Far Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
* Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate
Scroll down to learn specific steps to help your child if they are reading these types of books.
About Level X/Y/Z Books
Books leveled X, Y, or Z may have the following:
* Multiple plots, that could each have its own set of main characters and supporting characters
* Dense presentations of facts and ideas requiring your child to understand a great deal of information in a short amount of text
* Mature issues such as sexuality, murder, abuse, drug addiction
* Words used ironically or satirically
Some of our favoriteX/Y/Z level books:
* The Giver by Lois Lowry
* Paperboy by Vince Vawter
* Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
* Call of the Wild by Jack London
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 using all of the information in the text (including illustrations and graphics):
* You can prompt your child by saying things like, “That sounds right and looks right, but did it make sense?”
* Remind your child that books at this level often include words that have more than one possible meaning
* Show your child how to read all the information on a page.
* You may say things like: “See how this____ helps you understand_____”
If you notice your child needs help with monitoring their understanding of the text:
* Remind your child that he/she needs to stop and reread if it doesn’t make sense.
* You can ask your child things like:
What doesn’t make sense?
Why did you stop?
* Encourage your child to make sure that everything fits as they read. You may need to model this by sharing your how you might think about a portion of the text.
If your child needs help with understanding a book:
* Periodically stop and ask questions such as, “what are you thinking?”, “what happened?” and “what do you think will happen next?”
* Encourage your child to show you evidence in the book that show why they have an idea.
* Encourage your child to think about something they know that would help them talk about what is happening in the story. Prompt them to use that to understand (the character, the situation, the mood of the story, the message, etc.)
* Remind your child that characters change over time. Ask them to describe what they are noticing about the characters and change (emotionally and/or physically).
* Help your child notice when there is a change (maybe a chapter from another character’s perspective or a chapter that presents a different problem) and how it connects with the rest of the text.
* Remind your child that themes and big ideas come from more than one character’s experience and thinking- we have to notice how all the characters relate to the themes in the book.
If you notice your child needs help with maintaining fluent, phrased reading:
* Remind your child to listen to how their reading sounds. Encourage them to make their reading sound interesting and smooth.
If your child needs help sharing their ideas about a book:
* Ask your child what they thought about the story/text?
* Ask your child what the author wants is to think/feel/believe about the story/character/information.
* Ask your child if they changed their opinion about some aspect of the text as they read to the end? And why?
* Prompt your child to think about something they know that would help them talk about what is happening in the story in certain parts (character’s actions or motives, story theme, perspectives, etc.).
* Remind your child that books at this level often offer us a chance to think deeply about our lives and ask big questions. Ask them if there are any big questions that the book made them think about or if the characters asked any big questions.
Want to know more about supporting your child’s strategy use?
Check out the Strategic Action Series.
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