As Goldilocks chooses the bed that fits her just right, she realizes that she needs a good book to settle down with. She chooses one book, nice and thick, lots of words, and begins to read.
"This is too hard!"
She chooses another book, a sturdy book, with big pictures, a few words on each page, and big print. As she begins to read this, she says, 'This is too easy!"
Finally, Goldilocks chooses a book with some chapters, a few challenging words, interesting characters, and even some pictures sprinkled in here and there.
"Ahhhhh, this is just right for me!" She settles in with her book in her lap and smile on her face.
In a high functioning literacy classroom, you will hear talk of reading levels, book levels, and matching readers to just right books. For many parents and even some school people, this sounds foreign and scary.
I want to start by emphasizing that this blog will focus on matching readers to books. Children can't be boxed in by a letter or number. If we want to kill a love of reading like the Terminix man stomps out pests, then let's just start referring to kids as a "Level P". Books are levels, kids are not.
However, there is certainly a place for making sure kids are reading books that are accessible to them. Think back to a time when you have been faced with a text that had numerous words that were difficult to read and understand. How did it make you feel? Frustrated? Annoyed? Did you quit? Chances are, yes. Or you pushed through because you had to, but you really didn't take much from what you read. That's how our children feel when they are given a text (a book, magazine article, etc) that is too difficult (ie. on a higher level than they can access).
The flip side of that is a book that is too easy. Students who are learning to read need a chance to practice the skills and strategies they are being taught. And they need to do it in books that will present the challenges they need to actually use such skills.
There are several different leveling systems for books, but a very prevalent one that has been around for a long time was developed by Fountas and Pinnell. This system assigns books a letter based on several factors. In looking at books of different levels, one would notice these factors are everything from text size, white space on a page, text/picture dependency, plot complexity, character development, and more. This leveling system begins with A, the easiest type of book, and goes all the way to Z+. In levels A through about J/K, each level is fairly distinct. The text decreases in size, the white space decreases, word count and complexity increases. After J/K, text levels are more easily grouped together and the complexity of the text is found in the characters, plot lines, and underlying messages and themes.
Teachers take time to sit and listen to students read, noting their strengths and areas of needed growth. Based on this, they are able to determine an independent level and an instructional level for each child. If a child can read fluently and accurately and comprehend most of the story, this would be their independent level. The instructional level is just outside of their independent reach. This is the level where teachers can push students, teaching them the skills and strategies for accessing a more challenging text.
What does this mean for parents?
At home, when reading alone, students need to be able to read and understand a book easily. If you are reading together, choose a more challenging book.
My dad read me the Hobbit when I was in elementary school. While I think he was a little off on his level, because he was reading it to me, I had the opportunity to talk to him about it and ask questions. Not only did this help my reading ability and grow my love for reading, but it also gave us some quality time doing something we both loved.
Also, be sure to check with your child's teacher for suggestions for great books at each level. It can be overwhelming to walk into the library or bookstore and set children free. So going in with some ideas for what books at the right level would look like can be so helpful! And again, children are not a level. So I am not saying only choose books at certain levels for your child. But knowing their reading zone is a good tool.
I'll finish by sounding like a broken record. Reading together at home is the single most important thing you can do for your child as a student. If you find time for nothing else, please make time to read together and/or for your child to read independently. There is direct correlation between the time spent reading and a child's academic success. Y'all, it doesn't get any easier than that. Just read.
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