Reading at What Level?

[ColwynsMommy]

How on earth do you tell what grade level your child is reading at?

I'm just curious.. I hear other homeschoolers say, "Oh, so-and-so is reading at such-and-such level" and I always think.. what are they comparing against?

[elizawill]

sonlight has a simple test your child can take. my daughter has taken it previously, and i felt it was fairly accurate. here's a link:

http://www.sonlight.com/quick-reading-assessment.html

also, many books will say on the back what reading level it is. hth.

[yllek]

Originally Posted by elizawill

also, many books will say on the back what reading level it is. hth.

This approach has been a bit confusing for me, because different book publishers seem to have different ideas about what is a "Level 1" or a "Level 2," etc. The Step Into Reading Step 2 books are a little easier than the I Can Read Level 1 books.

I have been using BookAlike at Scholastic.com to get a better idea of what reading level my 5yo is at. I plug in a title, and the online wizard finds a bunch of other books from many different publishers at a similar reading level. So for example, my ds is reading Days with Frog and Toad right now. Scholastic lists this as a 2.1 grade level, a K-2 interest level, and lists 50 other titles at a similar level. It will also find titles that are easier or more difficult too.

I find this handy because the only real reason that I am interested in knowing reading level at all is because I'm trying to match books with his reading ability, you know?

[elizawill]

Originally Posted by yllek

This approach has been a bit confusing for me, because different book publishers seem to have different ideas about what is a "Level 1" or a "Level 2," etc. The Step Into Reading Step 2 books are a little easier than the I Can Read Level 1 books.

yep, i agree. beginner books seem to be targeted more-so at multiple grade levels, as opposed to a true reading level (i.e grades 1-3). i was simply referring to the RL on the back of chapter books, such as RL 2.4. bookadventure.com is also good & similar to scholastic.

[DandK]

We use a program called book adventure. Your child reads a book and then the program quizzes them on details of the book. In the report section it shows the child's average reading level based on the books they've read and their quiz scores.

It's a free online program from Sylvan and my kids like it. Each quiz gives them the opportunity to earn points that they save up to be used on one of the sites rewards or on a parent designated reward. It keeps them motivated and I am able to better keep track of their reading level.