Reading levels--Would like to hear from experienced parents/teachers

When the teachers assign reading levels, do they assign at the level the child is reading or do they assign above to challenge them?

 

When my DS was in kdg last year they were assigned at their current level. She did come to me though (we teach in same school) and ask me if I wanted him in the level below where he actually was because he is such an anxious kid and she didn't want to stress him out. :wub: I said no, I would like him where he belonged and within a few weeks he was actually moved up another level. Their current level should be challenging though because no matter what level reader they are, they should be learning new words and new decoding skills at that level.

Hope that helps.

 

There are basically three levels: independent, instructional, and frustration. For classroom purposes, teachers stick to the instructional level which is slightly a bit more challenging for them. For at home reading, it is recommended to stay at the independent level.

Keep in mind that those same three levels apply to both fluency (words per minute), and comprehension. My son for example, can read well above grade level, but still comprehends like a beginning first grader. So even though he is fluent at a 3rd grade level, his comprehension is at the beg. 1st grade level. So therefore, his teacher is giving him things at a mid/first level which is his instructional level (due to comprehension).

Okay, I read that 8 times and even I am confused now!!!

 

Good explanation! Made total sense.

 

LMAO at frustration. Oh and I completely get your explanation and appreciate it. So my son's teacher is assigning him books with repetitive, simple word sentences. Yesterday's book was called "scaredy cat" and it went something along the lines of "scaredy cat is scared of a mouse" for about 10 pages with the animal changing on each page. I asked him comprehension questions and he was able to retell the story in his own words, identify his favorite part and find different letter sounds no issue.


At home, with me, he reads things like Frog and Toad, Danny and the Dinosaur, discovery books on sharks/whales/whatever scary creature he wants to learn about this week. With the at home books, I have to help him every now and then by slowing him down and making him sound out words but I would say my level of "help" is very low. It's not me helping every page, it's me helping every 5-10 pages or once/twice a book. As for comprehension, tonight we read Happy Birthday Danny and the Dinosaur after reading the book he was assigned and again, his comprehension was fine. He could retell the story, could remember which game they played, knew where the dinosaur sat, and told me his favorite part.

I'm going to continue to read with him the level of books I know he can read but I am wondering if I need to tell her the levelized reading books are below where he is reading at home. It is only day 2 and yes, I am impatient so I am trying to gauge how long to wait before saying something. One of the things I worry about is that his personality is to take the easy route and sometimes, he won't test well because he is too stubborn to follow direction.

 

Our school is still testing kids to determine actual levels, although many teachers have started reading groups based on last year. It could be that since it is the beginning of K, he has not been evaluated yet, and all kids are doing basically the same thing, because that sounds like a typical K reader. Also, in the beginning of K, teachers are looking for fluency before comprehension, so it could be that he is in "easy" books so he can work on his fluency right now. Finally, many times in K, the kids read a book a number of times before it goes home, so they are very familiar with all aspects of the book by the time it gets home.

 

Or...it could be like my son....where he can totally do it at home but when the teacher asks him he freezes up. My son is very timid and shy at school. So at home he can read Frog and Toad and Danny and the Dinosaur and tell you all the story elements, sequence of events, etc. But, he reads the story at school with his teacher and then freezes up. Also, with her he is soooo worried about not making decoding mistakes, that he forgets to pay attention to the story.

 

Just wanted to jump in on the comprehension issue. I don't know how it's judged at your school but for us, as children move up the reading levels, they want them to be understanding of the 'why' of the characters' behaviour and inferring things from the text/pictures that aren't expressly written. We had this issue with Luke. He can read very well, and has from when he started school, but he tended to just read the words and remember the facts but not really absorb/understand the story. He could do as you described and recall the events, remember the game played and so on but would struggle to explain how the characters were feeling or why they behaved a certain way (unless it was expressly written). Quite possibly your son is understanding the stories fully but I thought I'd just throw that in.

If I were you I'd give it a week, just in case they are still working through assessments. If he's still coming home with 'easy' books, and you haven't received any explanation of what level he's been put on, then I'd talk to the teacher and ask for clarification of how the reading levels are decided and what they're looking for him to be able to do before he moves up.

 

Thanks. I hadn't thought about him freezing and about the more in depth comprehension. He does have performance issues where he doesn't like to be put on the spot and freezes. I would have no idea how to test the deeper comprehension. I spoke with my husband about it and he is confused also. Just an FYI--my oldest is in first, not K which is why I am more stressed over this. In VA, you don't have to read when you leave K but you have to read in 1st grade and they expect you to be fairly advanced by the end of 1st (DRA 16--entering at a 4 minimally). I just want to make sure that I do the right things to help him along.

 

This is what one of my DDs does. We have already talked to the teacher- in school she is reading 'below' the level she does at home.

She got a note home to memorize her phone number since she coudl not tell it to the teacher. Well...she has known it for over a year and can recite both DH and I's number (and did so when I asked after the note came home). She just freezes up when asked.

But for her- it is what works.

At home, she actually usually reads at her instructional level and is OK with mistakes or asks for what words she is not sure of. She can retell, tell with voice, act out, and expand on the story. At school- she doesnt like to do any of theses things right now. Hopefully, she will get settled and feel better about it.

We have the five finger rule-- as you read the first page or so if you dont know a word raise a finger, if you fill your fingers on one hand maybe to try another book. At school- she is terrified of making a mistake and 'blanks'.

It is funny though since both DD actually read and understand words they mispronounce at times since they do not 'hear' them read. When they use the word in their speech it often makes me trying to figure out what they mean!


It is still early days yet---keep reading at home and have fun! FWIW- Danny and the Dinosaur is a level 18 or 20. So if he is reading that at home this early in the year, you should be OK.

 

We got this from my daughter's first grade teacher and my husband found them to be very helpful (I teach 1st so some of these sound obvious, but he was really appreciative of the suggestions). These questions hit a lot of deeper comprehension strategies:

These are good questions to ask your child about what they are reading:
* What is the main sequence of actions in the story?
* What is the problem in the story? What caused the problem?
* From what point of view is the story told?
* Who are the main characters in the story?
* Describe the way the character acts, talks, and moves.
* How do the personalities of the character affect the plot?
* Have you ever met people like the characters in the story?
* Can you think of a time when you acted like the character?
* How do the characters change in the story? Why do they change?
* Do you think the characters dealt well or badly with the problem in the story? How would you have dealt with them?
* Describe the setting.
* Have you ever been to a place like the one described in the story?
* Can you imagine this story with a different setting? How would that change the plot?
* What is the author's message?
* How did you feel at the end of the story?
* What part did you like best? Why?
* What would you change in the story?
* How would you have responded if you were the main character in the story?
* Have you read any other stories that are like this one?

 

I sent an email with some other homework questions and mentioned to her what he was reading at home. Apparently they haven't tested reading levels yet so she was happy to have some info on him. She is sending home harder books and gave me some criteria to use to judge if they are too hard for him.

Thanks to everyone for their replies. I do appreciate the help. I sent my husband the list of book questions to ask so he knows what to ask after they read together.