Reading Development Levels                                                        Big Books                                                                     Teacher Resource                                                                                                              Parent Page

The following list some of the characteristics common to readers and writers at each of the stages covered in the Books for Young Learners resource. These lists are not definitive. Any one student will not display all of the characteristics listed for a level at any one time. It is to be expected that a student will, at any time, display characteristics from more than one of these lists, and characteristics seen at one time may not be observable at another. These lists are presented here as guides and should not be used as checklists. Every child is different, and that is how it should be! Let the approach fit the child.

 

Emergent book characteristics: Strong storylines Close match of pictures and text Words spaced for finger pointing Repetition of text patterns in many titles

Emergent reader abilities: Word-finger-voice match Identifies beginning and end of sentence Understands importance of spacing Identifies clearly defined sequence Predicts using picture and one other cue

 

Early Book Characteristics: More challenging storylines Less exact matching of pictures and text Variety of sentence structures Text position varies  More words and lines per page

Supports and Builds Reader Abilities: Identifies which words tell when, where, who, what, why, how Predicts through text and context rather than illustrations Copes with more varied structures Knows changes in pattern may occur at sentence beginning Distinguishes between question and statement

 

Fluent book characteristics: More complex concepts and storylines Pictures enhance and extend the text Sophisticated language and structure Multicultural themes Diverse settings

Supports and Builds Reader abilities: Understands setting- time and place Understands punctuation affects expression and meaning Pays closer attention to descriptive detail Identifies facts and supplementary detail Draws conclusions from stories- some indication of underlying theme

Books for Young Learners Levels and Approaches Chart
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