Trialing                                                        Emergent 1 Books     Emergent 2 Books                                                        Early 1 Books                  Early 2 Books                                                        Early 3 Books                  Early 4 Books                                                        Fluent 1 Books              Fluent 2 Books                                                        Fluent 3 Books              Fluent 4 Books                                                                          Big Books               Teacher Resource                                                        Books For Young Learners Packages                                                        Levels and Approaches Chart

TRIALING is the process of gathering data for evaluating new 
books prior to their publication.  

Very few publishers go through the motions.  Those who do 
typically ask for teachers' opinions about manuscripts, but do not
carefully trial their books in classrooms with children.

To produce the very best books for classroom use Richard C. Owen 
Publishers trials every book in its Books for Young Learners 
Collection. 

Trialing is an investment well worth the time and effort. We adults are 
unable to see through the eyes of a child and can be at a disadvantage
in developing books that will be used to help children learn to read and
write.  If we didn’t trial our books, we might miss important information. 

The Purpose of Trialing is:

1. To determine how the book can be used with children to teach the 
    skills they need for reading writing, and thinking.

2. To indicate if and what improvements or revisions may be needed
    to the text, layout, and / or illustrations.

3. To help determine the level and approaches for using 
    the book appropriately and successfully

The Process of Trialing:

First, a black and white version of the book is produced.

Then, it is sent out to classrooms of selected teachers across the country. 
Most of the trialing is done in schools supported by The Learning 
Network - schools where we have confidence that the teachers have 
the appropriate understandings, expertise and experience to choose and
effectively use, resources for children.

The book is then used for reading instruction with a small group of 
children.

Data gathered from the small group reading lesson and from running 
records taken later on children from the group is submitted to the 
editor at Richard C. Owen Publishers for evaluation. 

This data enables the editor to make final decisions about the text and 
illustrations, and to level the book for the appropriate stages and
approaches. The leveling information appears on the back cover of each
book.

Most of the changes to text and illustration are very modest, but they 
have great impact on supports and challenges for young children engaged 
in the work of reading, writing, and learning.

Trialing extends the time it takes to publish a new book for children. 
But it makes the difference between an adequate book and one that 
provides the best possible elements, features, and support for children 
who are learning to read and to write. 

 

Books and Materials
Books for Young Learners Levels and Approaches Chart
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PO Box 585 - Katonah, NY 10536 - 800/336-5588 9-5 EST. M-F

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