[LIT] Reading Levels

[Traci Moore]

Sometimes people in our own profession need educating! I would print out the e-mails from this ring, responses you have received and put together a thoughtful challenge to your curriculum director's stance. Does s/he have a reading background? What data has she used to make this decision, just the idea that lexile exists? The other thing I would add to this argument is that when you are teaching strategies, you don't necessarily want an at grade level text anyway. If you look at current reading research, they are suggesting lower readabilities for content text. If you are teaching strategies or reading content with your novels at all, you will want lower readability than at their challenge level, just one more challenge piece. I know I have current articles to back this up in my literacy binder at school. If I was there, I'd post the information for you.  It's been something my school has been building a case for. We need to be cognizant of reading levels, and purposeful about choosing. Would suggesting a mix of reading levels for whole group novels be appropriate maybe? That seems like the most reasonable solution to me. Are you in a position politically in your district where you could challenge a sweeping policy like this one?
 
Good luck!
 
Traci Moore
Middle School Literacy 
Rockford Middle School
Rockford, MN

________________________________

From: lit-bounces at literacyworkshop.org on behalf of TLP
Sent: Sat 7/1/2006 6:40 PM
To: A list for improving literacy with focus on middle grades.
Subject: Re: [LIT] Reading Levels





--- Ginny White <ginnywhitefl at earthlink.net> wrote:

> There is no computer program that can match the
judgment of a teacher who has read a book and knows
the power of the discussion or the internal thinking
it can evoke.  I surely wish there were a better
system ...


So true...we also have this issue. Our media
specialist and I are so saddened by this new
development. You see, our curriculum director loves
data and lexile levels are right up her alley! We now
must choose books that fall within the lexile level of
an average middle schooler. That means our core novel
can not be any of the ones I have seen suggested.
I used these sources


http://www.lexile.com/pdf/lexilemap.pdf
http://content.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4476

The Giver is 760 or 3rd/4th grade level
Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry 920 5th grade level
The Outsiders 750 3rd/4th grade level
My brother Sam is Dead 770 3rd-4th grade level
Diary of Anne Frank 1080 6th /7th grade
Holes 660 3rd/4th grade
The Dark is Rising 930 5th grade
Walk Two Moons 770 3rd 4th grade
Number the Stars 670 3rd 4th grade
Hatchet 1230 7th -8th grade
1984 1090 6th grade
A Day No Pigs would Die 690 3-4
Milkweed 510 2nd/3rd grade
Touching Spirit Bear 670 3rd/4th grade


Sooo what do you think? The only books I could suggest
are Diary of Anne Frank 7th , Hatchet 8th  and 1984
for 6th. Do you think it has gone too far?







TLP

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