Lexiles What They Mean To Me by Charlotte

Lexiles & What They Mean To Me by Charlotte Ballard, Librarian Modified by De Portola English Language Arts teachers

What is the Lexile scale? ● ● ● The Lexile scale is a scale to decide if you are “ready” to read at a certain level of difficulty. Beginning reading levels start at below 200 L. The highest Lexile level is above 1700 L for advanced reading. High lexile levels are used for professional materials and training manuals for many jobs. Lexile levels are only designed to help match readers to books that they are able to comprehend.

The Lexile Level Is ● ● ● NOT related to reading interests NOT related to age appropriateness NOT the only way to decide what to read

Selecting Books You may find many appropriate, interesting reading materials that are far higher or lower than your Lexile range. Some books in your Lexile range may be written for adults. Some books for children are written at a very high lexile level, such as The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Lexile levels are not meant to be your only guide to book selection. Consider your age and your interests as well. You are not required to read in your Lexile range.

Should I always choose material with higher Lexile levels? ● ● Not necessarily It helps you improve your reading if you try to read slightly above your Lexile level. But you don’t have to choose a higher level each time you choose a new book. Staying with one Lexile measure for several books can help you build confidence and feel comfortable until you are ready to move to a higher Lexile level.

Lexile Levels and Grade Levels ● ● Your teacher gave you a handout with the Performance Bands for grades K through 12. You want to take the score you received on the SRI to see if you are reading at a level Below Basic, Proficient or Advanced according to the grade you are in.

What’s the Problem? Why Worry? Grade Proficient Reader Measures Typical Textbook Measures 6 925 L to 1070 L 7 970 L to 1120 L 950 L to 1075 L 8 1010 L to 1185 L 1000 L to 1100 L Gap 850 L to 1050 L

Finding Your Lexile Level ● ● ● No perfect score SRI results show your Lexile level—if you tried your best on the SRI test. When reading independently (without someone helping you), you should choose a book that is 100 L below to 50 L above your current Lexile measure.

Caution: ● ● ● Reading too far above your Lexile score is likely to make you feel uncomfortable, unless you have a strong interest in the subject. Reading in your comfort zone (your range) for most of your pleasure reading is the best way to improve your reading ability. Doing a lot of reading in your comfort zone will move your Lexile level higher automatically. Reading improves reading!

What is the Lexile of the book I am reading or the book I want to read? ● Lexile levels may be found at www. lexile. com IF the book has been scanned and lexiled. Some books have not been lexiled yet. Some other sites that may help you are listed here if you need some further explanations.