Determining a Student's Reading Level

In most cases, students’ reading levels will be tested before they enter your classroom. It is important they are provided with texts at their individual reading levels. A variety of assessment tools are available to help you assess or reassess your students' reading ability. Be sure to choose one that is approved for your situation.

Many of the basal text books or readers include some form of pre-reading assessment. Another way to determine students' reading levels is to administer an Informal Reading Inventory (IRI). An IRI determines the independent, instructional, and frustration reading levels. Once administered, you can use a readability formula, such as the Fry Readability, to determine which texts, match your students' reading level. Fry Readability Formula: An Overview (PDF)

It’s important to instruct your students how to select texts that are appropriate for them to read. One way to do this is to have your students select books that are of interest to them. Ask them to select a page in the middle of each book, read the pages, and count the errors in word identification. This could be done by students holding up their fingers or listing the words that they do not understand. If a student has five or more errors per page, the book is probably too difficult for them to read independently. By using this technique, your students will soon be able to self-monitor and select books that are appropriate to their reading levels.