Text Level Indicators

According to research, there are different behaviors that a student will exhibit at each A-Z text level.
The following describes the behaviors that a child may demonstrate at each text level. There are also
examples of what each text level may look like.

Readers at Level A:

Recognize letters and their sounds

Point to words while reading

Use picture to support understanding

Know the difference between words and

pictures

One sentence per page with simple words

Read easy, high frequency words (the, a , I,

and, is, can, in, it)

Readers at Level B:

Follow a sentence over 2 lines of text

Continue to point to words while reading

Recognize pattern throughout story

Reread to fix reading mistakes

Read, easy high frequency words

(the, and, my, like, see, is, can, it)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level C:

Read simple stories with 2-6 lines of text on page

Notice repeated lines & phrases

Begin to follow text with eyes, rather than pointing

Use strategies to help understanding

Begin to correct reading mistakes

Read easy, high frequency words (the, and, like, see, here, look, is, can, in, it)

Readers at Level D:

Read fiction and simple nonfiction

Continue to follow text with

eyes, rather than pointing

Read text with fewer lines of

repeated words

Read compound words (ex:

newspaper, sandbox) and words
ending in ing

Continue to correct reading mistakes

Read easy, high frequency words (at, an, am, do, go, he, in, like, me, my, no, see, so, to, up, we)
Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level E:

Read books with 3-8 lines of text

Follow text with eyes, rather than

pointing

Read texts that require more

attention for understanding

Follow punctuation correctly

Take apart long words

Rely on meaning from the text,

rather than pictures

Read fluently

Read easy, high frequency words (at, an, am, do, go, he, in, like, me, my, no, see, so, to, up, we,
look, hers, this)

Readers at Level F:

Begin to understand genres (fiction,

non-fiction, etc.)

Read and understand dialogue in text

Read words with multiple syllables (ex:

disappear, unhappy)

Understand contractions (ex: cant=

cannot), possessives (ex: Robs car)

Automatically read high frequency words (all, are, be, but, for, got, had, of, on, then, this, your)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level G:

Continue to understand
different genres

Read 3-8 lines of text per

page; text is smaller

Read difficult words by

using letter/sound
information, thinking of
familiar words, taking apart
words

Read text with a few

challenging vocabulary
words

Automatically read high frequency words (all, are, be, but, for, got, had, of, on, then, this, your)

Readers at Level H:

Read longer text with more challenging vocabulary

Read difficult words by using letter/sound information, thinking of familiar words, taking apart
words

Begin to read new books silently

Read aloud without pointing to words

Automatically read high frequency words (come, came, from, her, him, his, one, out, said, saw, she,

that, their, there, they, was, went, were, with)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level I:

Read short texts (8-16 pages) & easy chapter books (40-60 pages)

Understand longer sentences of more than 10 words

Read many texts silently, without pointing to words

Automatically read a large amount of high frequency words (from all previous levels & more)

Reads out loud & sounds like normal speaking (not like a robot)

Reads out loud & sound like an actor (pauses, reads with expression)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level J:

Read many types of texts (informational text, short chapter books, simple biographies)

Understand a large number of longer sentences

Use strategies to figure out hard words (go back and reread, use picture clues, find smaller
words inside the bigger word, etc.)

Read silently during independent reading

Automatically read a large number of high frequency words (from all previous levels & more)

Read out loud & sound like normal speakers (not like a robot)

Read out loud & sound like an actor (pauses, reads with expression)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level K:

Read many types of texts (biographies, informational texts, realistic fiction, fantasy, traditional
literature, simple)

Read many illustrated chapter books

Must remember many details

Understand dialogue and the use of quotation marks ( )

Books have many characters that change a little in the story

Read stories with diverse cultures

Use strategies to figure out hard words (go back and reread, use picture clues, find smaller
words inside the bigger word, use word parts like prefixes/suffixes etc.)

Read silently during independent reading, but can read fluently aloud

Automatically read a large number of high frequency words (from all previous levels)

Read out loud & sound like normal speakers (not like a robot)

Read out loud & sound like an actor (pauses, reads with expression)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level L:

Read easy chapter books with less pictures

Read short informational & fiction books

Read slower or faster- depending on the book

Learn new concepts through reading

Use what they already know to help their reading

Use pictures and text to help understand

Connect known facts to new information

Understand difficult ideas

Understand a large number of words (plurals, contractions, possessives, multi-syllable words,

content-specific words, technical words)

Understand difficult sentences

Read silently during independent reading

Read out loud & sound like normal speakers (not like a robot)

Read out loud & sound like an actor (pauses, reads with expression)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level M:

Know the characteristics of different genres (realistic fiction, fantasy, informational text,
traditional literature, biography, etc.)

Read fiction chapter books, such as series books (ex: Junie B. Jones) or mysteries

Read fiction texts that have many characters that change in the story

Read shorter non-fiction texts on one topic

Understand difficult sentences

Read silently during independent reading

Read out loud & sound like normal speakers (not like a robot)

Read out loud & sound like an actor (pauses, reads with expression)

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

Readers at Level N:

Process short fiction stories, chapter books, short informational texts, series books (ex: most

Amber Brown books) or mysteries

Read fiction texts that have many characters that change in the story

Read non-fiction texts on many related topics

Automatically use strategies (find smaller words inside the bigger word, use word parts like
prefixes/suffixes, etc.)

Read & understand descriptive words

Slow down to understand or search for information

Understand difficult sentences

Read silently at a good rate

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

10

Readers at Level O:

Know the characteristics of most genres

Read chapters books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series books (ex: The Boxcar

Children), books with sequels, or short stories

Read fiction stories with many characters that change throughout the story

Read nonfiction texts that give information on many related topics

Understand difficult sentences and words

Figure out new vocabulary words by using clues

Read fluently, like an actor would sound

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

11

Readers at Level P:

Know the characteristics of most genres

Read chapters books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series books (ex: most Magic School

Bus Books), books with sequels, short stories

Read fiction stories with many characters that change throughout the story

Read non-fiction texts that give information on new topics

Understand mature themes (race, language, culture, etc.)

Make sense of new vocabulary words

Read silently for the most part

Read fluently, like an actor would sound

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

12

Readers at Level Q:

Automatically read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new
topics, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with sequels, short
stories.

Read fiction stories with many characters that change throughout the story

Make sense of new vocabulary words

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Can break words into syllables

Read silently for the most part

Understand texts with different layouts

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

13

Readers at Level R:

Automatically read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new
topics, fantasies, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with
sequels, short stories, diaries, & logs.

Read fiction stories with many characters that change throughout the story

Make sense of new vocabulary words

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Can break words into syllables

Read silently for the most part

Use strategies to figure out difficult words

Understand texts with different layouts

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

14

Readers at Level S:

Automatically read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new
topics, fantasies, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with
sequels, short stories, diaries, & logs.

Read fiction stories with many characters that change in the story

Understand hard sentences and words

Read silently for the most part

Can break words into syllables

Understand texts with different layouts

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

15

Readers at Level T:

Automatically read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new
topics, fantasies, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with
sequels, short stories, diaries, logs, fantasies, myths & legends.

Read longer texts with many lines of print that require the reader to remember lots of
information

Read silently for the most part

Can break words into syllables

Use strategies to figure out difficult words

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Use what they already know to understand a text

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

16

Readers at Level U:

Automatically read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new
topics, fantasies, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with
sequels, short stories, diaries, logs, fantasies, myths & legends.

Read longer texts with many lines of print that require the reader to remember lots of
information

Read silently for the most part

Can break words into syllables

Use strategies to figure out difficult words

Search for and use information in a text

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

17

Readers at Level V:

Read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new topics,
fantasies, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with sequels,
short stories, diaries, logs, fantasies, myths & legends

Read texts that are longer and involve remembering information

Read silently for the most part

Can break words into syllables

Search for & use information in a text

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

18

Readers at Level W:

Automatically read and understand characteristics of most genres, including biographies on new
topics, fantasies, chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with
sequels, short stories, diaries, logs, fantasies, myths & legends.

Read about mature themes (abuse, poverty, war, etc.)

Read silently for the most part

Use tools such as glossaries, as well as what they already know to understand difficult words

Search for & use information in a text

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Read texts that require knowing about history

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

19

Readers at Levels X, Y, & Z:

Read and understand characteristics of all genres, including biographies on new topics, fantasies,
chapter books, shorter informational texts, mysteries, series, books with sequels, short stories,
diaries, logs, fantasies, myths & legends.

Use critical thinking skills

Read long texts with long sentences & paragraphs

Understand mature themes (abuse, poverty, war, etc.)

Read texts with many characters that change in the story

Read silently for the most part

Use what they know to understand a text

Search for & use information in a text

Look for information in pictures, photographs, maps, charts, etc.

Read texts that require knowing about history & science

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

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How do I find books on my childs independent text level at the

public library?
Below are instructions for obtaining access to the Leveled Book List on the Sachem Website.

1. Visit www.sachem.edu.
2. On the left side, click on the tab for Curriculum and Instruction.
3. Choose Curriculum Tools from the menu.
4. Under Language Arts Program K-5, choose Leveled Book List.
5. Clicking on each grade level will give you access to the following text levels:

Kindergarten: A-C

1st Grade: C-I

2nd Grade: H-M

3rd Grade: L-P

4th Grade: O-T

5th Grade: S-W

6th Grade & Up: V-Z

Information from The Continuum of Literacy Learning Grades K-2 & Grades 3-5 by Fountas & Pinnell
Adapted by Sachem Literacy Coaches

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