Should we level reading books?

       This week our topic of talk was if we felt schools should be leveling books. Every fieldwork experience that I have been involved with, the teachers have had leveled books. They have had specific bins in their classroom library’s. Most of the time they are color coded so that students are able clearly find what they should be reading. I did not know that there was a debate going if students should be reading leveled books or books of choice. Are books leveled based of frustration or instruction? As all teachers know, not all children in the same grade read on the same level or even read at their own grade level.  So why make all children read the same book?

            I think that it is critical to match our readers to books at there Just Right level, or independent level.  Research has shown that children will only become better readers if they are reading books that they can read on their own with 96% accuracy or better, good fluency and good comprehension. If a student is reading something that is so simple then they will not learn anything. They will be practicing the same skills that they already know. On the other hand, if a student is reading a book at a to high level then they will be just reading words and not understanding anything. Students can build their fluency and comprehension skills when they read books that are on their target level, allowing them to concentrate on comprehension instead of struggling in decoding unknown words.

       If students are reading books that they are struggling with, they will become discouraged and feel not good enough. If we were to level books it would promotes success in all students, particularly those on the lower spectrum.