The Lexile Framework for Reading: Georgia's focus on reading achievement [2006]

The Lexile Frameworkfor Reading Georgia,s Focus on Reading Achievement
www.public.k12.ga.us/lexile.aspx
Kathy Cox
State Superintendent of Schools

Literature Titles
1700L
1660 Beowulf and Celtic Tradition 1650 Collected Letters of Samuel Taylor Coleridge 1620 After Yeats and Joyce: Reading Modern
Irish Literature 1600 Archeology, Economy, and Society: England
from the Fifth to the Fifteenth Century
1600L
1530 Plutarch's Lives 1530 The Good Earth 1520 A Modest Proposal 1510 On Human Nature 1500 The Decameron 1500 Wartime
1500L
1490 Ring of Bright Water 1470 Utilitarianism 1450 The Confessions of Nat Turner 1440 The Legend of Sleepy Hollow 1410 Don Quixote 1410 Profiles in Courage
1400L
1350 The Last of the Mohicans 1340 Pygmalion 1340 Silent Spring 1330 Silas Marner 1330 Never Cry Wolf 1320 The Metamorphosis
1300L
1280 The House of the Spirits 1260 The American Reader: Words that Moved a Nation 1240 The Color of Water 1240 Fast Food Nation 1220 A Room of One's Own 1200 One Writer's Beginnings
1200L
1170 Frankenstein 1160 Days of Grace 1160 The Unvanquished 1140 The Scarlet Pimpernel 1130 A Tale of Two Cities 1100 Gone With the Wind
1100L
1080 Anna Karenina 1070 The Great Gatsby 1070 I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings 1050 The Island 1000 The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1000 The Hobbit
1000L
990 Obasan 970 White Fang 950 Black Boy 930 Mama Day 900 The Red Badge of Courage 900 Absolutely Normal Chaos
900L
870 To Kill a Mockingbird 870 The Sound and the Fury 860 Tooth and Nail: A Novel Approach to the New SAT 840 Jane Eyre 820 I, Robot 800 The Quiet American
800L
780 Ender's Game 760 The Giver 750 Esperanza Rising 720 Lily's Crossing 710 Jurassic Park 700 Tears of a Tiger
700L
680 Amazing Grace 670 Touching Spirit Bear 660 Holes 650 Pictures of Hollis Woods 620 M.C. Higgins the Great 610 A Year Down Yonder
600L
570 The Whipping Boy 560 Sarah, Plain and Tall 540 Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse 530 It's All Greek to Me 520 John Henry: An American Legend 510 Karen's Chain Letter
500L
490 Harold and the Purple Crayon 440 Rocks in His Head 440 Curious George Goes to an Ice Cream Shop 420 Michael Bird-Boy 420 Angel Child, Dragon Child 410 Sam the Minuteman
400L
390 Abigail Takes the Wheel 370 Zomo the Rabbit 370 My Name Is Alice 340 Wolf 330 Clifford, The Small Red Puppy 330 Abe Lincoln's Hat
300L
290 Sarah's Unicorn 270 In the Forest 240 Basketball Buddies 230 The Day the Sheep Showed Up 220 Play Ball, Amelia Bedelia 220 Bats
200L

DISCOURSE ON THE METHOD AND MEDITATIONS ON FIRST PHILOSOPHY To such a class of things pertains corporeal nature in general, and its extension, the figure of extended things, their quantity or magnitude and number, as also the place in which they are, the time which measures their duration, and so on. That is possibly why our reasoning is not unjust when we conclude from this that Physics, Astronomy, Medicine and all other sciences which have as their end the consideration of composite things, are very dubious and uncertain; but that Arithmetic, Geometry and other sciences of that kind which only treat of things that are very simple and very general, without taking great trouble to ascertain whether they are actually existent or not, contain some measure of certainty and an element of the indubitable. (Rene Descartes, author)
FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF THE METAPHYSICS OF MORALS
In fact, it is absolutely impossible to make out by experience with complete certainty a single case in which the maxim of an action, however right in itself, rested simply on moral grounds and on the conception of duty. Sometimes it happens that with the sharpest self-examination we can find nothing beside the moral principle of duty which could have been powerful enough to move us to this or that action and to so great a sacrifice; yet we cannot from this infer with certainty that it was not really some secret impulse of self-love, under the false appearance of duty, that was the actual determining cause of the will. (Immanuel Kant, author)
ON ANCIENT MEDICINE
And as to him who had been accustomed to dinner, since, as soon as the body required food, and when the former meal was consumed, and he wanted refreshment, no new supply was furnished to it, he wastes and is consumed from want of food. For all the symptoms which I describe as befalling to this man I refer to want of food. And I also say that all men who, when in a state of health, remain for two or three days without food, experience the same unpleasant symptoms as those which I described in the case of him who had omitted to take dinner. (Hippocrates, author)
THE SCARLET LETTER But the point which drew all eyes, and, as it were, transfigured the wearer--so that both men and women who had been familiarly acquainted with Hester Prynne were now impressed as if they beheld her for the first time--was that SCARLET LETTER, so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom. It had the effect of a spell, taking her out of the ordinary relations with humanity, and enclosing her in a sphere by herself. "She hath good skill at her needle, that's certain," remarked one of her female spectators; "but did ever a woman, before this brazen hussy, contrive such a way of showing it? Why, gossips, what is it but to laugh in the faces of our godly magistrates, and make a pride out of what they, worthy gentlemen, meant for a punishment?" (Nathaniel Hawthorne, author)
BROWN v. BOARD OF EDUCATION: 1954 Under that doctrine, equality of treatment is accorded when the races are provided substantially equal facilities, even though these facilities be separate. In the Delaware case, the Supreme Court of Delaware adhered to that doctrine, but ordered that the plaintiffs be admitted to the white schools because of their superiority to the Negro schools. The plaintiffs contend that segregated public schools are not "equal" and cannot be made "equal," and that hence they are deprived of the equal protection of the laws. Because of the obvious importance of the question presented, the Court took jurisdiction. Argument was heard in the 1952 Term, and reargument was heard this Term on certain questions propounded by the Court. (347 US 483, 98 L ed 873, 74 S Ct 686)
WAR AND PEACE
Pierre had been educated abroad, and this reception at Anna Pavlovna's was the first he had attended in Russia. He knew that all the intellectual lights of Petersburg were gathered there and, like a child in a toyshop, did not know which way to look, afraid of missing any clever conversation that was to be heard. Seeing the self-confident and refined expression on the faces of those present he was always expecting to hear something very profound. At last he came up to Morio. Here the conversation seemed interesting and he stood waiting for an opportunity to express his own views, as young people are fond of doing. (Leo Tolstoy, author)
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE
Occupied in observing Mr. Bingley's attentions to her sister, Elizabeth was far from suspecting that she was herself becoming an object of some interest in the eyes of his friend. Mr. Darcy had at first scarcely allowed her to be pretty; he had looked at her without admiration at the ball; and when they next met, he looked at her only to criticise. But no sooner had he made it clear to himself and his friends that she had hardly a good feature in her face, than he began to find it was rendered uncommonly intelligent by the beautiful expression of her dark eyes. (Jane Austen, author)
BLACK BEAUTY
One day, when there was a good deal of kicking, my mother whinnied to me to come to her, and then she said: "I wish you to pay attention to what I am going to say to you. The colts who live here are very good colts, but they are cart-horse colts, and of course they have not learned manners. You have been well-bred and well-born; your father has a great name in these parts, and your grandfather won the cup two years at the Newmarket races; your grandmother had the sweetest temper of any horse I ever knew, and I think you have never seen me kick or bite. I hope you will grow up gentle and good, and never learn bad ways; do your work with a good will, lift your feet up well when you trot, and never bite or kick even in play." (Anna Sewell, author)
TOM SWIFT IN THE LAND OF WONDERS Just what Tom's thoughts were, Ned, of course, could not guess. But by the flush that showed under the tan of his chum's cheeks the young financial secretary felt pretty certain that Tom was a bit apprehensive of the outcome of Professor Beecher's call on Mary Nestor. "So he is going to see her about `something important,' Ned?" "That's what some members of his party called it." "And they're waiting here for him to join them?" "Yes. And it means waiting a week for another steamer. It must be something pretty important, don't you think, to cause Beecher to risk that delay in starting after the idol of gold?" "Important? Yes, I suppose so," assented Tom. (Victor Appleton, author)
THE ADVENTURES OF PINOCCHIO
"Great soul!" said Pinocchio, fondly embracing his friend. Five months passed and the boys continued playing and enjoying themselves from morn till night, without ever seeing a book, or a desk, or a school. But, my children, there came a morning when Pinocchio awoke and found a great surprise awaiting him, a surprise which made him feel very unhappy, as you shall see. Everyone, at one time or another, has found some surprise awaiting him. Of the kind which Pinocchio had on that eventful morning of his life, there are but few. What was it? I will tell you, my dear little readers. On awakening, Pinocchio put his hand up to his head and there he found--Guess! He found that, during the night, his ears had grown at least ten full inches! (Carlo Collodi, author)
BUNNICULA: A RABBIT TALE OF MYSTERY "Of course he bites vegetables. All rabbits bite vegetables." "He bites them, Harold, but he does not eat them. That tomato was all white. What does that mean?" "It means that he paints vegetables?" I ventured. "It means he bites vegetables to make a hole in them, and then he sucks out all the juices." "But what about all the lettuce and carrots that Toby has been feeding him in his cage?" "Ah ha. What indeed!" Chester said. "Look at this!" Whereupon, he stuck his paw under the chair cushion and brought out with a flourish an assortment of strange white objects. Some of them looked like unironed handkerchiefs, and the others well, the others didn't look like anything I'd ever seen before. (Deborah and James Howe, authors) 1979 by James Howe. Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division. All rights reserved.
A BABY SISTER FOR FRANCES "Did you forget that I like raisins?" "No, I did not forget," said Mother, "but you finished up the raisins yesterday and I have not been out shopping yet." "Well," said Frances, "things are not very good around here anymore. No clothes to wear. No raisins for the oatmeal. I think maybe I'll run away." "Finish your breakfast," said Mother. "It is almost time for the school bus." "What time will dinner be tonight?" said Frances. "Half past six," said Mother. "Then I will have plenty of time to run away after dinner," said Frances, and she kissed her mother good-bye and went to school. After dinner that evening Frances packed her little knapsack very carefully. She put in her tiny special blanket and her alligator doll. (Russell Hoban, author) 1964 by Russell Hoban. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS INSIDE THE EARTH But suddenly, the bus began to spin like a top. That sort of thing doesn't happen on most class trips. When the spinning finally stopped, some things had changed. We all had on new clothes. The bus had turned into a steam shovel. And there were shovels and picks for every kid in the class. "Start digging!" yelled Ms. Frizzle. And we began making a huge hole right in the middle of the field. Before long CLUNK! we hit rock. The Friz handed out jackhammers. We began to break through the hard rock. "Hey, these rocks have stripes," said a kid. Ms. Frizzle explained that each stripe was a different kind of rock. We chipped off pieces of the rocks for our class rock collection. "These rocks are called sedimentary rocks, class," said Ms. Frizzle. (Joanna Cole, author) THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS is a registered trademark of Scholastic Inc. 1987 by Joanna Cole. Reprinted by permission of Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved.
FROG AND TOAD ARE FRIENDS
"That button is thin. My button was thick." Toad put the thin button in his pocket. He was very angry. He jumped up and down and screamed, "The whole world is covered with buttons, and not one of them is mine!" Toad ran home and slammed the door. There, on the floor, he saw his white, four-holed, big, round, thick button. "Oh," said Toad. "It was here all the time. What a lot of trouble I have made for Frog." Toad took all of the buttons out of his pocket. He took his sewing box down from the shelf. Toad sewed the buttons all over his jacket. The next day Toad gave his jacket to Frog. Frog thought it was beautiful. He put it on and jumped for joy. (Arnold Lobel, author) 1970 by Arnold Lobel. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
CLIFFORD'S MANNERS Clifford loves to go visiting. When he visits his sister in the country, he always calls ahead. Clifford always arrives on time. Don't be late. Knock before you walk in. He knocks on the door before he enters. He wipes his feet first. Wipe your feet. Clifford kisses his sister. He shakes hands with her friend. Shake hands. Wash up before you eat. Clifford's sister has dinner ready. Clifford washes his hands before he eats. Clifford chews his food with his mouth closed. He never talks with his mouth full. Don't talk with your mouth full. Help clean up. Clifford helps with the clean-up. Say good-bye. Then he says thank you and good-bye to his sister and to his friend. Everyone loves Clifford's manners. (Norman Bridwell, author) 1972 by Norman Bridwell. Reprinted by permission of Scholastic Inc. All rights reserved.

About The Lexile Framework for Reading
The Lexile Framework for Reading provides a common scale for matching reader ability and text difficulty, enabling teachers and parents to choose materials that can help to improve student reading skills and monitor literacy across the curriculum and at home. A Lexile measure represents a location on the Lexile scale where a reader can expect a 75-percent comprehension rate difficult enough to be challenging without undue frustration and to encourage reading progress.
Recognized as the most widely adopted reading measure in use today, Lexiles are part of reading and testing programs at the district, state and federal levels. More than 100,000 books and 80 million articles have Lexile measures, and all major standardized tests can report student reading scores in Lexiles. The Lexile Framework was developed by MetaMetrics, Inc., an independent education company based in Durham, NC, after 15 years of research funded by the National Institutes of Health. For more information, call 1.888.LEXILES or visit www.Lexile.com.
MetaMetrics, Lexile, Lexile Framework and the Lexile symbol are trademarks or U.S. registered trademarks of MetaMetrics, Inc. The names of other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. 2006 MetaMetrics, Inc.
NOTE: Lexile measures are a measure of text difficulty. They do not address age-appropriateness, student interest or the quality of the text. Educators and/or parents should always preview books. The Lexile map provides a graphic representation of texts and titles matched to appropriate levels of reading ability. This book list is not endorsed or recommended by the Georgia Department of Education. Curriculum decisions are made at the local level in Georgia.

Lexile: Matching readers to text

Dear Parents,
We usually think of reading as an activity that happens during the school year. However, I want to encourage students to think of reading as an ongoing activity throughout the year. After all, reading is a critical skill and is highly predictive of a student's future success in school. For this reason, the Georgia Department of Education has taken bold steps to ensure that every student in Georgia has the opportunity to become a good reader.
Our state's new curriculum, the Georgia Performance Standards (GPS), focuses on developing good readers in the English Language Arts curriculum. To develop good readers, GPS stresses reading-across-the-curriculum and has set a goal that every student read twenty-five (25) books per year. As part of our mission to lead the nation in student achievement, we have now incorporated The Lexile Framework for Reading in our assessment program.
The Lexile Framework measures reading skills and reading text. In addition to the scale score on the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests (CRCT) in Reading or the scale score on the Georgia High School Graduation Tests (GHSGT) in English Language Arts, students now receive a Lexile measure.
A Lexile measure can tell us about a student's reading skill. A Lexile measure can also indicate the reading difficulty of a book, a newspaper, or other reading material. Now parents, teachers, and students can use this measure to determine if a text is too easy, too difficult, or just right for a student. This Lexile measure is more than a test score. It is a tool to assist students and their parents and teachers in selecting material that matches their students' current reading comprehension.
I encourage parents to use this tool as a means to strengthen the school-home connection. Students are more likely to read more if they are able to choose books that match their current reading level. Using a student's Lexile measure, students and parents can locate books, newspapers, and magazines that match the student's reading ability. The Lexile map (on the reverse side) provides a sampling of titles matched to appropriate levels of reading ability. I am sure that you will find the Lexile map helpful in understanding how Lexiles can be used to support students and to monitor their progress as they work to become better readers. Tens of thousands of titles have been measured on the Lexile scale and can be found in the Lexile Book Database. In addition, the opposite page "Lexiles At Home" offers suggestions on how to match your child with reading material.
To learn more about Lexiles, the Georgia Department of Education has dedicated a section on its website to Lexiles for parents and teachers. You will be able to access the Lexile Book Database and other helpful guidance on selecting reading material matched to your student's reading ability. Please visit this site often: www.public.k12.ga.us/lexile.aspx
Reading is the key to the future. Parents, I encourage you to join me, the Georgia Department of Education, and your children's teachers in this new initiative to ensure the success of every student in Georgia.
Sincerely,
Kathy Cox State Superintendent of Schools

The Lexile Framework for Reading: Lexiles at Home

"Lexiles" defined The Lexile Framework for Reading is a scientific approach to measuring readers and reading materials. A key part of the Lexile Framework is a number called the Lexile measure. The Lexile measure reflects the difficulty of a text a book or newspaper article, for example. A Lexile measure also indicates a student's current reading ability. Knowing the Lexile measure of a book and the Lexile measure of a reader helps predict how the book matches the student's current reading ability whether that book may be too easy, too difficult or just right.
A Lexile measure for either text or readers is a simple number followed by an "L" (e.g. "850L"), and is placed on the Lexile scale. The Lexile scale ranges from below 200L for beginning readers and text to above 1700L for advanced readers and text.
The Lexile Framework, which includes both the Lexile measure and Lexile scale, is not an instructional program any more than a thermometer is a medical treatment. But just as a thermometer can be useful in managing medical care, The Lexile Framework can be useful in managing your child's reading development.

Obtaining your child's Lexile measure Lexiles are in use in thousands of schools. All major standardized reading tests and several popular instructional reading programs report their results in Lexiles. Some schools include student Lexile measures with report cards, test results and home reading materials.

More meaningful than grade leveling Lexile measures do not translate specifically to grade levels. Within any classroom, there will be a range of readers and a range of materials to be read. For example, in a fifth-grade classroom, there will be some readers that are far ahead of the rest, and some readers far below the rest. To say that some books are "just right" for fifth graders assumes that all fifth graders are reading at the same level. Lexiles track a student's reading progress over time, no matter what grade they are in.

Managing your child's reading comprehension Lexile measures allow you to manage your child's reading comprehension by matching him or her to appropriately challenging texts. Matching your child's Lexile measure to a text with the same Lexile measure leads to an expected 75-percent comprehension rate not too difficult to be frustrating, but difficult enough to encourage reading progress. You can further help your child by knowing his or her Lexile range. A reader's recommended Lexile range is 50L above and 100L below their Lexile measure. These are the boundaries between the easiest kind of reading material for your child and the hardest level at which he or she can read successfully.

Finding books and articles that will help your child Once you have your child's Lexile measure, you can connect him or her to tens of thousands of books and tens of millions of articles that have Lexile measures. Most public libraries have access to online periodicals databases where you can search for newspaper and magazine articles by Lexile measure.
For books, the Lexile Book Database (at www.Lexile.com) can be used to both find books and create booklists. This free database allows you to search for books by keyword, title, author, Lexile range and other criteria. You can search for specific titles based on your child's Lexile measure, and use keywords of interest to your child, knowing that the selections will be appropriate to your child's current reading ability.

Using Lexiles at home Ensure that your child gets plenty of reading practice, concentrating on material within his or her Lexile range. Ask your child's teacher or school librarian to print a list of books in your child's range, or search the Lexile Book Database. Communicate with your child's teacher and school librarian about his or her reading needs and accomplishments. They can use the Lexile scale to let you know their assessment of your child's current reading ability. When a reading assignment proves too challenging for your child, use activities to help. For example, review the words and definitions from the glossary, and the review questions at the end of a chapter before your child reads the text. Afterwards, be sure to return to the glossary and review questions to make certain your child understood the material. Celebrate your child's reading accomplishments. One of the great things about the Lexile Framework is that it provides an easy way for readers to keep track of their own growth and progress. You and your child can set goals for reading sticking to a reading schedule, reading a book at a higher Lexile measure, trying new kinds of books and articles, or reading a certain number of pages per week. When your child hits the goal, make an occasion out of it!

The Lexile Framework for Reading The Lexile Framework is an indispensable part of any child's reading development. Lexiles take the guesswork out of matching your child with appropriately challenging reading materials. If you know your child's Lexile measure, you can tell with a great deal of accuracy which books will encourage reading progress. The Lexile Framework is supported by many products, tools and services. To find out more about The Lexile Framework for Reading, visit the Lexile Web site at www.Lexile.com.
MetaMetrics, Lexile, Lexile Framework, Lexile Analyzer, and the Lexile symbol are trademarks or U.S. registered trademarks of MetaMetrics, Inc. The names of other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. 2006 MetaMetrics, Inc.

Lexile: Matching readers to text