Click a level to view details.
American Reading Company’s Leveling System maps out the reading field for both books and readers, integrating national standards for reading acquisition with a deep knowledge of the demands of instructional and trade literature for children, grades K through 12. The color-coded system is grounded on a review of more than 75,000 books—books evaluated with the following three questions in mind:
The ARC Leveling System is multi-dimensional, evaluating each book and reader on the following:
These factors shift in importance as a student moves through the color levels, but their significance at any level is always based on the question of what a reader needs to know to be successful at a particular color level. Because the Leveling System locates a reader in relation to national grade-level standards, and because the leveling system is transparent, it provides direction for teachers, parents, and students on what a student needs to learn and practice to move ahead in reading proficiency.
The Leveling System has been successfully field-tested in more than 1,800 schools across the country with hundreds of thousands of readers, making it possible for students to easily find books they can enjoy and read successfully, books that allow them to improve their reading through reading.
A more comprehensive delineation of the Leveling System can be found in the IRLA: Independent Reading Level Assessment. The IRLA details the standards-based learning that is expected at each reading level, providing a critical tool for on-going, formative assessment of student reading. It allows teachers to accurately identify each student’s current placement on a PreK through 12 reading continuum, determining what the student knows and what the student needs to learn next.
To view details about each level, click here.
The IRLA provides comprehensive details about each readling level in American Reading Company’s leveling system. Learn more »
See how our reading levels correlate to levels of other commonly used leveling systems. Learn more »
The core skill or habit of mind which must be modeled and continually reinforced in all reading interactions is independent, self-motivated problem solving and thinking. The Leveling System assumes the reader will be receiving no help of any kind as they read (except at the kindergarten level).
The human mind is a pattern seeker. Using sound/letter patterns is essential for successful reading. The Leveling System is built around a developmental, sequential, sensible phonics infrastructure. The knowledge of sound/letter patterns that is required by the reader is a major factor in the color leveling of a book.
Mastery of a bank of high frequency sight words, or “power words,” is essential for beginning readers. Books at the kindergarten and first grade levels are evaluated based on the words that must be known through past experience and words that cannot be figured out using picture clues, first letter clues, or sentence structure clues. These sight words have been grouped in the yellow, green, and blue color levels by their frequency of use.
Avid readers acquire a literary vocabulary that is much more complex than oral language. Starting about the third grade reading level, words are used in books that are not commonly used in the speech of educated adults. The Leveling System considers how many of these literary words are being used and how obscure, or familiar, the words might be to a reader at each level.
What science or math concepts are assumed? What knowledge of history or world geography is required for understanding of the text? Background knowledge requirements and specialized vocabulary are critical factors in text difficulty.
Sentence length, sentence complexity, author’s style, literary structures, and poetic devices can add to the difficulty of a text.
Books are designed to appeal to a reader of a certain age. Big print, simple pictures, and lots of white space make a book easier to read. Small, dense print makes a book more challenging. The impact of presentation must be considered in leveling.