help me understand how they rank books by age??

[ProudGrandma]

If i take any one kid's book...the libray will have it "ranked" at one age group, amazon will do it at a different one and a book that is suppoed to help you pick out books for certain age groups will tell you it's for another age group? 

 

Are books ranked by reading ability, appropriateness of content, or what?

 

I used the book "honey for the teen's heart" to make up some of my daughters (age 14) reading list.  The books were ranked ET (early teen) - MT (middle teen), but then when we got to our library they were in the 5th grade level section.  And many of the same ranked books in the "honey" book were given a age 10-12 ranking...well, to me that is not middle teen.

 

And then even some of the MT books looked more like adult level to me on amazon.

 

So I am confused.  Can someone shed some light on that for me??

[Tanaqui]

Unless you're looking at a grade leveling system, it's all marketing. Where do they think it will sell the best?

 

Leveling systems have to do with how easy the book is to read, and those also disagree with each other, but at least you can usually find out how they come up with their results.

[ProudGrandma]

so then how does one choose the right level of book for your kids?? 

[Tanaqui]

Well, if you're interested in reading levels, you can visit a site like scholasticbookwizard or the AR bookfinder, they can find books on any level you please within a variety of leveling systems.

 

If you just mean books that will interest your kid or educate her or both, well, how do you pick books on your level?

[boscopup]

Once my kids are reading above a 4th grade level, I disregard reading level and look at age appropriateness of content. That is very subjective though. My oldest son has read many books earlier than is typical because he isn't sensitive and he's an advanced reader. I just know what he's like, so if he enjoys a certain book, I'll see what other kids are reading that is similar in interest, genre, and reading level.

 

For history books and such, I can usually tell if the book is easy elementary type or meaty older juvenile. I get the former for my little kids and the latter for my oldest. I don't really care what the reading level is.

 

For my little kids that are reading at a 2nd-3rd grade level, I'll let them read a book themself if I think they can, and I'll read it aloud if I think they can't.

[ProudGrandma]

but the types of books I would like her to read are not scholastic books or even AR books...ok...i am just going to be frustrated...

[boscopup]

For high school literature, if you're not sure if something is appropriate, ask here. :) Many books that are used for high school could also be used for middle school and vice versa. Some are better left to high school or college. There isn't an age where a good classic stops being a good read.

[Momling]

I think libraries and bookstores organize books by intended audience -- which would mean written at a certain reading and interest level. It's consumer oriented and irrelevant. AR and scholastic book wizard are more about reading level, though it's all kind of artificial and surely irrelevant by age 14. Honey for a child's / teens heart organizes books based on what adults (or more specifically, the socially conservative Christian authors) think kids should be reading. Also, completely irrelevant.

 

I just ignore all reading levels and assign classics for study and let my kids choose whatever they want for pleasure reading.

[ondreeuh]

Scholastic's book wizard has a huge amt of books. Very rarely have I not found a book in their catalog. The wizard shows lexile score, graded reading level, and graded interest level. You might want to choose a book with a low interest score and a high lexile score as a read aloud for a young kid ... Or pick a book with a high interest score and low grade level for a late reader.

[MarkT]

found this on Lexile level

 

https://www.lexile.com/findabook/

 

 

[Mom22ns]

My kids had very high reading levels. It was always a challenge to find books that were interesting and anywhere near their reading levels. I used Lexile to determine the level of books to try to make sure I was assigning at least a few books that were at their reading levels. Otherwise, I assigned books based on interests and topics. I used this website for ideas too.

 

In general, you have to realize that everyone has different leveling systems. Some are basing levels on reading difficulty (Lexile). Some are basing it on interest level. Others will move a book to a higher or lower level due to violence or language, so a book that is written on a 5th grade reading level, but has more violent content or more language or perhaps some strong racial or sexual tension might be put in the teen section. All of these things are appropriate and are things you have to take into consideration. 

 

My dd's 4th grade ps teacher gave her the book The Giver. She read and liked it and shared it with me. However, you will also find that book in many reading lists for high school students because there are a lot of deep issues that can be dealt with and discussed (euthanasia among others). It was certainly an easy read for my 9 year old, but not everyone would want their 9 yo to read it and those who read it later are probably going to think about it more deeply and deal with it on a very different level than she did.

[ondreeuh]

We're starting The Giver tomorrow for my 7th grader. He could have easily read it earlier, but I wanted to wait until we could really explore the themes. MBTP uses it in their age 10-12 level and I agree it is definitely one of those books that has a large range. I first read it as an adult and got a lot out of it (including bad/weird dreams...)