Determining grade level of books

[teachermom2834]

I feel like this is the kind of thing that is all over the place and we have always read books above and below grade level with success and interest. So, in my mind it is a very broad and imperfect thing to try to peg a grade level on a novel. That said, I have a list of books I'm trying to quickly determine a grade level for (reading level more so than interest level I guess).

Is there a favorite website to go to plug in the name of a novel and get a reliable grade level or range? This is for a strong reader so ratings on the ambitious side are ok.  

Thanks!

[wendyroo]

Sometime I use https://www.booksource.com/

[purpleowl]

I use the Accelerated Reader website: https://www.arbookfind.com/default.aspx

It's not perfect, and I don't love a lot of what I've heard about how schools use AR, but it gives me a decent ballpark idea of reading level.

I also use Common Sense Media to get an idea of content appropriateness.

[ChocolateCake]

https://lexile.com/

I make reading lists based on lexile level instead of grade level for one of my kids.  If you Google "lexile grade level chart" you can see how they correspond to grade levels.

[EKS]

You can kind of go by Lexile level combined with interest level.  So, for example, a book with a high Lexile level but a low interest level may have more elevated vocabulary and sentence structure but not much in the way of complex ideas.

[Lori D.]

Scholastic's Book Wizard can look up some books for you, when you type in the title. Here's their chart that links grade level with DRA and Lexile levels.

Often, you can just go onto Amazon, scroll down to the publisher info, and if they list the Lexile, compare with a chart that matches up with grade level, such as one of these below.

Or, if Lexile measures don't work for you, for the middle and high school years, I often use the method of looking at several different programs to see where each places the book, and if they all are studying it roughly at a similar grade, then I figure that is a fairly standard reading level / interest level for the book. You do have to be careful though --I've been seeing books like The Giver (Lowry) sliding into lower grade levels (like, 5th grade). IMO, a book that is about a highly controlled dystopia society and shows euthanasia of the elderly and infants, doesn't belong below 8th grade for the majority students, no matter what the actual reading level is... There needs to be a certain amount of maturity to handle difficult topics and ability to think about/discuss those topics.
 

[Servant4Christ]

I look at common sense media when it's available but many titles aren't on there. I've become a fan of the guided reading level system more than the lexile because it takes reading level AND age appropriateness into account. If I remember correctly, the F&P column in the colorful chart above is the same thing. 

Edited March 3, 2021 by Servant4Christ