Preparing for the Common Core Standards: Using Lexiles to Locate Literary/Informational Texts Nashua School District Library Media Specialists Fall 2012

College and career readiness “Students must read widely and deeply from among a broad range of high-quality, increasingly challenging literary and informational texts.” “Students must read widely and deeply from among a broad range of high-quality, increasingly challenging literary and informational texts.” Common Core State Standards

Broad Range Students gain literary & cultural knowledge Students gain literary & cultural knowledge stories, dramas, poems, and myths from diverse cultures and different time periods stories, dramas, poems, and myths from diverse cultures and different time periods Students build a stronger foundation of knowledge Students build a stronger foundation of knowledge By reading texts in history/social studies, science, and other disciplines By reading texts in history/social studies, science, and other disciplines also give them the background to be better readers in all content areas also give them the background to be better readers in all content areas Common Core State Standards

High Quality CCSS Text Exemplars Appendix B CCSS Text Exemplars Appendix B Literary texts Literary texts Informational texts Informational texts Print sources in media center Print sources in media center Including primary sources & reference books Including primary sources & reference books Online Databases Online Databases

Increasingly Challenging National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment

Lexile Framework – MetaMetrics (1984) A scientific approach to reading and text measurement A scientific approach to reading and text measurement Lexile scores match reader ability and difficulty of text. Lexile scores match reader ability and difficulty of text. If we know how well a student can read and how hard a specific book (article) is to comprehend, we can predict how well that student will likely understand the book. If we know how well a student can read and how hard a specific book (article) is to comprehend, we can predict how well that student will likely understand the book. A developmental scale A developmental scale Beginning Readers/texts Advanced Readers/texts Beginning Readers/texts Advanced Readers/texts Target students to books (articles) in a range around a 75% comprehension rate. Target students to books (articles) in a range around a 75% comprehension rate.

Sample Lexile measures Days with Frog and Toad, Arnold Lobel Days with Frog and Toad, Arnold Lobel Flat Stanley, Jeff Brown Flat Stanley, Jeff Brown Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney Hatchet, Gary Paulsen Hatchet, Gary Paulsen Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling Call of the Wild, Jack London Call of the Wild, Jack London Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne Source: MetaMetrics, Inc.

Sample Lexile measures 320Days with Frog and Toad, Arnold Lobel 320Days with Frog and Toad, Arnold Lobel 640Flat Stanley, Jeff Brown 640Flat Stanley, Jeff Brown 810Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl 810Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl 810Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins 810Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins 950Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney 950Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney 1020 Hatchet, Gary Paulsen 1020 Hatchet, Gary Paulsen 1030 Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling 1030 Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling 1120Call of the Wild, Jack London 1120Call of the Wild, Jack London 1180 Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen 1180 Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen 1420Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne 1420Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne Source: MetaMetrics, Inc.

Lexile Score Lexile Test – measures student comprehension level Lexile Test – measures student comprehension level Avoids labeling reading expectations for a particular grade level. Avoids labeling reading expectations for a particular grade level. Reading abilities differ broadly within any grade. Reading abilities differ broadly within any grade. iReady provides lexile scores for iReady provides lexile scores for students in grades 3-8.

Text Complexity Grade Bands Common Core Standards advocate a "staircase" of increasing text complexity so that all students are ready for the demands of college and career level reading no later than the end of high school. Lexile levels have been adjusted. Common Core Standards Appendix A

The Reading-Writing Connection “By placing reading and writing on the same developmental Lexile scale, MetaMetrics has discovered that students typically write about 300L lower than they read.” “By placing reading and writing on the same developmental Lexile scale, MetaMetrics has discovered that students typically write about 300L lower than they read.” Smith III, Malbert. MetaMetrics Position Paper

Why so much emphasis on text complexity & Lexiles?

Lexile Framework ® for Reading Study Summary of Text Lexile Measures Lexile Framework ® for Reading Study Summary of Text Lexile Measures Text Lexile Measure (L) High School Literature College Literature High School Textbooks College Textbooks Military Personal Use Entry-Level Occupations SAT 1, ACT, AP* * Source of National Test Data: MetaMetrics Interquartile Ranges Shown (25% - 75%)

Sample Personal Use/Adult Role Reading Materials Lexile Analysis Form W-4 Employee Withholding 1260L Form W-4 Employee Withholding 1260L Product Manuals 1360 Product Manuals 1360 Apartment Rental Agreement 1380 Apartment Rental Agreement 1380 Benefits Package [Aetna U.S. Healthcare] 1280 Benefits Package [Aetna U.S. Healthcare] 1280 Insurance Policies Insurance Policies Car Buyers Contract 1370 Car Buyers Contract 1370 Real Estate/Legal Contracts 1420 Real Estate/Legal Contracts 1420 International Center for Leadership in Education International Center for Leadership in Education International Center for Leadership in Education

Entry-level Occupational Reading Materials – Text Measures Architecture/Construction 1210 – 1340 Architecture/Construction 1210 – 1340 Arts/AV Tech/Communications 1100 – 1190 Arts/AV Tech/Communications 1100 – 1190 Business and Administration 1210 – 1310 Business and Administration 1210 – 1310 Education and Training 1320 – 1370 Education and Training 1320 – 1370 Health Science 1260 – 1300 Health Science 1260 – 1300 Human Services 1050 – 1200 Human Services 1050 – 1200 Law and Public Safety 1420 – 1740 Law and Public Safety 1420 – 1740 Manufacturing 1200 – 1310 Manufacturing 1200 – 1310 Retail/Wholesale Sales & Service 1180 – 1270 Retail/Wholesale Sales & Service 1180 – 1270 Scientific Research/Engineering 1190 – 1250 Scientific Research/Engineering 1190 – 1250 International Center for Leadership in Education

ACT: The Condition of College & Career Readiness, 2011 Only one in four (25%) 2011 seniors met all four College Readiness Benchmarks

Where to find Lexile levels Lexile.com Lexile.com Destiny Online Catalog – results page Destiny Online Catalog – results page Webpath Express Webpath Express Online databases – SIRS and EBSCO Online databases – SIRS and EBSCO

Lexile.com Log–in Search Title Lexile Tools - Analyzer - Spanish Analyzer - Lexile map

Lexile.com Find a book's Lexile score by typing the title in the Quick Book Search box Find a book's Lexile score by typing the title in the Quick Book Search box

Results show different lexiles for various editions

Lexile.com – Lexile Analyzer The lexile measures these types of resources for text complexity The lexile measures these types of resources for text complexity Newspaper and magazine articles (if not listed in database record) Newspaper and magazine articles (if not listed in database record) Books Books Short stories and reading selections Short stories and reading selections Passages, interviews and plays for tests Passages, interviews and plays for tests Web pages Web pages The lexile does not measure student writing, reading, achievement OR poems, songs, questions or non-prose. The lexile does not measure student writing, reading, achievement OR poems, songs, questions or non-prose.

How to use Lexile Analyzer Create an account (free) Create an account (free) Upload article as a.txt file Upload article as a.txt file Copy & paste text (1,000 word max) into a Word document Copy & paste text (1,000 word max) into a Word document Edit out any Edit out any headings/phrases headings/phrases Save as a Plain text file Save as a Plain text file

Submit your Text file Click Browse to search for text file Click Browse to search for text file Then click Submit Then click Submit

Sample results from Analyzer

Webpath Express Lexile scores on search results screen. Lexile scores on search results screen.

Locating informational texts in online databases The following databases provide Lexile scores for many magazine & newspaper articles EBSCO – high schools, middle schools & elementary schools SIRS – high schools They can be accessed through the school’s media center website

Value of Online Databases Online Databases vs 100% curriculum relevant Written by experts High quality content Faster searching overall Easier to determine reading (Lexile) level University of California, Berkeley GoogleGoogle 10% curriculum relevant Only some written by experts Must evaluate websites Time consuming for quality info Not able to determine reading level Univ. of California. Berkeley

EBSCO is Huge! Actually made up of 10 Databases EBSCO is Huge! Actually made up of 10 Databases Differentiate Instruction

Student Research Center

Easy to limit your search (bottom of Search page) Differentiate Instruction

Results Screen You can: select one type of resource narrow results by subject sort by date, lexile, or relevance Click on title to open article.

Full-text article starts with bibliographic & lexile info

Works Cited "Appendix A: Research Supporting Key Elements of the Standards Glossary of Key Terms." Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/. N.p., Web. 9 Nov Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects. Common Core State Standards Initiative, June Web. 9 Nov "The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2011." ACT. American College Testing, Web. 9 Nov Hess, Karen, and Sue Biggam. "A Discussion of 'Increasing Text Complexity'." The National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment, Inc. NCIEA, Web. 9 Nov The Lexile Framework for Reading. MetaMetrics, Web. 9 Nov Smith, Malbert, III. "The Reading-Writing Connection." The Lexile Framework for Reading. MetaMetrics, Web. 9 Nov "Text Measurement Study Using the Lexile Framework for Reading." International Center for Leadership in Education. N.p., Apr Web. 9 Nov