lexile framework for reading supporting quality instruction office of instruction

Lexile Framework for Reading

Supporting Quality Instruction

Office of Instruction

Agenda Defining Lexiles Understanding how Lexiles work Using Lexiles to manage students’ reading

comprehension Applying Lexiles across the curriculum Communicating Lexiles to family Using Lexiles in your classroom Linking Lexile assessment data with instruction

“I want my students to learn all the material I have to teach this year. I assign pages in texts for them to read. By sixth grade, they should be able to read a grade-level text and answer the questions. I give them time to copy notes from the board so they have the important ideas in their notebooks. I want my students to love history as much as I do, so I tell them all I know about the topics we study.”

Danielle, 6th grade social studies teacher

What is a Lexile?

Big Idea:

Lexiles provide a single measure of…

Reader Ability and Text Readability

Lexile Framework• Lexile measure

– Numeric representation of reader’s ability or a text’s difficulty

– 850L

• Lexile scale

– Developmental scale for reading

– Ranges from below 200L for beginning readers to above 1700L for advanced texts

Lexile Reader Measure Lexile Scale Lexile Text Measure

1700L

200L

Advanced Reader Difficult Text

Beginning Reader Easy Text

How is a Lexile text measure determined?

Semantic Difficultythe frequency of the words in a corpus of written text

corpus has over 600-million words Syntactic Complexity

the number of words per sentence

longer sentences are more complex and require more short-term memory to process

Text Difficulty

• Arthur and the Recess Rookie 370L

• Arthur Goes to Camp 380L

• Arthur, clean Your Room! 370L

• Harry Potter series (880L to 950L)

• Little Women 1300L

• Don Quixote 1410L

The Lexile Analyzer

Scan text into electronic format

Edit text

Examine words Examine sentences

Calculate Lexile measure

Review text and Lexile measure

10

The Lexile Map

Literature Titles

Benchmarks (Sample Text)

Lexile Measure

Grade Level Range

220L

320L

490L

770L

660L

560L

1030L

950L820L

1210L

1200L

1160L

1530L1440L

1340L

1840L

1790L

1680L

Lexile Moment

At your table brainstorm…

How will knowing the Lexile measure of your students and the Lexile measure of a book help you in the classroom?

Be ready to give one example to all the workshop participants.

Your table has five minutes to discuss and share.

How do I get Lexiles measures for my students?

“State Information” page on West Virginia ACT Explore (Grade 8) ACT Plan (Grade 10)WESTEST 2 (Spring 2009)

Placing a Reader on the Lexile Map

• Harcourt Assessment – SAT-10, SAT-9, MAT-8• CTB/McGraw Hill – TerraNova Assessment Series• Scholastic – SRI, READ 180, Reading Counts!• Sopris West - Language!• Voyager – Passport Reading Journeys• Northwest Evaluation Assoc. – Measures of Academic

Progress• Pearson - Stanford 9 and 10• Riverside – Gates-MacGinitie Reading Tests• Dynamic Measurement Group - DIBELS

Library Resources

• EBSCOhost databases

– High School: Student Center Research

– Middle School: Kidsearch

– Elementary School: Searchasaurus

• Scholastic: Grolier Online

How will I use Lexiles in the classroom?

• To promote reading progress• To differentiate instruction• To select reading material that meets and challenges

each student’s ability across content areas• To provide a clear, nonjudgmental way of

communicating a student’s reading ability to parents• To generate lists of books that parents know will be

challenging reading for their children (e.g., summer reading lists)

Linking Assessment to InstructionLexiles…• Add value to state assessments –adding

more information but not more time.• Offer a common scale for monitoring student

progress.• Paint a “big picture” view of student

progress, preschool through graduate school.

• Give parents and students a way to monitor reading progress.

Lexile Comprehension Model

Reader Ability - Text Readability = Comprehension

“Targeted” Comprehension = 75%

Independent Reading

600L (reader) – 600L (text) = 0

(75% forecasted comprehension)

Educators can adjust forecasted comprehension by changing the text options given to a reader.

Why 75% Comprehension?

Research suggests that at 75%…• A reader can have a successful reading

experience without frustration or boredom• A reader can achieve “functional

comprehension” of the text• A reader will be sufficiently challenged (by

vocabulary and syntax)

75% is the “right amount of challenge”

Managing Comprehension• Readers can experience frustration when…

– Text readability is 100L+ above their Lexile level• Readers can experience ease when…

– Text readability is 50-100L below their Lexile level• Readers can experience growth when…

– Text readability is within their Lexile range

General Reading Recommendation:

Targeted text range of 100L below to 50L above the student’s Lexile level

Note: This range may vary based on text type, reading context and purpose, reading strategies and support, and reader motivation.

Science Passage 940LAtoms of the same element can have different numbers of neutrons; the different possible versions of each element are called isotopes. For example, the most common isotope of hydrogen has no neutrons at all; there's also a hydrogen isotope called deuterium, with one neutron, and another, tritium, with two neutrons.

For a start, just because something is called an isotope doesn't necessarily mean it's radioactive. You can think of different isotopes of an atom being different "versions" of that atom.

Consider a carbon atom. It has 6 protons and 6 neutrons - we call it "carbon-12" because it has an atomic mass of 12 (6 plus 6). If we add a neutron, it's still a carbon atom, but it's a different isotope of carbon. One useful isotope of carbon is "carbon-14", which has 6 protons and 8 neutrons. This is the atom we look for when we're carbon dating an object.

So isotopes of an atom have the same number of protons, but a different number of neutrons.

Science Passage 1040L

Science Passage 1400LMost atoms have several naturally occurring isotopes. An isotope is an atom which contains a different number of neutrons in its nucleus than some other atom of the same element. This means that different isotopes of an element will have different masses, since both the protons and the neutrons contribute about equally to the mass of an atom.  (Here is a great source of information about sub-atomic particles from a physics point of view.)

Not all isotopes are equally abundant in nature. For example, here are the naturally occurring isotopes of Hydrogen (Hydrogen-2 is the only common isotope which has its own name, and is generally called Deuterium). 

Predicting Textbook Comprehension

• Read the following Science textbook passage and see if you can determine the Lexile measure.

• Predict how well different groups of students will comprehend the text if their Lexile measures are between 600L and 950L.

Science TextbookEstimate this passage’s Lexile levelMatter is anything that takes up space and has mass. Matter also has properties which can be observed. These properties are color, texture, shape, size, hardness, smell, temperature, magnetic attraction, dissolvability in liquid, and buoyancy. Buoyancy is the upward force of water or air that keeps things afloat. An example of buoyancy is a boat floating on top of water.

Mass is the amount of matter that makes up an object. It can be measured in kilograms and grams. A balance can be used to measure mass.

The three states of matter are solid, liquid, and gas. A solid has definite shape and amount of space. Examples of solids are a book, pencil, and desk. A liquid takes the shape of its container and takes up a definite amount of space. Orange juice, water, and oil are examples of liquids. A gas does not have a definite shape or take up a definite amount of space. Helium and oxygen are examples of gases.

Science TextbookEstimate this passage’s Lexile levelMatter is anything that takes up space and has mass. Matter also has properties which can be observed. These properties are color, texture, shape, size, hardness, smell, temperature, magnetic attraction, dissolvability in liquid, and buoyancy. Buoyancy is the upward force of water or air that keeps things afloat. An example of buoyancy is a boat floating on top of water.

Mass is the amount of matter that makes up an object. It can be measured in kilograms and grams. A balance can be used to measure mass.

The three states of matter are solid, liquid, and gas. A solid has definite shape and amount of space. Examples of solids are a book, pencil, and desk. A liquid takes the shape of its container and takes up a definite amount of space. Orange juice, water, and oil are examples of liquids. A gas does not have a definite shape or take up a definite amount of space. Helium and oxygen are examples of gases.

790L790L

Lexile Moment

A middle school administrator understands that her faculty is frustrated because so few students can comprehend the textbooks used in the school.

How can Lexiles help manage comprehension in the content classes?

Your table has 3 minutes to discuss possible solutions. Write it on a Post-it and place on door.

Lexile Tools• Lexile Book Database – contains thousands of books,

newspapers, magazines and other reading material that have a Lexile measure

• Lexile Analyzer – a tool for analyzing reading materials and producing a Lexile measure

• Spanish Lexile Analyzer-a tool for analyzing Spanish text and generate Spanish Lexile measure

• Lexile Calculator – a tool to calculate expected comprehension at various Lexile measures

• Lexile Reading Pathfinder – a set of prepared list of books by series and by topics

• Lexile Power Vocabulary – vocabulary words lists for books that might challenge the reader.

www.Lexile.com

Click on educators

Resources and Tools for Educators

Resources Tools

Click on Tools

Click Lexile Book Database

Click Book Search

Click Search the Lexile Book Database

Recommendations:

• Use a Lexile range that is from 50L above your student's Lexile measure to 100L below to ensure that s/he has a successful reading experience.

• Enter keywords to find books that match his/her interests. The key here is to get your student reading.

• Select books with the Lexile range that you are looking for (either for a student or based on your classroom Lexile roster), but also select a development level (e.g., "Middle School").

You try it.• Title/Author Search:

Use Harry Potter series by Rowling.How many Harry Potter books?What is the Lexile measure for Harry

Potter and the Goblet of Fire?How many pages are in this book?

• Keyword search:Use keyword cells, range 500L-950L, sort

by LexilesWhat do letters IG mean?

Predict a Lexile• Think about three books

your students recently read.

• With the information just presented, predict the Lexile measure of the book.

• Check the Lexile Book Database.

• You have 15 minutes to use the Book Search.

The Lexile Codes• Illustrated Glossary (IG)• Non-conforming Text (NC)

Inconsistent with the developmental appropriateness of the text

• Beginning Reading (BR) Lexile measure of zero or below

• Non-prose Text (NP) Poems, plays, songs, and books in which punctuation

is absent or used unconventionally • Adult-directed Text (AD)

Designed to be read to or with readers • Graphic Novel (GN)

The text of these books is largely in voice or thought bubbles that are integrated into comic book-style illustrations

Lexile Analyzer: Managing Comprehension

Click to Register

Tools - Lexile Analyzer

Creating Documents for the Online Analyzer

1. Create a text document

2. Save the document as “plain text.”

3. You are now ready to use the online analyzer to determine the Lexile measure of the text

Saving Documents to Analyze

You must save your

document as Text Only

Lexile Analyzer

Click Browse… to find your file

Insert the DocumentLocate your document

Double click on the

document

The Results

Analyze an Article• Register to use the

Lexile Analyzer• Choose an article from

your favorite news source

• Copy the article into a text file

• Edit text• Analyze article• You have 20 minutes to

practice with Lexile Analyzer.

Lexiles and The News

• USA Today

• Wall Street Journal

• New York Times

• Washington Post

• Chicago Tribune

• Reuters

• Associated Press

Lexiles and The News

• USA Today (1200L)

• Associated Press (1310L)

• Chicago Tribune (1310L)

• Wall Street Journal (1320L)

• Washington Post (1350L)

• NY Times (1380L)

• Reuters (1440L)

Lexile Calculator

Can forecast comprehension Identifies the relationship between the reader and the

text Predicts how well the reader will comprehend the

material in the text

Can perform the following calculations: The rate at which a student is expected to

comprehend of the text The reading ability a reader is expected to need in

order to comprehend the text at a specific level

Tools - Lexile Calculator Click Lexile Calculator

Tools - Lexile Calculator

Tools – Lexile Calculator

Lexile Calculator Results

Using the Calculator Sean is entering the 8th grade. Sean has

a Lexile measure of 950L. Use the calculator to determine his expected comprehension rate.

Using the Calculator You are in the process of selecting a

new 7th grade science textbook. You would like to ensure that your students have a comprehension rate of 75%. Use the calculator to determine the Lexile range in which your students should be reading.

You have 15 minutes to work with Lexile Calculator.

Lexile Framework

• Adjustments for the reader– Guide a struggling reader– Guide advanced students

• Adjustments for the text– Confronting new texts

• Adjustments for content

BookBags

• Create a BookBag for your reading groups.

• Create a BookBag for summer reading.

• Create a BookBag for independent reading program.

Click on Educator’s Link

Click Find a Book

Click View Bookbag

Build a BookBag

Build your own BookBag with the

following information:Two reading groups with different

Lexile ranges and interests for each group

Share with your group

Lexile Scavenger Hunt

• Answer the 17 questions

• Use the Lexile tools needed

• Work in pairs

• Check answers with your group

• 30 minutes if needed

Professional Development:

• Goals/outcomes

• Time

• Audience

• Vocabulary

• Slides

• Practice/Application

• Reflection

Discuss with your group ideas for professional development

in your school/county.