Dear Primary and Special Education Teachers,
To help prevent students, as they move from grade to grade, from using seen text during the
PM Benchmark process I’ve assigned each grade a kit number. If grade one and three could use kit 1
(green) and grade 2 and the juniors use kit 2 (orange) hopefully we will have fewer students respond
with “I’ve seen that.” This should also make the binders easier to find.
Please remember that a student’s instructional level depends on accuracy, rate, fluency and
comprehension. Below, you will find a brief outline of the memo we received at the beginning of the
year. If you would like the memo, with tips for the Benchmark process, please see me!
PM Benchmark
To move to a higher level text in the PM Benchmark process four criteria must be meant;
1. Read at 90-94% accuracy 2. Read at a rate appropriate for grade
3. Demonstrate level 3 fluency
4. Correctly answer 1 knowledge and 1 inferential question.
Rate
End of Grade
Oral reading rate (words per minute)
Maximum time to read a 150 word passage (last Benchmark of year)
(minutes)
1
50-80
4
2
80-100
3
3
100-120
3
* Senior Kindergarten students who are reading at the expected level for June of SK will be reading in a more
word-by-word fashion. They should be able to read about 25 words per minute in continuous text.
Fluency
Level Very little fluency; all word-by-word reading with some long pauses between words; almost no recognition of syntax
1
or phrasing (expressive interpretation); very little evidence of awareness of punctuation; perhaps a couple of twoword phrases but generally disfluent; some word groupings awkward
Level Mostly word-by-word reading but with some two-word phrasing and even a couple of three- or four-word phrases
2
(expressive interpretation); evidence of syntactic awareness of syntax and punctuation; although not consistently so;
rereading for problem-solving may be present.
Level A Mixture of word-by-word reading and fluent, phrased reading (expressive interpretation); there is evidence of
3
attention to punctuation and syntax; rereading for problem-solving may be present.
Level
4
Reads primarily in larger meaningful phrases; fluency, phrased reading with a few word-by-word slow downs for
problem-solving; expressive interpretation is evident at places throughout the reading; attention to punctuation and
syntax; rereading for problem-solving may be present but is generally fluent
* Once a student can read one full grade level beyond the expected it is recommended that the assessment stop.
* Students will likely score instructional at more than one level. Continue to offer more challenging texts until
the highest level that meets all criteria is found.
* If a text appears very easy, stop the assessment, ask a question to check comprehension and then, if
appropriate move up levels. It is not necessary for students to read texts at every level.
KIT 2
GRADE TWO AND
JUNIOR
PM Benchmark
To move to a higher level text in the PM Benchmark process four criteria must be meant;
1. Read at 90-94% accuracy 2. Read at a rate appropriate for grade
3. Demonstrate level 3 fluency
4. Correctly answer 1 knowledge and 1 inferential question.
Rate
End of Grade
Oral reading rate (words per minute)
Maximum time to read a 150 word passage (last Benchmark of year)
(minutes)
1
50-80
4
2
80-100
3
3
100-120
3
* Senior Kindergarten students who are reading at the expected level for June of SK will be reading in a more
word-by-word fashion. They should be able to read about 25 words per minute in continuous text.
Fluency
Level Very little fluency; all word-by-word reading with some long pauses between words; almost no recognition of syntax
1
or phrasing (expressive interpretation); very little evidence of awareness of punctuation; perhaps a couple of twoword phrases but generally disfluent; some word groupings awkward
Level Mostly word-by-word reading but with some two-word phrasing and even a couple of three- or four-word phrases
2
(expressive interpretation); evidence of syntactic awareness of syntax and punctuation; although not consistently so;
rereading for problem-solving may be present.
Level A Mixture of word-by-word reading and fluent, phrased reading (expressive interpretation); there is evidence of
3
attention to punctuation and syntax; rereading for problem-solving may be present.
Level
4
Reads primarily in larger meaningful phrases; fluency, phrased reading with a few word-by-word slow downs for
problem-solving; expressive interpretation is evident at places throughout the reading; attention to punctuation and
syntax; rereading for problem-solving may be present but is generally fluent
* Once a student can read one full grade level beyond the expected it is recommended that the assessment stop.
* Students will likely score instructional at more than one level. Continue to offer more challenging texts until
the highest level that meets all criteria is found.
* If a text appears very easy, stop the assessment, ask a question to check comprehension and then, if
appropriate move up levels. It is not necessary for students to read texts at every level.
KIT 1
GRADE ONE AND
THREE
PM Benchmark
To move to a higher level text in the PM Benchmark process four criteria must be meant;
1. Read at 90-94% accuracy 2. Read at a rate appropriate for grade
3. Demonstrate level 3 fluency
4. Correctly answer 1 knowledge and 1 inferential question.
Rate
End of Grade
Oral reading rate (words per minute)
Maximum time to read a 150 word passage (last Benchmark of year)
(minutes)
1
50-80
4
2
80-100
3
3
100-120
3
* Senior Kindergarten students who are reading at the expected level for June of SK will be reading in a more
word-by-word fashion. They should be able to read about 25 words per minute in continuous text.
Fluency
Level Very little fluency; all word-by-word reading with some long pauses between words; almost no recognition of syntax
1
or phrasing (expressive interpretation); very little evidence of awareness of punctuation; perhaps a couple of twoword phrases but generally disfluent; some word groupings awkward
Level Mostly word-by-word reading but with some two-word phrasing and even a couple of three- or four-word phrases
2
(expressive interpretation); evidence of syntactic awareness of syntax and punctuation; although not consistently so;
rereading for problem-solving may be present.
Level A Mixture of word-by-word reading and fluent, phrased reading (expressive interpretation); there is evidence of
3
attention to punctuation and syntax; rereading for problem-solving may be present.
Level
4
Reads primarily in larger meaningful phrases; fluency, phrased reading with a few word-by-word slow downs for
problem-solving; expressive interpretation is evident at places throughout the reading; attention to punctuation and
syntax; rereading for problem-solving may be present but is generally fluent
* Once a student can read one full grade level beyond the expected it is recommended that the assessment stop.
* Students will likely score instructional at more than one level. Continue to offer more challenging texts until
the highest level that meets all criteria is found.
* If a text appears very easy, stop the assessment, ask a question to check comprehension and then, if
appropriate move up levels. It is not necessary for students to read texts at every level.