SAMPLE TEACHING POINTS by LEVEL OF READER
Level A Readers
 Readers recognize sight words
quickly problem solving unknown
words only.
 Readers slowly say the sounds of
each letter and then quickly blend
those sounds together.
 Readers reread to problem solve.
 Readers read left to right across one
line.
 Readers match one spoken to one
written word.
 Readers make predictions based on
pictures and prior knowledge.
 Readers share opinions about text
and illustrations.
Level B Readers
 Readers recognize when a text
carries a pattern and figures out
those words quickly.
 Readers use both the first sound of a
word and the picture to figure out an
unknown word.
 Readers use meaning to guess
unknown words and then use the
first letter sound to monitor their
choice.
 Readers read left to right across and
then sweep back to read the next
line of print.
 Readers touch the words as they
read to help hold their place.
 Readers ask questions when they are
confused.
 Readers discuss the text after
reading.
Level C Readers
 Readers recognize sight words
quickly problem-solving unknown
words only.
 Readers check the last sound of a
word to confirm their guess.
 Readers make connections,
recognizing when words start the
same, end the same, or share a
spelling pattern.
 Readers can identify who is talking
in the text (when the speakers are
named).
 Readers use details when discussing
text after reading.
 Readers can recall the sequence of
events in the text.
 Readers notice and reflect ending
punctuation in their voice as they
read.
 Readers consider how the text is
connected to the title.
 Readers share opinions about the
text and illustrations.
Level D Readers
 Readers take apart CVC words by sounds
of individual letters.
 Readers self-monitor using known
words, letter sounds, and word
parts.
 Readers understand text with
dialogue (even when the speakers
are tagged with pronouns).
 Readers recall and retell important
events in sequence.
 Readers identify and read some
phrases as word groups.
 Readers change their voice to reflect
the punctuation.
 Readers make predictions based on
information from the text.
 Readers make connections between
texts.
 Readers infer and discuss characters’
feelings and motivations.
 Readers identify and appreciate the
humor in stories.
Level E Readers
 Readers use long and short vowel
sounds to aid in solving unknown
words.
 Readers use known word parts to
help solve unknown words.
 Readers take apart compound words
to solve them.
 Readers reread in order to sound
like they are talking when they read.
 Readers recognize attributes of
recurring characters.
 Readers talk about schema (what
they know about books) prior to
reading.
 Readers infer causes and effects as
implied in the text.
 Readers identify fiction vs.
nonfiction.
 Readers discuss how print layout
and features reflect meaning.
 Readers express opinions about
characters and events.
Level F Readers
 Readers remove the endings from
base words to solve new words.
 Readers use onsets and rimes (word
parts) to solve words.
 Readers reread and self-correct close
to the point of error.
 Readers reread to search for info or
confirm meaning.
 Readers use text features such as
titles, headings, and table of contents
to grow their understanding.
 Readers scan text to search for
specific acts in informational text.
 Readers reflect meaning in the way
they read a text.
 Readers reflect meaning in the way
they read a text.
 Readers can differentiate true and
make believe events.
Level G Readers
 Readers use letter clusters to solve
unknown words.
 Readers use labels for pictures to
support their understanding.
 Readers understand who is speaking
in texts with split dialogue.
 Readers demonstrate appropriate
stress on words or phrases to reflect
meaning.
 Readers support predictions with
evidence.
 Readers identify what the writer has
done to make the text surprising,
funny, or interesting.
 Readers identify the point in a story
when the problem is resolved.
 Readers can differentiate between
realistic fiction and fantasy.
 Readers discuss whether they agree
or disagree with the ideas in a text.
Level H Readers
 Readers demonstrate flexible ways
to solve unknown words, using
multiple strategies at once.
 Readers read fast by not following
along with their finger.
 Readers use context to figure out
word meaning.
 Readers break longer words into
syllables to decode.
 Readers realize when more info is
needed to understand a text.
 Readers use graphics, table of
contents, and pictures to gain
meaning.
 Readers summarize narratives.
 Readers demonstrate awareness of
the function of all punctuation.
Level I Readers
 Readers change the pace of their
reading based on the ease or
difficulty of the text.
 Readers make predictions based on
genre or type of story.
 Readers recognize and apply
attributes of recurring characters.
 Readers use new information to
confirm or refute predictions.
 Readers acknowledge changes in
ideas after reading.
 Readers infer causes of problems or
possible solutions.
 Readers agree or disagree with ideas
in a text and give reasons.
 Readers understand and discuss text
structure (description, compare/contrast,
etc.)


Readers notice how layout and print
features are used for emphasis.
Readers identify the genre of the
book they are reading and change
their reading to reflect that genre.
Level J Readers
 Readers use chapter titles to predict
content.
 Readers recognize chapters as
logical places to pause and resume
reading.
 Readers notice and use graphics and
diagrams.
 Readers read silently to increase
fluency and comprehension.
 Readers can identify the problem
and solution.
 Readers can identify traits of their
characters in their book (and across
books) and provide evidence for
those traits.
 Readers infer cause and effect in
influencing characters’ feelings and
motive.
 Readers notice the way the writer
assigns dialogue.
 Readers hypothesize about how a
text could have gone differently.
Level K Readers
Level L Readers
 Readers search for clarifying or
 Readers notice new words and
additional information in graphics
actively add them to their speaking
that accompany text.
vocabulary.
 Readers process long sentences,
 Readers infer the meaning of content
using surrounding sentences to
specific words using text features
support meaning.
and graphics.
 Readers understand a wide range of
 Readers report important ideas in a
dialogue, including some unassigned.
text orally or in writing.
 Readers infer characters’ feelings
 Readers infer possible themes.
and motivations through their
 Readers notice underlying
dialogue.
organizational structures in
 Readers can discuss possible big
informational texts.
ideas or themes of the book.
 Readers notice variety in layout
 Readers notice writing techniques or
(chapter length, format, etc.)
craft of the author.
 Readers judge the text quality and
 Readers understand the relationship
explain.
between setting and plot.
 Readers notice and discuss
descriptive and figurative language.
 Readers find connections between
books in a series.
Level M Readers
Level N/O/P/Q Readers
 Readers prepare themselves to
 Readers identify important ideas in
encounter vocabulary words specific
the text and recall them in an
to the topic or time period of the
organized way.
text.
 Readers mentally form categories of
 Readers use the back of the book and
related information and revise these
the chapter titles to support their
categories as new information is
understanding of the main plot line.
acquired across the text.
 Readers notice when things start to
 Readers keep track of changing
appear over and over again in text
perspectives as events in a story
and consider possible reasons for
unfold.
this repetition.
 Readers follow multiple characters
 Readers self-correct oral intonation
in different episodes, inferring their
when it does not reflect meaning.
feelings about each other.
 Readers search for and use info to
 Readers form theories about
confirm or refute predictions.
characters based on the actions of
those characters.
 Readers generate or react to
alternative understandings of the
 Readers recognize when characters
text.
act in a way other than what is
expected and consider what that
 Readers identify how significant
might mean about the character or
events relate to the problem or
the theme of the book.
solution.
Level N/O/P/Q Readers
 Readers notice aspects of genres
(realistic and historical fiction,
biography and other nonfiction,
fantasy) and adjust their reading
accordingly.
 Readers demonstrate understanding
of characters (their traits, how and
why they change), using evidence to
support their statements.
 Readers consider that problems may
have multiple causes and can no
longer draw a single line from
cause(s) to problem/effect.
 Readers offer opinions about a text
and use evidence to support them.
 Readers differentiate between the
minor problems in a story and can
identify the central problem.
 Readers keep track of new learning
as they read a text.
Level N/O/P/Q Readers
 Readers notice and interpret
figurative language passages.
 Readers pay attention to the ways an
author builds interest or suspense.
 Readers notice the author’s
qualifications to write informational
text and form an opinion about the
author’s credibility.
 Readers notice when an author
combines genres to create a hybrid
text.
 Readers keep track of assigned and
unassigned dialogue.
 Readers assess whether a text is
authentic or consistent with life
experiences or prior knowledge.
 Readers identify words with
multiple meanings and select the
precise meaning within the text.
 Readers use knowledge from one
text to help in understanding
diversity of cultures and settings in
new text.
Level R/S/T Readers
 Readers apply problem-solving
strategies to challenging technical
words or proper nouns.
 Readers bring background content
knowledge to understanding a wide
range of nonfiction and fiction.
 Readers recognize when minor
characters end up having
significance.
 Readers recognize changes in setting
and consider the impact of those
changes.
 Readers recognize when they need
additional information about the
historical setting and seek
information from other sources.
 Readers mentally form categories of
related information and revise as
new information is added.
Level R/S/T Readers
 Readers notice new and interesting
words and actively add them to their
vocabulary.
 Readers consider perspectives that
may be unfamiliar in interpreting
characters’ motives and themes.
 Readers infer the big ideas and
themes and discuss how they apply
to people’s lives today.
 Readers speculate on alternative
meanings of words or phrases.
 Readers identify point of view.
 Readers notice how authors use
words or pictures to create mood.
 Readers demonstrate changing
perspectives as story events unfold.
 Readers form theories about the
symbolism in a story.
Level U/V/W Readers
 Readers infer causes of outcomes in
fiction and nonfiction.
 Readers notice and interpret
figurative language.
 Readers notice aspects of a writer’s
craft across texts.
 Readers notice the writer’s choice to
use words that are not English and
reflect how those words add
meaning to the text.
 Readers notice the way writers use
regional dialect and discuss how it
adds authenticity.
 Readers recognize the use of
figurative language (irony).
 Readers identify the mood of a piece
of writing.
 Readers understand use of language
to convey irony and satire.
Level U/V/W Readers
 Readers use other sources of
information to assess authenticity.
 Readers discuss whether social
issues and cultural groups are
authentically represented.
 Readers infer characters’ thinking
and struggles at key decision points.
 Readers infer themes and discuss
how they apply to people’s lives
today.
 Readers critique a text as a
representation of the genre.
 Readers assess the author’s
qualifications to write nonfiction.
 Readers distinguish between fact
and opinion.
 Readers infer the meanings of
symbols.
Level U/V/W Readers
 Readers find evidence to support an
argument or claim.
 Readers infer multiple causes of a
problem.
 Readers acquire knowledge about
diverse cultures, times, and places.
 Readers identify events and how
they relate to the problem or
solution.
 Readers use other sources to check
authenticity of text.
 Readers infer character traits,
motivation, and changes.
 Readers follow texts with complex
plots (flashbacks, stories within
stories, etc.)
 Readers identify multiple points of
view.
Level U/V/W Readers
 Readers form implicit questions and
search for answers while reading.
 Readers construct concise
summaries.
 Readers use genre characteristics as
a source for predictions.
 Readers make and continually revise
predictions.
 Readers use knowledge from one
text to help understanding of
cultures and settings encountered in
new texts.
 Readers connect characters across
texts by circumstances, traits, or
actions.
 Readers acquire new perspectives
through text about diverse cultures,
times, and places.
Level X/Y/Z Readers
Level X/Y/Z Readers
 Readers differentiate between
 Readers process sentences with
internal and external conflict.
archaic or regional dialects.
 Readers identify use of exaggeration,
 Readers make connections between
imagery, and personification.
modern social issues and those
presented in fiction, biography, and
 Readers critique the biographer’s
fantasy.
presentation of a subject.
 Readers recognize and understand
 Readers notice bias.
satire, parody, allegory, and
 Readers critique the integration of
monologue and their purposes and
illustrations and print.
characteristics.
 Readers critique texts in terms of the
 Readers notice how the suthor uses
writers’ bias or use of propaganda.
language in a connotative way.
 Readers derive the author’s purpose

Readers analyze works of fantasy to
even when not stated.
notice classic motifs such as “the
 Readers of historical fiction evaluate
quest”, “the hero”, and symbolic
authenticity of details, setting, and
good and evil.
reporting of events.
 Readers engage in critical thinking
about an author’s body of work.
Distributed at the MAISA Unit Summer Institute, August 2013; source unknown