Find Out the Reading Level on Text

Today there has been an interesting discussion on the QIAT Listserv about how to find out the reading level on text. A number of websites were listed that can be used to look up a book and also two technology assisted Do-It-Yourself methods.

Websites to research reading levels on common books:

• Leveled Book Database
• Accelerated Reader List (here) or here
  
• Scholastic Book Wizard
  
• Reading Lady List of Sites to Determine Reading Level (.doc)
• Edit Central's Cut and Paste Online Analyzer
  

• Fountas and Pinnel ($$$)

Do-It-Yourself Method One: Search Amazon .com for the book you want to know about (try searching within the category (children's book). Scroll down to "Inside the Book" and choose "text stats". Ta-da! There is the Flesch-Kincaid reading level, the 100 most common words in the text and more (i.e. word per dollar)!

Do-It-Yourself Method Two: What about online text? Text you have written yourself? Try using Microsoft Word! Highlight a section or all of the text in Word then go to "tools", under "spelling and grammar" choose "option". Now click on "Show Readability Statistics". Wow!

Thanks to the QIAT posters for sharing all of this!

(By the way, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, one of my favorite childhood books (along with Blueberries for Sal, Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, and Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day) is a 6.4 on the Flesch-Kincaid Index, costing 127 dollars per word.)