Reading Counts: Each student is required to read a minimum of ten points per month for the entire  school year. A final test will be administered at the end of the year to measure the students yearly growth.

Lexile level book site:   

http://destiny.iusd.org/common/welcome.jsp?site=214

Reading Counts!

Dear Parents:

This year your child will be participating in Scholastic’s Reading Counts! (A reading achievement program with a library of thousands of best-loved titles). It is an independent reading program used by the upper- grade levels at Northwood. While it is only one measure of a child’s reading ability, it is helpful in pinpointing strengths and weaknesses in students’ reading. 

Students are assigned Lexile levels determined by a computerized Reading Inventory (SRI), a test that evaluates students’ reading levels. On the test, students read fiction and non-fiction passages drawn from books and informational materials, and answer multiple-choice questions that measure their understanding of what they have read. Based on this, SRI generates a reading comprehension Lexile level for each student. This Lexile measure matches readers to books that can be read with confidence. Lexile reading ranges can change during the year as your child becomes more proficient in reading. The SRI test is given each trimester.

Sixth grade students are expected to read books in their Lexile range (which they have written down in their folders) and take computer quizzes on the books when they finish. These quizzes test their understanding of the book they have read and must be passed with a score of 70% or higher. A quiz not passed can be retaken 2 additional times (but only once a day) so that the student has an opportunity to reread.

Scholastic assigns each book a point value based upon its length. The students Mr. McCauley’s classes are to read a minimum of 10 points per month.

If students struggle with Reading counts, we suggest they keep a reading journal in which to write a short summary of what they read each evening. They can use this to help them remember what they have read and prepare for the quiz.

Planning ahead, reading every day, and keeping the journal all help students be successful as they learn that READ