Ideal Book Characteristics for Beginning Readers - Literacy Connects

[Pages:2]Ideal Book Characteristics for Beginning Readers

As a Reading Coach, you need to become comfortable with AND critical of children's books. Many books were not designed or published for children to read ? they were designed for an adult to read to a child.

Through a Child's Eyes An adult reader's eye span is typically 2 to 3 letters to the left and 15 letters to the right. This extended eye span allows proficient adult readers to move quickly through the text with great accuracy and fluency.

In contrast, the eye span of a young or beginning reader is only 1 to 2 letters on the left AND 1 to 2 letters on the right.

This difference means that beginning readers need shorter words and adequate space between words and sentences. It also means that there are specific physical characteristics that make a book ideal for beginning or struggling readers.

Important Physical Characteristics Adequate space between words Appropriate and obvious picture clues Consistent location of text on the page Adequate line spacing Size and readability of the text Ratio of text to pictures and text to white space

Important Stylistic Elements Rhyme Rhythm Repetition Reinforcement of difficult vocabulary Credible, interesting characters Straightforward plot development Simple sentence structures

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Rock Star Books

These books have great stylistic & physical characteristics and are available at the Literacy Connects Lending Library.

BOB books, by Bobby Lynn Maslen (F&P Level: A) Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, by Bill Martin (F&P Level: F) Clarence Goes Out West and Meets a Purple Horse, by Jean

Ekman Adams (F&P Level: G) Click Clack Moo: Cows that Type, by Doreen Cronin (F&P Level:

K) Danny and the Dinosaur, by Syd Hoff (F&P Level: H) Duck Rabbit, by Amy Krouse Rosenthal (F&P Level: D) Elephant & Piggie books, by Mo Willems (F&P Levels: C-E) Fly Guy books, by Ted Arnold (F&P Levels: E-G) Go Dog, Go, by P.D. Eastman (F&P Level: D) Good Night Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown (F&P Level: G) Green Eggs and Ham, by Dr. Seuss (F&P Level: F) Hop on Pop, by Dr. Seuss (F&P Level: D) If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, by Laura Joffe Numeroff (F&P

Level: G) Kittens First Full Moon, by Kevin Henkes (F&P Level: F) Knuffle Bunny, by Mo Willems (F&P Level: F) No! David, by David Shannon (F&P Level: D) The Fix it Crew, by Kate Torpie (F&P Level: D) Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, by Mo Willems (F&P Level: E) The Runaway Bunny, by Margaret Wise Brown (F&P Level: H) The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats (F&P Level: G) The Very Hungry Caterpiller, by Eric Carle (F&P Level: H)

Check some out today!!

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