Lexiles

Download our Search Strategy for tips on searching with Lexiles.

Looking for information on finding books at the right reading level? Lexile measures can help; they are measures of the text difficulty and reader ability. Students typically receive a Lexile reader measure from their school or teacher. To choose books at the right reading level using Lexiles, look for materials between 100L below and 50L above a child's Lexile measure.

To find book titles by Lexile in NoveList, while limiting the results to a particular reading level:

Click the Advanced Search link under the basic search box.
At the Limit your results section, enter a score at the Lexile Range Search limiter. NoveList will automatically search a range 100 points below and 50 points above the rating, as recommended by Lexile's creators.
Select a reading level from the Audience limiter.
Click the Search button.

Don't know the Lexile reader measure for you or your reader? The Lexile text measure of a recently read book is a good place to start.

The chart below displays the typical Lexile ranges within a given grade level, for both readers and text. You can use this chart to estimate the reader's Lexile range based on grade level. See more information about matching Lexile measures with grade ranges.

Grade Level	Reader Measures	Text Measures (2009)	Common Core Standards Text Measures (2012)
1	up to 295L	230L to 420L	190L to 530L
2	170L to 545L	450L to 570L	420L to 650L
3	415L to 760L	600L to 730L	520L to 820L
4	635L to 950L	640L to 780L	740L to 940L
5	770L to 1080L	730L to 850L	830L to 1010L
6	855L to 1165L	860L to 920L	925L to 1070L
7	925L to 1235L	880L to 960L	970L to 1120L
8	985L to 1295L	900L to 1010L	1010L to 1185L
9	1040L to 1350L	960L to 1110L	1050L to 1260L
10	1085L to 1400L	920L to 1120L	1080L to 1335L
11-12	1130L to 1440L	1070L to 1220L	1185L to 1385L

More about Lexile measures

Lexiles are a measure of reading level developed by Metametrics. Books are given a Lexile text measure that indicates the reading demand of the text in terms of semantic difficulty (word frequency) and syntactic complexity (sentence length). Readers are given a Lexile reader measure that indicates their reading comprehension abilities. Matching reader and text measures makes it easy for parents and teachers to find engaging books, especially when combined with a child's age and interests.

Lexiles can also be used to help adult readers of all levels. Since Lexiles are a measure of a readability (number of different words and sentence length) not age appropriateness, adult readers interested in improving their reading can find adult books below their Lexile level to start building their skills.

You can learn more about the science behind Lexile scores and how they match to reading levels at http://www.lexile.com.

Lexile Codes

The following codes are used in conjunction with the Lexile measure of a text to indicate special characteristics of the text. Learn more about Lexile codes.

Adult-directed Text (AD): These books are usually read to or with a child, rather than read independently by the child. Picture books are often labeled with the “AD” code. Texts designated as "AD" are useful when reading to a group, and can be used to improve listening comprehension skills (e.g., making predictions, engaging in discussion, identifying meaning, and acquiring vocabulary).

Non-conforming Text (NC): A book designated as "NC" is typically written at a higher level than would be suggested by the content and format of the text. Texts designated as "NC" are useful when matching advanced readers with text at an appropriate developmental level.

Illustrated Glossary (IG): A book designated as "IG" consists of independent pieces of text, such as the glossary of a book. These independent pieces may be interchanged without affecting the flow of the text. "IG" texts typically contain some or all of the following characteristics:

Technical vocabulary, definitions, and pronunciation guides are in parentheses or contrasting type (e.g., bold, italic).
Each topic is presented on one or two pages, with titles and/or captions for each paragraph.
Illustrations and diagrams are incorporated into the text.
Contains pull-quotes, factoids, and other categorical marginal notes.

Graphic Novel (GN): “GN” designates a graphic novel or comic book. The book is primarily in voice or thought bubbles integrated into comic style, panel illustrations. Graphic novels tend to contain a larger percentage of dialogue than most other genres of books.

Beginning Reading (BR): A book designated as "BR" has a Lexile measure of zero or below. The measure is shown only as "BR" without the zero or negative number appearing. These books are appropriate for the emergent reader and are often read aloud by an adult to or with the child.

Non-prose Text (NP): A book designated as "NP" is comprised of over 50 percent non-standard or non-conforming prose. NP books do not receive a Lexile measure, just the NP code. Some examples are poems, plays, songs, and books with non-standard or no punctuation.

For more information about the Lexile Framework, visit the MetaMetrics website at http://www.lexile.com.

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