Hello! I’m Catherine Baker, and I’m an editor and consultant. For over twenty years I’ve been thinking about how to make books that will really help children learn how to read.

In this video and blog post, I’ll talk about how using levelled reading books all the way through Primary school can help your child. You’ll find some recommended levelled readers, ideal for 7–11-year-olds at the end of the blog post.

Why use levelled reading books?

Levelled reading books are specially designed to increase children’s reading skills and experience in gradual, supportive steps. At the very beginning of learning to read, it’s pretty clear how levelled reading books help. But what about when children have learnt the basics? They can read – but do they really have the full range of reading skills they need, for all the learning they’ll be doing throughout Primary and Secondary school and beyond?

Older children need to be able to think, talk about and learn from what they read. Carefully levelled books – using a system like Oxford Levels – can help coax these skills out.

Challenging and supporting young readers

The challenge is there, because levelled reading books are written to gently stretch children’s reading skills. The team at Oxford thinks hard about language choices, so that both vocabulary and sentence structures gradually become more complex. It also means focusing on the conceptual challenge – as children develop as readers, they can cope with increasingly complex plots, ideas and story structures.

The gradual increase in complexity is very supportive too, because it gives children the chance to think about what they’re learning as they read – so their comprehension skills and enjoyment of reading both improve. They’re less likely to get stuck and end up feeling frustrated. It also helps that, compared with children’s novels you might get from the library or bookshop, levelled reading books tend to be shorter and more manageable. They pack a lot of reading value into quite a small space – which is really rewarding for children who might not have huge reading stamina yet.

How to help at home

Of course, any reading that children choose to do is valuable, but sometimes children get stuck on a really long, hard book that’s just too difficult – or they lose confidence and get equally stuck on a series or author that’s not really challenging them at all. When children get stuck in either of those ways, it’s harder for them to learn from their reading – or enjoy it. If your child seems a bit stuck with their reading, have a look at the Oxford Levels guidance on Oxford Owl to pinpoint the right level for them. You can then find a selection of books at that level in the free eBook library.

When your child’s reading books at the right level – books that can both challenge and support them – they will learn more. They’re not just reading, but understanding – and ultimately that means they’re more likely to enjoy reading, and get better at it!

More from Oxford Owl

• Reading: What your child will learn at school, and how to help at home Age 7–8 | Age 8–9 | Age 9–10 | Age 10–11
• Reading schemes, Levels and Stages A guide to Oxford Levels 1–20
• Comprehension: What’s taught at school and how to help at home
• The Key Stage 2 SATs reading test How to help your child prepare

Levelled readers for Key Stage 2 (age 7–11)

Each of these books have inside cover notes to help children explore the content, further supporting their reading development. All book links go to Amazon.co.uk.

When your child has mastered decoding they normally become ‘free readers’, meaning they choose books freely without the structure of reading levels. Children should always be encouraged to read whatever appeals to them – but sometimes structure can help as well.

During the Covid-19 crisis, you may well feel the need to see how your child’s reading is progressing more clearly.ÌýOxford LevelsÌýcan help with this.

‘Oxford Levels’ is a finely graded levelling system that levels books from learning first words all the way up to the end of Year 6 and beyond. It ensures that every book your child reads has just the right balance of challenge and support to keep them progressing while still feeling confident.

Find out more about what each level means and how each level progresses from one to another:

For each of the 21 Oxford Levels you will find:

• A description of the suggested skill level divided into word reading and comprehension.
• A description of the features of books at this level.
• Two annotated spreads from real books at each level, highlighting important features.

If you don’t know what reading level your child is on, you could use the example texts in the guidance to help you and your child decide.

Once you’ve decided what level is appropriate for your child, they should read several books at that level until they are reading confidently with good comprehension before they move to the next one. You can use the notes inside the book covers to test your child’s comprehension skills.

For advice on keeping reading in KS2 fun while still following a reading scheme, read our Developing reading skills as your child gets olderÌýblog post.

Junior reading series from 51ºÚÁÏÍø

In our free , you will find examples of Oxford’s leading junior reading series. All books are expertly levelled to provide steady progression, and content is always carefully handled to ensure age-appropriateness.

The series is a continuation of Oxford Reading Tree for older readers. It contains several series within it:

• TreeTops Greatest Stories: Retellings of classic stories to introduce children to our literary heritage, hand-picked by series editor Michael Morpurgo. Browse on Amazon >
• TreeTops InFact: Lively non-fiction which links to school curriculum subjects, series-edited by TV science presenter Greg Foot.
• TreeTops Chucklers: Books to make your children laugh, edited by author of The 100-mile-an-Hour Dog and My Brother’s Famous Bottom, Jeremy Strong.Ìý
• TreeTops Reflect: Thought-provoking books to help your child reflect on the world around them and empathise with others.

Ìýalso continues for older readers and contains series that can grab your junior child’s attention:

• Alien Adventures:ÌýWill appeal to children who like adventure stories and science fiction.Ìý
• Graphic Texts: Perfect for those who like to read comics and contains comic strip versions of classic literature.Ìý

More from Oxford Owl

• Web page:Ìý
• Web page:ÌýReading schemes and Levels
• Blog: Developing reading skills as your child gets older
• Blog:Ìý
• Blog:Ìý
• Blog:Ìý

When your child has successfully mastered phonics and word-reading, it can be a time of pride – and even relief! It’s a big and important milestone in a child’s learning journey but, in terms of their reading career, it’s just the beginning.

Children still need to develop their comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary to take them through their junior years and become ready for secondary school. When they reach secondary school, lots of the information they need to access will be presented in a written form. If they can read quickly and efficiently with good understanding, it will help them in all their secondary school subjects.

How you can help your junior reader

Luckily, there’s lots you can do to support your child’s reading in the junior years. Here are some ideas.

1. Read regularly

Encourage your child to read as much as possible, and try to keep reading regular and consistent if you can. Twenty to thirty minutes a day is a good target to aim for.

2. Talk about books

Talking to your child about what they are reading helps to build reading motivation. Your interest will spark their interest, and conversation with you will help them articulate their thoughts, extend their vocabulary, and strengthen their understanding of what they’ve read.

3. Choose interesting books

In general, letting your child choose their own books is a great way to keep them engaged with reading, but don’t be afraid to point them in the right direction every now and then. Be sure to suggest options to them based on their interests, including texts beyond their favourite authors. You can find lots more advice on how to do this on ourÌýHow to choose a book for ages 7–11 blog post.

The Ìýis a great place to find free eBooks for junior readers (Books at Oxford Level 10 and above are likely to be most suitable). We’ve recently added lots more free eBooks to support junior readers during Covid-19 school closures.

4. Choose interesting non-books

Remember that reading doesn’t just have to involve books: magazines, instruction manuals, recipes, and so on all help to build up stamina, understanding, and fluency.

5. Read to your child

As well as asking your child to read to you, it can be really useful to take some time out to read to them too. Research shows that parents often stop reading to their children in the junior years, but there are great benefits to keeping your reading time going. Learn more in our blog post,Ìý.

6. Ask your child questions

When your child is reading to you or with you, you could help them to develop their comprehension skills by asking questions. Below are examples of good questions to ask. Remember to prompt them to justify their answers by referring to the text as well:

• What do you think the book will be about?
• Can you tell me what’s happened so far?
• What do you think will happen next?
• Why do you think the character did…?
• What do you think the author wants us to think?
• How did you feel when…?
• Can you think of a similar experience that you’ve had?
• Who do you know who is like…?
• How did the character change in this story?
• What do you think are the most important things in this chapter/section?

7. Consider levelled books

Many children will benefit from adding more structure into their reading experience. Find out more about book levelling for older children in our blog post: How reading programmes can help junior readers.

If you are looking for more guidance on what kinds of questions to ask your child, the books in the have parent notes on the inside covers to help you further.

More from Oxford Owl

• Web page:Ìý
• Web page: Common reading issues
• Blog: How reading programmes can help junior readers
• Blog:ÌýHow to choose a book for ages 7–11
• Blog: Not your typical books for boys
• Blog: How to build a girl