Reading Levels Explained: How to Know if Your Student Is Falling Behind and How to Help

October 1, 2025 byCharlotte Davies

8 min to read

Helping your child develop a good relationship with reading early on can influence how much they continue to enjoy reading outside of school. Unfortunately, many kids who struggle with reading might end up developing an aversion to it entirely, impacting their ability to keep up with their peers in school.

Understanding where your child is in terms of their reading level is crucial for setting them up to succeed in school and in life, but it can be difficult to know where to start.

Luckily, there are ways you can assess your student’s reading level at home before speaking with their teacher for additional resources.

What are the Reading Levels?

It’s important to remember that reading levels are fluid and can vary from child to child, especially when they’re younger.

Reading levels take these stages and educators apply measurable criteria to help teachers track if a child improves over time or if they need extra help.

There are five stages of reading development that reading levels are built off:

Emergent or pre-reader

Around ages 0-5

This is when young children can sing their ABC’s, can recognize letters and the sounds they make, and can break words down into sounds.

Early reader

Ages 5-7

Kids at this age are learning sight words and phonics, are starting to expand their vocabulary, and can show reading comprehension skills.

Transitional reader

Ages 7-9

Fluency is increased, and kids may begin to read for enjoyment more than they have at earlier ages. Their word recognition and vocab skills are stronger, and their writing skills improve.

Intermediate reader

Ages 9-12

Reading comprehension is stronger and kids start thinking critically about what they’re reading. Their reading stamina, or the ability to stay engaged for long periods without losing focus also emerges.

Advanced reader

Age 12+

From here on, reading and writing skills, vocabulary, and their ability to synthesize information as they read will continue to grow.

How to Determine a Child’s Reading Level at Home

Reading assessments should be thought of as more of a benchmark of progress rather than a hard and fast determination of where a child “should be” with reading. However, you can do an initial check at home before bringing concerns to your student’s teacher.

For Young Readers

A first grader should typically be able to sound out words, read short sentences, and identify sight words. If they’re stumbling over a lot of words or are hesitating before trying to sound out a word, it may be a sign that the book is too hard for them. You can test if what they’re reading is too difficult by using the Five Finger Rule. As they read, ask them to hold up a finger for each word they don’t recognize or know how to pronounce. Holding up 2-3 per book is the sweet spot for finding the right level, but if they hold up 4-5 fingers, the reading level may be a bit too advanced.

For Middle Schoolers

As they get older and books get more complex, you can try a Cloze Test to test their comprehension and how they can use context to help them make sense of what they’re reading. In these tests, words are omitted in a sentence, and kids are given options for deciding which word or words to fill in the blanks.

In this first example, words are removed, and the child has to fill in the blanks with what they think fits best. You can either let them choose the words they want that fit, or they can choose from a word bank.

We went to the ___ store, and we brought home a ___ puppy.

Choose from: pet, grocery, post office, shiny, new.

I went for a ___ in the ___ and it was ___ and ___.

Choose from: walk, run, adventure, dark, afternoon, morning, warm, rainy, windy, hot, cold, relaxing, scary, exciting, fun.

Words can also be partially removed to give clues in more complex sentences.

A leaf uses ch------yll to turn sunlight into food. This process is called ph---sy----sis.

For Older Readers

High school-aged students, for example, should be able to navigate more complex sentence structures and identify different literary devices at play. Ask them to read a passage then summarize what they thought it was about. Talk with them about specific word choices or tonal clues in the text and how those informed what they read. Did they come across any new words or ways of using words they weren’t familiar with? Could they figure them out using context clues? Cloze tests and five-word tests that are more advanced can also be used with this age group to assess if material is perfect for where they are or if they need to work up to it.

Learning Coaches can work with their student's teachers, tutors, or youth librarians to identify books within their child’s age range and see if they are struggling with any particular aspect of reading or if they just need more practice. They can also help you determine if they have learning difficulties like dyslexia—though this requires formal assessment by a professional.

Signs Your Child Might be Struggling with Reading at Their Grade Level

Sometimes it can be tricky to tell whether a child is struggling with learning to read. Here are some common signs to look out for if you suspect your child is reading below their grade level:

Avoiding reading in general, despite the subject.

Being slow to decode (sound out) words or mispronouncing them.

Showing hesitation or frustration when reading books that are right for their level can be a signal that they need help catching up or extra practice. Using a limited vocabulary or struggling to understand new words.

Lack of fluency or expression (reading in a slow or choppy way).

Any of these signs should be looked at more closely by your student’s teacher, to rule out dyslexia or other learning disorders. What matters most is the impact they can have on comprehension.

How to Help Improve Kids’ Reading Comprehension if They’re “Behind”

Comprehension allows your child to grasp meaning from what they’re reading, which is an essential ability they will need throughout their life. If you worry your child’s reading comprehension skills are behind where they should be, here are some ways you can improve it at home:

Ask Students to Summarize

You can evaluate your child’s comprehension of something they have read by asking them to talk about the plot of a story, details about the characters, or what they think the story was trying to say. If summarizing is a challenge, try breaking the story down into paragraphs or even sentence by sentence, and asking them to summarize that instead. Build off each smaller section until they can approach a summary of the full passage.

Make Reading Fun

Gamification is a great way to boost engagement and make learning fun. Earning points or badges for learning new words or going up a level can be great motivators to get kids to read more and make learning to read feel enjoyable instead of a chore.

Explore Graphic Novels

Graphic novels can give kids struggling with reading comprehension a chance to practice reading comprehension and build vocabulary since the accompanying illustrations help show what’s going on in the story in detail. Completing a graphic novel could also help reluctant readers develop confidence around their reading abilities. As they read, be sure to ask them about what they think each panel means when it comes to telling the story and to look up any words they do not know.

Use Decodable Books

Decodable books are typically for early readers in kindergarten through second grade to help reinforce basic phonics by telling stories that repeat certain sounds. For example, a decodable book could show different ways “st” is used and tell a story heavily featuring words like “stay” or “best.” By repeating these phonetic sounds or patterns, kids can become more familiar with them and be better prepared to recognize them later when learning new words rather than relying on pictures or sight words.

Reach out to Teachers and Experts about Your Student’s Reading Comprehension Level

If you have concerns that your child is falling behind in reading, ask their teacher if they’ve noticed your child struggling below where they should be for their grade level. They may be able to recommend a personalized learning plan that could help get your child back on track. If you think your child may have a reading disability, additional testing or developing an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) might also be necessary. If so, your child’s teacher can work with you to conduct an evaluation and set one up.

Take an Active Role in Your Child’s Education

While many students thrive in traditional brick-and-mortar schools, in-person learning is not always the best fit for every student. If you want to take a more active role in your child’s education and allow them to have the flexibility to learn at their own pace, consider a public K-12 online school supported by Connections Academy.

Online schools provide families with personalized education options that are purpose built for online learning. Learn more about how to make online learning possible for your child by downloading our free eGuide and speaking with an enrollment specialist.