Benchmark Passages

Benchmark Passages are short text selections to help place students at their instructional levels for leveled reading sessions and to assess their readiness to progress to the next level.

How Do I Use Benchmark Passages?

1. Give a student a Benchmark Passage he or she has never seen before to read aloud. If you prefer to use familiar text, use the fiction-nonfiction topic pair at each level. Use one passage from the pair to support a student's understanding of the topic before assessing with the other passage.
2. Record the student's reading behavior using the passage's Running Record form.
3. If a student scores 90 percent, assess the student's comprehension using a Quick Check from Level C-Z or a Retelling Rubric.
4. If a student scores from 90%-94% percent on the running record and answers comprehension questions at 80%-94%, he or she is at an instructional level.
   (For more details, see Running Records)

LEVEL aa My Animals f The Animals in Summer nf The Little House f The Spring Day nf	LEVEL A He Has Two f Here is a One nf This Plane nf Three Birds f	LEVEL B Big and Little f Near the Pond nf Ted Sees a Pond f We Read About Animals f
LEVEL C It Is a Birthday Party f Monkeys Have Many Feelings nf The Moon Can Look Different f What Will You Have At a Party? nf	LEVEL D Animals Like to Eat nf At the Playground f I See Tall Trees f We Use Our Senses nf	LEVEL E I Need Shoes to Play Soccer f Jen and Ben Learn About Farms f Shoes in Different Seasons nf Where Birds Make Nests nf
LEVEL F Colors  Energy Helps My Body Move f Jake Sees a Tunnel f Workers Make a Tunnel nf	LEVEL G Fruit From My Garden f How to Penguin Dance nf Sally's Bath f Steps to Make a Garden nf	LEVEL H Brain Works nf Dinner with the Animals f Hide and Seek Games nf Hide and Seek with Tank f
LEVEL I Dark Night on the Water f Giant Squid nf Monsters Are Not Real f We Love Bamboo nf	LEVEL J Fossils nf I Want a Leopard f Leopards nf The Laughing Lady f	LEVEL K Map Tools nf The Bronx Zoo Cares nf The Great Zoo Escape f The Treasure Map f
LEVEL L Home for Lunch f Peanut Butter: An American Favorite nf The Scared Bear f Two American Bears nf	LEVEL M Bullet Trains nf Kid Rappers nf One Fast Train Ride f Take Me Seriously f	LEVEL N Backyard Crocodile Relatives f Crocodiles: The Cousins of Dinosaurs nf Planning a Mural f The Bigfoot Mural nf
LEVEL O Eating Like an Athlete f Lost at the Beach f MyPlate nf New Ways to Surf nf	LEVEL P Building Robots, Building Skills nf Ready, Set, Robot Race f The Gates of Art nf The Rainbow Fence f	LEVEL Q Seeing the Sphinx f The Great Bee Mystery nf The Mystery of the Sphinx nf The Ranch Helpers f
LEVEL R Billy Mills, Olympic Star nf Rhino Rescue nf Running with Jennifer f The Rhino Road Stop f	LEVEL S Flash Mobs! nf The Field Day Flash Mob f The Hidden House f Unusual Homes nf	LEVEL T A Night in the Trees f Homes High in the Trees nf Making Cars nf The Reading Chair f
LEVEL U Incredible Shrinking Technology nf Mystery at the Beach f The Crash f The Magnificent Macaw nf	LEVEL V Cowgirl Memory f Hopi Names f Relearning Myaamia nf The Mighty Shire nf	LEVEL W Chimp Astronaut f Reptiles in Armor nf Shuttles in Space nf The Friendship: An African Folktale f
LEVEL X Steeplechase Park nf The Coaster Club Challenge f The Green Town of Greensburg nf The Solar Car Race f	LEVEL Y The Battle of the Brains f The Founding of the Appalachian Trail nf The Silent Rescue f The Stroke of a Genius nf	LEVEL Z Inspiration at the Ballpark f Microfinance: It All Adds Up nf Seeing Eye f The Unreadable Writing nf