California Department of Education
Reading List (CRL)
Based on your child's score on the California English-Language Arts Standards Test, a specific list has been designated as appropriate for him or her in terms of reading difficulty and interest level.
This site has been developed to assist parents and students in selecting books written at a level of difficulty that corresponds with a child's ability to read based on a single test score. Drawn from California's recommended literature lists for students in kindergarten through grade twelve, the reading lists on this site have been specifically tailored to match the achievement level of each student who participated in the statewide assessment program during the previous spring.
This site will be updated and refreshed periodically to include new titles written for children and young adults or to delete other titles that may no longer be available or appropriate.
Reading List #: The California Reading List number (1 to 13+) that was designated for your child is based on his or her score on the California English-Language Arts Standards Test taken last spring. (You must indicate this to begin a search.) Begin Search
Non-Prose (NP): A text designated as "NP" is any book whose content is at least 50% nonstandard prose. Some examples are poems, plays, songs, and books with incorrect or no punctuation. Because of the format, a reading difficulty level cannot be calculated.
Title/Author: The information included for each selection from your child's designated list begins with the title of the book and the name of the author. Begin Search
Important Consideration
You know your child best. Ultimately, only you and your child can determine which books are appropriate to read, taking a variety of important factors into consideration. These factors include your child's:
- particular interests
- motivation
- independent reading ability
- level of maturity
Please consider each of these factors as you attempt to match an individual child with a specific book. The reading lists provide information only on the books. You then must take that information into account with what you know about your own child in order to make the most appropriate reading selections. Also, you should not limit a student's reading selections to the titles from his/her designated list. The California Reading List provides only one source of potential titles. Many other lists, including collections of award-winning titles (Newbery, Caldecott, California Young Reader Medal, Coretta Scott King, etc.), can be found through school and local libraries, the Internet, and other helpful sources.
The bottom line is: ENCOURAGE YOUR CHILD TO READ. Begin Search
