Determining the Readability of Materials

To determine reading levels of materials by grade, “readability formulas’ have been devised.    Although there are limitations to the formulas, they do give a general ball-park figure from which to select suitable materials for students. 

The Fry Readability Formula

An easy formula to use is the Fry Readability Graph.  It measures word length (by number of syllables) and sentence length (number of sentences per 100 words).

Steps to estimating readability (Fry)

1.   Select three sample passages from the text, one from the beginning, one from the middle and one from the end.  Count out 100 words from each passage.  Count initials and numbers as words.  (“Words” are defined as a group of characters separated on both sides by spaces.  For numbers and abbreviations, count each symbol as a syllable.)

2.   In each 100-word selection, count the number of sentences.  Estimate the length of the last sentence to the nearest tenth of a sentence.

        3.   Count the total number of syllables in  

        each 100-word passage.

4.   Find the average number of sentences and the average number of syllables in the three passages.

5.   Look at the graph below, and locate the point where the average number of syllables and average number of sentences intersect.  Find the approximate grade level along the curved line.

          7.   Use more than three passages to get a

         more reliable reading.