Book Bands

Book bands are a system used by schools to organise books into different levels of difficulty to help guide children in their reading journey. Each book band corresponds to a specific level of reading skill and ensures that children are reading books that are neither too easy nor too challenging for them.

Each book band is represented by a different colour, and each colour corresponds to a particular reading level. For example, early readers may start on the Pink band, and as they progress, they will move through different colours. The system helps students gradually develop their reading skills. As they move up the bands, the books increase in complexity in terms of vocabulary, sentence structure, and length of the text.

Teachers assess your child’s reading ability and assign them a book band that matches their level. The goal is to provide books that are challenging enough to promote growth but not so difficult that the child becomes frustrated. As children progress through the bands, they not only improve their ability to decode words (phonics) but also their comprehension of what they are reading. Books in higher bands introduce more complex themes and ideas.

It’s important to encourage your child to read books within their assigned band, but also to engage in discussions about the stories to boost comprehension. Reading together or listening to them read aloud, helps them with difficult words or concepts.

Children progress at their own pace, so the time they spend on each band will vary. Teachers regularly reassess students to ensure they are reading books that align with their current abilities.

Please see a general indication of how children progress through the book bands across the different year groups in relation to age related expectations. Please also note that there is some natural overlap between book bands.