Barbara Frum District Blog

Written by Patty & Janet

Whether you are reading aloud to your child or your child is reading on their own, the Toronto Public Library’s Reading Ladder Arrangement provides a guideline on which books are suitable for your child’s age and level of reading.

J PIC  Picture Books for Younger Children:  ages birth to 6 years

This collection is a child’s first introduction to books and reading.  It contains fully illustrated titles that tell an uncomplicated story suitable for a young  child’s understanding.  Alphabet, counting , early concept  and wordless picture books can be found in this collection.  These books are great for reading aloud to children. 

 J BR Beginning to Read Stories:  Grades SK to 2 (ages 6-7)

The “beginning to Read Stories” are books for very new readers.  Repeated vocabulary, rhyming, large widely-spaced print, plentiful illustrations and lots of white space characterize these books.  The rhyming and repetition helps familiarize the new reader with the “look” of many words.

 J ER Easy to Read Stories: Grades 2-3 (ages 7-8 and older)

Early chapter books with lots of illustrations and a controlled but more advanced vocabulary than the beginning readers.  These books have a larger print size and more white space than the “older” fiction categories.

J APIC Advanced Picture Books: Grades 2 and up (ages 7 and up)

Fully illustrated, these books appeal to an older picture book audience who want a more complex story. These titles require a longer attention span and more developed comprehension skills than that of the picture book audience.  “Fractured” fairy tales, semi-biographies and stories with mature themes can be found in this collection.

J Fic  Older Fiction: Grades 4-6 (ages 9-12)

At the top of the reading ladder, these books look very much like adult titles.  Older fiction chapter books have a more advanced vocabulary, smaller print and fewer illustrations than the Easy to Read stories.  As well as regular fiction, this category includes Mystery and Science Fiction titles and Graphic Novels.

Non-fiction  titles at all levels can be found in the relevant Dewey area.  There are non-fiction books at any level from J BR beginning reader through to older fiction, grade six level.