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Usborne Reading Programme

Art & Crafts books for children of all ages

Books with audio CDs

English Learners' Editions

First Reading Level 1

First Reading Level 2

First Reading Level 3

First Reading Level 4

Guided Reading Packs

Young Reading CD-ROMs and DVDs

Young Reading Series 1

Young Reading Series 2

Young Reading Series 3

Graded reading books

The Usborne Reading Programme is a collection of over 250 reading books, graded in seven levels and covering a wide range of subjects, both fiction and non-fiction.

Beautifully produced, with lively writing and fabulous illustration, the books are designed to capture the imagination and build the confidence of beginner readers, and to motivate and inspire children who find reading difficult or dull.

Seven levels

Reading Programme titles

The Wish Fish The books are carefully graded and from one level to the next, there is a gradual but clear progression in terms of subject, style, story length, sentence structure and vocabulary. This gives children the satisfaction of mastering real books and making measurable progress.

"Irresistible for children learning to read"
Child Education Plus March 2009

Superb quality books

Each beautifully designed hardback book has a ribbon marker and combines vivid, engaging writing, with captivating full-colour illustration on every page, featuring the work of artists from around the world and superb contemporary or archive photography.

Supported by experts

The programme has been developed in consultation with Alison Kelly, a leading expert in the teaching of reading, who helped to draw up the seven-level framework and reads every title before publication. Non-fiction titles also draw on the expertise of specialists in the relevant areas.

"Top teaching resource to support the curriculum"
Child Education Plus March 2009

Audio CDs

A pirate Young Reading audio CDs contain two readings: a dramatic listen-along version with music, sound effects and superbly characterised readings, and a read-along version, with a page-turn indicator, for the child to listen to while following the story in the book.

You can hear audio clips from the Young Reading CDs in the online catalogue.

Internet links

A number of titles have recommended websites packed with historical details, dramatic reconstructions and puzzles and games. There are links to the recommended websites at the Usborne Quicklinks Website.

English Learners' Editions

Boy reading A selection of titles from the Usborne Reading Programme are available with extra support for learners and teachers of English. Each title has an audio CD with a reading of the story in British and American English, and free students' worksheets and teachers' notes to download from the English Learners' Editions website. There are fiction and non-fiction titles at five levels from Elementary to Advanced.

Visit the English Learners' Editions website.

"The Usborne Beginners and Young Reading series are by far the most appealing and comprehensive reading development supports available."
Tamara MacFarlane Tales on Moon Lane children's bookshop

Reading Programme resources to download

Reading Programme Framework - chart of the features of the seven levels.
Reading Programme Guide - pdf booklet for parents and teachers.
Book bands and NC levels - chart of Reading Programme titles arranged by book band and National Curriculum levels for England and Wales.
First Reading Lexile measures - list of titles with Lexile measures.
Young Reading Lexile measures - Lexiles for Young Reading titles.
Worksheets and teachers' notes for English Learners Editions

Watch a video about the Usborne Reading Programme

Alison Kelly, now Principal Lecturer in English Education at Roehampton University in London teaching all aspects of literacy. She helped to establish the principles that underpin the Usborne Reading Programme.

The seven reading levels

The lion and the mouse First Reading Level One First Reading Level One
Level One titles are designed to be the first real books a beginner reader will tackle, with very light support from an adult. Each book has a single story with six pages of reading-related puzzles.

See all the Level One titles.

The Chilly Little Penguin First Reading Level Two First Reading Level Two
Level Two titles stretch the reader a little more, with more advanced storylines, sentences and vocabulary, plus reading-related puzzles.

See all the Level Two titles.

The Gingerbread Man First Reading Level Three First Reading Level Three
Level Three titles have longer stories that encourage children to develop reading stamina. Stories have a strong element of repetition to help the reader gain confidence.

See all the Level Three titles.

The Owl and the Pussycat First Reading Level Four First Reading Level Four
Level Four titles build readers' stamina still further, with 48 pages devoted entirely to the story, more text on each page and more descriptive vocabulary.

See all the Level Four titles.

Young Reading Series One
Series One titles are for children just starting to read on their own. They use everyday vocabulary, and contain several short stories or one story divided into chapters.

See all the Series One titles.

Young Reading Series Two
Series Two titles are for children who are reading more confidently. Most titles contain a single story divided into chapters, with varied sentence lengths and more challenging vocabulary.

See all Series Two titles.

Young Reading Series Three
Series Three titles are for fully confident readers who still need to gain the stamina for standard length books. They use advanced sentence structure and vocabulary, and have more complex plots.

See all Series Three titles.

Browse the complete Usborne catalogue

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