Leveled book bins only hold so many titles, and the level a child needs rarely matches the topic they want. TaleBuilder writes a ten-page illustrated story at a specific reading level about any subject a student picks, so the dinosaur kid reading at a first-grade level and the space kid reading at a second-grade level can each read something they chose.
Create a BookWhat you can do
- Create classes. Each class gets a six-character invite code you share with families to enroll their children. The class page lists enrolled children and the stories they have published, with each story’s reading level.
- Set a reading level. Levels A to Z, mapped to kindergarten through fifth grade. The level controls sentence length, words per page, vocabulary, dialogue, and how much the pictures carry the text.
- Get vocabulary words. Every story comes with a short list of vocabulary words, each with a definition and the sentence it appears in.
- Revise page by page. If a page’s picture or text is off, regenerate just that page. 5 image revisions are included with each story.
- Put students in the story. Characters can be described in words or made from an uploaded photo, including several children from one group photo. Consistency of the character is kept across every page.
Reading levels and grades
These are the bands TaleBuilder writes to. Pick the band a student reads at, not the grade they sit in; the two often differ.
| Reads at | Ages | Readers |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 5-6 years | Emergent Readers |
| Grade 1 | 6-7 years | Early Readers |
| Grade 2 | 7-8 years | Transitional Readers |
| Grade 3 | 8-9 years | Fluent Readers |
| Grade 4 | 9-10 years | Expanding Readers |
| Grade 5 | 10-11 years | Proficient Readers |
| Grades 6-8+ | 11+ years | Advanced Readers |
As an example of what changes between levels: at A to C the story uses two-to-five-word sentences, one action per page, and pictures that show exactly what the words say. At J to M it uses compound sentences, three to five per page, and shows character feelings through actions. At N to P sentences have clauses, similes appear, and the text carries the story rather than the pictures.
Using stories in class
- Small reading groups. Make one story per group at the group’s level, on a topic the group voted for. Ten pages fits a single session.
- Vocabulary practice. Preview the vocabulary list before reading, then have students find each word on the page.
- Writing workshop. Have a student plan the hero, problem, three tries, and fix on paper first (see our guide), then build the book from the plan and compare.
- Re-leveling. Generate the same plot at two levels for a mixed group, or move a student up a level on a topic they already know well.
- Class book. Use a group photo to put several students in one story for a shared read-aloud.
Pricing
A story costs 11 acorns; one acorn is $0.25, so a story is about $2.75. New accounts get one story free. There is no separate teacher plan. Acorns are bought in packs from your profile.