Each level in the Read Naturally Live and Read Naturally Encore Sequenced and Phonics series includes 24 high-interest, nonfiction stories. Each level in the Read Naturally Live Idioms series includes 12 stories per level. Several readability formulas were used, and the stories in each level (1–8) represent a diverse range of topics that cover several content areas, such as history, science, and biography. The carefully written stories in each level are appropriate for that level and interesting to students. Most stories contain at least one interesting fact that the average adult is unlikely to know. So, the content is designed to be an appropriate intervention for a wide range of ages.

Each student is placed in a level that is challenging but not frustrating. So, if a struggling high school student reads within the range of grades 1–8, that student can work in Read Naturally. 

One Minute Reader has content for grades 1–5.  So, a student who reads within the range of grades 1-5 can work in One Minute Reader.  

Choosing the right Read Naturally Program

All of the Read Naturally Strategy programs focus on fluency, and each story includes comprehension questions. Because students know they must answer these questions, they are accountable to read for meaning, not speed. So, a student who needs intervention for comprehension can certainly benefit from working in any Read Naturally program.

The best programs for comprehension focus are the Sequenced and Idioms series in Read Naturally Live and Read Naturally Encore. The Sequenced series has five to nine different types of questions in each story, depending on the level. The question types always follow the same pattern (e.g., question number one is always a main idea question, number two is a detail question, etc.). The consistent sequence of comprehension questions and the comprehension report format makes it easy to determine the types of questions that are difficult for a student, so you can provide additional instruction from your core program for those specific question types. The stories in the Idioms series teach the meanings of common idioms, so the Idioms series is excellent for teaching comprehension to students new to the English language.

In Read Naturally Live, lessons from the Comprehension Builder are available to support students struggling in specific areas of comprehension.

In addition, lessons for teaching each question type, developed by a teacher who uses Read Naturally, are available on the website:

  A Teacher’s Strategy for Teaching Comprehension Questions in Read Naturally Strategy Programs

Read Live has two ways to address the phonics needs of students: Word Warm-ups Live (WWL) and the Phonics Series in Read Naturally Live (RNL). The table below can help you determine which Read Live program is right for your student. Then, use the built-in Read Naturally Live placement test and/or the Word Warm-ups Live Phonics Assessment to determine an appropriate assignment and goal for each student.

In Read Naturally Live and Read Naturally Encore, a student can be placed in the Phonics series, and the student works mostly independently. The teacher is only required for the Cold Timing step and for the Hot Timing/Pass step. Each story in the Phonics series provides a short phonics lesson, and the student reads a story that includes many words with that featured phonics element. Specific phonics skills are taught in each level—0.8 (short vowels), 1.3 (long vowels), 1.8 (blends and digraphs), 2.3 (r-controlled), 2.6 (short vowels), and 2.7 (long vowels). 

In Read Naturally GATE, the teacher provides direct instruction to a small group (up to six students) who are not yet ready to work mostly independently. The three levels of the GATE program are based on the stories from the Phonics series—0.8 (short vowels), level 1.3 (long vowels), and level 1.8 (blends and digraphs).

 Download Phonics series sample stories

 Download GATE sample lessons and stories

Yes!  The software and data for Read Live are "in the cloud."

Students can use the same User ID and account number to continue working across desktop computers, laptops, Chromebooks, or iPads.  

Yes!  The stories are the same. One Minute Reader has six levels, from early first grade through mid-fifth grade.  

In One Minute Reader Live (a component of web-based Read Live), each level includes six books with five nonfiction stories organized around a specific theme.
 Learn more about One Minute Reader Live

Each level of the One Minute Reader books with audio includes eight books with five nonfiction stories organized around a specific theme.
 Download sample stories from the One Minute Reader books 

Mostly Independent: Programs that are categorized as mostly independent require the teacher to be present only for a couple of steps, and the student works independently the rest of the time. For example, the teacher must be present only for the Cold Timing step and the Hot Timing/Pass step in Read Naturally Live and Read Naturally Encore. The recommended teacher-to-student ratio for Read Naturally Live is 1:8. The recommended teacher-to-student ratio for Read Naturally Encore is 1:6. 

Independent: One Minute Reader Live is designed to be completely independent. The teacher is not required to be present as the student works through the steps of a story.

Teacher-Led Small Group: The GATE program is a teacher-led small group program. The teacher provides the instruction to a small group (up to six students) with similar needs. The teacher presents the scripted lesson and guides the students through each step.

Multilingual learners have the option of doing the Read Naturally Live--Español (Levels 1.0-5.6) or Read Naturally Encore--Spanish Series (Levels 1.0–4.5). Many teachers use the Spanish series of RNL or Encore programs with Spanish-speaking readers who need to improve fluency in Spanish before learning to read English as a new language. Others use the programs in conjunction with its English equivalent with students who are learning to read in a new language, having the student complete the story steps in their native language first to gain an understanding of the story content and vocabulary, before working through the same story steps in the new language.

Alternatively, specific levels of both Read Naturally Live (levels 1.0–5.6) and Read Naturally Encore (levels 1.0–4.5) provide the option of having a student listen to (or read along with) the story in Spanish to build background knowledge and understanding of vocabulary within the English Sequenced series. In Read Naturally Live, the teacher can select the story option “Spanish Read Along.” The student will view the Spanish text and listen to (or read along with) the story in Spanish prior to doing the Read Along step in English. In Read Naturally Encore, the student can be directed to listen to the CD track with the story in Spanish prior to doing the Read Along step in English levels.

 Should your students read along in Spanish?

In Read Naturally Live—Español (a component of web-based Read Live) and Read Naturally Encore—Español series, the student completes all the steps of the story in Spanish. The student can listen to or read along with the story in English before doing the Read Along step in Spanish.

In the English versions of Read Naturally Live and Read Naturally Encore, the student only listens to (or reads along with) the story in Spanish to gain an understanding of the story content and vocabulary before doing the Read Along step. The rest of the steps are completed in English.