AR Login

Books in the CPS Library are marked with a color-coded sticker, indicating its suggested reading level.

Is the book too hard?
Use the test.

Students earn points based on the books they successfully complete.

Most books are worth ¹/₂ point. "Chapter books" are worth more, according to difficulty.

Elementary students qualify for a special end-of-year trip by accumulating the following points:

Grade 1 − 25
Grade 2 − 35
Grade 3 − 45
Grade 4 − 55
Grade 5 − 65

Accelerated Reader (AR), created by Renaissance Learning Inc., is a daily progress monitoring software assessment in wide use by primary and secondary schools for monitoring the practice of reading.

Purpose of AR:

Accelerated Reader is an assessment that primarily determines whether or not a child has read a book. The software provides additional information to teachers regarding reading rates, amount of reading, and other variables related to reading.

A number of other assessments are available to assess higher order thinking skills and vocabulary. Quizzes can be taken on fiction and non-fiction books. As of 2006, there are more than 100,000 books in the Accelerated Reader database.

Three steps to using AR:

1. Students choose and read a fiction or non-fiction book. Teachers monitor reading including guided, paired, literature-based, and textbook reading.
    
2. Students take a quiz provided by Accelerated Reader on a computer in the Library.
    
3. The teacher receives information that is intended to assist, motivate reading, monitor progress, and target instruction. Reports regarding reading level and comprehension skills are available through the AR software.

The AR Quizzes:

Reading practice quizzes assess whether or not students have read a book. To use this assessment, students first read an Accelerated Reader book (a book that has a related quiz in the Accelerated Reader database). Teachers monitor student reading, and once the child has finished the book, he or she takes a quiz on Accelerated Reader via computer.

The quizzes are multiple choice with 5, 10, and 20 questions depending on the book's difficulty and length. The questions ask literal comprehension questions. Students must correctly answer a set number of questions in order to pass an exam, for which they are given a percentage of points associated with the book depending on their achievement on the quiz. Literacy Skills quizzes assess 24 "higher order" thinking skills using material from specific books. These skills are somewhat tied to skills assessed on standardized, high-stakes tests.

In addition to regular reading quizzes, the Renaissance Place version of Accelerated Reader includes quizzes designed to practice vocabulary. The quizzes use words from books, and should be taken after the book has been read. Bookmarks can be printed out that display the vocabulary words so that, as students read, they can refer to the bookmark for help. The quizzes keep track of words learned, and reviews are suggested every so often.