Text Leveling System

Chocolate Fever

RDQ:	945	Max Word/Sent	39	Total Words	1882		Diff Words	604
Lex	730	Ave Word/.Sent	9	Hi Freq occurs	1319	70.1%	Hi freq	264	43.7%
AR	3.5	Long Sentences	11.8	Low Freq occurs	85	4.5%	Low freq	67	11.1%

There are SOME PEOPLE who say that Henry 
Green wasn't really born but was hatched fully 
grown from a chocolate bean.
Can you believe that?
Anyway this particular Henry Green we are 
speaking of was really born - not hatched - and 
had a wonderful mom and dad in the bargain. 
His father was tall and lean and wore eyeglasses 
except when he was sleeping or in the shower. 
Mama Green whose name was Enid was a short 
slim woman with blue-gray eyes and a tiny mouth]] 
that always seemed to be on the verge of a smile. 
They all lived in an apartment in the middle of
the city along with Henry's older brother and sister. 
Mark Green was ten and tall and very good to 
Henry. Except when they would argue which 
was often and then he would hit Henry on the 
head with anything that was handy which sometimes 
was hard. But mostly Mark was fun to be 
with and only got angry when Henry called him 
Marco Polo. Mark didn't like that and who could 
blame him?
Henry's sister was very very old. Almost fourteen. 
She didn't ever argue with Henry or Mark. 
In fact she hardly talked to them at all because 
she was so old and wise and almost grown up. Her 
name was Elizabeth.
The other morning which was a schoolday at 
the end of the week called Friday Henry Mark 
and Elizabeth were at the table in the dining 
room having breakfast. Mark was eating fried 
eggs. Elizabeth was quietly chewing on her usual 
breakfast of buttery toast and milk. And Henry 
was midway through his usual breakfast too. 
Chocolate cake a bowl of cocoa-crispy cereal and]] 
milk (with chocolate syrup in the milk to make it 
more chocolatey) washed down by a big glass of 
chocolate milk and five or six chocolate cookies. 
Sometimes when it was left over from the night 
before Henry would have chocolate pudding 
too. And on Sunday mornings he usually had 
chocolate ice cream.
The truth was that Henry was in love with 
chocolate. And chocolate seemed to love him.
It didn't make him fat. (He was a little on the 
thin side in fact.)
It didn't hurt his teeth. (He'd never had a 
cavity in his life.)
It didn't stunt his growth. (He was just about 
average height perhaps even a little tall for his 
age.)
It didn't harm his skin which had always been 
clear and fair.
But most of all it never never gave him a 
bellyache.
And so his parents perhaps being not as wise as 
they were kind let Henry have as much chocolate 
as he liked.]] 
Can you imagine a boy having a chocolate-bar 
sandwich as an after-school snack? Well Henry 
did just about every day. And when he ate 
mashed potatoes just a few drops of chocolate 
syrup swished through seemed to make them 
taste a lot better. Chocolate sprinkles sprinkled on 
top of plain buttered noodles were tasty too. Not 
to mention a light dusting of cocoa on things like 
canned peaches pears and applesauce.
In the Greens' kitchen pantry there was always 
a giant supply of chocolate cookies chocolate 
cakes chocolate pies and chocolate candies of 
every kind. There was ice cream too. Chocolate
course and chocolate nut chocolate fudge 
chocolate marshmallow chocolate swirl and 
especially chocolate almond crunch. And all of it 
was just for Henry.
If there was one thing you could say about 
Henry it was that he surely did love chocolate. 
"Probably more than any boy in the history of the 
world" his mother said.
"How does Henry like his chocolate?" Daddy 
Green would sometimes joke.]] 
"Why he likes it bitter sweet light dark and 
daily."
And it was true. Up until the day we're talking 
about right now.]] 
"Better HURRY KIDs" Mama Green called from 
the kitchen "it's almost eight thirty."
"Let's go slowpoke" Mark said to Henry "we 
don't want to be late."
"Just one more chocolate cookie" said Henry. 
He popped it into his mouth and still chewing 
went to his room to get his books. On the way to 
the front door Henry went through the kitchen 
and gathered a handful of chocolate kisses to put 
into his pocket. He liked to have them handy to 
munch on at school. But this morning because he]] 
still felt somewhat hungry Henry stripped the 
silver wrapping from two kisses and popped them 
into his mouth. Then after a quick kiss for Mama 
Green-a kiss that left a little bit of chocolate on 
her face-Henry Elizabeth and Mark headed 
out the door on the way to school.
At the corner Henry and Mark waved good-
bye to their sister who had to take a bus to get to 
her high school. The boys school P.S. 123 was 
just another block away. At the next corner Mrs. 
Macintosh the crossing guard waved them across 
the street. "The light is always green for the 
Greens" she said. It was her own little joke. And 
she said it just about every morning. This morning 
only Mark who was extremely polite smiled. 
Henry just didn't feel like smiling. In fact he was 
beginning to feel a little strange.
In the schoolyard the boys went separate ways 
to join their classes. As usual there was a lot of 
pushing and shoving and fooling around. But 
Henry who was always very good at things like 
knocking hats off boys' heads and making goofy 
faces at the girls was quiet. He didn't even say]] 
"hi" when Michael Burke his best friend came along. "Well what's the matter with you?" asked Michael grinning.
 "What do you mean 'what's the matter?'" Henry said. "Can't I just stand here? Do I have to carry on and behave like a nut?"
"OK OK said Michael." You don't have to bite my head off. It's just that you're kind of different today. Not like you at all."
Just then the whistle blew and all the children began marching into the school building. "I feel funny today" Henry said to Michael. "I have the feeling something's going to happen and I don't know what."
That exact feeling that something was going to happen stayed with Henry all morning. He felt strange in his homeroom strange when he went to gym class and in Mrs. Kimmelfarber's math class he felt strange all over.
Henry couldn't concentrate on what Mrs. Kimmelfarber was saying. He just sort of sat there and stared. Without thinking about it he was looking at his arm and the back of his hand. And]]
then he noticed something. There were little brown freckles all over his skin. Now this would not have been such a startling discovery except for one thing-those little brown freckles were not there when he woke up this morning!
At the front of the room, Mrs. Kimmelfarber was going through the drill on fractions. She was
saying, "And if I take six and a half and subtract one and a quarter, what will I have left?" She looked directly at Henry, who was looking directly at his arm. "Henry," she asked, "what will I have left?"
"Little brown spots all over," said Henry.
Mrs. Kimmelfarber's Problem
THERE WAS SILENCE in the room for about two seconds. Then there was a riot. All the girls began to giggle. The boys chortled and chuckled and laughed right out loud. Henry turned red, and Mrs. Kimmelfarber, who did not appreciate the humor of it all, turned white.
She rapped her ruler against the desk and shouted for silence. "Henry Green," she said, "what is the meaning-"
"Little brown spots all over," said Henry. "I was looking at my arm and I have these-" "Little brown spots all over," interrupted Mrs. Kimmelfarber. "I heard you quite clearly."
"But you see, Mrs. Kimmelfarber, I didn't have them all my life. I didn't even have them this morning. But now-"
"I know." Mrs. Kimmelfarber sighed. "Now you have them all over. I'd better have a look at them." Taking Henry's arm, she led him to the window. "Hmmmm," she said as she peered at his arm, "looks like freckles to me."
"No, ma'am," said Henry. "It just can't be." "Why not?" said Mrs. Kimmelfarber.
"Because I have clear and delicate skin, like my mother."
"Is that so?" Mrs. Kimmelfarber said. "And who told you that, pray tell?"
"My father."
"Ah," said Mrs. Kimmelfarber, "exactly. Now you are sure you didn't observe this phenomenon before this morning?"
"If that means did I see them," said Henry, "no, I didn't."
"Well, then," she said, "you, Henry Green, stand right where you are. And class," she said, turning to face the room, "you will continue to look at your books until I return. In perfect silence," she added as she went out into the hall. Henry stood, as told, while the class looked at him. Mrs. Kimmelfarber walked the few steps down the hall to Mr. Pangalos. room. She looked through the doorway and waited until Mr. Pangalos glanced in her direction. Catching his eye, she waved him out into the hallway.
"Listen, Phil," she began earnestly, " I want you to take a look at a kid-"
"For heaven's sake, Dolores," said Mr. Pangalos, "I'm right in the middle of Americus Vespucci!"
"Who has little brown spots all over his arms." "Little brown spots? You got me out here for little brown spots?"
" I thought, maybe, measles?" "Oh, no," said Mr. Pangalos. "Chicken pox?"
"Hmm," said Mr. Pangalos. "I'd better take a look."
The two of them turned Henry to the light near the window, right in the corner where the potted plants were growing on the window ledge. Mr. Pangalos poked and prodded and even took
his eyeglasses out of his pocket and put them on. "Freckles," he said finally. "Just freckles."
"Are you sure?"
Mr. Pangalos round nose twitched, and he sniffed the air. "Chocolate?" he said. "Have they brought the chocolate milk upstairs already?"
"Forget the milk," she cried. "Look! Now he has them on his face!"
"Oh, no!" said Henry.
"Oh, yes!" said Mrs. Kimmelfarber.
"Oh, my," said Mr. Pangalos. "And they weren't there before?"
"No. Two minutes ago that boy's face was as clear as day. And now...."
Henry felt as if his heart were about to drop into his shoes. He swallowed hard and stared at the two teachers, who were staring at his face.
"Little brown spots all over," said Mrs. Kimmelfarber. "And I see more of them coming out even as we speak."
A tear, just one, welled up in Henry's right eye and began to trickle down his cheek, running slowly in and out of the little brown spots.
DIRT BREEDS GERMS, Nurse Molly Farthing would often say, and germs have a nasty way of making healthy people ill. Naturally, the infirmary of P.S. 123 was always spotless because Nurse Molly Farthing wouldn't have it any other way. And naturally, as Mrs. Kimmelfarber and Henry rushed through the door that morning, she made both of them go back and wipe their feet on the mat. "And don't bring any of your cocoa in here," Nurse Farthing added. She sniffed the air loudly. "Cocoa?" said Mrs. Kimmelfarber.

Subjective Criteria

Illustrations: Little support

Dialog: Multiple speakers

Dialog: Broken dialogue

Dialog: Unlabeled Speaker

Vocabulary: More decoding/definition issues

Language: Few descriptive words

Sentences: Some Long/Complex

Text structure: Blend of written/oral

Inferences: Some implications

Concept: Fanciful

Chapters

Features

Character traits

Simple problem/solution

Simple Plot

Difficult names

Topic

Body

Stealing

Cause/Effect

Doctors

Food

Friendship

Nutrition

*Human Body & Health

Low Frequency Words

almond	appreciate	average	bargain	bellyache
buttery	candies	cavity	chocolatey	chortled
concentrate	delicate	earnestly	extremely	farthing
fractions	freckles	fully	growth	hatched
healthy	height	homeroom	humor	infirmary
interrupted	kimmelfarber	kimmelfarber's	knocking	ledge
ma'am	macintosh	marshmallow	measles	mention
midway	naturally	observe	pangalos	pantry
particular	peered	phenomenon	polo	potted
prodded	riot	sake	schoolday	schoolyard
separate	shoving	shower	slowpoke	somewhat
spotless	startling	stripped	stunt	surely
swallowed	swirl	swished	syrup	twitched
verge	vespucci	wrapping