Text Leveling System

Lost in Space

RDQ:	1015	Max Word/Sent	21	Total Words	2500		Diff Words	623
Lex	740	Ave Word/.Sent	8	Hi Freq occurs	1635	65.4%	Hi freq	271	43.5%
AR	3.6	Long Sentences	0.3	Low Freq occurs	100	4%	Low freq	58	9.3%

Earth was very sick. Food and water were running out. The people had to go to a different planet called Alpha Prime in order to live. Ten-year-old Will Robinson and his family were to be the first to go to this new world. A pilot, Major Don West, would fly their spaceship, the Jupiter 2. Will and his family would have to fly for ten years to reach Alpha Prime! Once there, they would build a ""hypergate,"" a kind of doorway in space. The hypergate would allow people to travel from Earth to the new world instantly! But an evil man named Dr. Smith wanted to stop the ship from reaching the planet. He snuck on to the Jupiter 2. There he programmed a robot to blow up the ship. But the doctor was unable to leave before the ship took off. Now, Dr. Smith, Major West, and the Robinson family are racing through space. And the robot is about to follow the doctor's orders. Can this mission - and the people of planet Earth - be saved? All was quiet on the Jupiter 2. Major Don West and the Robinson family were sleeping in special tubes. The tubes were supposed to keep them asleep for the entire ten-year trip. But a loud voice broke the silence. ""Robinson family, destroy!"" It was the robot that had been programmed by Dr. Smith. The frightened doctor was the only person awake on the ship. He looked up to see the giant robot coming toward him. Robot extended its arms and fired. The shots hit the control panel and knocked the ship off course. Will Robinson and his sister Penny awoke to find their ship rocking and shaking. Their parents, Professor John Robinson and his wife Maureen, ran to Major West at the controls. The Jupiter 2 was heading straight for the sun! John tried to stop Robot while Major West worked to gain control of the ship. But John was no match for Robot's strength. Just when all hope seemed lost, Robot suddenly stopped. John looked over to see his son, Will, holding his tiny computer in his hands. ""Robot,"" said Will. ""Go to your docking bay."" ""Command accepted,"" said Robot. Will smiled. ""If the family won't come to the science fair,"" he said, bring the science fair to the family!"" John looked at his son in amazement. Back on Earth, Will had accused his father of ignoring him. John knew Will was right. All of John's attention had been taken up by this mission. He had even missed his own son's science fair. Will had won first place with his model of a time machine. Now the boy had used his ""hacker deck,"" a tiny computer, to stop Robot. John promised himself that when they got to Alpha Prime, he would spend more time with Will. From the control panel, Major West glared at Dr. Smith. ""You caused this trouble,"" Major West said. He realized that Dr. Smith wasn't even supposed to be on the ship. But there was no time to argue with the doctor. The ship was shaking in the mighty pull of the sun. ""There's got to be some way to get through this,"" John said. ""There is! Major West answered. ""If we can't go around the sun, we have to go through it. We'll use the hyperdrive."" The crew knew that the hyperdrive was dangerous. It would sent them anywhere in the galaxy. Without a hypergate or doorway, there was no way to control where they would wind up. Still, it was their only hope. Major West put the Jupiter 2 into hyperdrive. The ship hurled toward the sun. Then it disappeared into hyperspace. In a flash, the Jupiter 2 reappeared. But where were they? Major West and John looked into the deep, dark space around them. They saw something that looked like a hole. Through it, they could see a giant silver ship. Maybe the ship could help them find out where they were. Major West took their ship through the hole in space. Then he attached the Jupiter 2 to the giant ship. He joined John, Will's sister Judy, and Robot as they boarded the ship and began to explore.John forced Dr. Smith to come, too. He was afraid to leave the doctor on the Jupiter 2. Inside the strange ship, a room was filled with plants and vines. Major West moved some leaves and saw an alien creature. The creature looked like a small monkey with bright blue eyes. ""No one's going to hurt you,"" said the major to the frightened creature. The creature held on tightly to Major West's neck. ""Looks like you've made a friend,"" said Judy. They named their new companion Blawp because of the funny blawp sounds it made. Together the group walked on. They noticed that the ceiling was covered with rows and rows of jagged holes. Before their eyes, the holes began to shake. Suddenly, a monster out of a nightmare burst through the ceiling! The creature had a shiny metal body and spiderlike arms and legs. All at once, many more spiders dropped in behind the first one. The crew of the Jupiter 2 shot at the spiders. Then they raced down the long hallway back to their ship. But their shots had set off an alarm. The door at the end of the hallway slammed shut. They were trapped! The spiders swarmed closer and closer. Then a loud crash echoed at the end of the hallway. Robot had blown a hole in the door. Judy hurried through the hole carrying Blawp. John, Major West, and Dr. Smith followed. The crew ran toward their ship as Robot moved in front of the hole to block the spiders. The greedy creatures began to eat away at Robot's metal body. The door to the Jupiter 2 started to close just as the crew ran inside. But not before one of the spiders scratched Dr. Smith! Though inside their ship, the crew was not out of danger. The spiders attached themselves to the Jupiter 2. Thinking fast, Major West blew up the other ship. The blast destroyed the spiders. But it also knocked the Jupiter 2 onto a giant planet below. The spaceship landed with a crash on the new planet. Will sat at the main computer. Though Robot's body had been destroyed by the spiders, Will had saved its mind.He had stored Robot's memory in his hacker deck. ""Can you hear me?"" asked Will. ""Robot?"" The voice of Robot spoke from the computer screen. ""Robot tried to destroy the Robinson family. Why did Will Robinson save Robot?"" Will smiled. ""I guess sometimes friendship means listening to your heart, not your head,"" he said. ""I'm going to build you a new body."" The Jupiter 2 crew gathered together. Their ship was damaged. They needed materials to help them get off the planet. The computer told them that the planet was filled with many doorways. The doorways let into the future and they were constantly opening and closing. They were tearing the planet apart. John thought the doorways were a natural part of the planet. But Will had another idea. ""These doorways are exactly what I said my time machine would do!"" Will said excitedly. ""What if - "" ""Son,"" John interrupted. ""I appreciate your help, but now isn't the time to use your imagination."" ""You never listen to me!"" shouted Will. ""Not ever!"" Once again, John had hurt his son's feelings. But there was no time to apologize. They had to search for materials to fix their ship. John and Major West left to begin the search. They stepped outside and walked through a shining doorway. Both men were whisked away into the future. Meanwhile, an upset Will returned to work on Robot. From down the hall, he heard a knocking sound. ""It sounds like Morse code,"" said Robot. ""What is it saying?"" Will asked. ""Danger, Will Robinson, danger!"" Robot answered. Will followed the sound of the knocking. He found Dr. Smith in his room. Dr. Smith had a secret plan. He wanted to take control of the ship. The doctor told Will that his father was in great danger. Will agreed to go with Dr. Smith. They followed John and Major West into the future.John and Major West walked through many of the strange doorways. They came upon a wrecked ship at the edge of a crater wall. The lower sections were gone. The hull was scarred. They realized that this was their ship, the Jupiter 2, many years into the future. Major West and John entered the ship. A tall figure walked toward them. It was a man who looked strangely familiar to both of them. ""Who are you?"" John asked. The figure answered,"" Don't you recognize me, Dad? I'm your son, Will."" John and Major West stared at this older Will in shock. Then they turned to see Robot coming toward them. Robot forced them to follow Older Will inside a large room. As a child, Older Will had rebuilt Robot's body. He has also spend the past twenty years building something else. ""Look what I've done,"" said Older Will. ""I build my time machine!"" John and Major West saw that the time machine was using the material they needed to fix their ship. Older Will planned to use his machine to open a doorway in time. Only one person would be able to make the trip through time and space. ""I will be able to return home to the day you took us on this mission,"" said Older Will. ""I'll stop us from taking off. I'll save the family."" ""Your machine is ripping this planet apart,"" John answered. ""It could do the same to Earth. What if, in getting home, you destroy the Earth in the process?"" but Older Will refused to listen. His father had never been there for him as a child. Now Older Will would travel back to the past and change the future.""I can save us all,"" said Older Will. ""I'm afraid not,"" said a voice. The group turned to see Dr. Smith pushing Young Will into the room. As the doctor had planned, Young Will had led him straight to John and Major West. But the situation was even better than Dr. Smith had hoped. With Older Will's time machine, Dr. Smith could take the one trip through time and escape from the planet. He could return to Earth. Dr. Smith's plan seemed perfect until a strange but somehow familiar voice echoed through the ship. ""Never fear, Smith is here!"" A frightening shape moved toward Dr. Smith. First its arms and then its legs unfolded. It stood ten feet tall. The creature was half-spider and half-Dr. Smith! Dr. Smith watched in horror. He remembered the scratch he had gotten earlier while racing away from the spiders. Now he saw himself in the future. The scratch had caused him to become half-man, half-spider. This Future Smith threw Dr. Smith out of the ship, then ordered Robot to guard everyone. Future Smith followed Older Will to the top of the time machine. The creature had an evil plan of his own. He would take Older Will's place and travel to Earth. Once there, he would take over the entire planet. The group watched helplessly as Future Smith and Older Will disappeared up the ramp. Robot stood guard. Young Will walked over to his old friend. ""Robot, do you remember what I taught you about friendship?"" Young Will asked. Robot answered, ""Friendship means acting with your heart, not your head."" ""I need you to help us now,"" said Will. ""We're friends. Act with your heart."" Suddenly, the ship shook again. The planet was coming apart. Will begged, ""Please, Robot, will you help us?"" ""Robot will save ... "" Robot answered. ""I will save Will Robinson. I will save my friend!"" With Robot once again on their side, the group left the ship. But doorways were opening and closing all around them. Which one would lead them home? Then they looked through one of the doorways and saw a familiar sight. Judy, Maureen and Penny had used lights from the Jupiter 2 to form a sign in the sky. ""Jump!"" shouted Major West. He, Dr. Smith, Young Will, and Robot all passed through the doorway. They found themselves back on the Jupiter 2 in their own time. But one person did not follow. John stayed behind. He knew their ship still needed the material to escape the planet. Slowly, he made his way up the ramp where Future Smith was waiting. John reached the top of the ramp. He saw Future Smith walking toward the doorway of the time machine. The creature had thrown Older Will out of the way, knocking him out. Future Smith and John fought with each other. The creature tumbled backward over a rail. John watched as Future smith was washed away by the tides of time. Then he saw older Will hanging over the rail where Future Smith had thrown him. The time machine was about to use up all of the material that John needed. John had to make a quick decision - get the material or save Older Will? He grabbed Will's wrist at the last second! ""I thought I lost you,"" John said to his son. ""You could have taken the material and left before it was too late,"" Older Will said. ""You saved me instead."" ""There wasn't any choice,"" John answered. ""I couldn't let you fall. You're my boy."" Just then, Older Will changed the setting on the time machine. Instead of a doorway back to Earth, the machine now led back to Jupiter 2 in John's time. Older Will looked at his father. He knew he had the power to send John back to his family - back to Young Will who needed him. ""Don't make me wait another lifetime to know how you feel,"" Older Will said. ""Come with us,"" said John. But Older Will couldn't come. Only one person could make the trip. John passed through the doorway and landed back on the Jupiter 2. As the doorway closed on Older Will forever, John held Young Will tightly. ""I just want you to know,"" John said to his son, ""I love you very much."" Jupiter 2's crew (and Blawp, too!) were all together again. Robot had even found their location an a star map. They were not lost anymore. But their whip was in trouble. ""The planet is breaking up around us,"" said Major West. ""There's no way to get clear in time,"" John added. ""The hyperdrive,"" Judy suggested. The crew knew the hyperdrive could be used without the material John had left behind. But where would it send them? Maureen said, ""Everyone hang on!"" ""Here we go again,"" said Penny. ""Cool!"" said Will. Major West threw the switch. The planet exploded as the Jupiter 2 vanished into hyperspace. It was far away from Earth and far away from Alpha Prime. Once again, the Jupiter 2 was lost in space.

Subjective Criteria

Illustrations: No support

Dialog: Multiple speakers

Dialog: Broken dialogue

Vocabulary: Some difficult words

Language: Many descriptive words

Sentences: Multiple phrases

Text structure: Story/Poem

Inferences: Some implications

Complexity: Several ideas - closely related

Concept: Fanciful

Features

Character traits

Integral Setting - Futuristic

Topic

Shapes

*Space

Time

Monsters

Fighting

Low Frequency Words

accepted	alien	alpha	amazement	appreciate
boarded	companion	constantly	decision	echoed
excitedly	familiar	frightening	future	galaxy
glared	hacker	helplessly	horror	hull
hurled	hyperdrive	hypergate	hyperspace	ignoring
imagination	instantly	interrupted	jagged	knocking
location	major	material	materials	maureen
meanwhile	mission	model	nightmare	prime
process	rebuilt	recognize	refused	robinson
scarred	science	sections	situation	spiderlike
strangely	swarmed	tearing	unable	unfolded
whisked	wrecked	wrist