Text Leveling System

The Pug Who Wanted to Be a Mermaid

RDQ:	1099	Max Word/Sent	35	Total Words	3060		Diff Words	937
Lex	760	Ave Word/.Sent	8	Hi Freq occurs	2166	70.8%	Hi freq	409	43.6%
AR	3.8	Long Sentences	5.5	Low Freq occurs	145	4.7%	Low freq	107	11.4%

Chapter One
Peggy the pug was flopped under the big
oak tree in the back garden, panting in
the shade. It was so hot! On summer
days like today, she wished her short, tan 
colored fur wasn't quite so warm and cozy.
A fly buzzed around her nose, but Peggy]]
couldn't be bothered to swat it away
with her paw. She lolled on the grass and
thought about cold things, like the kitchen
floor tiles ... snow ... and ICE CREAM!
"Peggy!" someone called from the house,
interrupting her vanilla-flavored daydream.
Hearing her friend Chloe's voice, Peggy
sat up and wagged her curly little tail. She
always had energy to play with her best
friend!
Chloe and her little sister, Ruby, came
running over, flushed and sweaty.
"Guess what!" said Chloe, crouching
down to stroke Peggy. "School's out! It's
the summer holidays!"]]
"No more homework until September!"
sang Ruby, doing a cartwheel on the grass.
"Yippee!" barked Peggy excitedly. She
would see more of Chloe and Ruby-and
their big brother, Finn--over the summer
holidays. She missed the kids when they
 were at school.
Dad came out, holding a big black
poster board with brightly colored balls
of different sizes glued to it. "How was
your last day of school?" he asked the
girls.
"Fun!" said Ruby. "We got extra playtime,
and I got a certificate for being a
Super Helper."]]
"Well done," said Dad. "By the way, what
is this thing? I found it in the kitchen."
"Oh, that's my solar system project," said
Chloe. "I made it in science class this term.
My teacher said I could take it home."
"Oh," said D ad . "It 's  very big."
"Not compared to a planet," said Chloe."
Did you know that Neptune is four times
the size of Earth?"
"Is that so?" said Dad. "Well, this was certainly
taking up most of the kitchen table."
"I'll keep it in my bedroom," said Chloe,
taking her solar system from Dad. "Is it
okay if I go to the park? Everyone from
school is meeting up there."]]
"Can I come too?" pleaded Ruby.
"And me!" said Peggy, but to the humans
it just sounded like barking.
"Sure," said Dad. "Finn just texted to say
he's hanging out at the park with some
friends. I'll ask him to keep an eye on you."
Chloe took her solar system project up to
her bedroom. Then she packed a bag with
some snacks and clipped on Peggy's lead,
and they headed to the park. The sidewalk
felt hot against Peggy's paws as she trotted
along by Chloe's side.
"Look! There's Finn!" said Ruby as they
went through the park gates. She waved to
her big brother, who was kicking a soccer ]]
ball around on the grass with his friend
Zach. Peggy tried to chase after the soccer 
ball, but Chloe tugged on her lead. "This
way, Peggy. I'm meeting Ellie and Hannah."
Ruby spotted some of her friends from
her kindergarten class on the playground
and ran over to join them on the merry go
round. Just looking at them spinning
around made Peggy feel dizzy!
Chloe's friends were sitting on the grass]]
near the playground, making daisy chains.
Peggy was delighted to see that Hannah
had brought her little terrier, Princess,
along.
"Hi, Peggy!" yapped Princess. She had
a yellow bow in her fur that matched
Hannah's sundress perfectly.
As the two little dogs sniffed each other
happily, Chloe sat down with her friends.
"I'm so glad it's the summer holidays,"
said Hannah, putting her daisy chain
around Princess's neck.
"Me too," said Ellie. "My family's going
camping for two weeks. We're sleeping
in a tent and hiking every day. At night,]]
we're going to roast marshmallows on the
campfire."
"That sounds fun," said Hannah, fanning
herself with her sun hat. "I'm going on
holiday to Spain. We're staying in a hotel
that has two pools-one of them even has
a water slide."
"Oh!" said Chloe. "That's so cool."
She frowned. "But what about Princess?
Can she go on the plane with you?"
"Princess is going to stay in a kennel
while we're away," said Hannah, stroking
her dog's head. "She really loves it there,
with all the other dogs. It's just like a holiday
for her, too."]]
Princess groaned and rolled her eyes. "I
hate it at that kennel," she told Peggy. "It's
awful. I have to sleep in a cage, and all the
other dogs are constantly barking."
Peggy felt sorry for her friend. A kennel
sounded a lot like a dog shelter. She had
been in one of those before Chloe and
her family had adopted her. She'd never
felt so scared and lonely before.
"At least it's only for a bit," Peggy said,
trying to reassure her. "You know Hannah
will come back for you."
"Where are you going on holiday,
Chloe?" asked Hannah.
Chloe shrugged. "I don't think we're ]]
going anywhere this year. My mum's been
so busy setting up her cafe."
Chloe's mum ran a cafe called Pups and
Cups, where people could bring their
dogs and buy tasty treats-for dogs and
humans.
"That's too bad," said Ellie. "But at least
you always get lots of yummy snacks from
the cafe ."
"True said Chloe, reaching into
her bag and taking out a plastic container
of chocolate chip cookies that she shared
with her friends.
"Hey yapped Princess. "What about
us?"]]
Peggy whined hopefully, and Chloe took
out another container. She gave Peggy and
Princess each a bacon-and-peanut-butter-flavored dog
biscuit shaped like a bone.
They stayed in the park until the sun
began to set, and then Finn rounded up
his sisters.
"Tomorrow I'm going to sleep late,"
he said, bouncing his soccer ball up and
down as they walked home.]]
Sleeping late sounded good to Peggy. She
was exhausted after playing with Princess.
As they came up the front path, Mum
was just getting home from the cafe. "Hi,"
she said. "I ordered pizza. It's too hot to
cook today."
When the pizzas arrived, Peggy's family
sat down at the table and tucked into their
dinner.
"I love pizza!" said Ruby, biting into a
slice and getting tomato sauce all over her
face.
"Zach is going on holiday to Italy with
his parents," said Finn. "I bet he'll eat pizza
every single day."]]
"I wish we were going on holiday," said
Chloe, sighing as she picked a mushroom
off her slice of pizza.
Mum and Dad exchanged looks. "Actually,"
said Mum, grinning, "we have some
good news. The cafe's been doing pretty
well, so we're going to the seaside for a
week."
The children stared at their parents in
disbelief.
"No way!" shouted Finn. Chloe and
Ruby shrieked with excitement. It was
so loud that Peggy had to cover her ears
with her paws!
"We're staying in a place called Mermaid ]]
Cottage," said Dad, showing them a picture
on his phone. "It has three bedrooms and
it's right by the beach."
Chloe's eyes widened as she looked at
the screen. "It's so cute," she said.
"I can't wait for a break," said Mum.
"I'm going to lie on the beach and read
in the sunshine."]]
"Not me," said Ruby. "I'm going to
build sandcastles."
"Do you think we could go deep-sea
fishing?" asked Finn.
Dad nodded. "Definitely."
"I'm going to go swimming every day,"
said Chloe. Then she added, "And maybe
I'll even get to see a mermaid."
Everyone was excited about the holiday except
Peggy. Would she have to stay in a
dog kennel like Princess?
"Wait a minute," said Chloe, as if she'd read
Peggy's mind. Who will look after Peggy?
We will, said Mum. She's coming with us, of course.]]
"Did you hear that, Pegs?" asked Chloe,
scooping Peggy onto her lap. "You're going
on holiday!"
Peggy gave a bark of joy and wagged her
tail. She'd never been to the seaside before,
and she couldn't wait!]]
Chapter Two
"Just one more sleep until we go on holiday!"
announced Chloe, marking an X
on the kitchen calendar. The children had
 been busy for the first few weeks of the
summer holidays. Finn had gone to music
 camp, Chloe had had tennis lessons with]]
her friends, and Ruby had taken a swimming
class at the local recreation center.
She'd just come back from the pool, and
her curly hair was still damp.
"I swam underwater today;' Ruby said
proudly. "My teacher called me a little
mermaid."
"Oh! The Little Mermaid," said Chloe.
"Let's watch it again."
The girls helped themselves to fruity
Popcicles from the freezer, then went
into the living room and switched on the
television. Peggy sat between them and
watched the film too. She liked it because]]
there were lots of funny sea creatures in it,
like crabs and seagulls.
I wonder if I'll make any new animal friends
on holiday, she thought hopefully.
When their favorite song came on, the
girls jumped off the sofa and started dancing around the living room.]]
"Under the sea!" sang Chloe, twirling
her sister around.
"Under the sea!" chorused Ruby.
They knew all the words. So did Peggy.
She joined in, howling along to the
music.
When the film was over, Finn came  in.
"I can't believe you watched that stupid
old movie again," he said. "You've seen it a
million times already."
"We might see a mermaid on holiday;'
Ruby told Finn.
"Yeah right," he scoffed. "Mermaids
aren't real."
Chloe stuck her tongue out at her]]
brother. Just because you've never seen
one doesn't mean they don't exist."
"Let's watch something decent," Finn
said, grabbing the remote. Chloe tried to
get it from him, but he held it up over
her head and switched to a documentary
about sharks.
"Awesome," said Finn as an enormous
great white shark swam across the screen,
its jaws open to reveal rows of sharp teeth .
w
Maybe we'll see one of these on holiday."
Peggy whimpered and covered her eyes
with her paws as the shark attacked a
school of fish.]]
"Maybe one will eat you," said Chloe
grumpily.
Ruby's eyes widened in fear. "Are there
really sharks at the seaside?"
"Don't worry, Rubes," said Finn, tousling
her hair. "There aren't any great whites
where we're going. Just little sharks."
That didn't make Peggy feel very reassured.
She was only little-even a small
shark could probably eat her in one bite!
Everyone was too excited to eat much
breakfast the next morning, even though
Dad had cooked bacon and eggs to use up
what was left in the fridge.]]
"I can't believe we're going on holiday
today!" Chloe said, scraping her leftover
breakfast into Peggy's bowl.
"We've got lots to do before we leave,"
said Mum, handing everyone a packing list.
"I'd better get Coco's things together;' said
Chloe. "Ellie's coming to collect her soon."
Chloe's friend Ellie was looking after
Coco the bunny while the rest of the
family was at the seaside. Peggy followed
Chloe outside to the back garden. As
 Chloe got a bag of wood shavings, a travel
carrier, and some rabbit food out of the
shed, Peggy went over to the rabbit hutch
to chat with Coco.]]
"Hi, Peggy," said the black-and-white
rabbit. "Are you excited about your
holiday? I bet you'll have lots of fun."
Peggy nodded. "I'm sorry you can't come
with us, though."
"Don't worry," said Coco, her whiskers
twitching. "I can't wait to see my mum
again. We've got so much to catch up on.
It will be great."]]
Coco's mum was Daisy, Ellie's pet rabbit.
Peggy was relieved to hear that Coco was
looking forward to her holiday, too!
When Ellie arrived, Chloe took Coco
out of her hutch and gave her one last
cuddle. Then she put the bunny into the
travel carrier.
"I'll take really good care of her," promised Ellie.
"I know you will," said Chloe, smiling.
 "Send me some pies," said Ellie.
"I will; said Chloe .
"Have fun with Daisy!" Peggy barked.
Once Ellie had taken Coco home,
Chloe went upstairs to start packing. She]]
opened her chest of drawers and started
taking out shorts, socks,
and T-shirts and
throwing them
into the suitcase
on her bed. A
swimsuit even
landed on Peggy's
head!
"Where are they ... ," muttered Chloe,
searching through all her drawers. "Mum!"
she hollered down the stairs. "I can't find
my goggles!"
"Check the cupboard in the hall!" Mum
called back.]]
After stepping over Peggy, Chloe ran out
of the room to look for her goggles.
Peggy wandered into the hallway.
"Dad!" shouted Finn, bursting out of his
room. "I can't find my fishing net!"
"It might be in the shed!" Dad called
back to him.
Finn nearly trod on Peggy's paw as he
hurried past.
"Help!" yelled Ruby, dragging a bulging
backpack out of her room. She was
holding a tatty stuffed elephant in one
hand. "I can't fit Mr. Flump into my
backpack!"
"Excuse me, Peggy," said Mum, brushing ]]
past her as she came upstairs. She looked at
Ruby's bag and shook her head. "You can't
take all of these, sweetie." Mum began pulling
cuddly toys from Ruby's bag. Peggy
had to climb over a plush dinosaur and a
stuffed lion to get by.
Dad dashed past, holding the hamper.
"Clean clothes coming through," he said,
nearly tripping over Peggy.
Everyone was rushing around, frantically
packing. No matter where Peggy sat, she
always seemed to be in the way.
I'd better lie low for a bit, she thought.
Peggy went back into Chloe's room and
squeezed under the bed. Nobody would]]
step on her there! She shut her eyes, and
soon dozed off.
When Peggy woke up, the house was quiet.
Too quiet.
She wriggled out from under the bed
and looked around. Where is everyone?
Peggy wandered out into the hallway, but ]]
there was no sign of anyone. And all the
suitcases were gone, too.
Starting to feel worried, Peggy went
downstairs. But her family wasn't anywhere
to be seen.
Maybe they 're packing up the car, she thought.
Jumping up onto the windowsill, she
looked out at the driveway.]]
The car was gone.
They've gone on holiday without me! she
realized in dismay. "Oh no!" she wailed.
 "They left me behind!" How would she
survive for a whole week on her own?
Just then, a car sped down the road,
swerved into the driveway, and stopped
with a loud squeal of brakes. Chloe
jumped out of the car, unlocked the front
door, and ran inside.
"Peggy!" she cried.
Peggy ran to her friend and jumped
into her arms, wriggling with joy. She
licked Chloe's face all over. She had]]
never been so relieved to see anyone in
her entire life!
"I'm so sorry!" said Chloe. "We came
back as soon as we realized we'd forgotten
to pack the most important thing of
all. Chloe gave Peggy a kiss. "You. "]]
Chapter Three
"Are we almost there?" asked Chloe, tapping
her mum's shoulder.
"Not much farther to go," Mum said
without taking her eyes off the road.
"I need to do a wee," said Ruby, squirming
next to Peggy in the back seat.]]
Me too, thought Peggy. They had been
driving for ages. It had been hours since
they'd stopped for a picnic lunch at a rest area ..
"Hold it in a bit longer;' said Dad. "We're
nearly there."
"Can we change the music?" moaned
Finn. "If I have to listen to The Little
Mermaid soundtrack one more time, I'm
 going to scream.
Dad changed the music to a rock band,
and Finn pretended he was drumming
along.
"Cut it out!" whined Chloe, shoving her
brother's elbow out of the way. "Get off
my side."]]
Before an all-out war could break out in
the back seat, Dad turned around and said,
"Look! You can see the sea in the distance."
Peggy stuck her head out the window
to get a better view. Her ears flapped
as the wind rushed against her face.
Along with the usual car scents of
gasoline and rubber, she
could also smell something salty
and a bit fishy in the air.]]
 thought Peggy, sniffing.
"Left here," said Dad, and Mum steered
the car off the highway and onto a road
leading to the coast.
After passing through a few villages, they
turned again, down a bumpy road. At the
very end of it, Peggy could see something
blue sparkling in the distance. The sea!
The road stopped at a little bay with
two small stone cottages. Beyond them, a
wooden path wound through the dunes,
leading to a sandy beach.
"We're here!" cried Chloe.
Mum parked the car, and everyone
tumbled out.]]
 thought Peggy, stretching out her
hind legs. That's better!
"Which one is ours?" asked Ruby. One of the cottages was painted white and had
 wild roses climbing up the front. The other
was gray and had colorful buoys and fishing
nets piled up outside it.
"It must be this one," said Chloe,
pointing to the white cottage. It had a
 little painted sign over the door that read
(MERMAID COTTAGE.
"The owner said it would be unlocked,"
"Me first!" cried Ruby, opening the door
and running inside.]]
Peggy hurried in after her, with Chloe
following right behind.
"Oh, it's adorable!" said Chloe, looking
around, enchanted.
The living room was painted white, with
blue curtains in the windows. In the middle
was a wood-burning stove surrounded by
worn but comfy-looking armchairs, and
shelves stocked with books, board games,
playing cards, and jigsaw puzzles. On the
dining table was a jug filled with roses, and
their sweet scent filled the whole cottage.
"I could use a hand with the luggage,"
said Dad, staggering in with two heavy
suitcases.]]
"I'll help," said Finn. He hurried outside
to get more bags from the trunk, while
 Peggy and the girls raced around, investigating.
The cottage had three bedrooms--one
 with a double bed for Mum and Dad, a
 tiny room with a single bed for Finn, and
 one with bunk beds for Chloe and Ruby.
"Mermaids!" gasped Chloe in delight.
The girls' bedroom was decorated with
mermaids everywhere. There were mermaids on the curtains, mermaids on the
duvet covers, and a painting of a mermaid on the wall.
"I get the top bunk!" said Chloe.]]

Subjective Criteria

Illustrations: No support

Dialog: Multiple speakers

Dialog: Broken dialogue

Vocabulary: More decoding/definition issues

Language: Many descriptive words

Sentences: Multiple phrases

Text structure: Blend of written/oral

Concepts: Concrete/Simple Social

Table of Contents

Chapters

Features

Topic

Vacations

*Family & Friends

Pets

Low Frequency Words

announced	armchairs	biscuit	bulging	buoys
cafe	cafe's	calendar	carrier	cartwheel
certificate	chloe	chloe's	chorused	comfy
constantly	crouching	curtains	decent	dismay
documentary	drawers	dunes	duvet	enchanted
excitedly	exhausted	flump	flushed	frantically
fruity	gasoline	glued	grumpily	handing
hind	hollered	hutch	interrupting	investigating
kennel	kindergarten	leftover	lolled	luggage
marshmallows	mum's	mushroom	muttered	neptune
pleaded	plush	popcicles	project	reassure
reassured	recreation	relieved	reveal	rounded
rubes	ruby	ruby's	sandcastles	sauce
scent	scents	science	scoffed	seagulls
seaside	shared	shavings	shelves	shoving
shrugged	solar	soundtrack	sparkling	squirming
staggering	stocked	suitcases	sundress	surrounded
survive	swat	sweetie	swerved	swimsuit
terrier	tousling	twirling	twitching	underwater
vanilla	wandered	whimpered	whined	whiskers
whites	widened	windowsill	wriggled	wriggling
yapped	zach