Text Leveling System

Junie B. Jones One-Man Band

RDQ:	797	Max Word/Sent	29	Total Words	3042		Diff Words	738
Lex	700	Ave Word/.Sent	6	Hi Freq occurs	2274	74.8%	Hi freq	326	44.2%
AR	3.3	Long Sentences	0.4	Low Freq occurs	91	3%	Low freq	60	8.1%

Kicking the Cow
Monday
Dear first grade journal, 
A kickball tournament a kickball tournament. The whole entire first grade is going to have a kickball tournament. My teacher told us that news last week. I can't even stop thinking about it. Our families]]
are going to come and everything. I have been practicing my kicking every day after school. I can kick high and low. And fast and slow. And to and fro. And pro and con. When I grow up I will have my own kicking show on TV, probably. From Junie B. first grader.
I smiled at that nice thought.
Then I peeked over the side of my desk.
And I tried to wiggle my piggy toe.]]
It still felt sore.
That's because yesterday a little trouble
happened when l was practicing in my
backyard. And it's called, I accidentally
kicked my ball over the fence. And I didn't
want to go get it. So I had to find something
else to kick.
And then ha!
-I spied Mother's brand-new watering
can!
It was the one with the funny cow
painted on it.
And it was sitting right out in the middle
of the yard!
I laughed out loud at that perfect target!
"l bet I can kick that silly cow right over
the moon!" I said.
Then I rubbed my hands together very
excited.]]
And I backed all the way up to the
fence.
Then VA-ROOM!
I took off running!
And ZOOM!
I ran faster and faster!
And KA-BOOM!
I kicked that can as hard as I could!
And OWIE OW OW!
That dumb-bunny can was filled full of
water! And nobody even told me about that
problem!
I fell down in the grass very painful.
Then I rolled around and around. And I
hollered real loud.
"MY TOE! MY TOE! MY TOE!" I
hollered. "MY TOE! MY TOE! MY
TOE!" 
Mother hurried to the back door.]]
"Junie B.! Oh my goodness! What's
wrong?" she called.
"MY TOE IS WRONG! MY TOE IS
WRONG! 911! 911!" I yelled.
Mother hurried outside and took off my
shoe and sock. She looked at my toe.
"OW OW OW!" I yelled again.
Mother hugged me. "What in the world
did you do to hurt it so badly?" she asked.]]
"Did you trip over a rock or something?"
I did a gulp.
'Cause maybe I shouldn't mention that I
kicked her can, possibly.
Mother waited for me to answer.
Then, very slow, her eyes glanced over to
her cow.
He had a giant dent in his head.
Also, his nose did not look normal.
Mother did a frown. "Junie B.?" she
said very suspicious. "What's the story
here?"
I looked back at her real impressed.
That woman is sharp as a tack, I tell
you.
Finally, I did a sigh. And I told her the
story here.
"Yeah, only this wasn't even my fault,
Mother," I said. "It really, really wasn't. On]]
account of at first I was practicing my
kicking. And then my ball went over the
fence. And so what was I supposed to do?
Kick air?"
I did a thumbs-up.
"But good news!" I said. '"Cause just
then I saw your cow can! And so I ran at
him with all my might! And then I kicked
him as hard as I could!
"Only too bad for me.  Cause that
stupid thing was filled with water! And
now I have a smashed piggy toe."
I thought for a minute.
Then I folded my hands in my lap very
quiet.
"The end," I said.
Mother did not look happy with me.
"Gee, imagine that. A watering can actually
had water in it. How unusual," she said.]]
That is called sarcastic, I believe.
After that, Mother carried me inside.
And she called the doctor. And he told her
to raise it up on a pillow and use ice.
And so guess what?
At first, it felt a little better.
Only this morning when I got dressed, it
hurt to put on my shoe. And so---even
though it was chilly outside-Mother said I
could wear sandals to school.]]
And so that's how come I keep checking
on it this morning. To see if it's feeling any
better.
I closed my journal real quiet. Then I
bent over in my chair. And I patted my toe
very gentle.
Next to me, May made a face.
"You shouldn't play with your feet,
Junie Jones," she whispered. "Playing with
feet is what stinky people do."]]
I stuck out my tongue at that girl.
I still get a kick out of that behavior.
After that, I sat back up again. And I
stacked my first-grade dictionary on top of
my journal.
Then I laid my head on my desk. And I
daydreamed about the kickball tournament
some more.
In my dream, I was the only person in 
Room One who could kick the ball.
That's because all of the other children
in Room One had broken legs. On account
of accidents happen sometimes.
And so I played in the tournament all by
myself.
And I won the whole darned thing without
any help!
I was the star of Room One!
All of my friends shouted and cheered.]]
Then they hugged me very happy. And
they threw confetti on my head.
Only not May.
May threw a small potato.
That was uncalled for, I believe.]]
More Piggy Problems
I stayed in my daydream a real long time.
Also, I think I snored a little bit.
Then-all of a sudden-SMACK!
Mr. Scary clapped his loud hands
together!
And that noise scared the daylights out
of me, I tell you!
I jumped straight up in my seat. And my
arms flinged out very crazy!
Then my hand knocked into my dictionary!
And oh no! Oh no!]]
That heavy book went over the edge of
my desk! And it landed on my sore toe!
"OW!" I shouted real loud. "OW OW
OW OW OW!!"
I reached for my foot. And I started to
cry.
Mr. Scary came running back to me.
Then he quick sent Herbert to the school
nurse to get some ice.
And hurray for Herbert! 'Cause he
brought that woman back with him!
Her name is Mrs. Weller.
I know her from previous accidents.
Mrs. Weller gave me some tissues. And
she put an ice bag on my piggy toe.
It felt heavy and soggy on that sore guy.
I pulled my foot away. But she put it
right back again.
"Please, Junie B.," said Mrs. Weller. "If]]
you just keep this ice on your toe, it will
start to feel better. l promise."
I shook my head real fast.
"No, it won't, Mrs. Weller," I said. "I
know it won't. 'Cause Mother already put
ice on that same toe yesterday. But today it
still hurt. And that's how come I had to
wear sandals to school."
"Oh, dear," she said. "You mean this
poor toe was already injured before you
came to school today?"
I did a sniffle.
"Yes," I said. "It was injured a real lot,
Mrs. Weller. On account of yesterday I
kicked a cow. And that thing was solid as a
rock, I tell you."
Mrs. Weller's face went funny.
"You you kicked a cow?" she said
real soft.]]
"Yes," I said. "And the cow was full of
water. And a cow full of water doesn't even
budge."]]
After that, Mrs. Weller got very speechless.
And she didn't ask any more questions.
She just kept holding the ice bag on my
foot. Plus also, she mumbled to herself.
Room One stretched their necks to see
my foot.
Then Shirley stood up. And she said that
she knows just how I feel. 'Cause one time
she accidentally kicked a brick. And that
did not feel good, either.
And then Roger said he hurt his toe
before, too. 'Cause last year he accidentally
kicked a refrigerator-repair truck.
Plus a boy named Sheldon said that last
summer, he accidentally kicked a giant tree
stump. On account of his cousin told him it
was made out of rubber.
"Only it wasn't," said Sheldon very
upset. "It was made out of tree. And so]]
all of my toes got their heads bashed in."
After that, Sheldon put his foot up on
his desk. And he started taking off his shoe
to show us.
Mr. Scary held up. his hand. "No,
Sheldon. Please. That's really not necessary,"
he said.
But Sheldon quick yanked off his shoe
and sock. And he raised his piggies way
high in the air.
"See, everybody? See the baby one? The
baby one still, has a little red knob on the
side of it," he said. "See?"
Just then, Sheldon tipped his chair back
on two legs so he could raise his foot even
higher.
Only too bad for him. Because, quick as
a blink, his chair legs slided out from
underneath him.]]
More Bad News
Mother came to get me from school that
day. She said she would drive me and
Sheldon home so we wouldn't have to take
the bus.
I walked to the parking lot very limping.
Sheldon was still wearing the ice bag on
top of his head.
"My. It must have been quite a day in
Room One," said Mother.
Sheldon did a sigh. "I've had better," he
said.
After that, both of us got in the backseat. ]]
And we buckled our seat belts.
Sheldon quick put his window down.
Mother turned around. "Gee, I don't
know, Sheldon," she said. "That's going to
be a lot of wind on you, don't you think?" 
"I like wind," said Sheldon. "Wind
makes my cheeks flap."
Mother stared at him a second. "Okey doke,"
she said kind of quiet.
Then she turned back around. And she
started the car. And we drove out of the
parking lot.
Sheldon leaned his head close to the
window. And he tilted his head into the
rushy air.
He opened his mouth so the wind
flapped his cheeks.
Both of us started to laugh.
Only just then, a little bit of trouble]]
happened. 'Cause Mother went around a
corner kind of whizzy.
And Sheldon's head got tilted even
further.
And WHOOSH!
The ice bag blew right out the window!
Sheldon sat very still after that.
Finally, he closed the window. And he
drummed his fingers on the seat.
"Today isn't really going that good for
me," he said.
I nodded.
Then I patted his arm.
'Cause sometimes I understand that boy
perfectly well.
That night, I tossed and turned in my bed.
'Cause my toe did not like things touching
it, that's why. Not even the sheet.]]
Only here is the worstest part of all.
Because the next morning-when I took
off my covers-MY WHOLE ENTIRE
TOENAIL WAS BLACK!
I did a scream at that terrible sight!
Mother and Daddy came running.
"Junie B.! What on earth is the matter?"
said Mother.
"MY TOE IS THE MATTER! MY
TOE IS THE MATTER!" I hollered back.
"LOOK! LOOK! LOOK!"
I held up my foot for Mother to see.
"Oh, my," she said. "The doctor said
this might happen. Your toenail has a bad
bruise on it."
I wrinkled my eyebrows at her.
"A bruise?" I said. "That's all it is? It's
just a bruise? "
Mother nodded. "Yes. It's just a bruise,]]
Junie B.," she said. "But I'm afraid it's
going to be a little painful to wear shoes for
a while."
Daddy sat down next to me.
"Don't worry, though, honey," he said.
"As soon as it grows out, it will look normal
again."
He pointed to his bare foot. "Look at
mine. I've bruised my big toenail many
times over the years. But it's always grown
out as good as new. See?"
I looked at it and made a face.
Daddy's big toe is not attractive.
Just then, tears came in my eyes.
I touched my toe very gentle.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! It hurts even worser
than yesterday," I said. "And so now what
am I supposed to do? 'Cause I don't even
want to wear sandals to school again. On]]
account of sandals don't protect toes from
getting hurt."
Mother thought for a minute.
Then she went to my closet. And she got
out my old red sneakers. And she cut a hole
in the top of one of them with my scissors.
She held it up for me to see.
"Ta-da! What do you know? The hole
was right where my sore piggy toe would
be!
Mother helped me put on my red socks.
Then she slid the holey sneaker on my foot
very careful.
And surprise, surprise!
It didn't even hurt, hardly!
After breakfast, Mother drove me to
school again.
Only at first, when I went to my room, I]]
felt kind of shy about my sneaker hole. And
so I snuck to my seat and I showed it to my
friend Herb in private.
And guess what?
Herbert's whole face lighted up.
"A window," he said. "You've got a
window in your shoe."
I did a giggle at that idea.
"Hey, yeah," I said. "A piggy toe
window."
Just then, Sheldon came hurrying into
Room One.
He had a shiny red Band-Aid on his
forehead.
He stood in the front of the room. And
he pointed to it with his finger.
"No one touch this, please!" he said real
loud.
He turned to Mr. Scary.]]
"Even though I came back to school
today, I'm still not totally right up here," he
said.
Mr. Scary nodded. "Oh yes, Sheldon.
I'm very aware of that," he said.
Sheldon kept on talking. "I probably
shouldn't play in the kickball tournament
on Friday, either," he said. '"Cause what if
I'm standing at home plate ... and a ball
starts rolling at me . . . and then it hits a
rock ... and it bounces up and smacks me
in the Band-Aid ... and I get a bump on
top of my bump?"
He did a little shiver. "Double bumps
would not be good," he said.
Mr. Scary looked at him. 
"No, Sheldon. Double bumps would
not be good," he said. "But don't worry.
Between now and then I'm sure we can]]
come up with something else you can do in
the tournament."
After that, Mr. Scary glanced over at me.
"And don't you worry, either, Junie B.," he
said. "We'll think of something else you can
do, too. Okay?"
I raised my eyebrows at that guy.
"Yeah, but I don't want to do something
else, Mr. Scary," I said. "I want to play in
the kickball game. I've been practicing
really hard."
Mr. Scary smiled kind of sad.
"Yes. I'm sure you have, Junie B.," he
said. "But your toe is already sore. And I
doubt if you'll feel like kicking a ball with it
by Friday."
I sat there a minute.
'Cause I never even thought of that
problem before.]]
All of a sudden, my shoulders felt very
slumping.
I put my head on my desk. And I hid
under my sweater.
'Cause now I would never be the star of
the kickball tournament.
And that had been the happiest daydream
of my life.]]
Choices
Tuesday
Dear first grade journal,
recess was not fun today. I sat on the playground. And I stared at my sore toe through my piggy toe window. Sheldon sat next to me. He kept pressing on his band and and saying ouch. I told him to knock it off.]]
I am not in a good mood. From Junie B. first grader
After I got done writing, I heard talking in
the front of the room.
I looked up.
Lucille was standing at Mr. Scary' s desk.
Camille and -Chenille were standing
there, too.
All of them were blabbering at the exact
same time.
Mr. Scary covered his ears.
Finally, he said whoa, whoa, whoa at
them. And he pointed for them to sit back
down.
After that, Mr. Scary stood up. And he]]
walked to the front of the room.
"Boys and girls . . . it has come to my
attention that not everyone in Room One
wants to play in the kickball tournament,"
he said.
His eyes glanced over to Camille and
Chenille.
"It seems that two of our classmates
would rather be cheerleaders," he said.
"And another one would like to be-"
This time, his eyes glanced at Lucille.
"-homecoming queen," he said.
Lucille sprang right up.
"No, no. Princess!" she called out. "I
want to be homecoming princess, Mr.
Scary! Not queen! Princesses are way
cuter than queens. Plus princesses aren't
old."]]
She looked at the children and fluffed
herself.
"Wait till you see me, everyone. I'm
going to have a beautiful float made out of
pink rose petals," she said. "And there will
be a golden throne for me to sit on."
She looked all around the room.
"Maybe a few of you girls might like to
be my attendants," she said. "But my
nanna will have to look you over first."
Mr, Scary went to the sink in the back of
the room. And he took an aspirin.
Room One started buzzing about
Lucille.
Then some of the children started thinking
about different jobs that they could
have in the tournament, too.
"Hey! Maybe I can be the game
announcer on the loudspeaker," said Roger.]]
"And after the game I can pour root beer
on all the winners!"
"Yeah," said Shirley. "And I could sell
Rice Krispie Treats! My mother says those
things are all profit."
Just then, May jumped up.
"And I could do crowd control!" she
called out. '"Cause I already have a badge
at home. And so all I'll need is a big stick to
poke people with. And a gas mask."
Mr. Scary took another aspirin.
Then he walked back to his desk. And
he took a deep breath.
"Okay. Here's the best I'm going to do
for you guys," he said. "I'll give everyone in
here two choices of jobs. You can either
play in the game as part of the team. Or
you can be a cheerleader. But that's it.
That's my best offer."]]

Subjective Criteria

Illustrations: No support

Dialog: Multiple speakers

Dialog: Broken dialogue

Vocabulary: More decoding/definition issues

Language: Few descriptive words

Sentences: Multiple phrases

Text structure: Blend of written/oral

Table of Contents

Chapters

Features

Character traits

Clear cause/effect

Simple Plot

Topic

Teacher/Teaching

Practice

Accidents

Hurt

*Entertainment & Fun

*Human Body & Health

*Schools & Education

Performing

Low Frequency Words

accidentally	account	announcer	aspirin	attendants
blabbering	chenille	confetti	daydreamed	daylights
doke	doubt	fault	flinged	further
gulp	happiest	herb	herbert's	holey
hollered	homecoming	impressed	injured	journal
knob	limping	loudspeaker	mention	nanna
okey	piggies	pour	practicing	previous
private	profit	refrigerator	rushy	sandals
sarcastic	scissors	sheldon	sheldon's	slided
sniffle	speechless	spied	sprang	suspicious
sweater	tilted	tissues	tournament	uncalled
whizzy	worser	worstest	wrinkled	yanked