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Accuracy - Check to
see if the author has education or experience that enables him/her
to write about the subject. The book should be based on fact, not just
the author’s opinion. Check the spelling and grammar
in the text. Make sure the information is up-to-date enough for your
topic. |
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I can find the author’s name easily on the cover or title page. |
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There’s an About the Author page that tells
me about the author. |
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The author has written other books on this subject. |
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I have found other books that agree with the information
in this book. |
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When I look on the back of the title page (verso),
I can find the copyright date. |
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For my research topic, I need up-to-date information.
The copyright date tells me that the book is no more than five years
old. |
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When I read the book, the grammar, spelling, and
sentence structure are correct. |
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There is a bibliography in the book that tells
me the author read a lot about the topic before writing the book. |
Appropriateness – Check to see if
the book has features that get your attention and help you to find and
understand the information you need. Use the “five finger rule”*
to decide if the book is at a reading level that is right for you. |
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There is a Table of Contents. |
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The chapter names and page numbers in the Table
of Contents tell me where to look for information about my topic. |
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There is an Index at the end of the book. |
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When I look in a chapter, there are headings
in different sizes and colors that make it easy to tell what each section
is about and to locate information. |
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The photographs and illustrations help me to understand
the information. |
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There are captions or labels on most photographs
or illustrations that help me to understand the information. |
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Extra fact boxes in each chapter tell me interesting
things. |
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New words are in bold font in the text. |
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There is a glossary with definitions of new words
in the book. |
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The author provides a list that includes extra
resources that will help me find more information about my topic, such
as books, videos, DVDs, audio tapes, and Web sites. |
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When I use the Five Finger Rule*, I know this
book is not too difficult for me to read. I know that I will probably
be able to understand the information. |
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This book is written in a way that really gets
my attention. I want to read the whole book! |
*The Five Finger Rule is a handy little
trick that helps you to decide if a book is too easy or too hard to
you to read. This is how it works: Pick any page from the book and
start reading at the top of the page. When you come to a word that
you don’t
understand, put down a finger. If you can make it all the way to the
end of the page BEFORE all five fingers are down, you should have no
trouble reading the book. |
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Scope – Check to see if there is enough information to help you learn about and understand your topic. Check to see if the book presents information in an order that makes sense to you. |
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The title of the book tells me that this book
has information that will help me answer my questions. |
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I can tell from the Table of Contents and Index
that this book provides a lot of information about my topic that will
be helpful and answer my questions. |
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This book provides information that does not
exactly match my topic, but it gives me extra information that helps
me to learn more about my topic. |
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When I look at the Index, I am able to find
some of the words that match my topic (keywords or search terms), along
with page numbers. This tells me that I will be able to find information
on my topic. |
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The book is arranged so that I can find information
easily. It makes sense to me. |
Web Site Evaluation | Print Evaluation | Audio Visual Evaluation
Contact: Zena Harvley-Felder, 919.807.3284, zfelder@dpi.state.nc.us