Fold 1
- Ages
- 4–6
- Reading grade
- Pre-K–K
- Stage
- First Reader
- Book
- 6 × 9 in, 24 pp
- Words
- 107
- Words a sentence
- 3.3
- Longest sentence
- 7 words
- Flesch–Kincaid grade
- -1.7
For educators
Six books on one animal, from a child's first book to read alone to popular science for adults. A class can study the same facts with every reader in a book they can manage.
The reading ladder
Measured on each book's reader-facing text with the Flesch–Kincaid formula, the same count the books are checked against before print.
| Measure | Fold 1 | Fold 2 | Fold 3 | Fold 4 | Fold 5 | Fold 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ages | 4–6 | 6–8 | 8–10 | 10–12 | 12+ | 12+ |
| Reading grade | Pre-K–K | K–2 | 1–2 | 2–4 | 4–7 | not graded |
| Stage | First Reader | Read Together | Early Reader | Explorer | Field Guide | Deep Dive |
| Book | 6 × 9 in, 24 pp | 8.5 × 8.5 in, 32 pp | 6 × 9 in, 32 pp | 8 × 10 in, 40 pp | 8 × 10 in, 48 pp | 6 × 9 in, 64 pp |
| Words | 107 | 249 | 530 | 2,103 | 4,671 | 7,345 |
| Words a sentence | 3.3 | 5.8 | 6.5 | 8.4 | 10.9 | 19.3 |
| Longest sentence | 7 words | 12 words | 10 words | 19 words | 27 words | 45 words |
| Flesch–Kincaid grade | -1.7 | 0.9 read aloud | -0.1 | 2.7 | 4.7 | 9.3 |
Fold 2
- Ages
- 6–8
- Reading grade
- K–2
- Stage
- Read Together
- Book
- 8.5 × 8.5 in, 32 pp
- Words
- 249
- Words a sentence
- 5.8
- Longest sentence
- 12 words
- Flesch–Kincaid grade
- 0.9 read aloud
Fold 3
- Ages
- 8–10
- Reading grade
- 1–2
- Stage
- Early Reader
- Book
- 6 × 9 in, 32 pp
- Words
- 530
- Words a sentence
- 6.5
- Longest sentence
- 10 words
- Flesch–Kincaid grade
- -0.1
Fold 4
- Ages
- 10–12
- Reading grade
- 2–4
- Stage
- Explorer
- Book
- 8 × 10 in, 40 pp
- Words
- 2,103
- Words a sentence
- 8.4
- Longest sentence
- 19 words
- Flesch–Kincaid grade
- 2.7
Fold 5
- Ages
- 12+
- Reading grade
- 4–7
- Stage
- Field Guide
- Book
- 8 × 10 in, 48 pp
- Words
- 4,671
- Words a sentence
- 10.9
- Longest sentence
- 27 words
- Flesch–Kincaid grade
- 4.7
Fold 6
- Ages
- 12+
- Reading grade
- not graded
- Stage
- Deep Dive
- Book
- 6 × 9 in, 64 pp
- Words
- 7,345
- Words a sentence
- 19.3
- Longest sentence
- 45 words
- Flesch–Kincaid grade
- 9.3
Using the set with mixed readers
Start everyone on one fact
Open the ladder on the board and pick a fact. Each fold tells the same fact in its own words, so the whole class can talk about it together, whatever they are reading.
Hand out by fold, not by name
Children choose the fold that fits them this week and move up when they are ready. Because the facts match, a group reading different folds can still compare notes.
Climb one rung
A confident reader reads a fact in their own fold, then the next fold up, and tells a partner what the deeper version adds.
Let the youngest listen
Where narration is available, Read to me lights each sentence as it is spoken. It suits pre-readers and children new to English.
Trace a sentence to its source
Older students pick a sentence, find its fact in the fact bank and open the source behind it. It is a short lesson in checking what you read.
Fold by fold
Tab the Cat
Fold 1 · First Reader · Ages 4–6
What it is for
Tab is short for tabby. Tabby is a coat pattern, not a breed. Teach the four Story Words with their pictures first: tabby, M, stripes and swirls. Every other word on the reading pages uses sounds taught through UFLI Lesson 41 or a Heart Word. The big cat on pages 13 and 14 is a rare king cheetah; its name is not yet decodable, so the child spots its stripes and blots and you can name it together. The notes at the back give the facts behind the pictures. The last pages model a kind hello: sit and let a cat come to you.
Talk about it
Questions the book asks its reader:
- Who is it?
Words
- tabby
- striped cat
- M
- head mark
- stripes
- lines
- swirls
- curls
Hello, Tabby!
Fold 2 · Read Together · Ages 6–8
What it is for
Read aloud and pause so your child can join the bold sound words and answer the questions; they are invitations, not a test. Tabby is a coat pattern, not a breed. The book follows six surprises: a letter M on the forehead, stripes with bracelets and necklaces, one gene that turns stripes into swirls, the rare king cheetah that shares it, a stripe map laid down before birth, and a cat that chooses its friends. Supervise every meeting with a real cat. For a child reading alone, try Fold 1, Tab the Cat, then Fold 3, Tabby Cats: Stripes, Swirls and a Letter M.
Talk about it
Questions the book asks its reader:
- Shall we meet a tabby cat?
- How does it get its stripes?
- Can you draw an M?
- Can you find a necklace?
- Which color do you like?
- What toy would you wiggle?
Words
This fold has no glossary or word list.
Tabby Cats: Stripes, Swirls and a Letter M
Fold 3 · Early Reader · Ages 8–10
What it is for
Read page 3's pictured words together first: tabby, M, mackerel, swirl and cheetah. Each is bold at first use. Most words sound out with first-grade phonics; read tail, bullseye, rare, breed, brown, silver, wild, first, change, balloon and toy for your child. Tabby is a coat pattern, not a breed. Page 30 has a quiz with answers. Let a cat start and end contact. Before this: Fold 1, Tab the Cat; next: Fold 4, Tabby Cats: The Secret of the Stripes.
Talk about it
From the book's quiz:
- Where are the rings on a mackerel tabby?
- What can make thin stripes swirl?
- What rare cat has the same gene?
- When does a tabby get its stripes?
- How can you help a cat come to you?
Words
- tabby
- a striped cat with an M on its face
- M
- a letter
- mackerel
- a tabby with thin stripes
- swirl
- a big, round stripe
- cheetah
- a big, fast wild cat
Tabby Cats: The Secret of the Stripes
Fold 4 · Explorer · Ages 10–12
What it is for
Fold 4 is for readers of about 10 to 12 who read on their own. Each chapter opens with a big picture and a question, then mixes short text with Wow! boxes and questions from Mila and Omar. The quiz is on page 36, the glossary on page 37, How We Know on page 38 and the sources on page 39. Help with Taqpep (TAK-pep) and agouti (uh-GOO-tee) if needed. Children should meet cats with an adult nearby and let a cat approach and leave freely. A veterinarian is the right guide for a real cat's health. For an easier read, try Fold 3, Tabby Cats: Stripes, Swirls and a Letter M. For more depth, try Fold 5, Tabby Cats: A Field Guide to Coat Patterns.
Talk about it
From the book's quiz:
- What letter can you find on every tabby's forehead?
- Where does a mackerel tabby wear bracelets and necklaces?
- What turns thin stripes into big swirls?
- Which wild cat shares that swirl gene?
- When is a tabby's stripe pattern laid out?
- How should you say hello to a cat?
Words
- agouti hair
- A hair with light and dark bands. Agouti hairs make a tabby's lighter background.
- classic tabby
- A tabby with big swirls and a bullseye on each side, also called a blotched tabby.
- follicle
- The tiny pocket in the skin that a hair grows from.
- gene
- An instruction a cat gets from its parents, one copy from each.
- king cheetah
- A rare cheetah whose spots join into blotches and stripes.
- mackerel tabby
- A tabby with thin stripes down its sides and rings on its legs and tail.
- torbie
- A patched tabby, with tabby markings and patches of red or cream. Most are female.
- wildcat
- The wild cat that house cats come from. Its coat is striped.
Tabby Cats: A Field Guide to Coat Patterns
Fold 5 · Field Guide · Ages 12+
What it is for
This field guide is for readers 12 and up. Read a chapter together, then talk through the field notes, Scientist spotlights and Try it boxes. Chapter 9 shows how to name a cat's coat pattern without disturbing the cat; please supervise any watch of a real cat. Chapter 10 covers everyday care, and a vet is the right person to ask about any one cat's needs. The glossary is on pages 43–44 and the index on page 45. For a gentler start, try Fold 4, Tabby Cats: The Secret of the Stripes; to go further, read Fold 6, Tabby Cats, Unfolded.
Talk about it
Questions the book asks its reader:
- Which of these patterns have you already seen on a real cat, and where?
- Will you look closely with me before we decide what anything means?
- Will you ask with me how sure each claim is?
- Why might the M be easier to see on some cats than on others?
- If a friend says their cat is a tabby breed, what question could you ask?
- Where on a mackerel tabby would you look first for the bracelets?
Words
- Agouti hair
- A hair with alternating light and dark bands. Agouti hairs make the lighter background of a tabby coat.
- Ancestral
- Belonging to an animal's ancestors. The mackerel stripe is the ancestral tabby pattern.
- Blotched tabby
- Another name for the classic tabby.
- Classic tabby
- A tabby with wide swirls and, on each side, a blotch circled by rings, like a bullseye.
- Dkk4
- Dickkopf 4, a signal that helps lay out the tabby pattern. A changed Dkk4 gene makes the ticked pattern.
- Dominant
- Shown when an animal has just one copy of a gene version. Mackerel is dominant to blotched.
- Edn3
- A signal made in hair follicles. Follicles in dark stripes make more of it.
- Feral cat
- A house cat living without an owner.
- Field mark
- A feature that helps you recognize an animal by sight.
- Follicle
- A tiny pocket in the skin that a hair grows from.
- Gene
- A section of DNA, the code passed from parents to young.
- Ghost markings
- Faint tabby markings that some black cats can show, mostly while young.
Tabby Cats, Unfolded: The Science of a Striped Coat
Fold 6 · Deep Dive · Ages 12+
What it is for
For teenagers and adults. Each of the first chapters follows one of the six surprises in the Tabby Cats episode, the same six told more simply in Tab the Cat, Hello, Tabby!, Tabby Cats: Stripes, Swirls and a Letter M, Tabby Cats: The Secret of the Stripes and Tabby Cats: A Field Guide to Coat Patterns. The evidence is named as it is used: cat registry descriptions of tabby patterns, the Taqpep and Edn3 work of 2012, the embryo and Dkk4 work of 2021, studies of cat domestication and ancient cat DNA, and the feline environmental needs guidelines behind the chapters on greeting, play and home. There is no health content; questions about a particular cat belong with a veterinarian. AI writing tools assisted drafting and editing; illustrations are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Talk about it
Questions the book asks its reader:
- Those surprises answer one question, the one the episode asked: how does a tabby cat get its stripes?
- If mackerel is the old coat, when did the swirls appear?
Words
This fold has no glossary or word list.