Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Dot gov

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

HTTPS

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock (LockA locked padlock) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

    • Environmental Topics
    • Air
    • Bed Bugs
    • Cancer
    • Chemicals, Toxics, and Pesticide
    • Emergency Response
    • Environmental Information by Location
    • Health
    • Land, Waste, and Cleanup
    • Lead
    • Mold
    • Radon
    • Research
    • Science Topics
    • Water Topics
    • A-Z Topic Index
    • Laws & Regulations
    • By Business Sector
    • By Topic
    • Compliance
    • Enforcement
    • Laws and Executive Orders
    • Regulations
    • Report a Violation
    • Environmental Violations
    • Fraud, Waste or Abuse
    • About EPA
    • Our Mission and What We Do
    • Headquarters Offices
    • Regional Offices
    • Labs and Research Centers
    • Planning, Budget, and Results
    • Organization Chart
    • EPA History

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Choose Fish and Shellfish Wisely

Readability for Developing and Pretesting Concepts, Messages, Materials, and Activities

Related Information

Develop and Pretest Concepts, Messages, Materials, and Activities

Readability levels. Readability is an important measurement tool, but it is only a rough indicator of some aspects of comprehension. Therefore, it should not be mistakenly considered the prime indicator of easy-to-use information. There is no single best readability level, given the diversity of American’s health literacy skills. Readability should not exceed 7th to 8th grade (average), the lower end of the estimated average reading level of the U.S. population. In addition, because many people read below that level, a 4th to 6th grade level (easy) is a better goal for information that is critical for people to understand (such as medication instructions) or that is delivered to groups with lower health literacy (such as older adults). Most health risk information can be written well at about a 6th grade level without sacrificing content or style. Most current health communications are written above the 9th grade (difficult) level. For more information, refer to helpful readability discussion in the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Toolkit. 

Toolkit for Making Written Material Clear and Effective, Section 4: Special topics for writing and design, Part 7 Using readability formulas:

Readability testing. There are more than 40 readability tests, and their reliability at various grade-reading levels differs, as do their underlying readability formulas. The listed validated tools are widely used.

  • SMOG (the Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook test)
  • The Fry Readability Test
  • The Flesch Reading Ease Test
  • The Lexile® Framework for Reading
  • The Flesch-Kincaid Readability Test is incorporated into Microsoft Word’s (Microsoft, Redmond, WA) readability software and is easily accessible. However, the formula is truncated at a 12th-grade level in Microsoft Word and frequently presents falsely low evaluations.

Because the readability tests vary in their reliability at various grade levels (especially below 6th grade and above 12th grade) and because draft health communication materials often contain text at many readability levels, it is recommended to assess materials using multiple tests (excluding the Flesch-Kincaid test). Content should be sampled, prepared, and tested according to the test instructions. 

Choose Fish and Shellfish Wisely

  • Should I Be Concerned about Eating Fish and Shellfish?
  • EPA-FDA Advice about Eating Fish and Shellfish
  • Eat Fish and Shellfish in a Healthy Way
  • How Do I Know if a Fish I Caught is Contaminated?
  • What the EPA Does to Protect You From Contaminated Fish and Shellfish
  • Technical Resources and Studies
  • Building Fish and Shellfish Advisory Programs
    • Designing a Fish and Shellfish Contaminant Monitoring Program
      • Integrated Approach Monitoring Strategy
      • Multi-phase Approach Monitoring Strategy
      • Sampling Sites
      • Target Species and Size Classes
      • Target Contaminants
      • Sampling Times and Frequency
      • Fish Sample Types
      • Shellfish Sample Types
      • Quality Assurance and Quality Control
      • Sample Analysis
    • In the Field - Collecting and Handling Samples
      • Sample Collection
      • Sample Handling
    • In the Lab - Processing and Analyzing Samples
      • Receiving Samples
      • Processing Samples
      • Analytical Methods
      • Quality Assurance and Quality Control
      • Data Verification, Reporting and Validation
    • Analyzing Data and Calculating the Consumption Limits
    • Developing a Fish and/or Shellfish Advisory
Contact Us about Fish and Shellfish Consumption
Contact Us to ask a question, provide feedback, or report a problem.
Last updated on September 19, 2024
  • Assistance
  • Spanish
  • Arabic
  • Chinese (simplified)
  • Chinese (traditional)
  • French
  • Haitian Creole
  • Korean
  • Portuguese
  • Russian
  • Tagalog
  • Vietnamese
United States Environmental Protection Agency

Discover.

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Budget & Performance
  • Contracting
  • EPA www Web Snapshot
  • Grants
  • No FEAR Act Data
  • Plain Writing
  • Privacy
  • Privacy and Security Notice

Connect.

  • Data
  • Inspector General
  • Jobs
  • Newsroom
  • Regulations.gov
  • Subscribe
  • USA.gov
  • White House

Ask.

  • Contact EPA
  • EPA Disclaimers
  • Hotlines
  • FOIA Requests
  • Frequent Questions
  • Site Feedback

Follow.

Environmental Protection Agency logo
www.epa.gov Feedback Survey

Welcome! Please share your feedback on how we can make www.epa.gov work better for you.

A red asterisk (*) indicates a required field.

Success

Thank you. Your feedback has been received.

Error

alert message

Required Questions - page 1 of 2
question_55203_answer_01
*

400 characters allowed
Would you like to take two more minutes to answer more questions to help us improve our services?
Yes, keep going →
← Back
Optional questions - page 2 of 2
How would you describe yourself?
400 characters allowed
400 characters allowed
400 characters allowed
U.S. flag

An official form of the United States government. Provided by Touchpoints
OMB Approval #1090-0008 · Expiration Date 11/30/2027