Ds has been on level 3 since about Christmas and I signed him to Reading Chest a few weeks ago - the yellow/third band. School send home Biff et al usually and, though we have only had 12 Reading Chest books so far, I have noticed that they all seem far more challenging than those he gets from school. It's not so much the vocabulary but the texts seem longer and there seem to be more complex sentences and less repetition in the Reading Chest books - which ever scheme the book comes from.
He copes very well with them - reads most words on sight, sounds out others and nearly always blends correctly independently. His comprhension is excellent so I was thinking about moving him up on Reading Chest but decided not to - mainly because he doesn't notice punctuation much unless prompted. When he gets to a full-stop his intonation never sounds right etc
Anyway, today the ta has written in his reading record that she has put him up to level 6. The book she has sent is Rigby Star Yellow band - I thought yellow band was level 3? 
. He didn't have time to read tonight but I have looked through it and it really doesn't seem 3 levels higher than, for example, the Big Cat phonics level 3 book we currently have from Reading Chest. According to Reading Chest, level 6 equates to orange band.
I suppose it doesn't matter too much as he is clearly making progress but I would really like to know which level he is really on!