How Do I Select Books for Elementary?
Selecting books for the classroom is an important investment that I take very seriously. In my classroom we have a 30 minute read aloud with discussion every day for the entire six years of elementary, and we also have literature circles that meet 2-3 times a week for discussion. I want to ensure that the books we read are worth our time!
Engaging
First and foremost, the book should be an enjoyable page-turner. A dull book that meets all the other criteria, is a slog that no one enjoys. Part of this is ensuring that the book is developmentally appropriate. Not too hard, not too easy.
Deeper Meaning
Underlying themes that lead to rich discussion. The book should have an impact on the child’s life and should have ideas that are widely applicable.
Enriching Style
The books should be well written, with interesting language, technique and style. Dialogue should be engaging, descriptions should be rich, action should be exciting! Only use unabridged versions.
Inspiring
These books have heroes (and villains!) with agency. Characters that make hard decisions and fight for what is good and true. The characters should show children what life can be like and how people can achieve greatness.
The three kinds of reading…
Bookmark this page, as I read more books, I’ll add good ones to the list!
I have included an Amazon affiliate link to every book on this page. These are for your convenience. I do receive a small percentage from every purchase without any increase to your price.
Lower Elementary
Books marked with * are exemplar pieces of literature, but should be read by the adult first. Some of the content may be intense for your particular children.
First Year Books
Read Aloud
- Adventures of the Little Wooden Horse by Ursula Murray Williams
- The Storm by Cynthia Rylant
- Lady Lollipop by Dick King-Smith
- The Pagemaster by David Kirschner
- The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh
- The King’s Equal by Katherine Paterson
- Hatchiko Waits by Leslie Newman
- Billy and Blaze by C. W. Anderson
- Two Times the Fun by Beverly Cleary
- The Bears on Hemlock Mountain by Alice Dalgliesh
Literature Circles
- The Josefina Story Quilt by Eleanor Coerr
- Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie by Connie Roop
- Prairie School by Avi
- Daniel’s Duck by Clyde Robert Bulla
- Russell Sprouts by Johanna Hurwitz
- The Bravest Dog Ever: The True Story of Balto by Natalie Stanford
- Wagon Wheels by Barbara Brenner
Independent Reading
- Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel – I Can Read Collection
- Buffalo Bill and the Pony Express by Eleanor Coerr
- The Long Way Westward by Joan Sandin
Second Year Books
Read Aloud
- The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
- The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo*
- Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- Poppy by Avi
- Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
- The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman
Literature Circles
- Gossamer by Lois Lowry*
- The Cricket in Times Square by George Seldon
- Babe: The Gallant Pig by Dick King-Smith
- Shadrach by Meindert DeJong
- Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
- The Boxcar Children #1 by Gertrude Chandler Warner
Independent Reading
- Roald Dahl Collection
- Emilie’s Runaway Imagination by Beverly Cleary
- Magic Treehouse by Mary Pope Osborne – Series
- The Borrowers by Mary Norton
- The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner – Series
Third Year Books
Read Aloud
- Abel’s Island by William Steig
- Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
- Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White
- The Wheel on the School by Meindert DeJong
- Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
- Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
Literature Circles
- Frindle by Andrew Clements
- The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
- Mr. Poppers Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater
- The Real Thief by William Steig
- The Kite Fighters by Linda Sue Park
Independent Reading
- Holes by Louis Sachar
- The Fairy Rebel by Lynn Reid Banks
- Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
- Tales from the Odyssey by Mary Pope Osborne
- The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
Upper Elementary
Fourth Year Books
Read Aloud
- A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
- Masterpiece by Elise Broach
- Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
- The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynn Reid Banks
- The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
- Dragon: Hound of Honor by Julie Andrews Edwards
- The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Literature Circles
- From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
- Half Magic by Edward Eager
- The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
- The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop
- Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (don’t watch the movie adaptation. It’s awful.)
- Number the Stars by Louis Lowry
Independent Reading
- Midnight Magic by Avi
- Mouse Guard Comic Books by David Peterson
- Artemis Fowl Series 1-3 by Eoin Colfer
- Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black
- Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
- The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander
Fifth Year Books
Read Aloud
- A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park
- Johnny Tremain by Ester Forbes
- Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH Robert C. O’Brien
- The Call of the Wild by Jack London
- The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
- Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson
- The Endless Steppe by Eleanor Hautzig
- True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
- The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg
Literature Circles
- The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maude Montgomery
- Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry
- Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
- The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
- Old Yeller by Fred Gipson
- The Golden Goblet by Eloise McGraw
- Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
Independent Reading
- A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
- Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
- A Wrinkle in Time by L’Engle
Sixth Year Books
Read Aloud
- Theras and his Town by Carline Dale Snedeker
- The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy
- The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
- The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
- Saint Joan by George Bernard Shaw
- Man-Eaters of Kumaon by Jim Corbett
- Black Ships Before Troy by Rosemary Sutcliff
- Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Literature Circles
- Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbit
- White Fang by Jack London
- Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
- The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare
- Beowulf: A New Telling by Robert Nye
- Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
- Anthem by Ayn Rand
- The Giver by Louis Lowry
Independent Reading
- His Dark Materials Series by Philip Pullman
- The Giver Quartet by Louis Lowry
- Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
- Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card
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