Primary School Each Primary School grade level has at least one required book title, which you will find in bold print. Beginning with second grade, we have included a suggested reading list. We recommend that parents become involved with the reading activities by either reading together or having occasional “book talks.” Please contact your child’s teacher(s) for ideas on how to structure “fun family” reading time.
Jr. Pre-Kindergarten Students The Kissing Hand, Audrey Penn: When Chester the raccoon is reluctant to go to kindergarten for the first time, his mother teaches him a secret way to carry her love with him.
Jr. Pre-Kindergarten Parents Love and Logic Magic for Early Childhood: Practical Parenting from Birth to Six Years, Jim Fay and Charles Fay, Ph.D.
Pre-Kindergarten The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle: The book follows a ravenous caterpillar's path as he eats his way through one apple (and the pages of the book itself) on Monday, two pears on Tuesday, three plums on Wednesday, and so on, through cherry pie and sausage — until he is really fat and has a stomachache. Vivid and colorful illustrations and ingenious layered pages help preschoolers learn the days of the week, how to count, and the life cycle of a butterfly.
Pre-Kindergarten Parents Einstein Never Used Flash Cards, Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Roberta Michnick Golinkhoff
Kindergarten Chrysanthemum, Kevin Henkes: She was a perfect baby, and she had a perfect name--Chrysanthemum. When she was old enough to appreciate it, Chrysanthemum loved her name. And then she started school. "I'm named after my grandmother," said Victoria, "but you're named after a flower." school, things were not good. They didn't improve for Chrysanthemum, and she wilted. Things got even worse. Then, the students were introduced to their music teacher, Mrs. Twinkle--Mrs. Delphinium Twinkle. And suddenly, Chrysanthemum blossomed. In this award-winning picture book, favorite author/illustrator Henkes once again demonstrates his talent for capturing the difficult dramas of childhood in simple text and cartoon-like illustrations.
First Grade Have Fun, Molly Lou Melon, Patty Lovell Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon, Patty Lovell: In these two books, Molly Lou Melon’s grandmother teaches her some of life’s most important lessons. She learns the importance and value of being herself, using her imagination, and loving who she is. 1|Page
Primary School Second Grade Freckleface Strawberry, Julianne Moore: Wanting to look like everyone else, a spunky seven-year-old becomes determined to get rid of her freckles once and for all, but after a series of amusing treatments and disguises, she meets an accepting friend who gives her the support she needs to come to terms with being the wonderfully unique person she is and will always be. Three Cheers for Tacky, Helen Lester: Tacky is back and ready to help his team win the shiny, first-place bow ties in the penguin-cheering contest.
Second Grade Suggested Reading List Amelia Bedelia (series), Peggy Parish Best Friends for Frances, Russell Hoban Cam Jansen (series), David Adler George and Martha and Friends (17 titles), James Marshall Henry and Mudge (series), Cynthia Rylant Horrible Harry (series), Suzy Kline Jigsaw Jones (series), James Preller Magic Tree House (series), Mary Pope Osborne Marvin Redpost (series), Louis Sachar Nate the Great (series), Marjorie Weinman Sharmat The New Kid on the Block (poetry), Jack Prelutsky Pinky and Rex (series), James Howe A Pizza the Size of the Sun (poetry), Jack Prelutsky The Salamander Room, Anne Mazer A Weekend with Wendell, Kevin Henkes Where the Sidewalk Ends (poetry), Shel Silverstein We also recommend books by the following authors: Marc Brown, Jack Prelutsky, Tomie de Paola, Vera B. Williams, Beverly Cleary, Bill Peet, Shel Silverstein, Jan Brett, Chris Van Allsburg, and Judy Blume.
Third Grade Dolphins at Daybreak, Mary Pope Osbourne (Magic Tree House Series #9): This book begins the third set of four books in the magical (and increasingly popular) series! Jack and Annie are off in the Magic Tree House again, this time to a whole new world under the ocean. Complete with a giant octopus, a hungry shark, and dolphins to the rescue, this Magic Tree House book delivers an underwater adventure kids can dream about.
2|Page
Primary School Third Grade Suggested Reading List Beezus and Ramona, Beverly Cleary Bunnicula, D. & J. Howe Bunnicula Strikes Again, D. & J. Howe Catwings, Ursula K. LeGuin Catwings Return, Ursula K. LeGuin *Charlotte’s Web, E.B. White *The Chocolate Touch, Patrick Catling Dolphin Tale: The Junior Novel Gabrielle Reyes Encyclopedia Brown (series), Donald J. Sobol Frindle, Andrew Clements Forever Amber Brown (series), Paula Danziger *Herbie Jones, Suzy Kline How to be Cool in Third Grade, Besty Duffey *The Indian in the Cupboard (series), Lynne Banks I Was a Third Grade Science Project, Mary Jane Auch A Light in the Attic (poetry), Shel Siverstein *The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis The Magic Schoolbus (series), Joanna Cole *More Stories Julian Tells, Ann Cameron The Mouse and the Motorcycle, Beverly Cleary Muggie Maggie, Beverly Cleary *Pearl’s Promise, Frank Asch Pony Pals (series), Jeanne Betancourt Ralph S. Mouse, Beverly Cleary *Ramona the Pest, Beverly Cleary *Sara Crewe, Frances Burnett Scholastic Children’s Dictionary, Scholastic *The Secret Garden, Frances Burnett Shiloh, Phyllis R. Naylor Shiloh Season, Phyllis R. Naylor *Sideways Stories from Wayside School (series), Louis Sachar *The Sign of the Beaver, Elizabeth Speare Sir Cumference & the First Round Table: A Math Adventure, Cindy Neuschwander *Skinnybones, Barbara Park Soccer Halfback (series), Matt Christopher *The Stories Julian Tells, Ann Cameron Where the Sidewalk Ends (poetry), Shel Silverstein *Books marked with an asterisk are suggested to be read aloud with a parent.
3|Page
Primary School Fourth Grade Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Judy Blume: Any fourth-grader would agree that Peter Hatcher has a terrible problem—his little brother, Fudge. What happens to the Hatcher family in the end makes for a mixture of hilarity and a little more understanding on everyone’s part.
Fourth Grade Suggested Reading List Baseball’s Best: Five True Stories, Andrew Gutille Baseball Card Adventure, (series) Dan Gutman Because of Winn Dixie, Kate DiCamillo The Black Cauldron, Lloyd Alexander The Bridge to Terabithia, Katherine Patterson Chasing Redbird, Sharon Creech The Cricket in Times Square, George Selden The Dragonling, Jackie French Koller From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, E.L. Konigsburg The Giver, Lois Lowry Harriet the Spy, Louise Fitzhugh Holes, Louis Sachar The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien Imagine That! Poems of Never Was, Jack Prelutsky The Indian in the Cupboard, Lynne Reid Banks James and the Giant Peach, Roald Dahl Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World, Mildred Pitts Walter Lily’s Crossing, Patricia Reilly Giff Lou Gehrig: the Luckiest Man, David Adler Mandy, Julie Andrews Edwards Mary on Horseback: Three Mountain Stories, Rosemary Wells Misty of Chincoteague, Marguerite Henry The Mouse and the Motorcycle, Beverly Cleary Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, Robert C. O’Brien My Side of the Mountain, Jean Craighead George My Teacher is an Alien, Bruce Coville Native American Doctor: The Story of Susan LaFlesche Picotte, Jeri Ferris Number the Stars, Lois Lowry A Pocketful of Goobers: A Story About George Washington Carver, Barbara Mitchell Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, Mildred Taylor Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, Eleanor Coerr Shiloh, Phyllis Reynold Anaylor Sideways Stories from Wayside School, Louis Sachar Trumpet of the Swan, E.B. White The Whipping Boy, Sid Fleischman A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle Tuck Everlasting, Natalie Babbit 4|Page