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Grades 3-5

May/June/Summer

During this past year, this site has featured children’s favorite books. This section reflects those books beloved by our staff. This is the same information that will appear on both the K-2 recommendations and the 3-5 ones. Books that are appropriate for the younger set are in red; those that are best for those 9 and up are in blue. (If you have been following the suggestions this year, you will notice that many of the adult favorities were the same as those picked by the students.)

Realistic fiction	Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo The Secret Garden by Frances Burnett Both of these books have been made into movies – but they are definitely worth reading Love You Forever by Robert Munsch Wednesday Surprise, The, by Eve Bunting
Historical fiction	Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder )These series, and Farmer Boy is particular, were favorites of every one of our staff that submitted suggestions! Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
Science fiction/fantasy	Harry Pottter by J.K. Rowling (any in the series) The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, by C.S. Lewis
Mystery/horror	Crispin: Cross of Lead by Avi
Fairy tales/folktales	Papa Gatto, by Ruth Sanderson Mitten, The, by Jan Brett Piggie Pie by Margie Palatini Cinderella Snow White
Poetry/poets	Douglas Florian’s Animal Poetry, such as zoo’s who and Beast Feast A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson
Magazines	Weekly Reader Sports Illustrated for Kids National Geographic for Kids Cricket Ladybug
Childhood favorites	Peter Pan by James Barrie Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain Short stories by O-Henry Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Heidi by Johanna Spri Corduroy by Don Freeman Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss

March/April

Most of our kindergarten students do not read yet, so the following favorites represent books that are read to them by the teachers.

Fairy tale:	Three Billy Goats Gruff There are many versions of this beloved tale. Finch and Arenson, Carpenter, Stevens and Galdone are just a few that have written variations of this story, suitable to be used as “read-to” book. There are also at least two easy-to-read adaptations, which some students will be able to read independently (Page, Page and Saunders; Appleby)
Folktale:	The Mitten by Jan Brett Niki’s grandmother has knitted him pure white mittens – one of which he promptly loses in the snow – and becomes a home for various animals. The story alone is not what makes this book so wonderful – it is Brett’s paintings, including her elaborate details.
Animal characters:	If You Give a Pig a Party, by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond This is the latest in their series of “circular” books – books that start and end at the same place. Other titles include If You Give a Pig a Pancake, If You Give a Moose a Muffin, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, and If You Take a Mouse to School.
Realistic fiction:	Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes Children will relate to this story of a little mouse who is the victim of teasing because of her unusual (and very long) name. A ‘must’ read.
Fantasy or science fiction:	Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak A true classic. When Max is sent to bed without supper, a forest grows in his room and he can continue his wild antics. The scary monsters aren’t really scary at all – but are wonderfully imaginative.
Poetry or nursery rhyme:	Little Miss Muffet Young children love all nursery rhymes – but this is a particular favorite of the ones in our school. You can find it in many collections, but it (or versions of it) can be found in stand-alone books by Beck, Pearson, and Collins. The last two are board book versions.
Informational books:	Dinosaurs! We have no specific titles to recommend, but our kindergartners can not get enough of looking at or listening to books about these extinct animals.

January/February

Ask 30 first graders what their favorite books are – and you get 30 different answers. However, they all seem to agree that the books they like to hear are from the Junie B., First Grader series (Barbara Park, author) or Magic Tree House books (Mary Osborne Pope, author). When it comes to reading by themselves, Dr. Seuss books win, hands-down. So below I’ve just listed some of the titles in each of these categories.

Junie B., First Grader:

Junie B. (who started out in kindergarten) is a girl who is always getting into familiar situations, often out of misunderstandings. Her speech is far from grammatically correct, but she strikes a cord with all children of primary school age. The titles below are listed in order of when they were published (paperback version), starting from the newest).

- Dumb Bunny (will be published in February)

- Aloha-ha-ha!

- Jingle Bells, Batman Smells, (p.s. so does May)

- Boo…and I Mean It

- Shipwrecked

- One-Man Band

- Cheater Pants

- Toothless Wonder

- Boss of Lunch

- (At Last!)

Magic Tree House Series

Jack and Annie go to a magic tree house, where they find a library book that takes them, through time travel, to a great variety of places and periods. Many of the books are now published in box sets, or can be heard as audio books. The books are written in sets, each set focusing on some particular topic or period. Many research guides have also been published, giving background information about the various topics. There are currently 36 books out, with the 37^th due to be released in February. I have given you the titles of the first and last five books in the series.

First five:

- Dinosaurs Before Dark

- Knights at Dawn

- Mummies in the Morning

- Pirates Past Noon

- Night of the Ninjas

Last five:

- Winter of the Ice Wizard

- Carnival at Candlelight

- Season of the Sandstorms

- Night of the New Magicians

- Blizzard of the Blue Moon

Coming in February 2007

- Dragon of the Red Dawn

Here is a sampling of the research guides:

- Ancient Greece and the Olympics

-

Dinosaurs

- Knights and Castles

- Pilgrims

- Rain Forests

- Space

- Titanic

Dr. Seuss has been beloved by children (and their parents) for several generations. Some books are easier to read than others. When first graders talk about his books, they are generally referring to the beginning reading variety. You can buy the books separately, or in collections. Some of the more popular titles (as determined by the first graders in my school) are:

-

Cat in the Hat Comes Back, The

- Cat in the Hat, The

- Go Dog, Go

- Green Eggs and Ham

- Hop on Pop

- I Can Read with My Eyes Shut

- I Wish That I Had Duck Feet

- One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish

- Ten Apples Up on Top!

November/December

Our second graders love to read! Their favorite books are predominately series – the characters and story lines become familiar and comfortable. The following table lists books by genre, title or series, and author. Series’ names are in boldface.

Category	Title and Author
Fairy tales	- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - The Three Little Pigs There are many versions of each of these stories. In addition, the Three Little Pigs has led to numerous variations of this tale, including; - The True Story of the Three Little Pigs (Scieszka and Smith) - The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig (Trivizas and Overbury) - The Thee Little Cajun Pigs (several versions) - The Three Little Javelinas (Lowell and Harris) - The Three Little Hawaiian Pigs and the Magic Shark (Laird)
Folktales	- Paul Bunyan As with The Three Little Pigs, there are many versions of the Paul Bunyan tale The ones by Kellogg, Krensky and Orbach, Emberly, and Ottolenghi (among others) are written at a level that primary grade students can read.
Books with animals as characters	- Arthur books by Marc Brown Arthur’s Teacher Trouible is, by far, the favorite title in this series. - Garfield by Jim Davis Yes, these are cartoon books – but they do have words. - Franklin Series by Paulette Bourgeois and Brenda Clark Franklin the turtle stars in a series of books revolving around situations similar to those that children of this age have. Titles include Franklins’ Bad Day, Franklin Is Messy, and Franklin Rides a Bike.
Realistic fiction	- Junie B. Jones by Barbara Park Whether they read them by themselves, or listen to you read the books to them, students in the primary grades love Junie B. and her escapades. Be aware that Junie B. talks like a real child – and her grammar is less than perfect. There are books about when Junie B. was in kindergarten (Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook) and when she goes up to first grade (Junie B, First Grader: Toothless Wonder). - Baby Sitter’s Little Sister by Ann M. Martin These are spin-offs from the Baby Sitter’s Club series, which are written by somewhat older students. Titles include: Karen’s Kitty-Cat Club, and Karen’s Ghost.
Science fiction/fantasy	- The Magic Tree House by Mary Pope Osborne This series is probably on every “favorite” list for this age group! Written in trilogies, Jack and Annie go to the magic tree house, open the magic book, and get transported to different places and time period. Titles are too numerous to even begin to list – they take up whole shelves in a bookstore! - Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling While most students in the primary grades can not read these books independently, they love to listen to them.
Poetry	- Anything by Shel Silverstein! Children of ALL ages love his poetry – not quite all of which is humorous! Favorite titles include A Light in the Attic, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Falling Up, The Giving Tree, and Runny Babbit.

September/October

This year the book suggestion part of this website will be devoted to “favorites” – whether they come from magazine articles, classrooms, or just ideas from staff members. The books listed below (except for the Caldecott Medal winner) have been chosen as favorites by students in Michigan (as reported in News and Views on Reading, a publication by the Michigan Reading Association.

First, the 2006 Caldecott Medal Winner:

& Hello, Goodbye Window, The, by Norton Juster, illustrated by Chris Rashcka

In this picture book, a little call visits her grandparents and relates what she sees through their kitchen window. .

Now for “children’s favorites in 2006:

& Bubble Gum. Bubble Gum, by Lisa Wheeler (grades K-1)

In this rhyming, repetitive story, a group of animals get stuck in a blob of pink bubble gum that melted in the middle of the road.

& Widget and the Puppy, by Lyn Rossiter McFarland (K-1)

Widget the terrier is NOT a very good petsitter for a lost puppy.

He does get help, however, from “the girls” (six cats who also

live with Mrs. Diggs).

& Guji, Guji, by Zhiyuan Chen (K-1)

A crocodile egg rolls into Mother Duck’s nest, hatches, and is raised by her. When three bad crocodiles want to eat the other ducklings, Guji Guji protects his “family,”

& Say What?, by Margaret Peterson Haddix (2-3)

A good book for readers just starting chapter books, this is a humorous story about parents saying the right things – at the wrong time.

& Jungle Gym Jitters, by Chuck Richards (2-3)

Jerry’s father, George, creates a jungle gym, which soon gets out of control.

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