Watkins Elementary Summer Reading Lists
Summer Reading List – 1st & 2nd Grades (pdf)
Summer Reading List – 3rd Grade (pdf)
Summer Reading List – 4th & 5th Grades (pdf)
For Students Entering 1st and 2nd Grades
Picture Books
Allard, Harry. Miss Nelson is Missing.
Burkett, Rand. Mouse and Lion.
Cunnane, Kelly. Chirchir Is Singing.
Grey, Mini. Three by the Sea.
Issacs, Anne. Swamp Angel.
Klassen, Jon. I Want My Hat Back. 2012 Geisel Honor
Lichtenheld, Tom. E-mergency.
Lin, Grace. Ling and Ting: Not Exactly the Same!
Martin, Bill, Jr. Ten Little Caterpillars.
McKissack, Patricia. The Honest-to-Goodness Truth.
Ogburn, Jacqueline. Little Treasures: Endearments from Around the World.
Raschka, Chris. A Ball for Daisy. 2012 Caldecott Medal
Rathman, Peggy. Ruby the Copycat.
Ray, Mary Lyn. Stars.
Rocco, John. Blackout. 2012 Caldecott Honor
Sendak, Maurice. Bumble-Ardy.
Stead, Philip. A Sick Day for Amos McGee.
Steig, William. Pete’s a Pizza.
Willems, Mo. Knuffle Bunny Free.
Woodson, Jacqueline. Pecan Pie Baby.
Zion, Gene. Harry the Dirty Dog.
Easy Chapter Books
Adler, David. Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Dinosaur Bones. (series)
Ahlberg, Allan. The Woman Who Won Things.
Atinuke. Good Luck, Anna Hibiscus.
Barrows, Annie. Ivy+Bean. (series)
Cameron, Ann. The Stories Julian Tells. (series)
Christopher, Matt. The Dog that Pitched a No-Hitter. (series)
Delton, Judy. Camp Ghost-Away. (series)
DiCamillo, Kate. Mercy Watson: Something Wonky This Way Comes. (series)
Howe, James. Houndsley and Catina and the Birthday Surprise. (series)
LaMarche, Jim. Lost and Found: Three Dogs Stories.
LeGuin, Ursula. Catwings.
Lobel, Arnold. Frog and Toad Are Friends. (series)
Lowry, Lois. Gooney Bird Greene.
Marshall, James. Rats on the Range and Other Stories.
Parish, Peggy. Amelia Bedelia. (series)
Sachar, Louis. Sideway Stories From Wayside School. (series)
Schneider, Josh. Tales for Very Picky Eaters. 2012 Geisel Medal
Smith, Janice Lee. The Monster in the Third Dresser Drawer.
Willems, Mo. I Broke My Trunk. 2012 Geisel Honor
Walter, Mildred Pitts. Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World.
Warner, Gertrude C. The Boxcar Children. (series)
Information, Poetry, Biographies, and Folklore
Aliki. A Weed is a Flower: The Life of George Washington Carver.
Aylesworth, Jim. The Tale of Tricky Fox.
Cousins, Lucy. Yummy: Eight Favorite Fairy Tales.
Davis, Jill. Orangutans Are Ticklish: Fun Facts From an Animal Photographer.
Deans, Karen. Playing to Win: The Story of Althea Gibson.
DePaola, Tomie. 26 Fairmont Avenue.
Florian, Douglas. Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars.
Hoberman, Mary Ann. You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You.
Hopkins, Lee Bennett. Dizzy Dinosaurs: Silly Dino Poems.
Jenkins, Steve. What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
Lyon, George Ella. All the Water in the World.
McDonnell, Patrick. Me…Jane. 2012 Caldecott Honor
McNulty, Faith. If You Decide to Go To the Moon.
Nivola, Claire. Life in the Ocean.
Prelutsky, Jack. Read-Aloud Poems for the Very Young.
Sidman, Joyce. Swirl by Swirl.
Simon, Seymour. Butterflies.
Thomson, Sarah. Amazing Whales.
Winter, Jonah. Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Zoehfeld, Kathleen W. Secrets of the Garden: Food Chains and the Food Web in Our Backyard.
For Students Entering 3rd Grade
Fiction
Atwater, Richard and Florence. Mr. Popper’s Penguins.
Auch, Mary Jane. A Dog on His Own.
Barber, Tiki and Ronde. Goal Line.
Bowen, Fred. Touchdown Trouble.
Byars, Betsy. SOS File.
Buckley, Michael. NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society.
Cleary, Beverly. Ramona the Pest. (series)
Crisp, Marty. Titanicat.
Dahl, Roald. Esio Trot.
Draper., Sharon. Little Sister is Not My Name. (series)
Gardiner, John Reynolds. Stone Fox.
Gutman, Dan. The Get Rich Quick Club.
Hicks, Betty. Goof-Off Goalie.
Howe, James. Bunnicula: A Rabbit Tale of Mystery. (series)
Jennings, Patrick. We Can’t All Be Rattlesnakes.
Kelly, Katy. Lucy Rose: Big on Plans (series)
Levine, Gail Carson. The Princess Tales.
McDonald, Megan. Judy Moody: Girl Detective (series)
O’Connor, Barbara. The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis.
Osborne, Mary Pope. Dinosaurs before Dark. (series)
Petersen, P.J. Wild River.
Polacco, Patricia. January’s Sparrow.
Roy, Ron. Canary Caper: An A-Z Mystery. (series)
Sachar, Louis. Marvin Redpost: Kidnapped at Birth. (series)
Scienska, Jon. Knights of the Kitchen Table. (series)
Sobol, Donald. Encyclopedia Brown: Boy Detective. (series)
Wallace, Bill. A Dog Called Kitty.
Information, Poetry, Biographies, and Folklore
Bishop, Nic. Nic Bishop Lizards.
Bolden, Tonya. George Washington Carver.
Burleigh, Robert. Night Flight; Amelia Earhart Crosses the Atlantic.
De La Pena, Matt. A Nation’s Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis.
Evans, Shane. Underground. 2012 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award
Gibbons, Gail. Gorillas.
Gibson, Amy. Around the World on Eighty Legs.
Giovanni, Nikki. Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry with a Beat.
Hort, Lenny. Did Dinosaurs Eat Pizza? Mysteries Science Hasn’t Solved.
Hughes, Langston. My People.
Jenkins, Steve. Never Smile at a Monkey: and 17 Other Important Things to Remember.
Lauber, Patricia. Hurricanes: Earth’s Mightiest Storms.
McCarthy, Meghan. Pop!: The Invention of Bubblegum.
Preus, Margi. Celebritrees: Historic and Famous Trees of the World.
Sidman, Joyce. Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night.
Thomas, Peggy. Farmer George Plants a Nation.
Winter, Jeanette. Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story of Africa.
Winters, Kay. Colonial Voices: Hear Them Speak.
For Students Entering 4th & 5th Grades
Historical Fiction
Anderson, Laurie Halse. Fever, 1793.
Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Shines My Shoes.
Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Mighty Miss Malone.
DeFelice, Cynthia. Weasel.
Dorris, Michael. Morning Girl.
Erdrich, Louise. The Birchbark House.
Lowry, Lois. Number the Stars.
Peck, Richard. A Year Down Yonder.
Vanderpool. Moon Over Manifest.
Williams-Garcia, Rita. One Crazy Summer.
Yelchin, Eugene. Breaking Stalin’s Nose. 2012 Newbery Honor
Mystery Fiction
Bellairs, John. The Curse of the Blue Figurine.
Broach, Elise. Missing on Superstition Mountain.
DuPrau, Jeanne. The City of Ember.
Hahn, Mary Downing. Stepping on the Cracks.
Kehret, Peg. Runaway Twin.
Raskin, Ellen. The Westing Game.
Riordan, Rick. The Maze of Bones. (39 Clues series)
Smith, Roland. Cryptid Hunters.
Stewart, Trenton Lee. The Mysterious Benedict Society.
Van Draanen, Wendelin. Sammy Keyes and the Art of Deception. (series)
Fantasy Fiction
Avi. Poppy. (series)
Buckley, Michael. The Fairy Tale Detectives. (series)
Dahl, Roald. The BFG.
Law, Ingrid. Savvy.
L’Engle, Madeleine. A Wrinkle in Time.
Lin, Grace. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.
Meloy, Colin. Wildwood.
Prineas, Sarah. The Magic Thief.
Riordan, Rick. The Lightning Thief. (series)
Snicket, Lemony. The Bad Beginning. (series)
Wood, Maryrose. The Mysterious Howling. (series)
Sports Fiction
Bowen, Fred. Full Court Fever.
Feinstein, John. Last Shot: A Final Four Mystery. (series)
Green, Tim. Best of the Best: A Baseball Great Novel.
Gutman, Dan. Jackie and Me: A Baseball Card Adventure (series)
Hicks, Betty. Track Attack.
Hirschfeld, Robert. Slam Dunk.
Hughes, Dean. Missing in Action.
Lemna, Don. Out in Left Field.
Lupica, Mike. Game Changers.
Ripkin, Cal. Hothead; A Novel.
Wallace, Rich. Benched.
Yee, Lisa. Bobby the Brave (Sometimes).
Realistic Fiction
Angleberger, Tom. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda.
Blume, Judy. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing.
Fleming, Candace. The Fabled Fourth Graders of Aesop Elementary.
Draper, Sharon. Out of My Mind.
Frazier, Sundee Tucker. The Other Half of My Heart.
Gantos, Jack. Dead End in Norvelt. 2012 Newbery Medal
Lai, Thanhha. Inside Out and Back Again. 2012 Newbery Honor
Mass, Wendy. 11 Birthdays.
Morpurgo, Michael. Kensuke’s Kingdom.
Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds. Shiloh.
Paterson, Katherine. Bridge to Terabithia.
Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet.
Ryan, Pam Munoz. Esperanza Rising.
Information, Poetry, Biographies, and Folklore
Brown, Don. America is Under Attack.
Dawson, Nick. North: The Amazing Story of Arctic Migration.
DeCristofano, Carolyn. A Black Hole is Not a Hole.
Denenberg, Barry. Titanic Sinks!
Fleming, Candace. Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart.
Greenfield, Eloise. The Great Migration.. 2012 Coretta Scott King Honor
Hale, Shannon. Rapunzel’s Revenge.
Jenkins, Martin. Can We Save the Tiger?
Jurmain, Suzanne. Worst of Friends: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and the True Story of an American Feud.
Lutes, Jason. Houdini: The Handcuff King.
Myers, Walter Dean. The Greatest: Muhammad Ali.
Napoli, Donna Jo. Treasury of Greek Mythology.
Nelson, Kadir. Heart and Soul. 2012 Coretta Scott King Award
Nelson, Vaunda. Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, US Marshall
O’Connell, Caitlin. The Elephant Scientist.
Ross, Stuart. Into the Unknown: How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea, and Air
Scott, Elaine. Space, Stars, and the Beginning of Time: What the Hubble Telescope Saw.
Silverstein, Shel. Everything on It.
