Must Have Read Alouds/Books for 5th Grade?

Originally I aimed to teach 2nd or 3rd grade, so I have a lot of materials for that level. BUT I will most likely be teaching 5th (still waiting to sign the papers) so I have begun collecting more chapter books, etc. Any must have titles or really good read alouds for 5th grade?

Thanks! =)

 

Books I read aloud, or wanted to have read when I taught fifth:
1) The Hobbit
2) Loser
3) Frindle
4) Because of Winn-Dixie
5) I think it was called, How I survived Fifth Grade????

 

I have the Hobbit and I think I have Loser and Winn Dixie. Thanks for the advice!!! I'll look up the other titles and see if I can add them. =)

 

If you get that fifth grade position, GOOD LUCK!! I loved loved loved loved loved loved loved fifth grade!

 

Two read alouds I like for older elementary is Ida-B and Chasing Vermeer

 

Ida-B I've definitely heard of and haven't heard of Chasing Vermeer, I will add them all to my list! Thanks!!!

Thanks for the luck!

 

Al Capone Does My Shirts
Schooled
Anything by Andrew Clements
Hatchet
You will LOVE 5th!!!!!!! Look forward to it!!!!

 

Anything by Andrew Clements, Jerry Spinelli, Series of Unfortunate Events

Also,
The Prenderwicks
Fairest
Diary of a Wimpy Kid books
Dear America books

 

Definitely Dear America Books...kids love them and so do I!! I especially love how they compliment our American History theme for our Social Studies.

Other ones that haven't already been mentioned:
Nightmare Mountain and books by Peg Kehret
Night of the Twisters...a must read!!
Kidnapped Series (3 books) by Gordon Korman
The Kid Who Ran for President by Dan Guttman
The One Hundred Dresses...great for start of schoolyear, as it is about bullying, friendships, acceptance, and standing up for what is right even when it is hard to do so.
Sign of the Beaver
Number the Stars
Where the Red Fern Grows
Island of the Blue Dolphin
The Color of My Words
Stealing Home: The Story of Jackie Robinson
Roberto Clemente books: Pride of Puerto Rico and We'll Never Forget You, Roberto Clemente
Baseball series by Dan Gutman...Jackie and Me, Honus and Me, Mickey and Me, Babe and Me, etc.

There are so many for this age level, but I had better stop and give someone else a chance! I agree with Chele...you are going to LOVE 5th grade AND 5th graders!!

 

Anything by Andrew Clements. He's my favorite author.

I did read book 1 in the Deltora Quest series and my kids loved it so much that we ended up reading 5 out of the 8 books in the series this year for our Read Aloud.

 

Thanks everyone! I am very excited about 5th grade! I am still a little intimidated about what to do for management systems. I am looking forward to 5th graders being independent and having a sense of humor. =) My list is getting longer and I will be scouring yard sales, etc all summer to collect books!

 

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
Hoot
Frindle
Swindle
The Tiger Rising
The Liberation of Gabriel King
Maniac Magee
Hatchet
No Talking
many more!
Last year I read Homecoming aloud, but it is hard if they do not have their own copy due to the amount of dialouge.

 

Roll of Thunder...what a powerful book about racism. I have the CD recording of the book and played it for my kids this year just before school got out...what an impact it had on them. I have just now finished reading two more of the books in that series: Let the Circle Be Unbroken and Road to Memphis. I am hoping to find CD's for those, also.

Two more powerful books set in the 1930's are Bud, Not Buddy and Out of the Dust. All three of these books are wonderful reads and really open the eyes of my students to that era of our nation's history. Guess, most of the books I do choose as read-alouds are chosen to extend my students' base knowledge of our history.

 

I'm going to have a ton to read this summer! I've read Out of the Dust, that is a really good one. Thanks!

 

Maniac Magee
the Among the Hidden series is AMAZING for read alouds. Short chapter, and the story keeps the kids hanging. They will literally drop their heads and cry out when you shut the book!

 

Thanks!! I would LOVE to have that reaction from students!

 

After Fifth Grade the World
Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade!

Both are excellent books!

Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade is great for the students, especially girls. If I remember correctly, it deals with how a new girl was in a way "bullied" but then accepted by the girls, a lot of it dealing with her being overweight.

I think both books may be out of print

 

Schooled
City of Ember (My kids LOVED this book and there's so much you can do with it. Plus now it's a movie! Great for compare and contrast because it's so different from the book)
Anything by Andrew Clements
Found (new series by Haddix)
Loser
Tale of Despereaux

 

Thanks Lainy!

Other question, how do you categorize your book collection? By genres? Levels? That will be my next project as well!

 

I use Fountas and Pinnell's leveling system. It's an A to Z system, and what I like about it most is that it takes complexity of theme/topics into consideration when leveling, in addition to readability. I have divided by interests, authors. This year, I have baskets for each level.

 

I teach 4th, but my kids LOVE Where the Red Fern Grows! I read it every year. Another good one is The Thing About Georgie.

 

I love where the red fern grows as well. It's one of my faves! I haven't heart of The Thing About Georgie. Thanks!

 

Gregor the Overlander! I just finished reading book 1 to my 2nd graders and they were mesmerized!!!!!

 

Before I was moved to 1st, I taught 5th grade and my students loved Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath (it's a Newberry Honor Book) and one of my favorite books of all time The Giver by Lois Lowry.
And of course several of the other books that already have been mentioned.

 

Pictures of Hollis Woods
Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulaine (sp?)
The Janitor's Boy
Loser
James and the Giant Peach
The Fighting Ground
The Witch of Blackbird Pond

These are just the titles I can think of right now.

 

It makes me sad that no one has mentioned my class' favorite series... Percy Jackson and the Olympians! The first book is The Lightning Thief and the author is Rick Riordian. Also..

Frindle
The Mysterious Matter of I.M. Fine
The Phantom Tollbooth
My Brother Sam is Dead
The 39 Clues (another series)

Students' independent reading favorites: Bud, Not Buddy; Diary of a Wimpy Kid; Bridge to Terabithia; Bunnicula, the Whipping Boy and anything Roald Dahl for the lower readers; Susanna Creech novels; Esperanza Rising; Series of Unfortunate Events

 

I love the book Rules by Cynthia Lord. When I was in college I did a guided reading unit for the book and it was awesome!

 

Dear Levi by Elvira Woodruff
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary

Those are some other really good ones

 

Yes, The Mysterious Matter of I.M. Fine is a great book. My kids love it. Another I thought of that is really good is Snow Treasure.

 

If I were moving up to fifth,just a few of my choices would be The Phantom Tollbooth, Maniac Magee, and Bridge to Terabithia.

For boys, My Side of the Mountain is excellent, and for girls, Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree is engaging with great vocabulary.

The Shakespeare Stealer is also a newer, popular book.

I have also read The Westing Game and Number the Stars with my kids. Tremendous books. The Ghost's Grave is also an engaging read. Additionally, No Talking by Andrew Clements is a funny, thoughtful read about a group of fifth-grade students.

Next year, I may try Tuck Everlasting. I loved that book when I was 10.

 

Andrew Clements books are always a winner. I love to read Hatchet to my kids. The Among the Hidden series is good- I read them last summer.

I need to read aloud more- I read aloud daily, but it takes me FOREVER to finish a book. Something I plan to try to work on for next year.

 

Next year I am going to give myself permission to read selections, excerpts, and openings only. I will read some complete novels, but for the sake of variety and the limitations on time, I think I will read sections of books more than before. Anyone who is interested can always pick up the books and read them on their own.

This year I read selections from a book called 4 Kids in 5E & 1 Crazy Year. I enjoyed it, and I think the kids did as well since it was very different from what they had been exposed to.

 

Last year when I was a resource teacher, one of the classes I supported read 4 Kids in 5E... which was especially ironic, as the class was 5E.

 

That is ironic!! I hope that I'll be able to find all of these books!

 

Just what you need...one more! BUT just finished reading Blood on the River James Town 1607 by Elisa Carbone. What a great book!! Best book that I have read on Jamestown...full of facts and information about the settling of Jamestown, is exciting and suspenseful, and written so well that you really come to care about the characters. I was sorry to see it end!

 

I'll check that one out and read it this summer! Thanks for the tip!

 

Books I've Read to my 5th graders

Books that I've read to my class have been:
The Cay talks about racism and survival)- the kids found its sequel to it...Timothy of the Cay. They absolutely loved both!

The Giver was so wonderful! It made them really think. We had some great writing in journals during this book!

The Hundred Dresses was a sad book but made them think about how they treat each other! I like to start the year with this one.

A Single Shard....WOW! This one is fabulous!

We read Brave Buffalo Fighter during the time we were learning about the WEST. They didn't want me to put the book down!
We also read My Brother Sam Is Dead and it put the Civil War into perspective for them. So sad!

We liked The Island too. A bunch of troubled kids on a boat to work off their attitudes. Great!

I try and find new ones each summer to add to my favorite list!

Good luck!

 

Thanks! I have the Cay, I know for sure. What is A Single Shard about? I'll have to look into Brave Buffalo Fighter.

I really like the Francis Tucket books by Gary Paulsen as well. During my 4th grade practicum, she read one of the books to her class and they absolutely loved it. I love reading it myself, so I am planning on reading it to them sometime during the year. =)

 

Your books reminded me of Ida B. What a great book!! When I started it the boys were not thrilled. It is about a young girl in the early grades. Her mother has been home schooling her and then her mom gets sick and can't and has to attend public school. She is a real thinker. After the first few days of the book, several so called "tough" boys in my class went to the library and got it. They got almost every boy they knew in 5th grade to read it!! I was so surprized, but they absolutely loved it!!!!!

 

A Year Down Yonder-great book/intergenerational historical fiction
The Skin I'm In-urban setting,rough talk (definite read aloud to skip as needed)BUT, it is about bullying, and how the victim rises above. My students absolutely LOVE this book.
The Westing Game
My Teacher is an Alien
Inkheart (if you are into long books)
Seedfolks
Among the Hidden