Great Books For Your 5th Or 6th Grader

by Teresa McEntire | More from this Blogger

14 Jun 2006 11:15 AM

Summer has just begun and it's important that your fifth or sixth grader keeps reading. Reading is a great way to combat summer boredom and keep the mind fresh and ready for school to start. Here's a list of my favorite books for this age group, many of them favorites of my sixth grade students as well. Whether your child likes comedy, drama, or adventure one of these books is sure to please.

A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L'Engle This is my all time favorite children's book. I still enjoy the incredible story of a Meg and Charles Wallace who along with their friend Calvin O'Keefe who journey through time and space in search of their father. In doing so they must battle the evil power that is darkening the universe.

The BFG by Roald Dahl Roald Dahl has a great sense of humor and this book is no exception. BFG stands for Big Friendly Giant who kidnaps Sophie from her room and takes her back to giant land. The gruesome descriptions of the other giants and Sophie's adventures with the BFG will delight your child.

Call of the Wild by Jack London This story is about Buck who is dognapped and taken to Alaska to be a dogsled dog. This is his story of survival in the Alaskan frontier.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine Much better than the movie the book is about a girl named Ella who is given the gift or is it curse to always do what she is told. How she is able to overcome the curse and fall in love along the way is a tale that all children will find enchanting. Of all the books that I read aloud in class this was my student's favorite.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling Everyone knows Harry Potter or at least you should. I couldn't make a list of great books without including the indomitable young wizard. Although long your child will be captivated from cover to cover.

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen What would happen if your plane broke down over the Canadian wilderness miles off course and you were the only survivor? Brian Robinson finds out as his wits are put the test and he fights to survive. There are sequels that tells the rest of Brian's story.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry This book masterfully tells the story of ten-year-old Annemarie just as the Jews in Denmark are being rounded up. Her family heroically joins others in helping Jews flee the country.

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster Milo is bored until a tollbooth appears in his room. He pays the toll, drives through, and the adventures begin where he is transported into another world where anything that can happen does.

Sounder by William Armstrong This book will tear at your heartstrings as a African American sharecropper is taken to jail for stealing a hog. Sounder, the coon dog he raised is shot and disappears. The sharecropper's oldest son is forced to go to work. The road to adulthood is not an easy one, but Sounder eventually returns and the son ultimately find salvation.

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls Every boys dream is to own a pair of great coon dogs. And dream comes true when he gets Dan and Ann. This is a story of the relationship and adventures of a boy and his dogs and the love and devotion between two animals. Don't be surprised to see your child shed a tear or two.

Other great titles include the following: Bridge to Terebithia by Katherine Paterson The Chicken Doesn't Skate by Gordon Korman The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder Harried the Spy by Lousie Fitzhugh Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor Sing Down the Moon by Scott O'Dell Skellig by David Almond Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

To purchase any of these books go to Amazon.com.

Learn more about Teresa McEntire

Teresa McEntire grew up in Utah the oldest of four children. She currently lives in Kuna, Idaho, near Boise. She and her husband Gene have been married for almost ten years.

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