wimseycat Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 I was wondering if anyone has any literature suggestions for my 5th grade daughter. She is an avid recreational reader, but for school I like to stick with classic-type literature. She just finished MCT's Alice, Peter and Mole units. I know she won't like the next level because they are more "boyish." She has read most of the lit books from Memoria Press (loves dogs but hated Lassie - did not see that one coming!) She doesn't like Pioneer/Old West type stuff either. I have exhausted Robin Hood, King Arthur, The Little Princess, The Secret Garden etc... she is doing some reading comprehension involving different saints and she seems to enjoy that. Her 12 yo sister has read some Austen and Shakespeare but I don't think she is intellectually ready that level yet. Ideas???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sncstraub Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 What about Marguerite Henry's horse series? Or other horse classics like Black Beauty? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjlcc Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 George MacDonald titles? Pollyanna? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 (edited) . Edited July 10, 2022 by SilverMoon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kfamily Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Here is the fifth grade list from my curriculum: Invincible Louisa by Cornelia Meigs Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Chales Dickens: The Man Who Had Great Expectations by Diane Stanley A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens Poetry For Young People series...Tennyson, American Poetry and Emily Dickinson The Arabian Nights Entertainment by Andrew Lang Robin Hood by Roger L. Green The King of the Golden River by John Ruskin Nordic Gods and Heroes by Padraic Colum 2 of the Shakespeare retellings by Bruce Civille The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Black Beauty by Anna Sewell At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald The Complete Fairy Tales by George MacDonald Ronia, the Robber's Daughter by Astrid Lindgren Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry Faerie Gold: Treasures from the Land of Enchantment by Hunsicker and Lindskoog One of three books by Frances Hodgson Burnett Of course, you would want to leave off the latter author...and Robin Hood too. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lilaclady Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 What about anne of green gables A wrinkle in time Where the red fern grows Bridge to terebitha Little women Adventures of Tom Sawyer The hobbit Because of Winn Dixie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 I have a ds10 who's listening to Heidi with great interest. Others I can think of (some are on our list): Anne of the Green Gables Island of the Blue Dolphins Black Beauty Treasures of the Snow (my dd6 is enjoying this one as a read-aloud) Call of the Wild (on our list for next year) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elliotterae Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 I just wanted to second, Island of the Blue Dolphins. It was my favorite around that age and is my 5th graders favorite, as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeindeed Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Chronicles of Narnia series Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckens Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 What a well-read child your daughter is!!!! Check your library for these ideas: 1) It is time for your daughter to meet Mr. Shakespeare. 1a) Usborne has several Shakespeare books: Illustrated Stories from Shakespeare For 8 years and up. Stories from Shakespeare Talk to your Usborne Representative to see how/if this differs from the one above. Rated for age 12 and up World of Shakespeare For background. This also teaches that if one understands the biography of the author, the book will have added depth, and the reader will have greater understanding -- an important lesson for high school and college Lit papers! The best part is that many Usborne books are Internet-Linked. This means that you go to the "quicklinks website," and you have instant enrichment by using internet resources. 1b) In Cartoon format: Bravo, William Shakespeare 1c) There are other version of condensed Shakespeare tales for children (I can't find my copy this morning). Others in the hive can help you. 2) When I was in 5th grade (1980-1981), our teacher Rosie Ryan taught us with Newberry Award Winners rather than with a textbook of literary selections. I don't know if this was a hippie/new agey thing, but we got a great education from a tremendous teacher! Books we read that year: Island of the Blue Dolphins Amos Fortune, Free Man To Be A Slave Old Yeller My Side of the Mountain Tuck Everlasting Sounder and more!!!! Read alouds that year: The Great Gilly Hopkins Superfudge Bridge to Terabithia Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIHM Summer of the Swans (or may have been 6th grade) The Westing Game Imagine my pride when I came across the Newbery poster as an adult, and I recognized several of these awesome books! Thank you Rosie Ryan, wherever you are!!! She introduced us to "great, young adult lit" (and the ideas that went with it), and she made us "well read." You don't need to read the specific books I listed, but here is the Newbery Website. Send your daughter there. OR March your daughter down to the library and have her look at the Newbery Poster on the wall. Pick one. Any one. You may also tell your librarian what you are looking for, and see which one is his/her favorite recommendation. Disclaimer: Newbery Award is given to literature for children UP TO AGES 14. Not all books may be appropriate for your 5th grader. I can't think of many that I wouldn't recommend, but I haven't read many of the recent ones. If your child is sensitive to violence, Where the Red Fern Grows has a gruesome scene in which a kid falls on an ax. Contact your librarian for info on specific books, or choose a skeleton list and post it here at the hive for feedback. ------------------------------------------------------- I'll post more later! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duckens Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Sorry for the interruption. 3) Battle of the Books is a reading competition in which children read books and answer questions in a quiz-bowl type of event. Disclaimer: I have never been to a Battle of the Books event, but I have friends who have children that have participated. To find a Battle of the Books event, check the BOTB website, or do a google search for "Battle of the Books [city state]." Whether your child participates in a BOTB event or not, the lists are reflective of what her peers are reading to be challenged. If your child participates, note that most events are team events, and no child read all items on the list. They work as a team to cover all of the material. Sample questions allegedly used at BOTB. ---------------------------------------------- Other things to know: ***NOW is the age to start your child on the habit of making literary notes of her school reading assignments. I posted on this a week or so ago here, entry # 19. Please please please go and read this entry on how and why to make notes on literature for this age.*** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrissiK Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 We are studying the Ancients this year and here is the list my fifth grader is reading: Hittite Warrior Gilgamesh the Hero The Golden Goblet Tales from Africa The White Stag Mara, Daughter of the Nile God King Black Ships Before Troy The Golden Fleece The Bronze Bow Caesar's Gallic War The Eagle In Search of a Homeland (the Aeneid) Theras and His Town Greek Myths Alexander the Great The Children's Homer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilajoy Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 I teach 5th and 6th grade English at a private school, so based on what my students have loved most, I can recommend: Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis -- historical fiction set during the Great Depression; very likable 10-year-old narrator, lots of historical background info woven throughout, humorous and very touching read A Family Apart by Joan Lowery Nixon -- historical fiction set in the pre-Civil War era; touches on Irish immigration, urban poverty, Westward expansion, orphan trains, and abolitionism. Great suspenseful plot with a strong female protagonist. If she likes it, there are several sequels. The Adventures of Ulysses by Bernard Evslin -- a retelling of The Odyssey, perfect for a 5th grader, beautifully told, engaging Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybear Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Understood Betsy Five Children and It The Melendy Quartet (The Saturdays series) Half Magic (and series) The Borrowers The Witch of Blackbird Pond Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 Here are the books my dd enjoyed in 5th grade: Literature 1. The Princess and Curdie – George MacDonald – RA 2. Five Children and It – E Nesbit – RA 3. The Phoenix & The Carpet – E Nesbit - RA 4. The Story of the Amulet – E Nesbit - RA 5. The Jungle Book – Rudyard Kipling - Audio 6. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea – Jules Verne - RA 7. Alice in Wonderland – RA & Canon Book Group discussion 8. Through the Looking Glass– RA & Canon Book Group discussion 9. Pinocchio - RA 10. Rip Van Winkle & The Legend of Sleepy Hollow – RA 11. The Hound of the Baskervilles – Arthur Conan Doyle – RA 12. The Sign of Four - Arthur Conan Doyle - RA 13. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Arthur Conan Doyle – RA 14. Lamb’s Shakespeare: King Lear, The Taming of the Shrew – RA 15. Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain - RA 16. Mark Twain short stories – The Million Pound Bank Note and The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County - Audio 17. Little Women – Louisa May Alcott Chronological Historical Fiction (RA/IR/Audio) 1. I, Juan de Pareja - IR 2. A Journy to the New World – Kathryn Lasky 3. Calico Captive – Elizabeth George Speare – IR 4. Ben and Me – Robert Lawson-IR 5. Sarah Bishop – Scott O’Dell - IR 6. Johnny Tremaine – Esther Forbes - Audio 7. Winter of the Red Snow – Kristiana Gregory - IR 8. Felicity’s Story Collection - IR 9. The Lacemaker and the Princess – Kimberly Brubaker Bradley - IR 10. Marie Antoinette, Princess of Versailles – Kathryn Lasky - IR 11. Catherine: The Great Journey – Kristiana Gregory - IR 12. Streams to the River, Streams to the Sea – Scott O’Dell – IR 13. The Story of Napoleon – H. E. Marshall – IR 14. Ludwig Van Beethoven – Mike Venezia 15. Shaka, King of the Zulus – Diane Stanley 16. Lyddie – Katherine Paterson - IR 17. Kirsten’s Story Collection - IR 18. The Ballad of Lucy Whipple - IR 19. Shipwrecked – Blumbert -IR 20. Addy’s Story Collection -IR 21. Island of the Blue Dolphins- IR 22. Across Five Aprils 23. Caddie Woodlawn – IR 24. Caddie Woodlawn’s Family – Carol Ryrie Brink - IR 25. Little House in the Big Woods – Laura Ingalls Wilder – RA 26. Little House in the Prairie - RA 27. Farmer Boy - RA 28. On the Banks of Plum Creek - RA 29. By The Shores of Silver Lake- RA 30. The Long Winter- RA 31. Little Town on the Prairie 32. These Happy Golden Years 33. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate – IR 34. Mrs. Frisby & The Rats of NIMH 35. Hitty, Her First Hundred Years – Rachel Field 36. A Light in the Storm – Karen Hesse 37. The Great Turkey Walk – Kathleen Karr 38. Bud, Not Buddy – Christopher Paul Curtis Independent Reading 1. When You Reach Me – Rebecca Stead - IR 2. 11 Birthdays – Wendy Maas - IR 3. A Mango-Shaped Space – Wendy Maas - IR 4. Liar & Spy – Rebecca Stead - IR 5. Half Magic – Edward Eager - Audio 6. Ella Enchanted – Gale Carson Levine - IR 7. Magic By the Lake – Edward Eager - RA 8. A Wrinkle in Time – Madeline L’Engle - IR 9. Knight’s Castle – Edward Eager - IR 10. A Tale of Two Castles – Gail Carson Levine - IR 11. Kit’s Story Collection – Valerie Tripp 12. The Twenty-One Balloons – William Pene DuBois- RA 13. Queen Zixi of Ix – L Frank Baum - IR 14. Misty of Chincoteague – Marguerite Henry - IR 15. Stormy, Misty’s Foal – Marguerite Henry - IR 16. Sea Star, Orphan of Chincoteague – Marguerite Henry – IR 17. Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth – EL Konigsberg – IR 18. The Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic – Jennifer Trafton – IR 19. Savvy – Ingrid Law – IR 20. Found – Margaret Peterson Haddix 21. Sent – Margaret Peterson Haddix 22. Sabotoged – Margaret Peterson Haddix 23. Pippi Longstocking – Astrid Lindgren 24. Torn – Margaret Peterson Haddix 25. King of the Wind – Margeurite Henry 26. The Sisters Grimm – The Fairy Tale Detectives – Michael Buckley 27. The Sisters Grimm – The Unusual Suspects – Michael Buckley 28. 13 Gifts – Wendy Mass 29. Finally – Wendy Mass 30. Trading Faces – Julia Jennifer Ray 31. Scumble – Ingrid Law 32. Beezus & Ramona – Ingrid Law 33. Jeremy Fink – Wendy Mass 34. The Candymakers – Wendy Mass 35. Escape to Witch Mountain – Alexander Key 36. A Family Apart – J L Nixon 37. Gregor the Overlander – Suzanne Collins 38. Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods 39. Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane 40. Gregor and the Marks of Secret 41. Gregor & the Code of Claw 42. The Westing Game 43. Harriet the Spy 44. Harriet Spies Again 45. The Game – Diana Wynne Jones 46. Beauty – Robin McKinley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
My3girls Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 The Yearling Old Yeller Where the Red Fern Grows The Incredible Journey Little Women The Diary of Anne Frank The Adventures of Tom Sawyer The Black Stallion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Subbing :). My 5th grader is currently reading Island of the Blue Dolphins. Well, when I can extricate him from Rick Riordan's latest novel anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Subbing. I have to say that one of our favorites was Understood Betsy, and dd10 has really enjoyed our reading of The Great Brsin series! So have I! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wimseycat Posted October 14, 2013 Author Share Posted October 14, 2013 Thank you everyone for all the great suggestions. Many that have been suggested we have covered, but I will relook at some of the ones I have missed. It is hard when a lot of the books I enjoyed as a child are rejected. It feels like a personal judgment and you are like, "how can you NOT like this book..." :scared: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Hobbes read his way through much of the Puffin Classics and Oxford Children's Classics imprints. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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