toawh Posted October 2, 2016 Share Posted October 2, 2016 I need a book for our book club, third-grade, that has water as a theme. It could be just a story that takes place on a boat or anything that touches on water. I'd thought I was going to use "A Walk to Water", and but based on the reviews online, it seems to have an older audience. Any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted October 2, 2016 Share Posted October 2, 2016 (edited) Magic By the Lake is great, as every magic adventure is "water-y" in some way -- BUT it is written more at a 5th-6th grade level. So it could work if your book club does some books as read-alouds. non-fiction - gr. 3-4 reading level: Magic School Bus -- At the Waterworks, OR, On the Ocean Floor (Cole) -- science First Over the Oceans (Blau) Mutiny on the Bounty (O'Brien) Brendan the Navigator (Fritz) -- fictionalized story of the real 500AD man who was likely the first European to visit the New World fiction gr. 3-4 reading level: Dolphin Adventure (Grover) Dolphin Treasure (Grover) gr. 4 reading level Nim's Island (Orr) The Borrows Afloat (Norton) The Rescuers (Sharp) Pedro's Journal (Conrad) -- historical fiction, Columbus's voyage Star in the Storm (Harlow) -- dog rescues people on a sinking ship by swimming to them ETA -- PS Man, I am absolutely blanking out titles for some reason... I know there has to be a stack of grade 3/4 reader level books out there with the setting or topic of streams/rivers, ponds, fishing, sailing, mermaids, waterskiing, ocean, scuba-diving, surfing, etc. ... I absolutely can't think of them right now! :toetap05: Edited October 3, 2016 by Lori D. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalusignan Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 Island of the Blue Dolphins? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockhopper Posted October 3, 2016 Share Posted October 3, 2016 What about one of Holling's books: Paddle to the Sea, or Seabird, or Minn of the Mississippi? Really more non-fiction but IIRC there's a storyline to carry them. It'd be fun and easy to do as a book club because you could track the journeys, add in some geography activities, etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bocky Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 What about a Lewis and Clark book? Laurence Pringle, Dog of Discovery (gr. 3-6, 32 pages), Laurie Myers, Lewis and Clark and Me (gr. 3-6, 64 pages), or Patricia Eubank, Seaman's Journal (grades k-3, 40 pages) are about the Lewis's Newfoundland dog, and include their journey by canoe to the ocean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted October 4, 2016 Share Posted October 4, 2016 Island of the Blue Dolphins? This. I read it in 4th grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toawh Posted October 5, 2016 Author Share Posted October 5, 2016 Thanks for all the ideas. i think I'm leaning toward Island of the Blue Dolphins. Is the content okay for third grade? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted October 5, 2016 Share Posted October 5, 2016 (edited) Thanks for all the ideas. i think I'm leaning toward Island of the Blue Dolphins. Is the content okay for third grade? Just my opinion, but even if doing Island of the Blue Dolphins as a read-aloud, l think the writing style and content puts it much more at a grade 5-8 range for content and interest for the average reader. The Scholastic Book Wizard website rates the reading level at grade 5.4 and interest level at grades 4-7. I would wait on Island of the Blue Dolphins and do it when it is in the interest range of the students, and instead would go with a book that is right in the sweet spot for 3rd graders and take advantage of that "window of opportunity" -- If you want island-living, I'd go with either Nim's Island (Orr) (gr. 4.7 reader level / gr. 3-5 interest level), or Baby Island (Brink) (gr. 5.5 reader level / gr. 3-5 interest level) Or, a fun/goofy choice would be Pippi in the South Seas (Lindgren) (gr. 5.5 reader level / gr. 3-5 interest level) in which the kids sail to a South Seas island and live there for awhile. Or, for a more serious read, Red Sails to Capri (Weil) is island-living, plus regular sailing for fishing, and the discovery of a grotto. I can't find a reader/interest level on this one, but for years, Sonlight had it as grade 2 read-aloud, and my memories of doing it with my DSs is that grade 2-5 for interest level seems about right. Just an FYI: Red Sails to Capri is a quiet, not-much-happens book, compared to the excitement of island-living in Nim, Baby Island and Pippi. ;) JMO! BEST of luck, whatever you go with. Happy book-clubbing! Warmest regards, Lori D. Edited October 5, 2016 by Lori D. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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