First Grade Reading List

Book Series

  • Clanton, Ben. Narwhal and Jelly (Series) – Join Narwhal and Jelly as they discover the whole wide ocean together.
  • Dooley, Norah and Thornton, Peter. Everybody (Series) – A multicultural series where Carrie discovers diverse families in her neighborhood who share similar traditions through cooking.
  • Faruqi, Saadia and Aly, Hatem. Yasmin (Series) – A series of basic chapter books where Yasmin, a creative thinker and curious explorer, uses her imagination and help of her multi-generational Pakistani American family to solve life’s little problems.
  • Litwin, Eric. Pete the Cat (Series) – Readers will love the groovy tales of Pete the Cat!
  • McAnulty, Stacy. Our Universe (Series) – This nonfiction series invites children to explore our universe from the point of view of the planets.
  • Nhin, Mary. Mini Movers and Shaker Books (Series) – A series of picture biographies highlighting people who failed and then succeeded despite many challenges.
  • Nhin, Mary. Ninja Life Hacks (Series) – A series of books where the main character, Ninja, helps kids learn many valuable life skills.
  • Scillian, Devin.  Memoirs of a ______. (Series) – Are you interested in the memoirs of a goldfish?  A hamster? A parrot? These are the books for you!
  • Willems, Mo. Elephant and Piggie (Series) – Humorous stories of Gerald and Piggie will make you laugh every time.

Fiction

  • Beaty, Andrea. Aaron Slater, Illustrator – A story about the power of art, finding your voice, and telling your story even when you’re out of step with your peers.
  • Beaty, Andrea. Ada Twist, Scientist – With her curiosity and perseverance, Ada is sure to inspire young readers to pursue their own passions.
  • Beaty, Andrea. Rosie Revere, Engineer – Rosie may seem quiet during the day, but at night she’s a brilliant inventor of gizmos and gadgets who dreams of becoming a great engineer.
  • Bell, Kristen and Hart, Benjamin. The World Needs More Purple People – Promotes the challenge of embracing what makes you special while finding common ground with those around you.
  • Breen, Steve. Violet the Pilot – Violet’s only friend is her dog until one of her homemade flying machines helps her rescue a Boy Scout troop in trouble.
  • Byers, Grace. I Am Enough – A message about loving who you are, respecting others and being kind to one another.
  • Cate, Annette LeBlanc. The Magic Rabbit – Bunny becomes separated from a magician who is his business partner and friend.
  • Choi, Yangsook. The Name Jar – Unhei is encouraged to embrace and celebrate her name when moving to America from Korea.
  • Harper, Charise Mericle. Poor Vanilla Cupcake – He’s feeling a bit drab next to his fancy brothers and sisters. But then his new pal, Candle, comes along with some fresh ideas.
  • Katz, Karen. The Colors of Us – Several year old Lena takes a walk through her neighborhood with her mother and learns brown comes in many shades.
  • Kostecki-Shaw, Jenny. Same, Same, But Different – Elliot in the USA and Kailash in India are pen pals and learn how similar they are.
  • Lee, Suzy. The Wave – A lovely, wordless picture book. At first a girl is afraid of the massive waves at the beach, but then happily plays on the shore.
  • Lester, Helen. The Porcupine Named Fluffy – A porcupine named Fluffy is happier with his name after he meets a similarly misnamed rhinoceros.
  • Lies, Brian. Bats at the Library – Bored with another normal, inky evening, bats discover an open library window and fly in to enjoy the books found there.
  • MacDonald, Margaret. The Squeaky Door – A boy is frightened by a squeaky door, so his grandmother invites in various animals to help him feel secure.
  • Reynolds, Aaron. Creepy Carrots! – Jasper Rabbit loves carrots, until the day the carrots start following him…or are they?
  • Reynolds, Aaron. Creepy Pair of Underwear! – When the lights go out, Jasper’s new big rabbit underwear glows in the dark. A ghoulish, greenish glow. After trying everything to get rid of them, they keep coming back!
  • Rosenthal, Amy. Duck Rabbit – Two unseen characters argue about whether the creature they are looking at is a rabbit or a duck.
  • Ryan, Pam Munoz. Mice and Beans – How will Rosa Maria feel when she finds out a group of mice are interfering with her party preparations for her littlest grandchild?
  • Shannon, David. Roy Digs Dirt – Roy’s happiness centers on his very favorite thing – dirt – and from sunrise to sunset, he burrows in it, and digs up buried treasure.
  • Shannon, David. Too Many Toys – Although he finally agrees that he has too many toys and needs to give them away, there is one toy that Spencer cannot part with.
  • Sierra, Judy. Mind Your Manners, B.B.Wolf – When B.B. Wolf is invited to the library for a storybook tea, he wants to impress everyone with how polite he can be.
  • Smith, Lane. Madam President – A little girl imagines what her day would be like if she were President of the United States.

Nonfiction

  • Cooper, Wade. On the Road – Learn about all types of vehicles in this nonfiction easy reader.
  • Katz, Alan. Going, Going, Gone!: And Other Silly Dilly Sports Songs – New lyrics to well-known sports songs, like “On Top of the Bleachers.”
  • McCarthy, Meghan. Astronaut Handbook – Do you have what it takes to be an astronaut?
  • Meltzer, Brad. I am…(series) – These picture book biographies inspire kids to dream big, one role model at a time (Helen Keller, Albert Einstein, etc.).
  • Schwartz, David. Where in the Wild?: Camouflaged Creatures Concealed and Revealed – Playful poems offer clues about each animal’s identity and whereabouts.
  • Simon, Seymour. Incredible Sharks – Find out cool facts about these impressive hunters.
  • Taylor, Sean. Goal! – Where there’s a ball…there will always be someone who wants to play soccer.

The above suggested texts cover a wide variety of topics and genres. Another good place to find quality text is at your local library so consider visiting often! As we know, student choice and interest drive a passion for the love of reading.