Fourth Grade Summer Reading List
Students Entering Fourth Grade
Students entering Fourth Grade should read Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo. Because of Winn-Dixie, a big, ugly, happy dog, 10-year-old Opal learns 10 things about her long-gone mother from her preacher father. Because of Winn-Dixie, Opal makes new friends among the somewhat unusual residents of her new hometown, Naomi, Florida. Because of Winn-Dixie, Opal begins to find her place in the world and let go of some of the sadness left by her mother's abandonment seven years earlier. Because of the story content, we recommend you read this story with your child. In addition, your child should choose three books, each from a different genre, from the list below. Fill out a book card or email your review to mmcallihan@mustardseedschool.org. Your review will be posted on our fourth grade blog for other classmates to read! Maybe someone will read your book based on your review. Parents are encouraged to read and talk about these books with their child.
Note: This page was updated on June 10, 2011.
Adventure and Survival
Shipwrecked! The True Adventures Of a Japanese Boy by Rhoda Blumberg
Stranded by Christopher Matt
Jim Ugly by Sid Fleischman
The Music of Dolphins by Karen Hesse
The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman
Saving Shiloh by Phyllis Reynold Naylor
Mystery
Sammy Keyes Series by W. Van Draanen
Nancy Drew Series by Carolyn Keene
Poetry
Love That Dog by Sharon Creech
Folktales, Fairy Tales, and Legends
Remaking the Earth by Paul Goble
The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses by Paul Goble
Grimm’s Fairy Tales by Jacob Grimm
Biography
The Abracadabra Kid: A Writer’s Life by Sid Fleischman
My Life in Dog Years by Gary Paulsen
Boy by Roald Dahl
Black Diamond: The Story of the Negro Baseball League by Patricia McKissack
The Invisible Thread by Yoshiko Uchida
Fantasy
The Borrowers by Mary Norton
The King’s Equal by Katherine Paterson
The Secret of the Indian by Lynne Reid Banks
Poppy by Avi
Ragweed by Avi
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert O’Brien
Tale of Desperaux by Kate DiCamillo
The Dragon’s Boy by Jane Yolen
Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
BFG by Roald Dahl
Ackamarackus by Julius Lester
The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary
Catwings by Ursula LeGuin
Fiction
Lunch Money by Andrew Clements
Porch Lies: Tales of Slicksters, Tricksters, and Other Wily Characters by Patricia C. McKissack
Fourth Grade Rats by Jerry Spinelli
Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo
Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger by Louis Sachar
Holes by Louis Sachar
Frindle by Andrew Clements
Matilda by Roald Dahl
The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
The Incredible Journey by Sheila Burnford
Salsa Stories by Lulu Delacre
Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos
All About Sam by Lois Lowry
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary
Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
The Houdini Box by Brian Sleznick
Grandpa’s Mountain by Carolyn Reeder
Freckle Juice by Judy Blume
Stories Huey Tells by Ann Cameron
Gloria Rising by Ann Cameron
26 Fairmont Avenue by Tomie dePaola
Informational Books
The Snake Scientist by Montgomery
The Wigwam and the Longhouse by David Yue
Historical Fiction
The Misadventure of Maude March by Audrey Coulumbis
Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Sees Behind the Trees by Michael Dorris
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Lord
Trouble River by Betsy Byars
Lily’s Crossing by Patricia Reilly Giff
Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski
Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
Skylark by Patricia MacLachlan
Mr. Tucket by Gary Paulsen