We hope you will enjoy reading a wide variety of books with your child. No matter the age, every child should take time to enjoy books, both new and old. The wonderful books suggested here represent a wide range of books of various genres, themes, subjects, and reading levels. There's something for everyone! If you need even more suggestions, peruse the recommendations at the New York Public Library site, at http://kids.nypl.org/reading/index.cfm.
For those of you looking for guidance on popular leveled series, see the chart below. Series are both popular and helpful in nurturing reading skills. Your children might also want to explore other titles by authors they like. For more guidance, see the tip below by T. Nancy, our reading specialist.
Level
|
Titles of Series
|
| G |
Sheep in a Jeep series, Houghton Mifflin Little Readers, Oxford's Cat on the Mat series |
| H |
Danny and the Dinosaur series, Just Me series by Mercer Mayer |
| I |
Boss for a Day series by Tomie dePaola, Frog and Toad series by Lobel, Angus series by Marjorie Flack |
| J |
Mr. Putter and Tabby series, Poppleton series, Henry and Mudge series – all by Cynthia Rylant; Fox series by Edward Marshall, Mouse Soup and others by Arnold Lobel. |
| K |
Nate the Great series, Golly Sisters, M & M series, Arthur series by Lilian Hoban, Arthur picture books by Marc Brown |
| L |
Pinky and Rex series by James Howe, the Littles books by Peterson, Horrible Harry series, Amanda Pig series, Amelia Bedelia, Pee Wee Scouts, Little Bill series, George and Martha, Annabel the Actress series |
| M |
Magic Tree House series by Osborne, Bailey School Kids series by Dadey, Fletcher mystery series by E. Levy, Arthur chapter books, Junie B. Jones series by Park, Marvin Redpost by Louis Sachar, Matt Christopher series, picture book biography series by David Adler. |
| N |
A-Z mysteries by Roy, Amber Brown series by Danziger, Andy series by David Adler |
| O |
Meg McIntosh series, Pony Pals series, Ramona series by Cleary, Baby-Sitters Club series, Pony Pals series, Angel Park sports series by Hughes, Boxcar Children |
| P |
Magic School Bus series by Cole, Encyclopedia Brown series by Sobol, Time Warp series by Scieszka |
| Q |
Animal Ark series, Little House on the Prairie series by Wilder, American Girls novels, Help! I'm Trapped in ... series by Strasser, Magic Attic series |
| R |
Blossom series by Byars, Dunc series by Paulsen |
| S |
Nancy Drew, Borrowers series, My Teacher series by Coville, Poppy books by Avi, Wayside School series by Sachar |
| T |
Great Brain series by Fitzgerald, Narnia series by Lewis |
| U |
Profiles of Presidents series, Julie series by George |
| V |
Anne of Green Gables series by Montgomery, Series of Unfortunate Events by Snicket |
| W-Z |
Harry Potter series, Golden Compass, Redwall, Artemis Fowl series |
Some parents have asked, "How can I find books that are at that "just right level" for my child to read?" Here's a tip from our reading specialist, T. Nancy:
Books that are at a child's independent reading level are books where the child knows almost all of the words automatically. If you are in doubt about this, an easy gimmick to use is called the "Five Finger Rule." It works best with children who have moved into chapter books. Open to a page in the middle of the book that your child is interested in. Ask them to read aloud as you watch for about 100 words. For each word that they stumble over or don't recognize right away, put up one of your fingers. If you have 5 fingers up before they finish the page, this is a good book to read WITH someone. If you haven't gotten to five fingers yet, this book will probably be a good fit for independent reading.