South Harrison School District

Suggested Summer reading Grades 3-4

The suggested summer reading book list is intended as a

starting place for parents to use to help your child to delve

deeper into the wonderful world of books.

The list is a compilation of recommended text from the

Governor of Connecticut’s Summer Reading Challenge and

the books on the appendices of the New Jersey Common

Core State Standards for English Language Arts & Literacy in

History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects.

We hope you have a terrific summer with lots of adventures both inside and outside the pages of a book!

The Curriculum Team

FICTION The Moon Over Star by Diana Hutts Aston *Available

at GCLS On her family’s farm in the town of Star, eight-year-old Mae eagerly

follows the progress of the 1969 Apollo 11 flight and moon landing

and dreams that she might one day be an astronaut, too. ALA

Grace for President by Kelly S. DiPuccio *Available at

GCLS

When Grace discovers that there has never been a female U.S.

president, she decides to run for school president. ALA, IRA

Under the Quilt of Night by Deborah Hopkinson

*Available at GCLS

A young girl flees from the farm where she has been worked as a slave

and uses the Underground Railroad to escape to freedom in the north. IRA

I Dream of Trains by Angela Johnson

The son of a sharecropper dreams of leaving Mississippi on a train with the legendary engineer Casey

Jones. NCSS

Night Boat to Freedom by Margot Theis Raven

*Available at GCLS

At the request of his fellow slave Granny Judith, Christmas John risks

his life to take runaways across a river from Kentucky to Ohio. He

story is based on slave narratives recorded in the 1930s. IRA

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll *Available at GCLS

Beloved classic describes a little girl's adventures in a topsy-turvy land underground and her encounters

with such improbable characters as the White Rabbit, March Hare and Mad Hatter, the sleepy Dormouse,

grinning Cheshire Cat, Mock Turtle, and the dreadful Queen of Hearts

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

*Available at GCLS

After her parents' death, Mary Lennox-a plain, sickly, and unloved

little girl-leaves her home in India to stay in her uncle's English

manor. There, thanks to a very special hidden garden and some

wonderful new friends, she undergoes a physical and spiritual

transformation that ultimately affects the lives of all around her.

The Black Stallion by Walter Farley *Available at GCLS

THE SOLE SURVIVORS of a devastating shipwreck, Alec Ramsay and the Black Stallion must learn to rely

on each other to survive. As a strong bond develops between them, Alec gains the trust of the

magnificent beast and eventually the Black allows Alec to ride. Finally, they are rescued, but will Alec

and the Black be allowed to stay together?

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery *Available at

GCLSWhen a pilot finds himself alone and stranded with a broken-down plane,

a little prince is his only companion living on a strange deserted planet. Full of

wisdom, humour and delight, this book while intended for children is also a

favourite of adults for its quirkiness and insight. First published in 1943 and

written by now-famous French writer Antoine de Saint Exupery, The Little Prince has grown to be a

world-wide classic, loved by many.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt *Available at GCLS

Doomed to—or blessed with—eternal life after drinking from a magic spring,

the Tuck family wanders about trying to live as inconspicuously and

comfortably as they can. When ten-year-old Winnie Foster stumbles on their

secret, the Tucks take her home and explain why living forever at one age is

less a blessing that it might seem. Complications arise when Winnie is

followed by a stranger who wants to market the spring water for a fortune.

M. C. Higgins, the Great by Virginia. M. C. Hamilton *Available at GCLS

Mayo Cornelius Higgins sits on his gleaming, forty-foot steel pole, towering

over his home on Sarah's Mountain. Stretched before him are rolling hills and

shady valleys. But behind him lie the wounds of strip mining, including a

mountain of rubble that may one day fall and bury his home. M.C. dreams of

escape for himself and his family. And, one day, atop his pole, he thinks he sees

it -- two strangers are making their way toward Sarah's Mountain. One has the

ability to make M.C.'s mother famous. And the other has the kind of freedom that M.C. has never even

considered.

The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich *Available at GCLS

Nineteenth-century American pioneer life was introduced to thousands of

young readers by Laura Ingalls Wilder's beloved Little House books. With

The Birchbark House, award-winning author Louise Erdrich's first novel for

young readers, this same slice of history is seen through the eyes of the

spirited, 7-year-old Ojibwa girl Omakayas, or Little Frog, so named because

her first step was a hop. The sole survivor of a smallpox epidemic on Spirit

Island, Omakayas, then only a baby girl, was rescued by a fearless woman

named Tallow and welcomed into an Ojibwa family on Lake Superior's

Madeline Island, the Island of the Golden-Breasted Woodpecker. We follow

Omakayas and her adopted family through a cycle of four seasons in 1847,

including the winter, when a historically documented outbreak of smallpox

overtook the island.

Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis

"It's funny how ideas are, in a lot of ways they're just like seeds. Both of them

start real, real small and then... woop, zoop, sloop... before you can say Jack

Robinson, they've gone and grown a lot bigger than you ever thought they

could." So figures scrappy 10-year-old philosopher Bud--"not Buddy"--Caldwell,

an orphan on the run from abusive foster homes and Hoovervilles in 1930s

Michigan. And the idea that's planted itself in his head is that Herman E.

Calloway, standup-bass player for the Dusky Devastators of the Depression, is his

father.

Guided only by a flier for one of Calloway's shows--a small, blue poster that had

mysteriously upset his mother shortly before she died--Bud sets off to track

down his supposed dad, a man he's never laid eyes on. And, being 10, Bud-not-

Buddy gets into all sorts of trouble along the way, barely escaping a monster-infested woodshed,

stealing a vampire's car, and even getting tricked into "busting slob with a real live girl

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin *Available at GCLS

In the valley of Fruitless Mountain, a young girl named Minli lives in

a ramshackle hut with her parents. In the evenings, her father

regales her with old folktales of the Jade Dragon and the Old Man

on the Moon, who knows the answers to all of life's questions.

Inspired by these stories, Minli sets off on an extraordinary journey

to find the Old Man on the Moon to ask him how she can change her

family's fortune. She encounters an assorted cast of characters and

magical creatures along the way, including a dragon who

accompanies her on her quest for the ultimate answer.

CHAPTER BOOKS

The Boy Who Climbed Into the Moon by David Almond *Available at GCLS

Helped by a very long ladder, some unusual acquaintances, two rather worried parents, and a great deal of

community spirit, a young English boy makes an astonishing discovery when he embarks on a mission to

prove that the moon is nothing but a big hole in the sky. USBBY

Little Rat Makes Music by Monika Bang- Campbell

*Available at GCLS

Little Rat loves the violin but hates to practice, until her teacher suggests she

perform a duet with one of the advanced students at the holiday concert. ALA

Bandit’s Moon by David Almond Twelve-year-old Annyrose, left behind when her brother joins the Gold Rush, escapes the unscrupulous

woman she is staying with and sets out on a grand adventure with the notorious bandit Joaquin Murieta and

his band of outlaws. ALA

The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz *Available at GCLS

When Flory the night fairy’s wings are accidentally broken and she cannot fly, she has to learn to do

everything differently. ALA

Dragonbreath by Ursula Vernon *Available at GCLS

Danny Dragonbreath and his friend Wendell get an up-close under

water tour of the Sargasso Sea from Danny's sea serpent cousin,

encountering giant squid and mako sharks--and learn about

standing up to

bullies in the process. IRA

Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt *Available at GCLS

Fredle, a young mouse cast out of his home, faces dangers and predators outside, makes some important

discoveries and allies, and learns the meaning of freedom as he struggles to return home.

GRAPHIC NOVEL

Joey Fly, Private Eye in Creepy Crawly Crime by

Aaron Reynolds *Available at GCLS

This graphic novel features Joey Fly, crime fighter, as he sets out to solve the

mystery of a stolen diamond pencil box owned by a beautiful butterfly

customer. Edgar Allan Poe Honor

POETRY

Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night by Joyce Sidman

A collection of poems that celebrate the wonder, mystery, and danger of the

night and describes the many things that hide in the dark. ALA, NCTE, NSTA

“The Echoing Green.” By William Blake

“The New Colossus.” By Emma Lazarus

“Casey at the Bat.” By Ernest Lawrence Thayer

“A Bird Came Down the Walk.” By Emily Dickinson

“Fog.” By Carl Sandburg

“Dust of Snow.” By Robert Frost

“Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf.” By Roald Dahl

“They Were My People.” By Grace Nichols

“Words Free As Confetti.” By Pat Mora

NON FICTION

Dream Something Big by Dianna Hutts Aston

In Watts, California, over a period of many years, a man known to all

as Uncle Sam spends his free time collecting broken bits of pottery,

glass, and other scraps and turning them into a work of art. ALA

A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston *Available at

GCLS

A book which is an informative, yet beautiful, introduction to seeds.

IRA

Vote! by Eileen Christelow *Available at GCLS

Using a campaign for mayor as an example, shows the steps involved in an election, from the candidate’s

speeches and rallies, to the voting booth where every vote counts, to the announcement of the winner.

ALA, IRA, NCSS

A Black Hole is Not a Hole by Carolyn *Available at GCLS

An examination of black holes that discusses what they are, what causes them,

how they are discovered, and more.

Jazz on a Saturday Night by Leo & Diane Dillon *Available at GCLS

Learn about this popular music form and hear each instrument play on a specially produced CD.

ALA, NCTE, NCSS

Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 by Brian Floca

Here is the story of the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon — a story of leaving and returning during the summer

of 1969, and a story of home, seen whole, from far away by steady astronauts in their great machines. ALA, IRA

Older Than the Stars by Karen C. Fox *Available at GCLS

How old are you?--Older than you think. In a way, we are all as old

as the universe itself. In fact, every bit of every one of us was

created in the Big Bang, billions of years ago. Stunning illustrations

and lively verse tell the story of the cosmic connections that tie

human beings to the beginning of the universe. Simple,

informative prose provides additional facts.

The Wolves Are Back by Jean Craighead George * Available at GCLS

For over a century, wolves were persecuted in the United States and nearly became extinct. Gradually

reintroduced, they are thriving again in the West, much to the benefit of the ecosystem. NSTA

If You Decide to Go to the Moon by Faith McNulty *Available at GCLS

Describes what a trip to the moon is like for a would-be astronaut. IRA

Saltypie by Tim Tingle

Thia book contains stories of the author’s Choctaw Indian family, which

center particularly on the author’s blind grandmother. ALA, IRA

Discovering Mars: The Amazing Story of the Red Planet by Melvin

Berger

Prize-winning author, Melvin Berger, believes that science should

always be fun. In his books - he has written over 200! - and in his

talks to young people, he stresses the excitement of science and the

thrill of scientific discovery.

He also believes in a hands-on approach to science for young people. Many of his books are

full of interesting, informative, and easy-to-do activities and experiments. In this book he

tells the amazing story of the Red Planet.

Let’s Investigate Marvelously Meaningful Maps by Madelyn

Wood Carlisle

This book Introduces all kinds of maps including weather, topographic, road, and undersea;

and explains such terms as scale, projections, symbols, latitude, and longitude.

Hurricanes: Earth’s Mightiest Storms by

Patricia Lauber *Available at GCLS

An introduction to the power, majesty, and destruction of

hurricanes contains eyewitness accounts of the storms, scientific

facts about all types of hurricanes, and full-color photographs.

The Kid’s Guide to Money: Earning It, Saving It, Spending It,

Growing It, Sharing It by Steve Otfinoski *Available at

GCLS

This activity book identifies ten steps to improve the counting of

children aged six to seven years old. It aims to help parents to

improve children's achievements at school, which is important

for Key Stage 1 SATs. It builds on children's school learning and provides home-school links.

The book also has a central pull-out and merit stickers to help make learning fun. The ten

steps include: recognizing numbers; counting a set; knowing number names; counting with

"teens" numbers; counting with large numbers; odd and even; counting with numbers up to

100; rounding up and down; finding more and fewer; and numbers below zero.

Toys!: Amazing Stories Behind

Some Great Inventions by Don

Wulffson *Available at GCLS

"Originally, Play-Doh only came in white. There's a

good reason for this. You see, Play-Doh didn't start

out as a toy. It started out as a product for cleaning

wallpaper."

Have you ever wondered who invented Lego, Mr. Potato Head, or toy trains? Here are the

fascinating stories behind these toy inventions and many others. Learn why the see-saw

was popular with the Romans, how the Slinky was used during the Vietnam War, and the

reason Raggedy Ann has a red heart on her chest that says "I love you." From dolls and

checkers to pinball and the modern video game, there's a wide selection here for boys and

girls alike.

With humor and wit, this intriguing book serves up slices of cultural history that will inspire

young readers to start thinking up their own toy inventions.

About Time: A First Look at Time and

Clocks by Bruce Koscielniak *Available at GCLS

Time to read a book.

Time to wash dishes.

Time to do this or that.

You say things like this every day, all the time. But there

was a time when time itself was undefined—no one knew

the difference between a minute, an hour, or a day. Then people started creating tools to

measure time. First they used the big stuff around them—the sun, the moon, water. Soon

after, using the knowledge they got from their natural time-telling tools, people began to

build clocks—huge clocks unlike the ones we use today. They also used their knowledge of

the sun and moon to create calendars made up of months and years.

Now, centuries later, we have clocks all around us. We can easily figure out how long a

month is. But it took many years of tinkering and inventing to perfect the art of telling time.

You could take a few moments now to read all about time. If you have a minute, that is.

A History of US by Joy Hakim

Whether it's standing on the podium in Seneca Falls with the

Suffragettes or riding on the first subway car beneath New

York City in 1907, the books in Joy Hakim's A History of US

series weave together exciting stories that bring American

history to life. Readers may want to start with War, Terrible

War, the tragic and bloody account of the Civil War that has

been hailed by critics as magnificent. Or All the People, brought fully up-to-date in this

new edition with a thoughtful and engaging examination of our world after September 11th.

No matter which book they read, young people will never think of American history as

boring again. Joy Hakim's single, clear voice offers continuity and narrative drama as she

shares with a young audience her love of and fascination with the people of the past.

My Librarian Is a Camel: How Books Are Brought to Children

Around the World by Margriet Ruurs *Available at GCLS

When we think of a library, we picture a building on a street or perhaps a room in a school.

But some libraries aren't kept behind four walls. Some

move from place to place in the most remarkable

ways: by bus, by boat, by elephant, by donkey, by

train, even by wheelbarrow. These unusual mobile

libraries are often the only way that books can be

brought to people in remote areas, such as the

mountains of Thailand, the Gobi Desert of Mongolia, or

rural areas of Zimbabwe. In places such as these, the arrival of the libraries is a major and

much anticipated event. But the books would never reach the people without the hard work

of dedicated librarians and volunteers.

Horses by Seymour Simon.

Horses are some of the most fascinating -- and important --

creatures on Earth. In fact, our world would not be the way it is

today if not for horses. Horses have carried medieval knights into

battle, transported settlers to the American West, and hauled fire

engines and buses. They even turned the wheels that provided

power for factories! But one of their greatest, most enduring gifts to us is companionship

and trust.

So come along with Seymour Simon, whom the New York Times calls "the dean of the

[children's science book] field," and learn more about these amazing animals -- straight

from the horse's mouth!

Quest for the Tree Kangaroo: An

Expedition to the Cloud Forest of New

Guinea By Sy Montgomery *Available at GCLS

It looks like a bear, but isn’t one. It climbs trees as easily as

a monkey— but isn’t a monkey, either. It has a belly pocket

like a kangaroo, but what’s a kangaroo doing up a tree? Meet

the amazing Matschie’s tree kangaroo, who makes its home

in the ancient trees of Papua New Guinea’s cloud forest. And meet the amazing scientists

who track these elusive animals.

Volcanoes by Seymour Simon

This book not only provides beautiful photographs, but good comprehensive information

too. The material is accessible and thorough and is enhanced by the stunning photography.

If you're looking for basic information, this is a great resource.

We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League

Baseball by Kadir Nelson *Available at GCLS

The story of Negro League baseball is the story of gifted athletes

and determined owners; of racial discrimination and international

sportsmanship; of fortunes won and lost; of triumphs and

defeats on and off the field. It is a perfect mirror for the social

and political history of black America in the first half of the twentieth century. But most of

all, the story of the Negro Leagues is about hundreds of unsung heroes who overcame

segregation, hatred, terrible conditions, and low pay to do the one thing they loved more

than anything else in the world: play ball.

BIOGRAPHY

Midnight Forests by Gary Hines

Gifford Pinchot is regarded as the father of the conservation movement. Pinchot and President Teddy

Roosevelt set aside large areas and designated them public lands; these are today’s National Forests.

IRA

Shooting for the Moon by Stephen Krensky

A picture-book biography of Annie Oakley that is based on her own writings and

illustrations. NCSS

Dreamer From the Village by

Michelle Markel *Available at GCLS

Chronicles the life of Marc Chagall, a celebrated twentieth century artist who was

born in Russia.

NCSS

Henry Aaron's Dream by Matt Tavares *Available at GCLS

This picture book is a biography of African-American baseball player Hank Aaron.

NCSS