Let me start by saying that I much prefer the old classics, when it comes to books, over the new "favorites." I love that the characters in the old books speak a) kindly, b) with clean language and c) with correct English. I love the morals in the old books. I love the expanded vocabulary in the old books.
That being the case, you can tell that this stance may sway my favorites to be different from some other people's favorites. But, be that as it may, here is a list of some of the books that my daughters in 3rd and 4th grade have enjoyed, this year. Some are from our school's Battle of the Books list, and some are not.
Mr Poppers Penguins--A short, easy read for 3rd and 4th graders, with a charming tale about a man who wished he could have been an adventurer. He is surprised to find himself raising a waddle of penguins.
Lincoln and Kennedy, A Pair To Compare--To be honest, my kids didn't actually love this one, but it's a great book to read together with your kids and learn more about history.
Because of Winn-Dixie--The title sounded super boring to me (and my kids) but we all ended up loving this one. It is a story of a girl and all the good things that come into her life, thanks to her ugly, rescued/adopted dog, Winn-Dixie. She learns that we all make mistakes, but that we are more than our mistakes and we can all use good friends.
My Father's Dragon--A fun, magical journey to rescue an enslaved dragon.
Phineas L. Macguire...Erupts! The First Experiment--Actually, my daughter didn't love this one, but I think boy readers might enjoy it more. It was a fun story about a boy who thinks of himself as a scientist. The science fair is coming up and he's not thrilled about which classmate he gets paired with, but he makes the most of it and finds new friends and helps others find new friends through the experience.
Charlottes Web--This is a fairly well known story of a pig who makes friends with a barnyard spider as they try to prevent the pig from being slaughtered.
Boxcar Children--This is a very fun story about 4 orphaned siblings who afraid of being placed in the care of their estranged grandfather. They find an abandoned boxcar to live from and make quite the fun and adventurous life for themselves, until...one of them gets sick. Then they find themselves needing to get help from adults. This one actually has a rather extensive series with fun mysteries in each book.
Goofballs (series)--I think there are only 6 books in this series, but they are very fun and entertaining for young readers. A group of very funny friends get together and solve mysteries together.
Mrs Piggle Wiggle- There are a few different books in this series. They are silly stories about an eccentric old woman who lives in an upside down house and whom all the neighborhood children love. Meanwhile, all the neighborhood mothers learn to call Mrs Piggle Wiggle for advice, whenever their children start developing various vices. Mrs Piggle Wiggle always has entertaining "cures" for whatever negative behavior kids start to have!
Pippi Longstocking--There are a few different books in this series, too. I don't know that I love this one, as Pippi might not have the most admirable character traits, but it is full of entertaining stories that my kids love.
Babysitters Little Sister (series)--There is a whole host of books in this series and my 4th grader loves them. It follows the goings on of a younger sister of one of the babysitters from the Babysitters Club series that my older sister loved when she was a tween.
Bobbsey Twins (series)--two sets of twins in one family, and if that's not interesting enough, they love to solve mysteries for people! It's Nancy Drew for younger readers! How can you go wrong?
Grimmtastic Girls (series)--I haven't read these ones, but my 4th graders LOVES them. Each one is a less-grim-version of the Grimm fairytales (Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, etc).
Happy Reading! What are some of your favorite books for 3rd and 4th graders?
