I’ve used these books many times through the years. The suggested grade levels are just a guide — remember a child’s listening level is anywhere from 2 to 5 years above their independent reading level.
Title Author Grade Level
Are You My Mother? P.D. Eastman Toddler-Grade 1
Bath Time Eileen Spinelli Toddler
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Bill Martin Toddler-K
From Head to Toe Eric Carle Toddler-K
Mouse Mess Linnea Asplind Riley Toddler - Grade 1
Dinosaur Roar! Paul & Henrietta Stickland PreK-1
Duckat Gaelyn Gordon PreK—1
Goodnight, Gorilla Peggy Rathman PreK-K
I Lost My Bear Jules Feiffer PreK-K
Is Your Mama a Llama? Deborah Guarino PreK-K
Minerva Louise Janet Morgan Stoke PreK
My Monster Mama Loves Me So Laura Leuck PreK-Grade 1
The Seals on the Bus Lenny Hort PreK-Grade 2
Winnie the Pooh A.A. Milne PreK-Grade 1
Book! Book! Book! Deborah Bruss K-1
Every Autumn Comes the Bear Jim Arnolsky K-1
Seven Blind Mice Ed Young K and up
Today I Feel Silly Jamie Lee Curtis K-1
The Knight and the Dragon Tomie DePaolo K-2
Three Cheers for Tacky Helen Lester K-2
Tuesday (wordless) David Wiesner K-3
Alistair’s Elephant Marilyn Sadler 1-2
Horton Hatches the Egg Dr. Seuss 1-2
Julius, the Baby of the World Kevin Henkes 1-2
The Man Who Walked Between
the Towers Mordecai Gerstein 1-2
The Mountains of Tibet Mordecai Gerstein 1-2
America the Beautiful (pop-up) Robert Sabuda 2 to adult
Dear Mrs. LaRue, Letters from
Obedience School Mark Teague 2-4
Diary of a Worm Doreen Cronin 2-4
Flat Stanley Jeff Brown 2-4
Harry Potter Series J.K. Rowling 2 to adult
Heckedy Peg Audrey Wood 2-3
Hooway for Wodney Wat Helen Lester 2-3
How the B-52 Cockroach Learned
to Fly Lisa Matsumoto 2-4
Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt Deborah Hopkinson 2-5
Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Robert Frost
Evening (illustrated by Susan Jeffers) 2-6
The Lorax Dr. Seuss 2-4
The Marvelous Mouse Man Mary Ann Hoberman 2-4
Time Train Paul Fleischman 2-4
Click, Clack, Moo, Cows That Type Doreen Cronin 3-4
Company’s Coming Arthur Yorinks 3-4
Dear Mr. Henshaw Beverly Cleary 3-4
George Washington’s Teeth Deborah Chandra and
Madeleine Comora 3-5
Kids Pick the Funniest Poems Bruce Lansky 3-6
Stone Fox John Reynolds Gardner 3-5
The Last Holiday Concert Andrew Clements 3-5
The Mysterious Tadpole Steven Kellogg 3
The War With Grandpa Robert Smith 3-4
Train to Somewhere Eve Bunting 3-4
My Life in Dog Years Gary Paulsen 4 to adult
The BFG Roald Dahl 4-5
The Tripod Series (scien fiction) John Christopher 4-5
Traveling Man James Rumford 4-6
Always Wear Clean Underwear Marc Gellman 5 to adult
Bridge to Terabithia Katherine Paterson 5-6
Charmed Life Diana Jones 5-6
Dawn of Fear Susan Cooper 5-6
Holes Louis Sachar 5-8
Hoot Carl Hiaason 5-7
No More Dead Dogs Gordon Korman 5-6
Number the Stars Lois Lowry 5-8
Rabble Starkey Lois Lowry 5-8
The Cay Theodore Taylor 5-8
The Great Turkey Walk Kathleen Karr 5-6
The Tiger Rising Kate DiCamillo 5-6
The Watsons Go to Birmingham,1963 Christopher Paul Curtis 5-8
The Whipping Boy Sid Fleischman 5-6
Tuck Everlasting Natalie Babbitt 5-6
Under the Blood Red Sun Graham Salisbury 5-6
Crispin Avi 6-8
SOS Titanic Eve Bunting 6-8
Stones in Water Donna Jo Napoli 6-8
The Giver Lois Lowry 6 to adult
Where the Red Fern Grows Wilson Rawls 6 to adult