It’s Monday and I’m happy to be participating in a weekly event with a community of bloggers who post reviews of books that they have read the previous week. Check out more IMWAYR posts here: Jen from Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers
Reading aloud to my class is the favorite part of my day… I love the quiet anticipation before I start reading and the collective “No! Don’t stop now! Just one more page!” when I close the book. I have been asked recently by several teacher friends for recommendations for class-read alouds. So I have been searching through my novel tubs and have decided to post a list of a few recommended read-alouds for different grades. I welcome readers to also share their favorites!
And so I will begin my favorite read-alouds for grade 3’s… I have tried to include a mix of old and new, poignant and fun, appealing to both boys and girls!
My Father’s Dragon – Ruth Stiles Gannett
This book was published way back in 1943 but is still one of my favorites! It tells the adventure of a run-away boy and his attempt to rescue a baby dragon who is being taken advantage of by the animals on Wild Island. Clever and fun – and a great book for practicing predicting.
Toys Go Out – Emily Jenkins
This simple, sweet story, reminiscent of “Toy Story”, takes us behind the scenes to the adventures of 3 toys that live in a little girl’s room. Great for introducing character traits as each toy has its own distinct personality.
The Magic Finger – Roald Dahl
No read-aloud list would be complete without a Roald Dahl book! His books beg to be read aloud! There are so many I could include (Fantastic Mr. Fox is another I love) but I enjoy reading The Magic Finger. It is short and funny and perfect for this age group. It tells the story of a little girl who has a magic finger. Whenever she gets angry – she points her fingertip and takes revenge! The story centers around her neighbours, who are duck hunters. Hunting makes this little girl very angry – so she uses her magic finger and turns the family into… you guessed it – Ducks! It’s short and simple and fun – but a serious message that is worthy of discussion.
Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat – Jonathon Bean
This book is quirky and fun! Great plot, entertaining characters and unpredictable ending! Your students will LOVE this book!
The Year of Billy Miller – Kevin Henkes
Fast-paced and funny – your students will make lots of connections to family, friendship and school! Great black and white art. Heartwarming – I actually teared up at the end! Love Billy Miller!
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane – Kate DiCamillo
This is such a beautiful story and Kate DiCamillo’s writing is exquisite (Triple scoop words on every page!) Edward Tulane is a china rabbit who is passed from owner to owner, enduring both love and tradgedy along the way. This book is about opening your heart to being loved and it will stay with you for a long time.
The World According to Humphrey – Betty G. Birney
This book is told from the perspective of Humphrey, the hamster, class pet in Room 26. He reports on the daily comings and goings in the classroom as well as his weekend sleepover’s at various student’s houses. Cute, fun book – kids will want to read the Humphrey series after this!
Harry and the Poisonous Centipede – Lynne Reid Banks
The story of Harry, the curious, adventure seeking centipede, who disobeys his mother’s orders and attempts to crawl up the drain pipe with his friend to the forbidden world of the “h00-mins”. Fun, fast paced, and high on the “gross scale”! Interesting facts about centipedes woven into the story make for an interesting link to science.
The Hundred Dresses – Eleanor Estes
This is a tender, heartbreaking story about Wanda, who wears the same faded dress to school every day but claims to have a hundred dresses at home. Because of this, she is ridiculed and teased by children at school. This book was published in 1944 – long before the word “bullying” was a common term – but the story is timeless and deals with the issue beautifully.
There you have some of my favorites – what about you? What are your favorite read-alouds for gr. 3’s?
Some of these are old favorites, and some are new surprises, but they all look like fun! Here’s my reading week: http://kaymcgriff.edublogs.org/2014/10/06/its-monday-what-are-you-reading-14/
Thanks and I will definitely be checking your list later! I like that there is such a variety in the books you can read to the class – from classic, to comic to serious and thought provoking!
The Hundred Dresses. What an amazing book – I have lost count of how often I have read it by now, but it’s an experience every time.
Yes, it is a book I will never get tired of. And every time I read it to a class, I experience the story all over again with them – the magic of books
I know nearly all of these, Adrienne, sweet books. I loved Billy Miller when it came out, glad to hear it’s on your list. I have a “page” on my blog of some read alouds, from others and from me. A very favorite that I’m still recommending for the third graders is A Nest for Celeste by Henry Cole. It’s a lovely story, kind of the same flavor as Edward Tulane.
Thanks, Linda! I will definitely be checking out your Read-Aloud page! I love hearing what others are reading to their classes! A Nest For Celeste sounds wonderful – especially if it’s similar to Edward Tulane! I also forgot to include Word by Word – Patricia MacLauchlan – it’s another one of my favorites for this age group!
I really really need to read Edward Tulane! It’s one of those I have it, just need time to get to it! I really enjoyed Billy Miller, and yes, 3rd grade is a great year for that book!
Michele – Edward Tulane is a must read – the writing is just so beautiful and the story so heartbreaking an heart warming at the same time. It would be difficult for most 3rd grades to read on their own but the story is perfect for the age group. When I read that book – the room is completely silent – they are completely mesmerized!
So happy to see The Hundred Dresses on this list. How I love this book. Grade 3 read alouds, I have many favourites! Top 3? The One and Only Ivan, The Small Adventures of Popeye and Elvis and Rump.
I love Ivan so so much – and am saving it for a bit later in the year. Popeye and Elvis and Rump – I don’t know either of these and am excited to check them out! Hundred Dresses – sigh… and sigh again. Almost too beautiful to describe.
The Hundred Dresses is one of my absolute favorite reads of all time. Sounds like Edward Tulane would be a great read-aloud with my 12 year old daughter. We had such a blast with Flora & Ulyses – that it appears like we can’t possibly top that experience. Will explore the possibility of Tulane. 🙂
Just read My Father’s Dragon to my daughters this summer…funny how something that was published so long ago can still be so engaging for them! The same with The Hundred Dresses. I love Kate DiCamillo so looking forward to Edward Tulane too. So many books, so little time!