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Appendix A: Classroom Library

Here are optional texts that we recommend for a rich grade-appropriate Classroom Library.

Kindergarten Classroom Library

TitleAuthorLexile
A Boy, a Dog, and a FrogMercer MayerNP
A Letter to AmyEzra Jack Keets430L
A Pet for Fly GuyTedd Arnold370L
A Stick Is an Excellent Thing: Poems Celebrating Outdoor Play Marilyn SingerNP
All the Colors of the RainbowAllan FowlerNC590L
Alligators All Around: An AlphabetMaurice SendakNP
And Tango Makes ThreeJustin Richardson and Peter ParnellAD520L
AntarcticaRebecca Hirsch500L
Apples and PumpkinsAnne RockwellAD440L
AustraliaRebecca Hirsch480L
Baby’s First Words Stella Blackstone and Sunny Scribens
BoatsAnne Rockwell270L
Branching Out: How Trees Are Part of Our WorldJoan Marie GalatNC1200L
Bugs in My Hair!David Shannon540L
ButterfliesMarfé Ferguson DelanoNC580L
Call Me Tree / Llámame árbolMaya Christina GonzalezNP
CarsAnne Rockwell270L
Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That TypeDoreen CroninAD470L
Click, Clack, Peep!Doreen CroninAD290L
Close Your EyesKate BanksAD440L
CorneliusLeo Lionni480L
Creature Features: Twenty-Five Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They DoSteve Jenkins and Robin PageAD650L
Creepy Monsters, Sleepy MonstersJane YolenAD330L
Curious You: On Your Way!Kathleen Weidner ZoehfeldAD540L
Danny and the DinosaurSyd Hoff400L
Dear BaobabCheryl FoggoAD820L
DinosaursKathleen Weidner Zoehfeld520L
Diving DolphinKaren Wallace440L
Don’t Forget the Bacon!Pat HutchinsNP
Duck for PresidentDoreen CroninAD680L
Elizabeti’s Doll Stephanie Stuve-BodeenAD560L
Fire EnginesAnne Rockwell440L
Five Little Monkeys Shopping for SchoolEileen ChristelowAD410L
Frogs and Toads and Tadpoles, TooAllan Fowler550L
Gator or Croc?Allan FowlerNC630L
Gilberto and the Wind Marie Hall Ets520L
GrasshoppersRobin Nelson480L
How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?Jane YolenAD350L
I Spy AnimalsJean MarzolloNP
Inch by InchLeo LionniAD210L
InsectsRobin Bernard530L
Inside an Ant ColonyAllan Fowler550L
Journey of a Humpback WhaleCaryn JennerIG590L
JuliusSyd Hoff460L
Just Like Me, Climbing a Tree: Exploring Trees Around the WorldDurga Yael BernhardAD640L
Just a Little BitAnn TompertAD480L
Karate HourCarol NeviusNP
Kit and KatTomie dePaola260L
Little Blue and Little YellowLeo Lionni440L
Miss Bindergarten Has a Wild Day in KindergartenJoseph Slate
Mouse Was MadLinda UrbanAD530L
Move!Steve Jenkins and Robin PageAD450L
My Brother, AntBetsy Byars360L
My Forest Is GreenDarren LebeufAD320L
Nat the Gnat: Diary of a WormDoreen Cronin500L
One Morning in MaineRobert McCloskeyAD610L
Our EarthAnne Rockwell580L
Our StarsAnne RockwellAD460L
Pablo’s TreePat Mora480L
Penny and Her MarbleKevin Henkes470L
PlanesAnne Rockwell340L
Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai Claire A. NivolaAD870L
Plants That Eat AnimalsAllan Fowler550L
Rainbow Weaver / Tejedora del arcoírisLinda Elovitz MarshallAD580L
Recess at 20 BelowCindy Lou AillaudAD690L
ShhhhKevin Henkes160L
Show and TellKristine Lalley80L
Simple MachinesAllan Fowler540L
So That’s How the Moon Changes Shape!Allan FowlerAD550L
Soccer HourCarol NeviusAD560L
Some Snow Is…Ellen Yeomans420L
Somewhere in the OceanJennifer Ward and T.J. MarshAD630L
South AmericaRebecca Hirsch450L
Sparkle BoyLesléa NewmanAD490L
Spiders Are Not InsectsAllan Fowler550L
Survivors: The Night the Titanic SankCaryn Jenner560L
Tap Tap Boom Boom Elizabeth Bluemle
Ten Red ApplesPat HutchinsAD360L
The Dandelion SeedJoseph AnthonyAD560L
The DotPeter H. ReynoldsAD500L
The Falling FlowersJennifer B. Reed
The First SnowfallAnne RockwellAD470L
The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of Amazon Rain ForestLynne Cherry590L
The Rain StomperAddie BoswellAD440L
The Surprise PartyPat Hutchins420L
The Wind BlewPat HutchinsAD520L
Thump, Quack, Moo: A Whacky AdventureDoreen CroninAD590L
Tracks in the SnowWong Herbert YeeAD440L
Two for OneKate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee450L
WaitingKevin Henkes440L
Waiting for WingsLois EhlertAD450L
Way Out in the DesertT. J. Marsh and Jennifer Ward590L
What Do You Do When Something Wants to Eat You?Steve JenkinsAD760L
Whatever the WeatherKaren Wallace380L
What’s Alive?Kathleen Weidner ZoehfeldAD520L
What’s the Weather Today?Allan Fowler490L
When This World Was New D. H. FigueredoAD600L
Z Was Zapped: A Play in Twenty-Six ActsChris Van Allsburg320L

First Grade Classroom Library

TitleAuthorLexile
A Big Mooncake for Little StarGrace LinAD430L
A Pet for PeteJames DeanAD420L
A River DreamAllen Say490L
A Windy Day in SpringCharles Ghigna400L
Adeline PorcupineCharles Ghigna520L
Alexander and the Wind-up MouseLeo Lionni560L
Amelia BedeliaPeggy Parish450L
Amelia Bedelia Bakes OffHerman Parish530L
Amelia Bedelia’s MasterpieceHerman Parish500L
An Extraordinary EggLeo Lionni620L
Anansi the Spider: A Tale from the AshantiGerald McDermottAD430L
And Tango Makes ThreeJustin Richardson and Peter ParnellAD520L
Antonio’s Card / La tarjeta de AntonioRigoberto Gonzalez
Arthur’s Birthday PartyLillian Hoban530L
Babushka’s DollPatricia Polacco470L
Ben’s DreamChris Van Allsburg540L
Big Anthony: His StoryTomie dePaolaAD590L
Biscuit Plays BallAlyssa Satin CapucilliAD180L
Brush of the Gods Lenore Look580L
ButterfliesMarfé Ferguson DelanoNC580L
Call Me Tree / Llámame árbolMaya Christina GonzalezNP
Captain CatSyd Hoff530L
Cat and DogElse Holmelund Minarik240L
Cat and Rat: The Legend of the Chinese ZodiacEd YoungAD590L
Cheyenne AgainEve BuntingAD560L
City Moon Rachael ColeAD450L
Commander Toad and the Voyage HomeJane Yolen620L
Coyote in Love With a StarMarty Kriepe de Montaño830L
Creepy CarrotsAaron ReynoldsAD490L
Creepy Crawly CrimeAaron ReynoldsGN450L
Crying Wolf and Other TalesAesop440L
Cuddle BunnyCharles Ghigna460L
Curses! Foiled AgainJane YolenGN380L
David and the GiantEmily Little370L
Days with Frog and ToadArnold Lobel490L
Dear Deer: A Book of HomophonesGene BarrettaAD530L
Dinosaur DaysJoyce Milton490L
Dinosaurs Before Dark Mary Pope Osborne510L
Dreaming Up Christy HaleAD550L
Drip, DropSarah Weeks280L
Dugout HeroRyan Howard and Krystle Howard540L
Elisapee and Her Baby Seagull Nancy Mike
Elmer and the DragonRuth Stiles Gannett800L
Emma’s Yucky BrotherJean Little480L
Even Monsters Need HaircutsMatthew McElligottAD500L
Flat Stanley: His Original Adventure!Jeff BrownAD550L
Flat Stanley and the Very Big CookieJeff BrownAD510L
FoiledJane YolenGN460L
Follow That Map!Sheri Tan
Freda Stops a BullyStuart J. Murphy490L
Frog and Friends: Party at the PondEve Bunting330L
Going to the FirehouseMercer Mayer310L
Good Driving, Amelia BedeliaHerman Parish450L
Good-Night, OwlPat HutchinsAD340L
GrasshoppersRobin Nelson480L
Harold and the Purple CrayonCrockett JohnsonAD530L
Henry and Mudge and the Big Sleepover Cynthia Rylant480L
Henry and Mudge and the Long Weekend Cynthia Rylant500L
Henry and Mudge in the Green Time Cynthia Rylant480L
Hooray for Amanda and Her Alligator!Mo WillemsAD490L
How Do Dinosaurs Say I’m Mad?Jane Yolen450L
How the Stars Fell into the Sky: A Navajo LegendJerrie OughtonAD780L
I See, You SawNurit Karlin120L
If You Were the MoonLaurie Purdie SalasAD790L
Imani’s Moon JaNay Brown-Wood550L
I’ll Save You Bobo!Eileen Rosenthal & Marc Rosenthal
JumanjiChris Van AllsburgAD620L
King of the PlaygroundPhyllis Reynolds Naylor500L
Lotus and Feather Ji-li Jiang
Monster TrucksKristin L. Nelson500L
Moon Rope / Un lazo a la lunaLois Ehlert
My Dog Jack Is FatEve BuntingAD510L
My New TeamRyan Howard and Krystle Howard480L
Old Black FlyJim AylesworthAD400L
One of a Kind, Like Me / Único como yoLaurin Mayeno
Pete at the BeachJames Dean280L
Pinky and Rex Go to CampJames Howe590L
Pinky and Rex and the Spelling BeeJames Howe580L
PoppletonCynthia Rylant460L
Poppleton and FriendsCynthia Rylant420L
Raven Brings the LightRoy Henry Vickers and Robert Budd
Sparrow Girl Sara PennypackerAD590L
The AlamoKristin L. Nelson610L
The Earth Under Sky Bear’s Feet: Native American Poems of the LandJoseph Bruchac
The Favorite DaughterAllen Say510L
The Lincoln MemorialKristin L. Nelson630L
The Lost LakeAllen Say540L
The Lunch Box SurpriseGrace Maccarone310L
The Night WorkerKate BanksAD530L
The Patchwork BikeMaxine Beneba Clarke
The Pot That Juan Built Nancy Andrews-Goebel1150L
The Shadow in the Moon Christina Matula640L
The Star People: A Lakota StoryS. D. Nelson
The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad SharkKen GeistAD640L
The Wreck of the ZephyrChris Van Allsburg590L
Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back: A Native American Year of MoonsJoseph Bruchac and Jonathan London840L
Waiting for WingsLois EhlertAD450L
Whales: The Gentle GiantsJoyce Milton540L
What Can You Do with Money?: Earning, Spending, and SavingJennifer S. Larson550L