I just wanted to comment on your dd's age. My ds is going to be 8 in 2 months and is just finishing 1st grade! He missed the cut off to go to K when he was 5. I thought it was interesting he is the same age and a whole year behind.
Yes, it is odd for my daughter. She made the cut off for K by just a few days so she started K when she was 4. They have since changed the cut off - she would have been one of the oldest in her class. On her 7th birthday, I brought in cupcakes. Another parent brought in cake for her daughters same birthday except she was turning 8 that day!
Not dumb b/c I was going to ask the same thing! I wasn't sure if it meant entering 3rd grade ("rising" to 3rd grade, entering 4th grade ("rising" from 3rd grade), or some kind of gifted thing.
I wasn't sure how to describe her She just finished 2nd and is going into 3rd in the fall. I thought it was important to make it clear that she was (rising) into 3rd grade not just having finished 3rd since it's the end of the school year. I guess I was as clear as mud
Thanks again for all the great suggestions! We should have more than enough to read now!
The struggle, as you've already discovered, is to find challenging books that are still age appropriate. DD11 wants to read Twilight now - I have told her she can read the first book and maybe the second, but we will have to see about the others.http://www.battleofthebooks.org/4-62011.html
I let my 11 yr old read 1 and 2 but not 3. I asked her to let me "preread" those books since they were hot with the tween set, and I felt that #3 was just not appropriate. Prereading them killed me... all the angst!
To OP:
I am an elementary teacher, and my daughter is also a voracious reader. these are my suggestions, although really depends on what she enjoys:
Harry Potter series
The Redwall books
Most of Dahls books.
Gary Paulsen's books (esp Hatchet)
The Graveyard Book (Newberry)
The Higher Power of Lucky (another Newberry)
Series of Unfortunate Events series
Percy Jackson (my daughter LOVED these)
I don't have a kid that age (yet), but I still remember some of MY favorite books... (I don't remember the authors, sorry)
The Witch of Blackbird Pond
The Dark is Rising series (One of the books won a Newberry)
Nancy Drew books
Little House on the Prarie (already mentioned)
Heidi
The Secret Garden
And I remember reading "The Clan of the Cave Bear" in 6th or 7th grade - it was NOT appropriate at all, but I loved the majority of the story line... My English teacher recommended it to me. I was also reading Steven King at that time - and sleeping with stuffed animals and crosses because I was scared...
Your local library could probably suggest some books too. My rising 3rd grade son reads above average so we joined our local library's summer reading program. Here the kids earn prizes for reading all summer. I can't remember all the books he got yesterday but the librarian helped him with his selections. (I was helping my 4 yr old DD find books.)
If she likes ghost stories, my advanced 10 year old reader loves the "Scary Stories" series. You may want to look over them to see if they are too graphic. My DD has grown up with 3 much older sisters that nothing seems to bother her and she's read them all. I bought them on sale on Amazon for cheap for Christmas. Just look up Scary Stories on Amazon and you should find them.
If she likes ghost stories, my advanced 10 year old reader loves the "Scary Stories" series. You may want to look over them to see if they are too graphic. My DD has grown up with 3 much older sisters that nothing seems to bother her and she's read them all. I bought them on sale on Amazon for cheap for Christmas. Just look up Scary Stories on Amazon and you should find them.
I loved these when I was a kid! Some of the stories are actually scary, so it may depend how your DD handles scary themes, but a lot of them are scary at first but end with a funny twist. Those were always my favorites.
I also loved Beverly Cleary (the Ramona series) when I was that age. Also some Judy Blume - the Fudge series, Blubber, & Iggie's House would be good for 3rd grade. All the other Blume books I can think of have more mature themes.
I just wanted to comment on your dd's age. My ds is going to be 8 in 2 months and is just finishing 1st grade! He missed the cut off to go to K when he was 5. I thought it was interesting he is the same age and a whole year behind.
Anyhoo, he reads at a 3rd grade level and has enjoyed the Geronimo Stilton series. I think they're easy for him, but he finds them funny and if he's reading I'm fine with it.
I just wanted to second this. My son is a rising 2nd grader (7.5 y.o.) but reads at a 5th grade level. He loves Geronimo Stilton even though they are easy for him.
He liked the Phantom Tollboth and is currently reading some 39 Clues and the first Percy Jackson. I think he's going to read A Wrinkle in Time soon. He likes science and loved George's Secret Key to the Universe (by Lucy Hawking and Stephen Hawking). We finished the first Harry Potter together and I'm ok with him reading the next two, but I think he needs to wait for 4-7.
The Phantom Tollbooth is a great book. Laura Ingalls- Oh how I loved those books!
DS has been in to the American Chillers series by Johnathan Rand. He also likes the Michigan Chillers series by Rand. I have been reading them with DD.
My nephew (9) likes a Star Wars series, "The Rebel Force."
My boys loved The American Chiller series. ...I think it is 5th grade(nothing wrong with reading down) and the 39 clues series, and also Among the Hidden and Among the Lost(Haddix I think)...also sad- but my son loved it Remembering Sprite(dog story)
Captain Underpants Series
Spiderwick chronicles
Percy Jackson Series
Anything by Margert Peterson Haddix
Anything by Andrew Clements
American girl books
CS Lewis Narnia Series
Tale of Emily Windsap
I second the Redwall Books by Brian Jaques. My daughter loved them around that age. They are big which is good for keeping a voracious reader busy and there are a LOT of them so you always have the next one to go on to. My little voracious reader is now 16 and busy taking a PSAT prep class! What happened to my little girl?
This is making me kind of sad, my voracious reader DD now won't read anything that doesn't involve hunky teenage vampires or some such. But we had fun introducing her to many of the series listed here when she was younger.
I once read a quote, don't remember from whom, that said "You know you've succeeded as a parent when you're child's biggest decorating problem is where to put all the bookcases"
someone already beat me to the Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper, that was my favorite as a YA reader. the Redwall series is also very good, my DS loved those, and there are plenty of them.
The only ones I can remember that DD really liked at that age that haven't been mentioned here is the Protector of the small series by Tamora Pierce. She went from them to everything else by Tamora Pierce, and still buys and reads them as they come out.
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