Entering First Grade

Children lose 20-30% of reading gains made during the school year over the summer. Educators call this regression the “summer slide,” which can equate to falling behind by almost half a grade level in just two months. The good news is reading loss can be eliminated by having a child independently read just 4-6 books over the summer!

Summer Reading Favorites: Rising First Graders

Fiction

  1. Adventures of Otto by David Milgrim

  2. Cat Traps by Molly Coxe

  3. Flubby is Not a Good Pet by J.E. Morris

  4. Hot Dog by Molly Coxe

  5. Ice Cream Soup by Ann Ingalls

  6. I Will Try by Marilyn Janovitz

  7. Moo Bird by David Milgrim

  8. Pig is Big on Books by Douglas Florian

  9. See Me Play by Paul Meisel

  10. See the Cat by David Larochelle

Non Fiction

  1. Dogs by Bullfrog Books

  2. Koalas by National Geographic Kids

Beating the Summer Slide

Daily Goal 20 minutes of independent reading, followed by a few (two or so) comprehension questions from the parent

Summer Goal 4-6 books read well, several times, with fluency

For additional titles, see our early first grade recommendations here