Summer and Enrichment Reading

In the Memoria Press/HLS literature curriculum, students read three or four good books in depth with study guides every year. Students should also be reading additional books during the school year and especially during leisure time in the summers. The books we recommend for grades 3-up are in three categories: (1) classics (2) light reading (3) informational reading. Category 3 is coordinated with the curriculum when possible.

For each book in grades 1-up most entries include the author, number of pages, and lexile level. The lexile reading level is an imperfect but useful guide to a book’s reading level or difficulty. The lexile reading level is based on word repetition and sentence length and is explained here.

Factors that are not included in the lexile level are vocabulary and content. The lexile level for each grade is taken from the lexile site here.

How to Use the Reading List

For each grade, books suggested are suitable for the summer before that grade, during the school year, and the summer after that grade.  Books from higher or lower grades may also be good choices for your student, depending on his or her reading level and interest. These lists will be most useful for those who know the reading level and interests of their students.

One caveat. Students can become lazy and resist reading books above their comfort level. It is important to include books in their pleasure reading that are somewhat challenging, books that you may occasionally have to help them push through. The goal is to continuously raise the reading level of your students.