First-Grade Fiction Books, Reading Level: Beginning of Grade 1

Buy this book »

In first grade, much of the focus is on reading the words, especially in the beginning stages. Students in the beginning stages also rely heavily on using pictures to help them identify words that are unfamiliar in print. As students progress through first grade, they rely more on decoding skills, including phonics and context, and less on pictures. First-grade books have been divided into three levels: beginning, middle, and end. In the beginning stage, books are heavily illustrated and have just a few words per page. Often, there are just one or two lines of text per page. Many of the books contain repeated elements such as, "Have you seen my cat?" Many, however, require the ability to read a limited number of high-frequency words, such as are and there. In the middle level, the selections become longer and more difficult. There may be four or more lines of print per page, and students are required to read a greater number of high-frequency words. By end of first grade, students are reading books that may be 500 words or longer and may be divided into brief chapters. At this level, students need a good command of high-frequency words and basic phonics patterns.

Fiction

Reading Level: Beginning of Grade 1

Baker, Keith. Sometimes. Harcourt Brace, 1999, 14 pp. An alligator talks about the things that he likes to do. Reinforces short-a patterns and sight words. Model for writing about things I like to do.

Beck, Ian. Five Little Ducks. Holt, 1992, 24 pp. One by one, each of the five ducks disappears. Although there is a fox around, the ducks safely reappear. Easy reading. Provides practice with short-vowel patterns.

Berenstain, Stan, & Berenstain, Jan. Inside Outside Upside Down. Random House, 1968, 27 pp. A bear in a box gets a ride on a truck. Very easy reading.

Berenstain, Stan, & Berenstain, Jan. Bears on Wheels. Random House, 1969, 32 pp. Counting book shows varied number of bears on a variety of wheels. Very easy reading. Provides math tie-in: reinforces number words.

*Blackstone, Stella. Can You See the Red Balloon? Orchard, 1998, 22 pp. Readers are asked if they can see an orange cat, a red mouse, or other item on a page that has many cats, mice, and other items in a variety of colors. Reinforces color and high-frequency words.

*Cameron, Alice. The Cat Sat on the Mat. Houghton Mifflin, 1994,30 pp. Looking through cutouts on every other page, readers guess where the cat sat: on the mat, the car, the step, etc. Provides practice with the -at pattern. Very easy reading.

Carle, Eric. Do You Want to Be My Friend? HarperCollins, 1976, 30 pp. Talking to what appears to be a horse's tail, a mouse asks, "Do you want to be my friend?" A series of tails then appear, until finally, there is one that belongs to a mouse, who. answers, "Yes." The two friends then hide from a snake. Very easy reading.

*Carle, Eric. Have You Seen My Cat? Scholastic, 1987, 24 pp. A boy searching for his lost cat seeks help from people around the world who point him to a series of wild cats: a lion, a panther, a tiger, and so on. The last person he asks points him to his lost cat, who has just had kittens. Reinforces -at pattern and sight words. Very easy reading.