Loudoun Country Day School

Summer Reading List

Fourth Grade

Requirements:Read a book by either Roald Dahl or Kate DiCamillo. Please do not read Because of Winn Dixie by DiCamillo or Trumpet of the Swan by White. We will read them in class.

Here are some exciting ways to make your summer reading a little more interesting! Please read a book from one of the authors listed above and pick one assignment that you will complete and be ready to present on the first day of school. In addition read at least one more book of your choice from the list below.

  1. BOOK REPORT SANDWICH: You will need to make 2 bread slices, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise or mustard, cheese, and meat. On the top slice of bread, write the title and the author of the book. On the lettuce, write a brief summary of the book. On the condiment, describe the book’s setting. On the cheese, share the book’s problem. On the meat, describe the solution, and on the bottom slice of bread, draw a favorite scene from the story. Staple the sandwich layers together.
  2. BOOK IN A BAG, AN ENVELOPE, or AN OATMEAL BOX: Select a container for your report. It should be a plastic bag, a manila envelope, a can, or anything else that might be appropriate for a book. Decorate the container to describe some of the major details, elements, setting, characters, conflicts, problem, solution, or themes from the book. Include the following: write ten questions based on the book. Five can be about general content, while the other five need to require more thinking. Create a ten-word glossary of unfamiliar words from the book. Include five things that have a connection to the story.
  3. WRITE A LETTER TO THE AUTHOR: After reading a book, share your reactions and opinions to the book in a letter written to the author. If you write to an author that is still alive, research him or her to see if you can locate the email address or real address and consider mailing it. In the letter, briefly talk about the setting, plot, climax, and conclusion of the story. Be sure to use your best handwriting, or with permission, you may type it on your computer.
  4. INTERVIEW A CHARACTER: Write 6-8 questions to ask a main character in your book. Then write what the character would say in response to each question. The questions and answers should provide information that shows that you read the book without giving away the most significant details. Use your best handwriting.
  5. CREATE A CARD CATALOG: After reading the book, complete an index card with information about the book. The front of the card should include details such as title, author, and date published, along with a 2-3 sentence summary of the book. On the back of the card, write a paragraph explaining what you liked and disliked about the book. You may even want to rate the book using a 5-star rating system. (Example: a five star book is “highly recommended: a book you can’t put down.”
  6. CONCENTRATION: You will need 30 index cards to create a Concentration-style game related to the book. Choose 14 things, characters, or events that played a part in the book and create two cards that have identical pictures that represent an event, people, or themes. The two remaining cards are marked “WILD CARD”. Put your cards in a Ziploc baggie and be prepared to summarize your story using the cards.
  7. CHARACTERS COME TO LIFE!: Create life-size “portraits” of one of the characters from the book. The portrait should include a written piece that tells about the character. It also needs to include information about the events, traits, or conflicts in the book that involve the character.
  8. PICTURE BOOK: Create a picture book version of the story that would appeal to younger students. Be sure to include the beginning, middle, and end, setting, characters, plot, and anything else that you feel would help tell the story without words. Be prepared to use your words when showing the book to the class.

Please feel free to select other books that are not on this list. This is a suggested reading list only.

BabbitKnee Knock Rise

BanksThe Indian in the Cupboard Series

BlumeTales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

ByarsSummer of the Swans

CarrThe Secret Garden

ClearyThe Mouse and the Motorcycle

Ramona and Her Father

CreechBloomability

Walk Two Moons

Chasing Redbird

DahlFantastic Mr. Fox

The Twits

The BFG

Matilda

DiCamilloThe Tiger Rising

The Tale of Despereaux

George, J.C.Julie of the Wolves

Julie

Cry of the Crow

HamiltonM. C. Higgins the Great

Cousins

The Mystery of Drear House

HenryMisty of Chincoteague

HerriotMoses the Kitten

The Christmas Kitten

HesseJust Juice

Out of the Dust

HughesThe Dreamkeeper and Other Poems

HurwitzThe Hot and Cold Summer

JusterThe Phantom Tollbooth

LevineElla Enchanted

LindberghThe People in Pineapple Place

MaclachlanSarah, Plain, and Tall

Baby

Three Names

O’DellIsland of the Blue Dolphins

PatersonFlip Flop Girl

The Preacher’s Boy

PaulsenHatchet

Dogsong

Mr. Tucket

PrelutskyA Pizza the Size of the Sun (poetry)

RylantMissing May

The Islander

The VanGogh Café

SacharWayside School is Falling Down

SilversteinWhere the Sidewalk Ends

SpinelliFourth Grade Rats

Maniac Magee

The Library Card

White, E.B.Charlotte’s Web

WorthAll the Small Poems (poetry)