Text Choices for Interactive Read Alouds
The following lists are a compilation from the following sources: The Art of Teaching Reading, Reading With Meaning, Growing Readers, Strategies That Work: Teaching for Understanding and Engagement, Mosaic of Thought, and several internet websites.
Visualization:
Aliki, Marianthe’s Story: Painted Words/Spoken Memories
Aylesworth, Jim Old Black Fly
Banyai, Istvan Zoom
Banyai, Istvan Re-Zoom
Barrett, Judith Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Barrett, Judith Pickles to Pittsburgh
Baylor, Byrd, I’m in Charge of Celebrations
Bloor, Edward Tangerine
Brinckloe, Julie Fireflies!: Story and Pictures
Brown, Margaret Wise The Sailor Dog
Bouchard, D. Voices from the Wild
Bunting, Eve Smoky Night
Carlstrom, Nancy White What Does the Rain Play?
Carlstrom, Nancy White Wild, Wild Sunflower Child Anna
Condra, Estelle See the Ocean
Cooney, Barbara Miss Rumphius
Creech, Sharon Fishing in the Air
Day, Alexandra Good Dog, Carl
Davies, Nicola Big Blue Whale
Delacre, Lulu Vejigante Masquerader
dePaola, Tomie The Cloud Book
dePaola, Tomie Here We All Are
dePaola, Tomie The Popcorn Book
Dodd, Ann Footprints and Shadows
Dooley, Norah Everybody Cooks Rice
Dorris, Michael Morning Girl
Dorros, Arthur Abuela
Douglass, Barbara The Chocolate Chip Cookie Contest
Ekoomiak, Normee Arctic Memories
Fisher, Leonard Everett Sailboat Lost
Fletcher, Ralph Twilight Comes Twice
Gelman, Rita Golden Pizza Pat
George, William T. Winter at Long Pond
Greenfield, Eloise Honey, I Love, and Other Love Poems
Heard, Georgia Creatures of Earth, Sea, and Sky
Howard, Jane When I’m Sleepy
Lauber, Patricia An Octopus is Amazing
Lessac, Frane My Little Island
Locker, Thomas Where the River Begins
London, Jonathan Baby Whale’s Journey
London, Jonathan The Condor’s Egg
London, Jonathan Dreamweaver
London, Jonathan At the Edge of the Forest
London, Jonathan Hurricane
London, Jonathan Into this Night We Are Rising
London, Jonathan Like Butter on Pancakes
London, Jonathan Puddles
Lovell, Patty Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon
MacLachlan, Patricia Through Grandpa’s Eyes
MacLachlan, Patricia Journey
Marshak, Suzanna I Am the Ocean
Martin, Bill The Ghost-Eye Tree
Martin, Bill Knots on a Counting Rope
Marzollo, Jean City Sounds
Marzollo, Jean Close Your Eyes
Mazer, Anne The Salamander Room
McCloskey, Robert Time of Wonder
Merriam, Eve Goodnight to Annie: an Alphabet Lullaby
Merriam, Eve Quiet, Please
Moser, Madeline Ever Heard of an Aardwolf
Munoz, Pam Ryan Hello, Ocean! Hola Mar
Murphy, Jim The Call of the Wolves
Navasky, Bruno Festival in My Heart: Poems by Japanese Children
Palatini, Margie Piggie Pie
Pawagi, Maniusha The Girl Who Hated Books
Priceman, Marjorie How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World
Ray, Mary Lyn Basket Moon
Ray, Mary Lyn Pumpkins
Robinson, Martha The Zoo at Night
Rohmann, Eric Time Flies
Ryder, Joanne Lizard in the Sun
Ryder, Joanne, Chipmunk Song
Ryder, Joanne Winter Whale
Rylant, Cynthia Night in the Country
Rylant, Cynthia Let’s Go Home
Rylant, Cynthia Van Gogh Cafe
Schertle, Alice A Lucky Thing
Shannon, David A Bad Case of Stripes
Sharmat, Mitchell Gregory, the Terrible Eater
Showers, Paul Follow Your Nose
Silverstein, Shel “Noise Day” (poem)
Snyder, Z.K. The Changing Maze
Steig, William Zeke Pippin
Stolz, Mary Say Something
Thomas, Dylan Fern Hill
Thomas, Shelley Moore Putting the World to Sleep
Tuer, Judy I’m Hungry
Turner, Ann Dakota Dugout
Van Allsburg, Chris Bad Day at River’s Bend
Van Allsburg, Chris Two Bad Ants
Wells, Rosemary Night Sounds, Morning Colors
White, E.B. Charlotte’s Web
Williams, Vera A Chair for My Mother
Wong, Herbert Yee Hamburger Heaven
Wood, Audrey The Napping House
Wood, Audrey Elbert’s Bad Word
Worth, Valerie All the Small Poems and Fourteen More
Wyeth, Sharon Dennis Something Beautiful
Yolen, Jane Greyling
Yolen, Jane Color Me a Rhyme
Zolotow, Charlotte The Seashore Book
Questioning:
Abercrombie, Barbara Charlie Anderson
Altman, Linda Amelia’s Road
Bates, Katherine America the Beautiful
Berger, Barbara Grandfather Twilight
Root, Phyllis Grandmother Winter
Bouchard, Dave If Sarah Will Take Me
Bunting, Eve A Day’s Work
Bunting, Eve Fly Away Home
Bunting, Eve How Many Days to America?
Bunting, Eve The Wall
Bunting, Eve The Wednesday Surprise
Clement, Rod Grandpa’s Teeth
Clements, Andrew Big Al
Conrad, Pam Call Me Ahnighito
Fleischman, Paul Weslandia
Friedman, Ina How My Parents Learned to Eat
Garland, Sherry My Father’s Boat
Garland, Sherry The Lotus Seed
Gibbons, Gail Monarch Butterfly
Grindley, Sally Why is the Sky Blue?
Gregory, Nan How Smudge Came
Heide, Florence The Day of Ahmed’s Secret
Lasky, Kathryn The Librarian Who Measured the Earth
Lewis, Paul Owen Storm Boy
Kellogg, Steven The Island of the Skog
Kitamura, Satoshi UFO Diary
Lester, Julius From Slave Ship to Freedom Road
Martin, Bill Knots on a Counting Rope
McDonald, Megan The Potato Man
Merriam, Eve The Wise Woman and Her Secret
Muth, Jon The Three Questions
Nivola, Claire Elisabeth
Park, Frances My Freedom Trip
Peet, Bill Wump World
Polacco, Patricia Appelemando’s Dream
Polacco, Patricia Pink and Say
Robinson, Barbara Best Christmas Pageant Ever
Rylant, Cynthia All I See
Rylant, Cynthia An Angel for Solomon Singer
Rylant, Cynthia Something Permanent
Rylant, Cynthia Van Gogh Cafe
Say, Alan Grandfather’s Journey
Seeger, Pete Abiyoyo
Steig, William The Amazing Bone
Steig, William Brave Irene
Steig, William Doctor DeSoto
Steig, William Gorky Rises
Steig, William Solomon, the Rusty Nail
Steig, William Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
Tunnell, Michael Mailing May
Turner, Ann Nettie’s Trip South
Van Allsburg, Chris The Polar Express
Van Allsburg, Chris The Stranger
White, E.B. The Trumpet of the Swan (a novel, not a picture book)
Wiesner, David Sector 7
Wiesner, David Tuesday
Wiles, Deborah Freedom Summer
Wollard, Kathy How Come? Planet Earth
Yolen, Jane The Mary Celeste
Inferring:
Allen, Debbie Dancing in the Wings
Bartone, Elisa Peppe the Lamplighter
Baylor, Byrd The Table Where Rich People Sit
Berger, Barbara Grandfather Twilight
Bierman, Carol Journey to Ellis Island: How My Father Came to America
Brinckloe, Julie Fireflies!: Story and Pictures
Brutschy, Jennifer Winter Fox
Bunting, Eve A Day’s Work
Bunting, Eve Dandelions
Bunting, Eve Fly Away Home
Bunting, Eve Going Home
Bunting, Eve How Many Days to America?
Bunting, Eve The Memory String
Bunting, Eve The Wall
Bunting, Eve The Wednesday Surprise
Cannon, Janell Stellaluna
Condra, Estelle See the Ocean
Cooper, Melrose Gettin’ Through Thursday
Cronin, Doreen Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type
Day, Alexandra Carl Goes Shopping
Day, Alexandra Frank and Ernest
Day, Alexandra Frank and Ernest on the Road
Day, Alexandra Good Dog, Carl
Deluise, Dom Charlie the Caterpillar
dePaola, Tomie Oliver Button is a Sissy
Fleischman, Paul Dateline: Troy
Fox, Mem Possum Magic
Fox, Mem Shoes From Grandpa
Geisert, Arthur Oink!
Golenbock, Peter Teammates
Greenfield, Eloise Grandpa’s Face
Hazen, Barbara Shook Tight Times
Heard, Georgia Creatures of Earth, Sea, and Sky
Heard, Georgia For the Good of the Earth and Sun
Innocenti, Roberto Rose Blanche
Jackson, Ellen Cinder Edna
Kellogg, Steven The Island of Skog
Lasky, Kathryn She’s Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head!
Lavies, Bianca A Gathering of Garter Snakes
Lobel, Arnold Fables
Macaulay, David Shortcut
Marshall, James George and Martha
Marshall, James George and Martha Encore
Marshall, James George and Martha Rise and Shine
Martin, Bill White Dynamite and Curly Kidd
McNaughton, Colin Oops! A Preston Pig Story
Mills, Lauren The Rag Coat
Munsch, Robert Love You Forever
Munsch, Robert Purple, Green, and Yellow
Oppenheim, Shulamith The Lily Cupboard
Palatini, Margie Piggie Pie
Palatini, Margie Zoom Broom
Park, Frances The Royal Bee
Paterson, Katherine The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks
Pinkney, Andrea Alvin Ailey
Root, Phyllis Grandmother Winter
Rylant, Cynthia All I See
Rylant, Cynthia Miss Maggie
Schroeder, Alan Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman
Scieszka, Jon Squids Will Be Squids
Shannon, David No, David!
Simon, Seymour Autumn Across America
Soto, Gary Big Bushy Mustache
Soto, Gary Chato’s Kitchen
Soto, Gary The Old Man and His Door
Steig, William Amos and Boris
Steig, William Brave Irene
Steig, William Zeke Pippin
Stewart, Sarah The Gardener
Stock, Catherine Where Are You Going, Manyoni?
Van Allsburg, Chris Ben’s Dream
Van Allsburg, Chris Jumanji
Van Allsburg, Chris The Garden of Abdul Gasazi
Van Allsburg, Chris The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
Van Allsburg, Chris The Stranger
Van Allsburg, Chris The Wreck of the Zephyr
Wells, Rosemary Timothy Goes to School
Wiesner, David Free Fall
Wiesner, David June 29, 1999
Wiesner, David Tuesday
Wyeth, Sharon Dennis Something Beautiful
Yamaka, Sara The Gift of Driscoll Lipscomb
Yolen, Jane Encounter
Yolen, Jane Mother Earth Father Sky
Zolotow, Charlotte If You Listen
Determining Importance:
Aliki, A Medieval Feast
Ballard, Robert Exploring the Titanic
Brown, Margaret Wise The Important Book
Cherry, Lynne The Great Kapok Tree
Cole, Joanna Hungry, Hungry Sharks
dePaola, Tomie The Cloud Book
Duke, Kate Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One
Hunter, Ryan Ann Cross a Bridge
Hunter, Ryan Ann Into the Sky
Hurwitz, Joanna Helen Keller: Courage in the Dark
Kimmel, Eric Anansi Goes Fishing
Luenn, Nancy Nessa’s Story
Lyon, George Ella Book
McNulty, Faith The Lady and the Spider
Ringgold, Faith Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the Sky
Siebert, Diane Sierra
Simon, Seymour Animals Nobody Loves
Stead, Tony Should There Be Zoos?
Spinelli, Eileen Sophie’s Masterpiece
Stevens, Janet Tops and Bottoms
Van Allsburg, Chris Two Bad Ants
Yolen, Jane Encounter
Synthesizing:
Abercrombie, Barbara Charlie Anderson
Arnold, Emily Mirette on the High Wire
Baylor, Byrd The Table Where Rich People Sit
Bunting, Eve Smoky Night
Condra, Estelle See the Ocean
dePaola, Tomie Oliver Button Is a Sissy
Griffith, Helen Georgia Music
Lasky, Katherine She’s Wearing a Dead Bird on Her Head!
Lauber, Patricia An Octopus is Amazing
Lionni, Leo A Color of His Own
Lionni, Leo Frederick’s Fables
Lionni, Leo The Alphabet Tree
Lobel, Arnold Fables
Martin, Rafe The Rough-Faced Girl
Mills, Lauren The Rag Coat
Rylant, Cynthia An Angel For Solomon Singer
Say, Allen Tea with Milk
Steptoe, John The Story of Jumping Mouse
Schema - Making Text-to-Self Connections:
Aliki, The Two of Them
Blume, Judy The Pain and the Great One
Brisson, Pat The Summer My Father Was Ten
Bunting, Eve Going Home
Bunting, Eve Smoky Night
Byars, Betsy Tornado
Chall, Marsha Up North at the Cabin
Carlson, Lori Marie Sol a Sol: Bilingual Poems
Caseley, Judith Mama, Coming and Going
Cooper, Melrose Gettin’ Through Thursday
dePaola, Tomie Nana Upstairs Nana Downstairs
dePaola, Tomie Now One Foot, Now the Other
dePaola, Tomie Oliver Button is a Sissy
dePaola, Tomie The Art Lesson
Fleischman, Paul Rondo in C
Fletcher, Ralph Relatively Speaking: Poems About Family
Fox, Mem Koala Lou
Fox, Mem Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge
Henkes, Kevin Chester’s Way
Henkes, Kevin Chrysanthemum
Henkes, Kevin Julius, the Baby of the World
Henkes, Kevin Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse
Henkes, Kevin Owen
Henkes, Kevin Sheila Rae, the Brave
Henkes, Kevin Wemberly Worried
Hoffman, Mary Amazing Grace
Houston, Gloria My Great-Aunt Arizona
Hubbell, Will Pumpkin Jack
Humphrey, Paul In Dad’s Day
Keats, Ezra Jack The Snowy Day
Kuskin, Karla Near the Window Tree: Poems and Notes
Levine, Ellen I Hate English
Lichtenheld, Tom What Are You So Grumpy About?
Liebman, Dan I Want to be a Police Officer
Little, Jean Hey World, Here I Am!
Lobel, Arnold Days with Frog and Toad
Lobel, Arnold Frog and Toad All Year
Lobel, Arnold Frog and Toad are Friends
Lobel, Arnold Frog and Toad Together
Martin, C.L.G., Three Brave Women
McCully, Emily Mirette on the High Wire
McLerran, Alice Roxaboxen
Parr, Todd It’s Okay to Be Different
Pilkey, Dav Dog Breath
Polacco, Patricia The Keeping Quilt
Polacco, Patricia My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother
Polacco, Patricia Chicken Sunday
Polacco, Patricia Mrs. Katz and Tush
Polacco, Patricia Mrs. Mack
Polacco, Patricia Some Birthday!
Polacco, Patricia Thank You, Mr. Falker
Reiser, Lynn Margaret and Margarita, Margarita y Margaret
Ringold, Faith Tar Beach
Rylant, Cynthia Birthday Presents
Rylant, Cynthia Every Living Thing: Stories
Rylant, Cynthia Miss Maggie
Simmons, Steven Alice and Greta: A Tale of Two Witches
Steig, William Amos and Boris
Steig, William Brave Irene
Titherington, Jeanne A Place for Ben
Viorst, Judith Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Viorst, Judith Earrings!
Viorst, Judith Rosie and Michael
Viorst, Judith The Tenth Good Thing about Barney
Waber, Bernard Ira Says Goodbye
Waber, Bernard Ira Sleeps Over
Waddell, Martin John Joe and the Big Hen
Wells, Rosemary Hazel’s Amazing Mother
Zolotow, Charlotte I Know a Lady
Zolotow, Charlotte Snippets: A Gathering of Poems, Pictures, and Possibilities
Zolotow, Charlotte William’s Doll
Schema - Making Text-to-Text Connections:
(Paired texts—Read these together!)
Palatini, Margie Piggie Pie
Palatini, Margie Zoom Broom
de Paola, Tomie Oliver Button is a Sissy
Judes, Marie-Odile Max, the Stubborn Little Wolf
Zolotow, Charlotte William’s Doll
Henkes, Kevin Julius, the Baby of the World
Henkes, Kevin Owen
Polacco, Patricia My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother
Blume, Judy The Pain and the Great One
Aliki, The Two of Them
dePaola, Tomie Now One Foot, Now the Other
Hopkins, Lee Bennett Best Friends: Poems
Roddie, Shen Too Close Friends
Weninger, B. Why Are You Fighting, Davy?
Brett, Jan The Gingerbread Baby
Compestine, Ying Chang The Runaway Rice Cake
Carlson, Nancy My Best Friend Moved Away
Cadnum, Michael The Lost and Found House
Waber, Bernard Ira Says Goodbye
Bunting, Eve The Wednesday Surprise
Bogart, Jo Ellen Jeremiah Learns to Read
Polacco, Patricia Thank You, Mr. Falker
Fox, Mem Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge
Bosak, Sisam V. Something to Remember Me By
Bahr, Mary The Memory Box
Mathis, Sharon B. The Hundred Penny Box
Fitzgerald, Elizabeth Aunt Flossie’s Hats (and Crab Cakes Later)
Polacco, Patricia Just Plain Fancy
Polacco, Patricia Appelemando’s Dream
Polacco, Patricia, Oh, Look!
Axtell, David We’re Going on a Lion Hunt
Polacco, Patricia When Lightning Comes in a Jar
Rylant, Cynthia The Relatives Came
Brinckloe, Julie Fireflies!: Stories and Pictures
Schema:
Schema - Making Text- to-World Connections:
Bunting, Eve Fly Away Home
Bunting, Eve Gleam and Glow
Bunting, Eve A Picnic in October
Bunting, Eve Someday a Tree
Bunting, Eve On Call Back Mountain
Bunting, Eve Smoky Night
Bunting, Eve The Wall
Cherry, Lynne The Great Kapok Tree
Cherry, Lynne A River Ran Wild
Mochizuki, Ken Baseball Saved Us
Osborne, Mary Pope New York’s Bravest
Rylant, Cynthia Night in the Country
Seuss, Dr. The Butter Battle Book
Seuss, Dr. The Lorax
Seuss, Dr. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue fish
Weiss, George What a Wonderful World
Woodson, Jacqueline The Other Side