
Dragon Rider
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Assigned across 2 curriculum lists · 2 states
Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).
Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke is assigned in US schools at grades 3–8. It appears across 2 curriculum references and 2 states, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.
This page shows where Dragon Rider is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
- Grade range
- Grades 3–8
- Age range
- Ages 8–13
- Pages
- 536
- Reading time
- about 9h 50m (est.)
- First published
- 2004
- Genre
- Realistic Fiction
- ISBN-13
- 9780439685139
New to these terms? Reading levels by grade
More formats & details
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See all books like Dragon Rider→ — matched on theme + reading level.
Why widely assigned
This Realistic Fiction title, typically at grades 3–8. Written in the 2000s; pairs with curriculum units on animals, mythical; cited across 2 curriculum frameworks.
Themes
Where this book is assigned
Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award
- recommended·3rd grade · Arizonasource: Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award — Arizona's statewide children's-choice reading program (grades 3-83-66-): students read the annual nominees and vote for their favorite. Winner list verified from the award'...
- recommended·4th grade · Arizonasource: Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award — Arizona's statewide children's-choice reading program (grades 3-83-66-): students read the annual nominees and vote for their favorite. Winner list verified from the award'...
- recommended·5th grade · Arizonasource: Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award — Arizona's statewide children's-choice reading program (grades 3-83-66-): students read the annual nominees and vote for their favorite. Winner list verified from the award'...
- recommended·6th grade · Arizonasource: Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award — Arizona's statewide children's-choice reading program (grades 3-83-66-): students read the annual nominees and vote for their favorite. Winner list verified from the award'...
- recommended·7th grade · Arizonasource: Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award — Arizona's statewide children's-choice reading program (grades 3-83-66-): students read the annual nominees and vote for their favorite. Winner list verified from the award'...
- recommended·8th grade · Arizonasource: Grand Canyon Reader Award (Arizona) — formerly the Arizona Young Readers Award — Arizona's statewide children's-choice reading program (grades 3-83-66-): students read the annual nominees and vote for their favorite. Winner list verified from the award'...
Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award
- recommended·4th gradesource: Pacific Northwest Library Association — Young Reader's Choice Award winners (1940-2022), via Wikipedia — 2007 Winner
- recommended·4th grade · Washingtonsource: Pacific Northwest Library Association — Young Reader's Choice Award (the oldest children's-choice book award in North America, since 1940; students across the Pacific Northwest, including Washington, read the nominees and vote for their favorites)
- recommended·5th gradesource: Pacific Northwest Library Association — Young Reader's Choice Award winners (1940-2022), via Wikipedia — 2007 Winner
- recommended·5th grade · Washingtonsource: Pacific Northwest Library Association — Young Reader's Choice Award (the oldest children's-choice book award in North America, since 1940; students across the Pacific Northwest, including Washington, read the nominees and vote for their favorites)
- recommended·6th gradesource: Pacific Northwest Library Association — Young Reader's Choice Award winners (1940-2022), via Wikipedia — 2007 Winner
- recommended·6th grade · Washingtonsource: Pacific Northwest Library Association — Young Reader's Choice Award (the oldest children's-choice book award in North America, since 1940; students across the Pacific Northwest, including Washington, read the nominees and vote for their favorites)
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Common questions
- What grade level is Dragon Rider?
- Dragon Rider is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 3–8. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.
- How long does it take to read Dragon Rider?
- It takes about 9h 50m to read Dragon Rider (536 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 590 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- What curricula assign Dragon Rider?
- Dragon Rider appears on reading lists for Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award, Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is Dragon Rider banned in schools?
- Dragon Rider does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
- What themes does Dragon Rider explore?
- Central themes in Dragon Rider include animals, mythical. These themes match how the book is discussed in most curriculum guides and AP Literature prompts.
Why this book is on this list
How we classifyHide
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
- Grade band
- Grades 3–8 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 2 curricula on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- Cited in 2 states ELA frameworks or DOE list (see citations above).
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- Tagged for: book-club, read-aloud.