Seven and a Half Tons of Steel
by Janet Nolan · Grades 4–5
Seven and a Half Tons of Steel by Janet Nolan is on US reading lists at grades 4–5. It appears on 1 list: the Alabama Camellia Children's Choice Book Award, across 1 state. Every citation below links to the primary source.
Before you buy: Ages 9–11 · Grades 4–5 · 40 pages. The button opens the paperback edition (ISBN 9781561459124). If the class uses a set edition or translation, match its ISBN first.
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Assigned across 1 curriculum list · 1 state
Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).
This page shows where Seven and a Half Tons of Steel is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
Reading level at a glance
- Grade range
- Grades 4–5
- Age range
- Ages 9–11
- Pages
- 40
- Reading time
- about 45 minutes (est.)
- ISBN-13
- 9781561459124
Sources: grade range from the cited lists below, last checked 2026-09-24; pages and year from our catalog record (sources); reading time is an estimate at 250 words a minute.
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Where this book is recommended
Alabama Camellia Children's Choice Book Award
- recommended·4th grade · Alabamasource: Alabama State Department of Education — Alabama Camellia Children's Choice Book Award Archive of Winners 1980-present (updated 7/6/2022) — 2017-18 4-5 grades winner
- recommended·5th grade · Alabamasource: Alabama State Department of Education — Alabama Camellia Children's Choice Book Award Archive of Winners 1980-present (updated 7/6/2022) — 2017-18 4-5 grades winner
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Common questions
- What grade level is Seven and a Half Tons of Steel?
- Seven and a Half Tons of Steel is listed for grades 4–5. It appears on 1 state book-award list across 1 state. Exact placement varies by school and district.
- How long does it take to read Seven and a Half Tons of Steel?
- It takes about 45 minutes to read Seven and a Half Tons of Steel (40 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 45 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- What curricula assign Seven and a Half Tons of Steel?
- Seven and a Half Tons of Steel appears on reading lists for Alabama Camellia Children's Choice Book Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is Seven and a Half Tons of Steel banned in schools?
- Seven and a Half Tons of Steel 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. See the banned books list by state.
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 4–5 — drawn from the state book-award lists citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where recommended” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- On state book-award lists in 1 state (see citations above).
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- Tagged for: book-club.