Cover of Shoeshine Girl

Shoeshine Girl

by Clyde Robert Bulla

Assigned across 1 curriculum list · 1 state

On reading-award lists:Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award

Shoeshine Girl by Clyde Robert Bulla is assigned in US schools at grades 4–6. It appears across 1 curriculum reference and 1 state, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.

This page shows where Shoeshine Girl is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.

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Grade range
Grades 4–6
Age range
Ages 9–11
Pages
87
Reading time
about 1h 35m (est.)
First published
1900
Genre
Realistic Fiction
ISBN-13
9780440840060

More formats & details

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About this book

Determined to earn some money, ten-year-old Sarah Ida gets a job at a shoe shine stand and learns a great many things besides shining shoes.

Similar grade-level books

See all books like Shoeshine Girl→ — matched on theme + reading level.

Why widely assigned

This Realistic Fiction title, typically at grades 4–6. Written in the 1900s; pairs with curriculum units on shoe shiners and friendship; cited across 1 curriculum framework.

Themes

shoe shiners · friendship · behavior · girls, fiction

Where this book is assigned

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Common questions

What grade level is Shoeshine Girl?
Shoeshine Girl is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 4–6. 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 Shoeshine Girl?
It takes about 1h 35m to read Shoeshine Girl (87 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 95 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign Shoeshine Girl?
Shoeshine Girl appears on reading lists for Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is Shoeshine Girl banned in schools?
Shoeshine Girl 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 Shoeshine Girl explore?
Central themes in Shoeshine Girl include shoe shiners, friendship, behavior, girls, fiction. 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 classify

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 4–6 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
Curriculum alignment
Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
State-level evidence
Cited in 1 state ELA framework 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.

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