The Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett · Grades 4–5 · Fantasy
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is assigned in US schools at grades 4–5. It appears on 1 list: the Common Core State Standards (ELA). Every citation below links to the primary source.
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Before you buy: Ages 9–10 · Grades 4–5 · 256 pages. The button opens the print edition (ISBN 9780140366662). If the class uses a set edition or translation, match its ISBN first.
Famous line
“Might I,” quavered Mary, “might I have a bit of earth?”
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Assigned across 1 curriculum list
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 The Secret Garden 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 9–10
- Pages
- 256
- Reading time
- about 4h 40m (est.)
- First published
- 1911
- Genre
- Fantasy
- ISBN-13
- 9780140366662
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.
Good fit for grade 4?
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About this book
Book facts and sources (2)
- Named in curriculum frameworks
- Common Core State Standards (ELA) (source: nysed.gov)
- Adapted for screen
- The Secret Garden (1993, Film) (source: Wikipedia)
- Catalog record
- First published 1911 · 256 pages (edition lengths vary) (source: how we source book data)
Adapted for screen
Adapted for screen (Film · 1993) · theatrical.
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Why it is assigned
This fantasy title is typically read at grades 4–5. Written in the 1910s; pairs with curriculum units on friendship, fiction and people with disabilities, fiction; cited on the Common Core State Standards (ELA).
Themes
friendship, fiction · people with disabilities, fiction · great britain, fiction · child and youth fiction
Where this book is assigned
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Common questions
- What grade level is The Secret Garden?
- The Secret Garden is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 4–5. It appears on 1 school reading list. Exact placement varies by school and district.
- How long does it take to read The Secret Garden?
- It takes about 4h 40m to read The Secret Garden (256 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 280 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- What curricula assign The Secret Garden?
- The Secret Garden appears on reading lists for Common Core State Standards (ELA). Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is The Secret Garden banned in schools?
- The Secret Garden 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.
- What themes does The Secret Garden explore?
- Central themes in The Secret Garden include friendship, fiction, people with disabilities, fiction, great britain, fiction, child and youth fiction.
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 curriculum sources cited on this page.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- Not yet documented in a state-level framework on this site.
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- No seasonal or program-specific tags on this book.