1980s books assigned in 3rd grade
US schools assign 104 books written in the 1980s to 3rd grade students, across 32 states, spanning 410L–860L. Every title below is cited from a state ELA standard, district reading list, or AP/IB syllabus.
Most widely assigned from the 1980s
There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom
Louis Sachar · on 16 reading lists
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- Titles
- 104
- Written
- 1980–1989
- Lexile range
- 410L–860L
- States assigning
- 32
The list — 1980s, 3rd grade
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A Chair for My MotherVera B. Williams
A Dog Called KittyWallace, Bill
A Visit to William Blake's InnNancy Willard
Aliens for BreakfastJonathan Etra
All About SamLois Lowry
AlphabaticsSuse MacDonald
Baby-Sitting Is a Dangerous JobWillo Davis Roberts
Bagdad Ate ItPhyllis Green
Be a Perfect Person in Just Three DaysStephen Manes
Beat the Story-Drum, Pum-PumAshley Bryan
C.L.O.U.D.S.Pat Cummings
Chicka Chicka Boom BoomBill Martin Jr.
Christina's GhostBetty Ren Wright
Class ClownJohanna Hurwitz
Dear Mr. HenshawBeverly Cleary
December StillnessMary Downing Hahn
Dicey's SongCynthia Voigt
Don’t Touch My RoomPatricia Lakin
Exploring the TitanicRobert D. Ballard
Eyes of the DragonMargaret Leaf
FablesArnold Lobel
Ferret in the Bedroom, Lizards in the FridgeBill Wallace
Freak the MightyW. R. Philbrick
FudgeCharlotte Towner Graeber
Show all 104 books (tap a title to open its page)
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- Hail, Hail, Camp Timberwood
- Half a Moon and One Whole Star
- Harry's Mad
- Heckedy Peg
- Herbie's Troubles
- Hey, Al
- If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
- In a Dark, Dark Room
- Is Anybody There?
- Jacob Have I Loved
- Jelly Belly
- Joyful Noise
- Jumanji
- Lincoln: A Photobiography
- Lon Po Po
- Lon Po Po
- Mama Don't Allow 25th Anniversary Edition
- Matilda
- Mirandy and Brother Wind
- Miss Nelson Has a Field Day
- Miss Nelson Is Back
- Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
- My Friend the Vampire
- My Teacher Is an Alien
- Night of the Twisters
- Nightmare Mountain
- Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade
- Number the Stars
- Outside Over There
- Owl Moon
- Peabody
- Piggins
- Ramona Quimby, Age 8
- Round Trip
- Sarah, Plain and Tall
- Shy Charles
- Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You
- Skinnybones
- Something Upstairs
- Song and Dance Man
- Space Case
- Stone Fox
- Superfudge
- Tacky the Penguin
- Taking Terri Mueller
- Ten Kids, No Pets
- The Araboolies of Liberty Street
- The BFG
- The Butterfly Jar
- The Cybil War
- The Devil and Mother Crump
- The Dog Who Had Kittens
- The Dollhouse Murders
- The Glorious Flight
- The Great White Man-Eating Shark
- The Hero and the Crown
- The Hot and Cold Summer
- The Indian in the Cupboard
- The Lady With the Alligator Purse
- The Magic School Bus: At the Waterworks
- The Other Side of Dark
- The Patchwork Quilt
- The Polar Express
- The Root Cellar
- The Shadow of Beauty
- The Stalker
- The Stories Julian Tells
- The Stranger
- The Talking Eggs
- The Whipping Boy
- The Wolf's Chicken Stew
- There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom
- Two bad Ants
- Wait Till Helen Comes
- Wayside School Is Falling Down
- We Are in a Book
- What Happened to Patrick's Dinosaurs?
- When the Boys Ran the House
- Who Needs a Bratty Brother?
- You Shouldn't Have to Say Goodbye
Most-assigned 1980s authors in 3rd grade
Chris Van Allsburg (4) · Lois Lowry (2) · Betty Ren Wright (2) · Johanna Hurwitz (2) · Beverly Cleary (2) · Mary Downing Hahn (2)
Common questions
- How many 1980s books are assigned in 3rd grade?
- 104 books written between 1980 and 1989 appear on 3rd grade reading lists tracked by ReadingList. Each one is cited from a state department of education, district list, or AP/IB syllabus.
- What Lexile range do these 1980s books cover?
- Lexile measures for the 1980s titles assigned in 3rd grade run from 410L to 860L. Poetry, drama, and graphic novels without a published Lexile measure are not counted in that range.
- Are these assigned nationally or in a few states?
- 32 states assign at least one 1980s title at 3rd grade in the lists tracked here, so this is a broad pattern rather than a single state's canon. Per-state lists are on each state page.