1980s books assigned in 4th grade
US schools assign 57 books written in the 1980s to 4th grade students, across 28 states, spanning 550L–1020L. Every title below is cited from a state ELA standard, district reading list, or AP/IB syllabus.
- Titles
- 57
- Written
- 1980–1989
- Lexile range
- 550L–1020L
- States assigning
- 28
The list — 1980s, 4th grade
Reading the whole 1980s 4th grade reading list? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.
Listen free on Audiblestarts instantlyNew members only · many assigned titles are included with the membership. As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you.
Rather listen? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.
Listen free on Audiblestarts instantlyNew members only · many assigned titles are included with the membership. As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you.
- A Chair for My MotherVera B. Williams
- A Visit to William Blake's InnNancy Willard
- Abraham Lincoln and Frederick DouglassRussell Freedman
- After the Dancing DaysMargaret Rostkowski
All About SamLois Lowry- AlphabaticsSuse MacDonald
- Anno's Medieval WorldMitsumasa Anno
- Anthony BurnsVirginia Hamilton
Baby-Sitting Is a Dangerous JobWillo Davis Roberts
Be a Perfect Person in Just Three DaysStephen Manes- Behind Barbed WireDaniel S. Davis
- C.L.O.U.D.S.Pat Cummings
- Chimney SweepsJames Cross Giblin
Class ClownJohanna Hurwitz- Conrad's WarAndrew Davies
Dear Mr. HenshawBeverly Cleary- Dicey's SongCynthia Voigt
Do Bananas Chew Gum?Jamie Gilson
FudgeCharlotte Towner Graeber- Giraffes, the Sentinels of the SavannasHelen Roney Sattler
HatchetGary Paulsen · 1020L- Jacob Have I LovedKatherine Paterson
Jelly BellyRobert Kimmel Smith- Joyful NoisePaul Fleischman
Show all 57 titles
- Karen Kepplewhite is the World's Best Kisser · Eve Bunting
- Mama Don't Allow 25th Anniversary Edition · Thacher Hurd
- Matilda · Roald Dahl
- Me, My Goat, and My Sister's Wedding · Stella Pevsner
- My Horrible Secret · Stephen Roos
- My Teacher Is an Alien · Bruce Coville
- Night of the Twisters · Ivy Ruckman
- Nightmare Mountain · Peg Kehret
- Number the Stars · Lois Lowry
- Outside Over There · Maurice Sendak
- Panama Canal · Judith St. George
- Playing Beatie Bow · Ruth Park
- Poverty in America · Milton Meltzer
- Ramona Quimby, Age 8 · Beverly Cleary
- Sarah, Plain and Tall · Patricia MacLachlan
- Shy Charles · Rosemary Wells
- Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You · Barthe DeClements
- Stone Fox · John Reynolds Gardiner
- Tancy · Belinda Hurmence
- The BFG · Roald Dahl
- The Butterfly Jar · Jeffrey Moss
- The Computer Nut · Betsy Cromer Byars
- The Cybil War · Betsy Byars
- The Dollhouse Murders · Betty Ren Wright
- The Hero and the Crown · Robin McKinley
- The Sign of the Beaver · Elizabeth George Speare
- The Stranger · Chris Van Allsburg
- The Weaver's Gift · Kathryn Lasky
- The Whipping Boy · Sid Fleischman
- Wayside School Is Falling Down · Louis Sachar
- When the Boys Ran the House · Joan Davenport Carris
- Who Needs a Bratty Brother? · Linda Gondosch
- You Shouldn't Have to Say Goodbye · Patricia Hermes
Most-assigned 1980s authors in 4th grade
Lois Lowry (2) · Beverly Cleary (2) · Roald Dahl (2) · Russell Freedman · Mitsumasa Anno · Virginia Hamilton
Common questions
- How many 1980s books are assigned in 4th grade?
- 57 books written between 1980 and 1989 appear on 4th 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 4th grade run from 550L to 1020L. 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?
- 28 states assign at least one 1980s title at 4th 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.