1980s books assigned in 5th grade
US schools assign 58 books written in the 1980s to 5th grade students, across 33 states, spanning 550L–1020L. Every title below is cited from a state ELA standard, district reading list, or AP/IB syllabus.
- Titles
- 58
- Written
- 1980–1989
- Lexile range
- 550L–1020L
- States assigning
- 33
The list — 1980s, 5th grade
Reading the whole 1980s 5th grade reading list? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.
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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- Behave Yourself, Bethany BrantPatricia Beatty
- 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
Show all 58 titles
- Joyful Noise · Paul Fleischman
- 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 5th 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 5th grade?
- 58 books written between 1980 and 1989 appear on 5th 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 5th 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?
- 33 states assign at least one 1980s title at 5th 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.