Idaho 5th grade reading list

The 740 books most commonly assigned to Idaho 5th grade students in US schools — each with its reading level and a cited source.

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Books740Lexile390L–1020LSourceIdaho Content Standards✓ sources cited per book

Most-assigned nationally: across every US state’s official reading and award lists, the Elementary (K–5) titles appearing in the most states are Wonder (29 states), Because of Winn-Dixie (26 states), and Shiloh (25 states). From our 2026 study of 13,258 source-cited assignments (as of 2026-07-13).

Start here — most-cited for Idaho 5th grade

These are the 30 titles named in Idaho’s own curriculum documents for this grade — everything below is the wider national list. Read against the Common Core Appendix A complexity band; reading level is not thematic maturity, and several sit below the band because they are assigned for discussion.

  1. Holes

    Louis Sachar

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers fate vs choice, friendship and justice. At 660L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  2. Maniac Magee

    Jerry Spinelli

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers race, homelessness and family. At 820L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  3. New Kid

    Jerry Craft

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers race and identity, code-switching, middle school adjustment.

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  4. Bud, Not Buddy

    Christopher Paul Curtis

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers family, identity and perseverance. At 950L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  5. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

    Robert C. O'Brien

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers family, courage, science and ethics. At 790L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  6. The Tale of Despereaux

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers courage, forgiveness and light vs dark. At 670L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  7. El Deafo

    Cece Bell

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers disability, friendship and self-acceptance. At 420L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  8. King of the Wind

    Marguerite Henry

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7.

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  9. Shiloh

    Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers animal welfare, morality and family. At 890L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  10. Swim Team

    Johnnie Christmas

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers perseverance, friendship and race.

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  11. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers love, loss and journey.

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  12. When Stars Are Scattered

    Victoria Jamieson

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers refugees, family and hope.

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  13. Wonder

    R.J. Palacio

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers facial difference, kindness and bullying. At 790L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  14. 11 Birthdays

    Wendy Mass

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5.

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  15. Because of Winn-Dixie

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5. Covers loss, friendship and mother absence. At 610L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  16. Blubber

    Judy Blume

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers bullying, friendship and school.

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  17. Bunnicula

    Deborah Howe

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6.

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  18. Diary of a Wimpy Kid

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers school, friendship and family. At 950L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  19. Dog Man

    Dav Pilkey

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 2 to 5. Covers humor, friendship and good vs evil. At 390L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  20. Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library

    Chris Grabenstein

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 6.

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  21. Frindle

    Andrew Clements

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers creativity, language and thought, intelligence. At 830L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  22. Mr. Popper's Penguins

    Richard Atwater · Florence Atwater

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5. Covers family, adventure and imagination. At 910L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  23. Old Yeller

    Fred Gipson

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers family, courage and survival.

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  24. Rascal

    Sterling North

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers nature, animals and family.

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  25. Refugee

    Alan Gratz

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 9. Covers refugees, survival and family. At 800L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  26. Roller Girl

    Victoria Jamieson

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers friendship, perseverance and growing up. At 440L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  27. Superfudge

    Judy Blume

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6.

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  28. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

    Judy Blume

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 2 to 5. Covers siblings, family and everyday life. At 470L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  29. The Dollhouse Murders

    Betty Ren Wright

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers mystery, family and ghosts.

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  30. The Indian in the Cupboard

    Lynne Reid Banks

    Cited in 1 Idaho curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers friendship, responsibility and imagination.

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740 books cited for Idaho 5th grade

Assignments tied directly to Idaho’s Idaho Content Standards or national curricula with a Idaho-specific citation.

Show all 740 titles

Reading the whole Idaho 5th grade reading list? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.

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New 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.

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Other Idaho grades

4th grade · 6th grade · 3rd grade · 7th grade

Reading lists by grade (all states)

4th grade · 6th grade · 3rd grade · 7th grade

Same 5th grade in other states

California · Texas · Florida · New York · Pennsylvania · Illinois

Browse 5th grade reading by theme

About the Idaho 5th grade reading list

In Idaho schools, 5th grade students are most often assigned books drawn from Idaho Content Standardsalongside the national curricula that apply nationwide — Common Core State Standards Appendix B, AP English, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. ReadingList currently tracks 740 titles for 5th grade in Idaho, each tied to a Idaho-specific curriculum citation. Across the list, Lexile measures span 390L–1020L.

5th grade sits in the 3-5 grade band, where students are transitional readers. At this stage the emphasis is on shifting from learning-to-read to reading-to-learn and sustaining attention across longer chapter books. Assigned reading skews toward early novels, narrative non-fiction, and a student's first assigned full-length stories, with text complexity that, per Common Core’s Appendix A reading bands, typically falls around roughly 400L to 800L. Measured against that 740–1010L range, of the 57 titles here with a Lexile score 32 are grade-level, 24 are more accessible (often assigned for theme over challenge), and 1 is a stretch text that may need scaffolding. Because readers in a single 5th grade classroom can span several hundred Lexile points, this list is best read as a starting point rather than a fixed requirement.

Idaho’s English Language Arts requirements are set by Idaho Content Standards (sde.idaho.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework, so the 5th grade list below blends Idaho-specific assignments with the widely-taught national canon. Every title links to its primary source on the book’s detail page, so you can confirm exactly where and why it is assigned.

How to use this list:match a title to your child’s most recent Lexile or guided-reading level rather than to the grade alone. Teachers building a 5th grade unit can pair a Idaho-cited core text with a grade-appropriate companion novel; parents previewing summer or supplemental reading can check each book’s content notes and challenge history before assigning it.

Common questions

How many books are assigned to 5th grade students in Idaho?
740 books appear on ReadingList for 5th grade students in Idaho, sourced from Idaho Content Standards and national curricula (Common Core, AP, IB) with applicable grade citations.
What's the Lexile range for 5th grade reading in Idaho?
Lexile measures across the 5th grade Idaho reading list range from 390L to 1020L. Books without a published Lexile (poetry, drama, picture books) are not included in this range.
Where does this reading list come from?
Entries reference Idaho Content Standards (published at www.sde.idaho.gov) plus national curricula that apply to Idaho schools: Common Core State Standards Appendix B, AP English Literature and Language, IB Diploma Programme, and Cambridge Assessment International. Every assignment row on each book's detail page links its primary source.

Reading guides for parents

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State-specific entries sourced from www.sde.idaho.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.