Bibliography: It's Cool. It's School.

Books for Independent Reading

VERY EASY

Miss Nelson Is Missing!: by Harry Allard
Houghton 1985 (32p); also paper
The kids in Room 207 wonder what happened to their nice teacher.
A One-Room School: by Bobbie Kalman
(Social Studies)
Crabtree 1994 (32p)
All aspects of a one-room school are explained and illustrated.
Tanya's Big Green Dream: by Linda Glaser
Macmillan 1994 (47p)
Tanya needs a project for her school's Earth Day celebration.
Handtalk School: by Mary Beth Miller
(Social Studies)
Four Winds 1991 (32p)
Children and adults are photographed at a residential school for the deaf.
Count Your Money with the Polk Street School: by Patricia Reilly Giff
(Math)
Bantam 1994 (80p)
Ms. Rooney's class is saving money to take a trip.
Crow Boy: by Taro Yashima
(Multicultural)
Viking 1955 (40p); Puffin 1976 paper
A special talent helps a shy Japanese boy adjust to school.

EASY

My Great-Aunt Arizona: by Gloria Houston
(Social Studies)
Harper 1992 (32p)
Arizona taught generations of children about the faraway places she never got to see.
Benny and the No-Good Teacher: by Cheryl Zach
Bradbury 1992 (76p)
Benny is disappointed to be in Mrs. Rumphill's class.
Hannah: by Gloria Whelan
Random 199l (64p); Random l993 paper
A clever teacher helps blind nine-year-old Hannah become self-sufficient.
Herbie Jones and the Class Gift: by Suzy Kline
(Math)
Putnam 1987 (96p); Puffin 1989 paper
Herbie and his pal must find a way to earn money for their teacher's gift.
Elaine and the Flying Frog: by Heidi Chang
(Science/Health)
(Multicultural)
Random 1991 (64p); also paper
Getting involved in a science project helps Elaine adjust to her new school.
I'm George Washington, and You're Not!: by Steven Kroll
Hyperion 1994 (64p)
Marty's stage fright could ruin the school play.
Ramona Quimby, Age 8: by Beverly Cleary
Morrow 1981 (192p); Dell 1992 paper
Ramona adjusts to a new school year. Available in Spanish asRamona empieza el curso.
Author's Day: by Daniel Pinkwater
Macmillan 1993 (32p)
When author Bramwell Wink-Porter visits a school, the children think he's someone else.
I Thought I'd Take My Rat to School: Poems for September to June: by Dorothy M. Kennedy
Little 1993 (64p)
Brief, often humorous, school poems by many well-known poets.

AVERAGE

My Name Is María Isabel: by Alma Flor Ada
(Multicultural)
Macmillan 1993 (64p)
Maria does not want to be called Mary. Available in Spanish as Me llamo María Isabel.
Did You Carry the Flag Today, Charley?: by Rebecca Caudill
Dell 1988 (96p) paper
Charley's enthusiasm often gets him into trouble.
Serious Science: An Adam Joshua Story: by Janice Lee Smith
(Science/Health)
Harper 1993 (80p)
Adam Joshua comes up with an invention he thinks will save the world.
Figment, Your Dog, Speaking: by Laura Hawkins
Houghton 1991 (160p); paper
Marcella's dog Figment helps her make new friends in school.
Wayside School Is Falling Down: by Louis Sachar
Lothrop 1989 (172p); Avon 1990 paper
Adventures of the students who attend the 30-story Wayside School.
The Beast in Ms. Rooney's Room: by Patricia Reilly Giff
Dell 1988 (80p); also paper
A teacher helps Richard discover he likes to read. Available in Spanish as La bestia en la clase de la señorita.
The New One: by Jacqueline Turner Banks
(Multicultural)
Houghton 1994 (107p)
Twins Judge and Jury can't decide whether to befriend a new girl in their class.
Earthquake in the Third Grade: by Laurie Myers
Clarion 1993 (63p)
How can John and his classmates get their teacher to stay?
Muggie Maggie: by Beverly Cleary
Morrow 1990 (80p); Avon 1991 paper
Maggie does not want to learn cursive writing.
The Hundred Dresses: by Eleanor Estes
Harcourt 1944 (80p); Voyager 1974 paper
Wanda's classmates wonder why she always wears the same blue dress.
The Sub: by P. J. Petersen
Dutton 1993 (86p)
Two boys switch seats to fool the substitute teacher.
Degas, the Ballet, and Me: by Tom van Beek
(Art)
Checkerboard 1993 (48p)
Anne-Marie records in her diary her interest in Degas's art.
The Skirt: by Gary Soto
(Multicultural)
Delacorte 1992 (64p); Dell 1994 paper
Miata has lost the folklórica skirt her mother loaned her.
Much Ado About Aldo: by Johanna Hurwitz
(Science/Health)
Morrow 1978 (96p)
Class projects involving insects lead Aldo to vegetarianism.
Fourth Grade Rats: by Jerry Spinelli
Scholastic 1991 (144p); Apple 1993 paper
Being in the fourth grade is not always easy.
The Chalk Box Kid: by Clyde Robert Bulla
Random 1987 (64p); also paper
Gregory's chalk box garden helps him adjust to changes in his life.
School Spirit: by Johanna Hurwitz
(Multicultural)
Morrow 1994 (144p)
Julio and his friends try to keep the school board from closing their school. (See others in series.)
Toad Food and Measle Soup: by Christine McDonnell
Puffin 1984 (112p); also paper
Five funny stories about Leo's everyday experiences in school.
Lazy Lions, Lucky Lambs: by Patricia Reilly Giff
Dell 1985 (80p) paper
Richard and his friends develop writer's block when asked to write an essay. Available in Spanish as Leones perezosos, corderos afortunados.
Going to School in 1876: by John J. Leoper
(Social Studies)
Atheneum 1984 (85p)
What going to school was like over a century ago.

CHALLENGING

King Kong and Other Poets: by Robert Burch
Viking 1986 (160p)
A poetry contest allows Marilyn to tell her class about her unusual life.
Yellow Bird and Me: by Joyce Hansen
(Multicultural)
Clarion 1986 (128p); also paper
Doris reluctantly helps Yellow Bird, the class clown, with his reading problem.
The Great Science Fair Disaster: by Martyn N. Godfrey
(Science/Health)
Scholastic 1992 (176p); also paper
Marcie knows disaster will follow when her dad, the principal, plans a science fair.
Hello, My Name Is Scrambled Eggs: by Jamie Gilson
(Multicultural)
Lothrop 1985 (160p); Minstrel 1991 paper
Harvey befriends Tuan, a Vietnamese refugee who is a new student.
The Cybil War: by Betsy Byars
Viking 1981 (144p); Puffin 1990 paper
Friends Simon and Troy both admire their classmate Cybil.
Darnell Rock, Reporting: by Walter Dean Myers
(Multicultural)
Delacorte 1994 (160p)
After Darnell reluctantly joins the school paper, he wants to do a story on a homeless man he has befriended.
Beetles, Lightly Toasted: by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Macmillan 1987 (144p); Dell 1989 paper
Andy competes with his cousin in an essay contest.
There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom: by Louis Sachar
Knopf 1987 (224p) paper
Bradley is a bully with no friends until a new kid helps him change his behavior.

Books for Teachers to Read Aloud

Sideways Arithmetic from Wayside School: by Louis Sachar
(Math)
Scholastic 1992 (96p); also paper
Fifty hilarious stories, each filled with brain teasers.
The Show-and-Tell War and Other Stories About Adam Joshua: by Janice Lee Smith
Harper 1988 (176p); also paper
Five humorous stories about Adam Joshua's school adventures.
Children of the Dust Bowl: by Jerry Stanley
(Social Studies)
Crown 1992 (86p); also paper
Story of the Arvin Federal Camp and teacher/counselor Leo Hart.