6th Grade Summer Reading List (ages 11 – 12)

Want to keep your 6th grader (age 11-12) reading all summer long? The best way is to make sure he has a lot of excellent books. I’ve debated forever and finally chosen the best books for your child to read. Here’s my 6th grade summer reading list for kids ages 11 and 12.

Of course, it’s not always that easy. Kids are distracted by technology and activities and life and on and on.

What else helps motivate kids to read?

1. Choice 
   Let kids pick their own books. Even if it’s a choice within certain guidelines, it’s still a choice. No one likes to be forced to do anything, so the more autonomy kids can have, the better.
2. Accountability
   If I didn’t require a certain amount of time reading, it wouldn’t happen with my tween. Even though she loves reading. Last summer my kids tracked minutes reading to earn minutes on screen time. However you plan it, make sure you’re checking in on the reading so it doesn’t get forgotten.
3. Variety
   Think outside the traditional book here. Try ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, or blogs.
4. Fun
   Get a new beanbag pillow just for reading. Read with headlamps in the dark. Whatever your kids like, see if you can pair it with reading.

I have the lists organized by genre. Consider picking one book from each genre to read this summer. That way, your child gets exposed to a wide variety of fiction.

DOWNLOAD THE PRINTABLE LIST HERE. (updated for 2018)

Also see:

Summer reading packet (goal setting, genre graph, book tracker)
5th grade summer reading list
7th grade summer reading list
Best books for 11-year olds (with reviews)
Challenging books for (young) advanced readers
Fun activity books for kids

6th Grade Summer Reading List (age 11 – 12)

6th Grade Summer Reading List: FANTASY

If you like fantasy chapter books, you’ll like:

• Iron Trial (Magisterium series) by Holly Black
• The Menagerie by Tui T. Sutherland
• Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger
• Unwanteds by Lisa McMann
• Outlaws of Time: The Legend of Sam Miracle by N.D. Wilson
• The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainan
• Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland
• The Gauntlet by Karuna Riazi
• Impyrium by Henry H. Neff
• Inkworld series by Cornelia Funke

6th Grade Summer Reading List: ADVENTURE

If you like mystery and adventure, you’ll love:

• The Van Gogh Deception by Deron Hicks
• Alex Rider  by Anthony Horowitz
• Hoot by Carl Hiassen
• Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger
• Ranger’s Apprentice by John A. Flanagan
• Masterminds by Gordon Kormon
• The Green Ember by S.D. Smith
• Edge of Extinction The Ark Plan by Laura Martin

6th Grade Summer Reading List: SCARY

If you like your stories to be a little creepy, try:

• Ghost Knight by Cornelia Funke
• Coraline by Neil Gaiman
• 100 Cupboards by N.D. Wilson
• Lockwood & Co The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
• Nightmares! by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller
• A Tale of Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz
• Dead City by James Ponti

6th Grade Summer Reading List: HISTORICAL

If you like historical fiction, you’ll love:

• The Wollstonecraft Detective Agency The Case of the Missing Moonstone by Jordan Stratford
• Refugee by Alan Gratz
• Mad Wolf’s Daughter by Diane Magras
• Midnight Without a Moon by Linda Williams Jackson
• The Great Trouble: A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and A Boy Called Eel by Deborah Hopkinson
• The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog by Adam Gidwitz
• The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

6th Grade Summer Reading List: REALISTIC

If you enjoy reading realistic books, read:

• Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt
• Tangerine by Edward Bloor
• Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling
• Booked by Kwame Alexander
• See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng
• Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper
• The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
• 11 Birthdays by Wendy Mass
• Roller Girl by Victoria Jamison (graphic novel)
• Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
• All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor

6th Grade Summer Reading List: FUNNY

If you like funny books, try:

• Vordak the Incomprehensible by Vordak T. Incomprehensible
  
• Big Nate Welcome to My World by Lincoln Peirce
• Strange Case of the Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger
• A Whole Nother Story by Cuthbert Soup
• Middle School: The Worst Years of my Life by James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts
• The Croc Ate My Homework by Stephan Pastis
• Plants vs. Zombies by Paul Tobin and Ron Chan
• The Tapper Twins Go to War (with each other) by Geoff Rodkey

I hope these books give your children enough excellent choices and lots of hours of reading!