Books, Activities, and Games for Elementary Age Kids

Teachers, parents, librarians, and grandparents, find the best book reviews and recommendations, activities, lesson plans, writing ideas, fun educational ideas, games, and toy ideas for elementary age children who are ages 5 to 12.

In the U.S., elementary school is usually kindergarten to fifth or sixth grade.

Here are some quick links to get you started finding good children's chapter books, picture books, and nonfiction books.

5- and 6-Year-Olds:
Best Easy Reader Books for 5 and 6 Year Olds
Best NONFICTION Books for 5 and 6 Year Olds

6- and 7-Year-Olds:
Best Easy / Beginning Chapter Books for 6- and 7- Year- Olds
Best Book Series for 1st Graders

7-Year-Olds:
Best Books for 7 Year Olds (2nd Grade)
18 Fantastic Chapter Book Series for 2nd Graders (7-Years-Old)
Best NONFICTION Books for 7-Year-Olds

8-Year-Olds:
Best Books for 8-Year-Olds (3rd Grade)
24 Book Series for 3rd Graders (8-Years-Old)
Best NONFICTION Books for 8-Year-Olds

9-Year-Olds:
Best Books for 9 Year Olds (4th Grade)
32 Book Series for 4th Graders (9-Years-Old)
Best NONFICTION Books for 9-Year-Olds

10-Year-Olds:
Best Books for 10-Year Olds (5th Grade)
27 Book Series for 5th Graders (10-Years-Old)
Best NONFICTION Books for 10-Year-Olds

Parent Death in Middle-Grade Books (Ages 8 – 12)

Children who experience a parent’s death, the loss of a mother or father, feel overwhelming emotions. Reading well-written middle-grade books like these may help some kids cope with the loss of a parent with stories showing that other kids have experienced loss and grief also. Stories can also show the possibilities of dealing with grief. […]

11 New Picture Books, July 2020

I don’t have as many new picture books to tell you about, and some are from previous months. BUT, these books are great and worth your while to read. 11 New Picture Books, July 2020 Your Name Is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, illustrated by Luisa Uribe IDENTITY A beautiful, beautiful story that helps a […]

27 New Nonfiction Books, Summer 2020

I’ve been saving the nonfiction books from the last few months so I hope you’re ready to read a long post about 27 nonfiction books you need to know about for summer 2020. If you’re looking for a biography, you’ll find many good choices. Below the biographies are nonfiction books about biomes, yoga, history, and […]

Mentor Texts to Teach Juicy Word Choice in Writing

When we teach children to use rich, wondrous words by filling them up with the sound of many wonderful words. We must read to them them authors who use astounding word choices. We must encourage them to read high quality mentor text picture and chapter books filled with precise, lyrical, sensory words. Katie Wood Ray, […]

25 Children’s Chapter Books on Kindle Unlimited (Ages 6 – 12)

Whether you’re looking for an easy chapter book or a middle grade chapter book, here’s what’s available on Kindle Unlimited for your kids ages 6 to 12 to read. A reader recently asked me to write this list for her kids who both were looking for good books on their Kindle apps with their Kindle […]

Interactive Adventures: Read, Write, Draw Books for Kids

All readers, especially reluctant readers, need books that motivate them to read. Which is why I want to share these interactive adventure books that ask readers to fill-in, draw, and doodle to help the story move along. Talk about motivating and fun! Read, Write, Draw! Interactive Books for Kids Escape This Book Tombs of Egypt […]

New Workbooks and Activity Books for Summer 2020

Need some fun activity book ideas to keep your kids busy and learning? Here’s what’s new! New Workbooks and Activity Books for Summer 2020 The Magical Underwater Activity Book by Mia Undersood These Button Books activity books are Pura Vida Mom’s kids’ FAVORITES. Read facts about the world of real and magical plants and animals […]

New Picture Books, June 2020

Many of these new picture books are too wonderful to miss. I can’t wait to tell you about them. New Picture Books, June 2020 Together We Grow by Susan Vaught, illustrated by Kelly Murphy INCLUSION Dynamic illustrations and lyrical text model inclusion and making a difference. This barn full of animals denies entrance to a […]