Reading Rockets offers a wealth of reading strategies, lessons, and activities designed to help young children learn how to read and read better. Our reading resources assist parents, teachers, and other educators in working with struggling readers who require additional help in reading fundamentals and comprehension skills development.
2006 Buying Guide
- Download the 2006 guide for 6-7 year olds (310K PDF)*
Recommended Books for 6-7 Year Olds
Scroll down to see 10 great books for beginner readers in first and second grades. These highly engaging books give kids a chance to succeed at reading. You'll also find 7 additional recommended books that lend themselves to talking over, reading aloud, and enjoying with a parent, babysitter, or other caring adult. Download the guide for 6-7 year olds (310K PDF)* as a one-page handout you can easily take to the library or store.
Books to read on their own
Alliterative language and crisp illustrations present 15 “math mysteries” to solve. Answers – and more to think about – are presented at the end of this playful and engaging book.
Animals move in different ways. They swing, dive, and dance across the pages and through the book, propelled by highly textured collages on open pages. Typeface and illustration combine to present a look at animal locomotion on land and in water. Additional information about the animals is included.
When old Mr. Putter decides to join his neighbor's knitting club, he and his faithful feline companion Tabby contribute chaos and laughs for readers. Lighthearted illustrations add to the fast-paced fun.
When a boy in a red sweatshirt lags behind his classmates on a field trip to an art museum, he discovers a group of maze pictures. Amazingly, he finds himself small enough to go into the labyrinths — and out again with a medal. Was his adventure real or imagined? Once reunited with his class, he still has his medal, so who's to say? Crisp images tell the entire story without words.
Nate is a boy detective with a mission: locate the painting that’s gone missing in the neighborhood. Young readers will appreciate the quiet humor and problem solving prowess in this early installment of the local sleuth.
This richly illustrated collection of haiku poems is a counting book as well as an introduction to Japanese gardens and to a poetic form. From one leaf chased by a little girl to 10 stone lanterns, this garden can be enjoyed on several levels.
A closer look at the four seasons is presented through questions and answers (“Does everyone have four seasons?”) and evocative poems. Large illustrations depict the unique wonders of each time of year.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was not only a famous composer and a musical genius; his father turned him into a child sensation! Limited language but rich, detailed, and varied illustrations introduce the essence of the boy and his music.
The thrill is mixed with just a bit of anxiety when you are finally tall enough to ride the huge roller coaster! Expressive line and wash illustrations convey the motion of a roller coaster with text looping and swirling around the pages. The breakneck speed will delight, excite, and amaze young readers.
When Tanya's much loved grandmother becomes ill, Tanya inspires the entire family to help her finish the quilt — and the family history it reveals. This warm story is lovingly told with sensitive, beautiful watercolor illustrations.
Books to read with you
Owen’s singing, banjo-playing Granny goes out “to cross one river, one mountain, and a desert” just to see her bluegrass-loving grandbaby. Lilting, rhythmic language and evocative illustrations carry the reader all the way to the musical reunion of Granny and Owen.
Take off with Daddy Goose to hear the stories behind well-known Mother Goose rhymes. Meet Speeder Spider (of “Little Miss Muffet” fame) who is fed up with never having a playmate, and learn how Old King Cole once again became a merry soul after losing his pipe. Varied illustrations create a comic tone for the rhymes and accompanying tales.
Children are invited to travel the globe using current maps, informative pictures, and text inserts. National Geographic's engaging format and suggested activities encourage adults and children to explore the world together, and bring faraway places a little closer to home.
Cynthia’s old dollhouse is relegated to a dismal corner of the nursery once she receives her new Tidy Castle as a birthday present. Could a little help from a fairy queen save Racketty-Packetty House and its inhabitants from the fate of most old dolls and their out-of-date houses? Burnett’s classic has been newly illustrated in sepia-toned illustrations that capture the tale’s old world charm and timeless quality.
Spanish words add flavor to these appealing folktales, cuentos favoritos, carefully illustrated to reflect their Latin American roots. Readers young and old will recognize Juan Bobo’s foolishness, and delight in the sound of the language in the tale of Little Half Chick. Like all folktales, these are ideal for sharing aloud.
As a child gets ready for bed, she implores, "Tell me a story, Mama," then proceeds to tell it herself. Mama adds only to punctuate the girl’s story with maternal wisdom. This warm story, told in two voices, reflects how children make family stories their own.
Wally starts his science project on his iguana, Spike, but is soon sidetracked by his observations which prove that dinosaurs are not extinct, but live and thrive in his neighborhood! “Photographs” and notes are often laugh-out-loud funny and cleverly formatted to look like a notebook bound with yarn.
Proceeds from the sale of books purchased at Amazon.com help support the Reading Rockets project. Thank you!
"As both a public youth services librarian and a parent of a child with dyslexia, I find your website very useful!"
~ Lee P.
Kids Who Struggle |
Teaching Reading |
Books & Authors |
Articles from A-Z
Our Shows on PBS |
Podcasts & Video |
Webcasts |
Blogs about Reading |
Reading Research
Reading Store |
Free Reading Guides |
Reading Resources |
Today's Reading News
For Teachers |
For Other Professionals |
For Families
En español |
Newsletters |
Calendar
Home Page |
About Reading Rockets |
Contact Us |
Link to Reading Rockets
Privacy Policy |
Terms & Conditions |
Site Map
Reading Rockets is a national multimedia project that offers research-based and best-practice information on teaching kids to read and helping those who struggle. It is an educational service of public television station WETA in Washington, D.C.
Visit WETA's educational web sites:
© Copyright 2008. All rights reserved. Reading Rockets is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. Reading Rockets® is a registered trademark of WETA.
Stay informed! Subscribe to our e-mail newsletters.