To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is assigned in US schools at grades 7–10, with a Lexile measure of 870L. It appears across 2 curriculum references and 3 states, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.
This page shows where To Kill a Mockingbird is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
- Lexile
- 870L
- Grade range
- Grades 7–10
- Difficulty for grade
- Below the grade 6–8 band (925–1185L)
- Age range
- Ages 12–17
- Pages
- 281
- Reading time
- about 5h 10m (est.)
- First published
- 1960
- Genre
- Literary Fiction
- ISBN-13
- 9780060935467
Reading difficulty: At 870L, To Kill a Mockingbird reads below the typical 925–1185L text-complexity range for 7th grade (Common Core Appendix A). It is an accessible read for the grade — often assigned for its themes and discussion value rather than for reading challenge.
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About this book
Set in the Depression-era South, the novel follows Scout Finch, a young girl whose father Atticus, a lawyer, defends a Black man falsely accused of assaulting a white woman. Through Scout's narration, the book examines racism, moral conscience, and childhood perception. It remains one of the most widely assigned novels in US high schools and a frequent subject of curriculum debate.
Why widely assigned
This Literary Fiction title, reads at middle-grade prose complexity, typically at grades 7–10. Written in the 1960s; pairs with curriculum units on racial injustice and moral courage; cited across 2 curriculum frameworks.
Themes
racial injustice · moral courage · childhood innocence · justice · coming of age · small-town South
Content notes
racial slurs (historical context) · sexual assault (discussed, not depicted) · violence
Common Sense Media recommends age 12+.
Where this book is assigned
AP English Literature & Composition
Common Core State Standards (ELA)
- recommended·9th gradesource: Common Core aligned summer-reading list — rising 9th grade
- recommended·9th gradesource: CCSS ELA Appendix B, grades 9-10 exemplar
- recommended·9th grade · Californiasource: CA CCSS ELA aligned reading
- recommended·9th grade · Floridasource: B.E.S.T. Standards aligned reading
- recommended·9th grade · Texassource: HISD English I core text
- recommended·9th grade · Texassource: TEKS English II frequently taught text
- recommended·10th gradesource: CCSS ELA Appendix B, grades 9-10 story exemplar
Similar grade-level books
Fahrenheit 451Ray Bradbury · 890L
The Diary of a Young GirlAnne Frank · 1080L
1984George Orwell · 1090L
The Great GatsbyF. Scott Fitzgerald · 1070L
See all books like To Kill a Mockingbird→ — matched on theme + reading level.
Common questions
- What grade level is To Kill a Mockingbird?
- To Kill a Mockingbird is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 7–10, with a Lexile measure of 870L. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.
- What is the Lexile level of To Kill a Mockingbird?
- To Kill a Mockingbird has a Lexile measure of 870L according to MetaMetrics. Lexile measures text complexity, not content maturity — check the grade range and content notes separately for age-appropriateness.
- How long does it take to read To Kill a Mockingbird?
- It takes about 5h 10m to read To Kill a Mockingbird (281 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 310 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- Is To Kill a Mockingbird hard to read for 7th grade?
- At 870L, To Kill a Mockingbird reads below the typical 925–1185L text-complexity range for 7th grade (Common Core Appendix A). It is an accessible read for the grade — often assigned for its themes and discussion value rather than for reading challenge. Lexile measures text complexity, not thematic maturity — check the content notes for age-appropriateness separately.
- What curricula assign To Kill a Mockingbird?
- To Kill a Mockingbird appears on reading lists for AP English Literature & Composition, Common Core State Standards (ELA). Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Why this book is on this list
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- 870L — sourced from MetaMetrics’ Lexile Hub.
- Grade band
- Grades 7–10 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 2 curricula on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- Cited in 3 states ELA frameworks or DOE list (see citations above).
- Removal / banning records
- Documented as challenged or removed in 8 states per PEN America’s Index of School Book Bans.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- Tagged for: summer.