Rhode Island 4th grade reading list

Books with a Rhode Island citation for 4th grade include Maniac Magee, The Tale of Despereaux and El Deafo. This list has 754 total books, 46 of them with a Rhode Island-specific citation. Each book shows its reading level and a cited source. Lexile levels on the list run from 390L to 1000L.

Top Rhode Island 4th grade pick: Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli — on 1 Rhode Island list

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Total books754Lexile390L–1000LSourceRI Core Standards✓ sources cited per book

Most-assigned on state lists: across every US state’s official reading and award lists, the Elementary (K–5) titles appearing in the most states are Wonder (29 states), Because of Winn-Dixie (26 states), and Shiloh (25 states). From our 2026 study of 13,258 source-cited assignments (as of 2026-07-13).

Our pick to start — most-cited for Rhode Island 4th grade

These are the 30 titles named in Rhode Island’s own curriculum documents for this grade — everything below is the wider national list. Read against the Common Core Appendix A complexity band; reading level is not thematic maturity, and several sit below the band because they are assigned for discussion.

  1. Maniac Magee

    Jerry Spinelli

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers race, homelessness and family. At 820L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  2. The Tale of Despereaux

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers courage, forgiveness and light vs dark. At 670L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  3. El Deafo

    Cece Bell

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers disability, friendship and self-acceptance. At 420L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  4. The Season of Styx Malone

    Kekla Magoon

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers family, friendship and adventure. At 510L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  5. Unspeakable

    Carole Boston Weatherford

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 7.

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  6. Clementine

    Sara Pennypacker

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 8.

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  7. Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library

    Chris Grabenstein

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 6.

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  8. Frindle

    Andrew Clements

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers creativity, language and thought, intelligence. At 830L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  9. Pie in the Sky

    Remy Lai

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers immigration, grief and baking.

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  10. Skeleton Man

    Joseph Bruchac

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 8. Covers kidnapping, psychopaths and mohawk indians.

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  11. Swim Team

    Johnnie Christmas

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers perseverance, friendship and race.

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  12. The People's Painter

    Cynthia Levinson

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 2 to 5.

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  13. The Stonekeeper: A Graphic Novel (Amulet #1)

    Kazu Kibuishi

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 6.

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  14. Wonder

    R.J. Palacio

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers facial difference, kindness and bullying. At 790L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  15. A Rover's Story

    Jasmine Warga

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  16. Allergic

    Megan Wagner Lloyd

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers new york times reviewed and comic books, strips, etc..

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  17. Call Me Roberto!: Roberto Clemente Goes to Bat for Latinos

    Nathalie Alonso

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 2 to 5. Covers biography, baseball and perseverance.

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  18. Deep and Dark and Dangerous

    Mary Downing Hahn

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 6.

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  19. Front Desk

    Kelly Yang

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers immigration, family and race. At 640L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  20. Gooney Bird Greene

    Lois Lowry

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5.

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  21. Invisible Isabel

    Sally J. Pla

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers empathy, identity and family.

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  22. Legendarios: Wrath of the Rain God

    Karla Arenas Valenti

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers mythology, family and adventure.

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  23. Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All

    Chanel Miller

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers friendship, family and mystery.

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  24. Max and the Midknights

    Lincoln Peirce

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers adventure, humor and identity.

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  25. Mick Harte Was Here

    Barbara Park

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers grief, family and safety.

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  26. Never Smile at a Monkey

    Steve Jenkins

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5.

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  27. Sergeant Reckless: The True Story of the Little Horse Who Became a Hero

    Patricia McCormick

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 5.

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  28. Sidekicks

    Dan Santat

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers graphic novels, superheroes and pets.

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  29. Sisters

    Raina Telgemeier

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers comic books, strips, etc., brothers and sisters, family.

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  30. Something Upstairs

    Avi

    Cited in 1 Rhode Island curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8. Covers ghost stories, ghosts and slavery.

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46 books cited for Rhode Island 4th grade

Assignments tied directly to Rhode Island’s RI Core Standards with a Rhode Island-specific citation.

Show all 46 titles

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708 additional grade-appropriate books for 4th grade readers

The 754-book total above includes 46 titles with direct Rhode Island citation; these 708 additional titles cover 4th grade in the broader canon. They don't have a Rhode Island-specific citation yet but are commonly taught at this level.

Show all 708 titles

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Other Rhode Island grades

3rd grade · 5th grade · 2nd grade · 6th grade

Reading lists by grade (all states)

3rd grade · 5th grade · 2nd grade · 6th grade

Same 4th grade in other states

California · Texas · Florida · New York · Pennsylvania · Illinois

Browse 4th grade reading by theme

About the Rhode Island 4th grade reading list

This list combines books cited in RI Core Standards with books from national sources that list titles for 4th grade: the Common Core State Standards (ELA), plus awards such as the Golden Kite Award, the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award and the Newbery Medal. ReadingList currently tracks 754 titles for 4th grade in Rhode Island, of which 46 carry a direct Rhode Island citation and 708 are grade-appropriate titles whose reading level overlaps 4th grade. Across the list, Lexile measures span 390L–1000L.

4th grade sits in the 3-5 grade band, where students are transitional readers. At this stage the emphasis is on shifting from learning-to-read to reading-to-learn and sustaining attention across longer chapter books. Assigned reading skews toward early novels, narrative non-fiction, and a student's first assigned full-length stories, with text complexity that, per Common Core’s Appendix A reading bands, typically falls around roughly 400L to 800L. Measured against that 740–1010L range, of the 60 titles here with a Lexile score 34 are grade-level, 26 are more accessible (often assigned for theme over challenge), and 0 are stretch texts that may need scaffolding. Because readers in a single 4th grade classroom can span several hundred Lexile points, this list is best read as a starting point rather than a fixed requirement.

Rhode Island’s English Language Arts requirements are set by RI Core Standards (ride.ri.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework. The 4th grade list below blends Rhode Island-specific assignments with widely taught national titles. Every title links to its primary source on the book’s detail page, so you can confirm exactly where and why it is assigned.

How to use this list:match a title to your child’s most recent Lexile or guided-reading level rather than to the grade alone. Teachers building a 4th grade unit can pair a Rhode Island-cited core text with a grade-appropriate companion novel; parents previewing summer or supplemental reading can check each book’s content notes and challenge history before assigning it.

Common questions

What books do 4th grade students read in Rhode Island?
Books with a Rhode Island-specific citation for 4th grade include Maniac Magee, The Tale of Despereaux, El Deafo, The Season of Styx Malone and Unspeakable. Individual schools and districts choose their own titles, so check with your child's teacher for the exact list.
How many books are assigned to 4th grade students in Rhode Island?
This list has 754 books for 4th grade students in Rhode Island. 46 of them have a Rhode Island-specific citation; the other 708 are grade-appropriate titles from national reading lists and awards.
What's the Lexile range for 4th grade reading in Rhode Island?
Lexile measures across the 4th grade Rhode Island reading list range from 390L to 1000L. Books without a published Lexile (poetry, drama, picture books) are not included in this range.
Where does this reading list come from?
Rhode Island-specific entries reference RI Core Standards (published at www.ride.ri.gov). The other books come from national sources that list books for 4th grade: the Common Core State Standards (ELA), plus awards such as the Golden Kite Award, the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award and the Newbery Medal. Each book's page links the primary source for every listing.

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State-specific entries sourced from www.ride.ri.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.

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