South Dakota 4th grade reading list

Books with a South Dakota citation for 4th grade include A Duet for Home, Cress Watercress and High Score. This list has 732 total books, 10 of them with a South Dakota-specific citation. Each book shows its reading level and a cited source. Lexile levels on the list run from 390L to 1000L.

Top South Dakota 4th grade pick: A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glaser — on 1 South Dakota list

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Total books732Lexile390L–1000LSourceSD Content 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 South Dakota 4th grade

These are the 10 titles named in South Dakota’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. A Duet for Home

    Karina Yan Glaser

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  2. Cress Watercress

    Gregory Maguire

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  3. High Score

    Destiny Howell

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  4. Little Monarchs

    Jonathan Case

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  5. Lumberjackula

    Mat Heagerty

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  6. Roll for Initiative

    Jaime Formato

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers friendship, anxiety and gaming.

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  7. The Marvellers

    Dhonielle Clayton

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  8. The Ogress and the Orphans

    Kelly Barnhill

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  9. The Real Dada Mother Goose: A Treasury of Complete Nonsense

    Jon Scieszka

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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  10. Voices of the People

    Joseph Bruchac

    Cited in 1 South Dakota curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 5.

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10 books cited for South Dakota 4th grade

Assignments tied directly to South Dakota’s SD Content Standards with a South Dakota-specific citation.

722 additional grade-appropriate books for 4th grade readers

The 732-book total above includes 10 titles with direct South Dakota citation; these 722 additional titles cover 4th grade in the broader canon. They don't have a South Dakota-specific citation yet but are commonly taught at this level.

Show all 722 titles

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Other South Dakota 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 South Dakota 4th grade reading list

This list combines books cited in SD Content 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 732 titles for 4th grade in South Dakota, of which 10 carry a direct South Dakota citation and 722 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 58 titles here with a Lexile score 34 are grade-level, 24 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.

South Dakota’s English Language Arts requirements are set by SD Content Standards (doe.sd.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework. The 4th grade list below blends South Dakota-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 South Dakota-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 South Dakota?
Books with a South Dakota-specific citation for 4th grade include A Duet for Home, Cress Watercress, High Score, Little Monarchs and Lumberjackula. 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 South Dakota?
This list has 732 books for 4th grade students in South Dakota. 10 of them have a South Dakota-specific citation; the other 722 are grade-appropriate titles from national reading lists and awards.
What's the Lexile range for 4th grade reading in South Dakota?
Lexile measures across the 4th grade South Dakota 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?
South Dakota-specific entries reference SD Content Standards (published at doe.sd.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 doe.sd.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.

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