Wisconsin 4th grade reading list

Books with a Wisconsin citation for 4th grade include Holes, Maniac Magee and The Tale of Despereaux. This list has 768 total books, 58 of them with a Wisconsin-specific citation. Each book shows its reading level and a cited source. Lexile levels on the list run from 390L to 1000L.

Top Wisconsin 4th grade pick: Holes by Louis Sachar — on 1 Wisconsin list

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Total books768Lexile390L–1000LSourceWI Academic 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 Wisconsin 4th grade

These are the 30 titles named in Wisconsin’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. Holes

    Louis Sachar

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 3 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers fate vs choice, friendship and justice. At 660L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  2. Maniac Magee

    Jerry Spinelli

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin 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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  3. The Tale of Despereaux

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin 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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  4. Because of Winn-Dixie

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 5. Covers loss, friendship and mother absence. At 610L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  5. Shiloh

    Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers animal welfare, morality and family. At 890L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  6. Diary of a Wimpy Kid

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers school, friendship and family. At 950L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  7. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever

    Jeff Kinney

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

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  8. Dog Man

    Dav Pilkey

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 2 to 5. Covers humor, friendship and good vs evil. At 390L it reads well below the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  9. Number the Stars

    Lois Lowry

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers courage, friendship and Holocaust. At 670L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  10. The Whipping Boy

    Sid Fleischman

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 3 to 7. Covers friendship, adventure and courage.

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  11. Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger

    Louis Sachar

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

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  12. Wonder

    R.J. Palacio

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin 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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  13. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret

    Judy Blume

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers puberty, menarche and christians.

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  14. Brian's Winter

    Gary Paulsen

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  15. Catching Fire

    Suzanne Collins

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  16. Champ

    Marcia Thornton Jones

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

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  17. Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul

    Jack Canfield

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  18. Crash

    Jerry Spinelli

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 3 to 8. Covers conduct of life, family life and friendship.

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  19. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  20. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hot Mess

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  21. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Old School

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  22. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  23. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  24. Dog Man: Brawl of the Wild

    Dav Pilkey

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  25. Dog Man: Grime and Punishment

    Dav Pilkey

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  26. Double Fudge

    Judy Blume

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 6. Covers humorous stories, families and brothers.

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  27. Falling Up

    Shel Silverstein

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 8.

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  28. Grenade

    Alan Gratz

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7.

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  29. Guts

    Raina Telgemeier

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers anxiety, growing up and courage.

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  30. Harris and Me

    Gary Paulsen

    Cited in 1 Wisconsin curriculum document, taught from grade 6 to 8. Covers farm life, cousins and boys.

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58 books cited for Wisconsin 4th grade

Assignments tied directly to Wisconsin’s WI Academic Standards with a Wisconsin-specific citation.

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710 additional grade-appropriate books for 4th grade readers

The 768-book total above includes 58 titles with direct Wisconsin citation; these 710 additional titles cover 4th grade in the broader canon. They don't have a Wisconsin-specific citation yet but are commonly taught at this level.

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Other Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin 4th grade reading list

This list combines books cited in WI Academic 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 768 titles for 4th grade in Wisconsin, of which 58 carry a direct Wisconsin citation and 710 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 62 titles here with a Lexile score 38 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.

Wisconsin’s English Language Arts requirements are set by WI Academic Standards (dpi.wi.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework. The 4th grade list below blends Wisconsin-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 Wisconsin-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 Wisconsin?
Books with a Wisconsin-specific citation for 4th grade include Holes, Maniac Magee, The Tale of Despereaux, Because of Winn-Dixie and Shiloh. 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 Wisconsin?
This list has 768 books for 4th grade students in Wisconsin. 58 of them have a Wisconsin-specific citation; the other 710 are grade-appropriate titles from national reading lists and awards.
What's the Lexile range for 4th grade reading in Wisconsin?
Lexile measures across the 4th grade Wisconsin 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?
Wisconsin-specific entries reference WI Academic Standards (published at dpi.wi.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 dpi.wi.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.

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