Wyoming 5th grade reading list

Books with a Wyoming citation for 5th grade include Holes, Maniac Magee and New Kid. This list has 872 total books, 20 of them with a Wyoming-specific citation. Each book shows its reading level and a cited source. Lexile levels on the list run from 390L to 1020L.

Top Wyoming 5th grade pick: Holes by Louis Sachar — on 1 Wyoming list

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Total books872Lexile390L–1020LSourceWyoming 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 Wyoming 5th grade

These are the 20 titles named in Wyoming’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 Wyoming curriculum document and 4 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 Wyoming curriculum document and 4 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. New Kid

    Jerry Craft

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 4 national references, taught from grade 4 to 8. Covers race and identity, code-switching, middle school adjustment.

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  4. The Tale of Despereaux

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Wyoming 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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  5. Matilda

    Roald Dahl

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers intelligence, overcoming neglect and teacher-student bond. At 840L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  6. Shiloh

    Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

    Cited in 1 Wyoming 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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  7. The Crossover

    Kwame Alexander

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers family, brotherhood and basketball. At 750L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  8. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane

    Kate DiCamillo

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 3 to 6. Covers love, loss and journey.

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  9. The War That Saved My Life

    Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 2 national references, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers war, resilience and disability. At 580L it sits just under the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  10. Wonder

    R.J. Palacio

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 2 national references, 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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  11. Diary of a Wimpy Kid

    Jeff Kinney

    Cited in 1 Wyoming 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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  12. The Dollhouse Murders

    Betty Ren Wright

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document and 1 national reference, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers mystery, family and ghosts.

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  13. There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom

    Louis Sachar

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

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  14. A Night Divided

    Jennifer A. Nielsen

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers courage, freedom and family.

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  15. Amari and the Night Brothers

    B. B. Alston

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers magic, family and courage.

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  16. Among the Hidden

    Margaret Peterson Haddix

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document, taught from grade 5 to 8. Covers freedom, identity and resistance.

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  17. Deep and Dark and Dangerous

    Mary Downing Hahn

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

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  18. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

    J.K. Rowling

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers friendship, courage and good vs evil. At 880L it falls inside the 740–1010L band for this grade.

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  19. Odder

    Katherine Applegate

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

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  20. Saving Shiloh

    Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

    Cited in 1 Wyoming curriculum document, taught from grade 4 to 7. Covers loyalty, forgiveness and community.

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20 books cited for Wyoming 5th grade

Assignments tied directly to Wyoming’s Wyoming Content Standards with a Wyoming-specific citation.

852 additional grade-appropriate books for 5th grade readers

The 872-book total above includes 20 titles with direct Wyoming citation; these 852 additional titles cover 5th grade in the broader canon. They don't have a Wyoming-specific citation yet but are commonly taught at this level.

Show all 852 titles

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Other Wyoming grades

4th grade · 6th grade · 3rd grade · 7th grade

Reading lists by grade (all states)

4th grade · 6th grade · 3rd grade · 7th grade

Same 5th grade in other states

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

Browse 5th grade reading by theme

About the Wyoming 5th grade reading list

This list combines books cited in Wyoming Content Standards with books from national sources that list titles for 5th grade: the Common Core State Standards (ELA), plus awards such as the Golden Kite Award, the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award and the Andre Norton Award for Middle Grade & Young Adult Fiction. ReadingList currently tracks 872 titles for 5th grade in Wyoming, of which 20 carry a direct Wyoming citation and 852 are grade-appropriate titles whose reading level overlaps 5th grade. Across the list, Lexile measures span 390L–1020L.

5th 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 59 titles here with a Lexile score 34 are grade-level, 24 are more accessible (often assigned for theme over challenge), and 1 is a stretch text that may need scaffolding. Because readers in a single 5th grade classroom can span several hundred Lexile points, this list is best read as a starting point rather than a fixed requirement.

Wyoming’s English Language Arts requirements are set by Wyoming Content Standards (edu.wyoming.gov). Most states pair their own standards with the Common Core text-complexity framework. The 5th grade list below blends Wyoming-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 5th grade unit can pair a Wyoming-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 5th grade students read in Wyoming?
Books with a Wyoming-specific citation for 5th grade include Holes, Maniac Magee, New Kid, The Tale of Despereaux and Matilda. 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 5th grade students in Wyoming?
This list has 872 books for 5th grade students in Wyoming. 20 of them have a Wyoming-specific citation; the other 852 are grade-appropriate titles from national reading lists and awards.
What's the Lexile range for 5th grade reading in Wyoming?
Lexile measures across the 5th grade Wyoming reading list range from 390L to 1020L. Books without a published Lexile (poetry, drama, picture books) are not included in this range.
Where does this reading list come from?
Wyoming-specific entries reference Wyoming Content Standards (published at edu.wyoming.gov). The other books come from national sources that list books for 5th grade: the Common Core State Standards (ELA), plus awards such as the Golden Kite Award, the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award and the Andre Norton Award for Middle Grade & Young Adult Fiction. Each book's page links the primary source for every listing.

Reading guides for parents

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State-specific entries sourced from edu.wyoming.gov. National references cited on each book’s detail page.

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