Whether you’re teaching from home or in your classroom, one thing hasn’t changed during this unusual back-to-school season: Books are still an essential learning resource for students everywhere. Some teachers are sending books to kids at home, some are doing read-alouds over video chat, and others are trying to make sure each kid can have their own copy of key books in the classroom.
Now is the perfect time to get that perfect page-turner for your classroom. When you create your project, you can choose from any of these book vendors: AKJ Education, Kaplan Early Learning, Lakeshore, MahoganyBooks, School Specialty, Teachers’ School Supply, Amazon Business.
To help you come up with your next perfect project idea, we’ve compiled the most requested books on DonorsChoose this back-to-school season. One big trend? Books by authors of color. Ms. Hill, a high school teacher from California, explains why this is so important for her students right now:
“My classes are made up of more than 85% students of color, and I believe it is important for everyone, but especially them, to read books by authors of color. The majority are also self-identified hesitant readers, so I hope that by seeing themselves in the books we read, they will feel — perhaps for the first time ever — the joy of getting hooked by a book and not being able to put it down.”
Top Books for Grades Pre-K to 2
- The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
- I Am Enough by Grace Beyers
- Our Class Is A Family by Shannon Olsen
- Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry
- All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold
- The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
- Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o
- Just Ask! Be Different Be Brave Be You by Sonia Sotomayor
- Skin Like Mine by Latashia M. Perry
- Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard
Top Books For Grades 3 - 5
- The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
- I Am Enough by Grace Beyers
- The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
- Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry
- New Kid by Jerry Craft
- Just Ask! Be Different Be Brave Be You by Sonia Sotomayor
- Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o
- Our Class Is A Family by Shannon Olsen
- Fry Bread A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard
- Dreamers by Yuyi Morales
Top Books For Grades 6 - 8
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
- New Kid by Jerry Craft
- Dear Martin by Nic Stone
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, And You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
- Clean Getaway by Nic Stone
- March: Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin
- Good Kind Of Trouble by Lisa Moore Ramée
- Hidden Figures: Young Readers Edition by Margot Lee Shetterly
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Top Books For Grades 9 - 12
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
- Dear Martin by Nic Stone
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, And You by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
- Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
- All American Boys by Brandan Kiely and Jason Reynolds
- I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sánchez
- March: Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin
- Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
