Elementary Recommended Reads
Woodrow for President: A Tail of Voting, Campaigns, and Elections
Description: Woodrow G. Washingtail was the governor of Moussouri. Now he is running for
president of the United Mice of America! After working hard in school (and
registering to vote at age 18!), Woodrow began his life of public service. He
started as a volunteer in his community, then ran for town council, then mayor
and then statewide office. Now he is in the race of his career, as he
campaigns, debates, makes speeches, and meets the voters. Will he win the
primaries? Will he win on Election Day? Will he become the nation’s “Big
Cheese”? Cast your vote for "Woodrow for President" and find out!
Author: Peter W. Barnes and Cheryl Barnes
Reading level: K-4th grades
Hardcover: 32 pages
O, Say Can You See?
Description: This picture book celebrates and explains America's
symbols, landmarks, and important words in lively, brief text and bright, humorous
illustrations. There are stars-and-stripes T-shirts. There are Statue of Liberty pencil
sharpeners and Uncle Sam Halloween costumes. Patriotic symbols are
everywhere...but where do they come from? What do they mean?
Now in paperback, this celebration of twenty of America's important places,
interesting objects, and inspiring words is for the youngest Americans.
Including Plymouth Rock, the White House, the flag, the bald eagle, and many
more, this book draws kids in with its big, two-page spreads and fun, bright
pastels and satisfies their curiosities about America's most prominent symbols.
Author: Sheila Keenan
Reading level: K-4th grades
Paperback: 64 pages
George Washington’s Teeth
Description: From battling toothaches while fighting the British to having rotten teeth removed by his dentists, the Father of His Country suffered all his life with tooth problems. Yet contrary to popular belief, George Washington never had a set of wooden teeth. Starting at the age of twenty-four, he lost on average a tooth a year, and by the time he was elected President, he had only two left! In this reverentially funny tale based on Washington’s letters, diaries, and other historical records, readers will find out what really happened as they follow the trail of lost teeth to complete tooflessness.
Author: Deborah Chandra and Madeleine Comora
Reading level: Pre-K – 6th grades
Hardcover: 40 pages
…If You Grew Up With George Washington
Description: A different time…a different place…What if you were there? If you grew up with George Washington: What did you do to have fun? Could you hear the news on radio or TV? How did you light your house at night? This book tells you what it was like to live in Virginia during the colonial times of the 1730s and 1740s.
Author: Ruth Belov Gross
Reading level: 2nd – 6th grades
Paperback: 64 pages
The Civil Rights Movement for Kids
Description: Surprisingly, kids were some of the key instigators in the Civil Rights Movement, like Barbara Johns, who held a rally in her elementary school gym that eventually led to the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court school desegregation decision, and six-year-old Ruby Bridges, who was the first black student to desegregate elementary schools in New Orleans. In The Civil Rights Movement for Kids, children will discover how students and religious leaders worked together to demand the protection of civil rights for black Americans. They will relive the fear and uncertainty of Freedom Summer and learn how northern white college students helped bring national attention to atrocities committed in the name of segregation, and they’ll be inspired by the speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr., Medgar Evers, and Malcolm X. Activities include: reenacting a lunch counter sit-in; organizing a workshop on nonviolence; holding a freedom film festival followed by a discussion; and organizing a choral group to sing the songs that motivated the foot soldiers in this war for rights.
Author: Mary C. Turck
Reading level: 4th - 8th grades
Paperback: 208 pages
George Washington’s Breakfast
Description: George Washington Allen wants to know all the important things about his namesake. He already knew the names of Washington’s dogs and what size shoes he wore, be he didn’t know what George Washington ate for breakfast. He got his grandmother to promise she’d cook George Washington’s breakfast if he found out what it was, and he was going to find out no matter what.
Author: Jean Fritz
Reading level: 2nd - 5th grades
Paperback: 48 pages
The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon
Description: In 2005 a team of historians, scientists, and artisans at Mount Vernon set out to change the image of our first president. They studied paintings and sculptures, poured over Washington’s letters to his tailors, noted other people’s comments on his appearance, and even closely examined the many sets of dentures that had been created for Washington. Their painstaking research and exacting processes helped create three full-body representations of Washington as he was at key moments in life.
Author: Carla Killough McClafferty
Reading level: 5th - 8th grades
Hardback: 120 pages
Middle School Recommended Reads
The Civil Rights Movement for Kids
Description: Surprisingly, kids were some of the key instigators in the Civil Rights Movement, like Barbara Johns, who held a rally in her elementary school gym that eventually led to the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court school desegregation decision, and six-year-old Ruby Bridges, who was the first black student to desegregate elementary schools in New Orleans. In The Civil Rights Movement for Kids, children will discover how students and religious leaders worked together to demand the protection of civil rights for black Americans. They will relive the fear and uncertainty of Freedom Summer and learn how northern white college students helped bring national attention to atrocities committed in the name of segregation, and they’ll be inspired by the speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr., Medgar Evers, and Malcolm X. Activities include: reenacting a lunch counter sit-in; organizing a workshop on nonviolence; holding a freedom film festival followed by a discussion; and organizing a choral group to sing the songs that motivated the foot soldiers in this war for rights.
Author: Mary C. Turck
Reading level: 4th - 8th grades
Paperback: 208 pages
The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon
Description: In 2005 a team of historians, scientists, and artisans at Mount Vernon set out to change the image of our first president. They studied paintings and sculptures, poured over Washington’s letters to his tailors, noted other people’s comments on his appearance, and even closely examined the many sets of dentures that had been created for Washington. Their painstaking research and exacting processes helped create three full-body representations of Washington as he was at key moments in life.
Author: Carla Killough McClafferty
Reading level: 5th - 8th grades
Hardback: 120 pages
Dear Mr. President: Letters to the Oval Office from the Files of the National Archives
Description: Over the years countless people have taken pen in hand and begun a letter with the words “Dear Mr. President.” The 87 letters showcased here from the famous and infamous including Elvis Presley, Fidel Castro, Queen Elizabeth, and Annie Oakley have been culled from the National Archives collection and span a wide range of topics and emotions.
Edited By: Dwight Young
High School Recommended Reads
Dear Mr. President: Letters to the Oval Office from the Files of the National Archives
Description: Over the years countless people have taken pen in hand and begun a letter with the words “Dear Mr. President.” The 87 letters showcased here from the famous and infamous including Elvis Presley, Fidel Castro, Queen Elizabeth, and Annie Oakley have been culled from the National Archives collection and span a wide range of topics and emotions.
Edited By: Dwight Young
My Life
Description: President Bill Clinton’s My Life is the strikingly candid portrait of a global leader who decided early in life to devote his intellectual and political gifts, and his extraordinary capacity for hard work, to serving the public. In this autobiography, follow Clinton’s humble beginnings in Arkansas through his life in the White House.
Edited By: Bill Clinton
