Reading Material for a Six Year Old Boy

[halleyscomet]

Caleb is currently burning through The Rainbow Fairies book series as well as Encyclopedia Brown. Despite having read the exploits of Encyclopedia Brown as a kid, I'm kinda more comfortable with the fairy books at the moment, as I'm realizing the Encyclopedia Brown books cater to a lot of stereotypes about women and Native Americans symptomatic of

Comments

[sweetmmeblue]

Rainbow Fairies? Maybe you're finding them different than we did. When the boys found them and we read them it was all about them getting into trouble and needed to be rescued. Maybe we missed something but they were the one series we would not let the boys read. Then they got into the Magic Treehouse books and a few other things and it became a moot point.

but we also had that conversation. The other one that happened was when kfir realized that most of the leads in books were male.

[halleyscomet]

We have a bunch of the Magic Treehouse books. Sadly, Caleb is not comfortable with the suspense level in them yet. I think one reason the Rainbow Fairy books appeal to him is there's never any REAL danger or suspense. I look forward to him outgrowing this, as he's enjoyed some of the Magic Treehouse audio books he's heard

[sweetmmeblue]

I asked Thing1 and he suggested Captain Underpants. As well as Ricky Ricotta and his mighty robot.

[meranthi]

Personally, I hate the Captain Underpants books, but I really don't think bathroom humor is funny. Well, not anymore. I'm sure I would have found them hysterical at Caleb's age. :)

[lillibet]

Good on you! I've been excited that Alice, who went through a big Rainbow Fairies phase last year, is now obsessing over Star Wars. After months of very gender segregated play at recess, the past few weeks she has assembled a crew of boys and girls to play Star Wars Rebels on the playground. She's been annoyed by the under-representation of women in the movies--that was a good conversation--and was really hurt today that one of her playmates gave Star Wars themed Valentine's day cards to the boys and not the girls, "like he didn't even think about who actually LIKES Star Wars in our class!"

[whitechii]

*puts library hat on* good job! I hate it when parents censor books for kids w/o letting THEM decide if its cool or not. IT makes my job alot easier when they are both open to options.
Suggestions:
-captain underpants
-geronimo stilton
-beverly cleary
-kate dicamillo
-star wars books
-Big Nate
-Diary of a Wimpy Kid(big hit)

Many kids I see are in X grade level but READ at X grade level so that is important factor to consider.

[theloriest]

I ADORE Kate DiCamillo!

[whitechii]

hoping to see her live and in person in a few weeks at my local library for a program with the kiddies. ;) and I can park in the staff parking lot. :P

[42itous]

I'm not sure if these are all accessible to a six-year-old, but have a look and if not now, in a few years:

- Half Magic (the first in a series)
- The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet
- Homer Price
- The Enormous Egg
- three books by E.B. White
- Little House in the Big Woods (and the rest of the series)
- the Narnia books, of course (read them in the original order, for goodness sake, NOT in the order the publishers number them in!)
- Smith of Wootton Major
- Betsy-Tacy series (these are patently written for girls, but as you've established, that's not a good reason to avoid them)
- Bobbsey Twins? I had one of these which I loved as a kid, but I don't remember whether it was actually good literature or if I was just fascinated by twins.
- All of a Kind Family

[halleyscomet]

Whuffle has read Hootiebird the first book in the Half-Magic series couple times now. It occurs to me he's probably old enough to read it himself now.

The Bobbsey Twins books are now public domain.

[whitechii]

boxcar children is also a lovely series.