13 Novels for Middle School ELA
I don’t remember much about my awkward childhood, but there is a memory from 3rd grade that vividly stands out in my mind.
I can still see my teacher pulling the wooden stool out from the corner of the classroom and placing it in front of our desks. With this action, I knew we were about to start my favorite part of the day, read aloud time.
I remember pulling out my copy of Island of the Blue Dolphins, brushing my fingertips over the image of the proud girl standing on the cliff with her hair blowing in the wind, and eagerly opening up to the page we left off the day before. As my teacher read aloud, I got lost in the story.
I may not remember who was in my third grade class, or even the name of the teacher, but I do remember the stories read to us from the wooden stool-Island of the Blue Dolphins, The Indian in the Cupboard, Sarah Plain and Tall, and Superfudge.
Although I didn’t realize it at the time, my third grade teacher ignited a love of reading that has lasted to this day. Without her, no one would have read aloud to me, and I would have no idea about the magic of a good book.
When I started teaching, I knew I wanted to do the same thing for my students, so I made a commitment to read at least 3 novels aloud. Since the majority of my students have not been read to, I do the voices so the students get an understanding of dialogue and how everything flows.
After we read our first novel, I have students who take on character parts and read the dialogue out loud like a play. It’s amazing how the stories come alive in the classroom.
During this time, I also model how good readers stop and think about what's happening in the story. This is where we apply the standards. For example, we can infer a character’s motivations based on their actions, we can talk about the meaning of a figurative statement, or talk about the mood of a section. I’ll do a blog post on how I specifically do this next week.
At this point, it might go without saying, but I am a HUGE advocate for reading novels with your class! Not only will their end of year test scores dramatically increase (at least that’s been my experience), but you will create relationships and memories! I have students that see me years later and say they still remember reading one of these books. Talk about something that warms your teacher heart! When the adult version of the seemingly apathetic boy from years ago hugs you in the local Mexican restaurant and tells you they still remember reading Schooled in class…there is nothing better!
To get you started, I made a list of my favorite books I have read with my middle school students throughout the years.
They are in order from what would be considered a lower level read to more advanced. I hate to put a grade level on them since everyone has different types of students, and a lot of times it depends on what you pair with the book. Just making this list warmed my heart, so I hope you can find something to read with your middle schoolers!
PS: You don’t have to write them down! There is a printable Google Doc at the bottom that has all of the titles listed, sorted by genre, and linked!
Schooled by Gordon Korman:I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book! It’s told from different perspectives, encourages kindness, and how to embrace people who are different. It’s a message every student needs to hear.
2. Dovey Coe by Frances O’Roark Dowell This Edgar Allan Poe award winner will hook students from the first paragraph. On top of the exciting plot, the author is really cool! She lives close to where I teach, so she came to our school and talked to the students. They loved it! I know if you contacted her, she would skype with your class and talk to them about the book.
My name is Dovey Coe and I reckon it don't matter if you like me or not. I'm here to lay the record straight, to let you know them folks saying I done a terrible thing are liars. I aim to prove it, too. I hated Parnell Caraway as much as the next person, but I didn't kill him.
3. Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James Swanson: I know some people do this book in elementary school, but I think students really start to understand John WIlkes Booth’s motivation in middle school. I feel like at this level they can really start to analyze the impact of his last words, “Useless. Useless.” Especially if you read this at the same time your students study the Civil War in social studies class. I found that students who did read it when they were younger have a deeper appreciation and understanding of it when they are a little older since they have more background knowledge.
4. Ghost by Jason Reynolds: Here’s another award winner for you! This is a fast one to read and it will get your students hooked on the series. They will want to know what happens to the main character since they are invested in his story. In addition, a lot of my students were able to connect with the main character’s situation. It will be a favorite with your hard to reach boys.
5. Crow by Barbara Wright: Make sure to have some tissues because this one will make them cry. Seriously, I had 8th grade boys that had to put their head down at the end because they did want people to see them cry. To be honest, I’m a little nervous about this one now since there is some sensitive and hurtful language used to describe the main character. It’s used as a way to show the hate and ignorance associated with the word, but it’s still a sensitive topic.
6. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: Almost everyone has seen this movie, but when I read this with my students, they were so surprised that Katniss and Peeta’s love story was not exactly how it was portrayed in the movie. This is another book that gets students hooked and eager to read the rest of the series on their own. Consider doing this novel when your social studies department is teaching about revolutions. We had a day where we combined classes, and the social studies teacher and I and did a seminar on how the Hunger Games related to the French Revolution. It was amazing to hear their insights and to see the connections they made.
7. Divergent by Veronica Roth: Yes, I read Divergent with my students. Yes, it’s like a thousand pages. Haha. Since it is a longer novel, I did this one with my advanced students while the other classes were reading Hunger Games. We started off reading the first couple of chapters together, and then the students were required to read several chapters at home. During class, we did seminar style discussions about what they read. Since it was my advanced group, most of them completed the reading at home. It just took a phone call or two to get the ones who tried to slip by without doing the reading. (I could always tell during seminar since I required everyone to share their favorite line and discuss why it stood out to them before we started on our seminar questions. Plus I gave comprehension check in quizzes and included items that were not in the movie.)
8. Heartbeat by Sharon Creech: This is a free verse novel that deals with a young girl learning how to navigate life’s changes. When we read this out loud, I loved how there were natural places to stop and discuss connections to what is going on in my student’s lives.
9. Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis: If any teacher asks me what they should read with their class, this is ALWAYS one of the books I recommend. This story is unique in the face that each chapter is like a short story, but everything ties together in the end. Not only is it full of adventure, but it’s a powerful coming of age story as well.
Elijah of Buxton Novel Guide (Included in ELA Unlimited)
10. Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson: This book, y’all. Wow! Laurie Halse Anderson knows how to tell a beautiful and powerful story. It’s one that will stick with you long after you finish the last page and close the book. Not only will your students empathize with the main character, but they start to see the Revolution from a different viewpoint. It’s a the first of a trilogy, and students run to the library to get the next one since it ends in a way that leaves them needing more.
11. The President Has Been Shot! By James Swanson Look who is on the list twice! It must be because Swanson is able to take nonfiction and turn it into on the edge of your seat narrative. He has the ability to transport you to the scene and set the mood with his words. When we finish reading, my students love researching the conspiracy theories that surrounding JFK’s death.
I’m going to round out the list with my 8th grader’s favorite book. This free verse novel requires a lot of inferences, but with some work, your students will understand what’s happening. The book is told from different perspectives and shows how neighbors turned against each other when the Ku Klux Klan moves in.
I hope this gives you some ideas for your classroom! To make it easier for you, I made a Google Doc for you with all of the titles, links, genres, and a space for you to write your thoughts, or add your own titles! Just enter your name and email and you will get an immediate link for your own copy.