Summer 11+ Reading List (Years 4-6)

The summer holiday is fast approaching and many parents are thinking about family fun, as well as how best to support their child’s reading ahead of their 11+ exams. 

As a parent, you’ll know whether or not your child loves to read and the type of books they enjoy reading. Fast-paced, hilarious books, gobbled up with ease are hugely popular and rightly so. These books are enticing for children and they provide a lot of pleasure, as well as an important way to unwind.

For those preparing for a competitive school entrance exam, reading habits often comes into sharp focus. Many parents feel a pressure to ensure their child is reading high-quality books to enhance their vocabulary and comprehension for exam preparation.

Reading is personal and tastes vary. So how can you expand your child’s reading without overwhelm? Here are a variety of books to expand your child’s diet of reading.

The summer holiday is an ideal opportunity for children to stretch themselves as readers while enjoying the experience.

Discover Creative Hare’s Year 4 11+ Reading Comprehension Programme.

Keep Calm   

If you feel stressed and anxious that your child isn’t budging from their binge reading habit, they too will pick up on these feelings. This will make them feel like there’s a problem, even though we all know that reading for pleasure is key. Try talking to your school’s librarian for some recommendations. or your local bookstore for some inspiration.

Visit a Book Shop

Visiting a bookshop is an enriching experience. There are so many books just waiting to be read by your child. Book stores often have some very passionate people working in them who will happily recommend some great reads. 

Read to Succeed

If your child races to choose the latest easy reader, let them. Just encourage them to choose a more ambitious book too. A mix of comfortable favourites and slightly more challenging reads helps build confidence, broaden vocabulary, and develop stronger reading skills.

Audiobooks

Audiobooks can work wonders for the long summer holiday because they are easier to transport when going on holiday. They also enable children to understand and enjoy books that are above their independent reading level. This allows them to engage with more sophisticated language and storytelling while still developing confidence in their own reading.

Create a Disciplined Routine

Having a routine can work well for children. It can mean that even when they don’t feel like doing something, they still do it, and more often than not, you’re child will be glad they did. Set aside some time on a daily basis, such as 30 minutes a day, or a couple of chunks through the week. Either way, find a time that works best for your child and stick to it.

Non-Fiction

Reading about what your child is actually interested in can work wonders for their engagement level. There’s often a lot of subject specific tricky words in non-fiction material which helps children feel prepared for 11+ non-fiction assessment texts. Your child may enjoy reading The Week Junior or a gripping book on a science topic. 

Book Recommendations 

The majority of these books come recommended from past and present students. A few of the books have ppeared in 11+ comprehenson past paper extracts.

Children’s Historical fiction:

Goodnight Mister Tom by Michelle Magorian 

War and Millie McGonigle by Karen Cushman 

How to find What You’re Not Looking For by Veera Hiranandani (recommended age 10+)

Fantasy

A Tangle of Knots by Lisa Graff

The Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman 

A Clock of Stars: Beyond the Mountains by Francesca Gibbons 

Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell 

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket 

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie 

Kestrel Island by A.B Martin

Into the Wild by Erin Hunter (a feline adventure)

Realistic Fiction

Track series by Jason Reynolds 

Adventure Fiction

The Call of The Wild and White Fang by Jack London 

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame 

A Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson 

Boy Giant: Son of Gulliver by Michael Morpurgo 

Five Children and It by Edith Nesbitt 

The Fowl Twins Get What They Deserve by 

Eoin Colfer (bestselling author of Artemis Fowl) 

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Tom’s Midnight Garden by Phillipa Pearce

Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery 

Charlotte’s Web by E.B White

Alice With a Why by Anna James (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Reimagined)

Strike by Mitch Johnson (adored by football fans)

Fictional Animal Biography

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell 

Non-Fiction

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr (semi-autobiographical)

Arctic and Antarctica by Dorling Kindersley 

Reaching for The Moon:The Autobiography of NASA Mathematician by Katherine Johnson 

Penguin’s Who Was…? Series – Who HQ  (Great Graphic Novels too)

Adventures in Time Series by Dominic Sandbrook

The Extraordinary Life of Greta Thunberg by Devika Jina 

Mystery

A Murder Most Unladylike series by Robin Stevens

Mr. Penguin series by Alex T. Smith 

The Islands of Elsewhere by Heather Fawcett 

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin 

The Extraordinary Cases of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle 

The Secret Lake by Karen Inglis

Clare is a former London prep school teacher, founder of Creative Hare and lead tutor of the Year 4 and  5 11+ English programmes that support children to reach their potential through topic mastery and exam confidence.

Website: www.creativehare.co.uk

Helping bright maths minds achieve their full potential in 11+ English.