UPPER+PRIMARY+CLASS+SERIAL+BOOKS

This page presents a list of class serial books that my colleagues and I have read to upper primary students over the past 2 years. I have given a brief idea of what each book is about and a comment about its reception by our students. If you have other suggested titles to add, please let me know and we can continue to build this resource for teachers.

THE GAME OF THE GOOSE by Ursula Dubosarsky //n her hand was a hinged wooden box with a black clasp. On the lid was a painting of a white bird with a long neck, its wings stretched out in flight. Fred rubbed it with her fingers, wiping away the dust.// //'The Game of the Goose,' she read slowly.//  //'Open it,' said Rowley. . .// Fred, Rowley and Rabbit hardly knew each other before the game. But the game changed everything. It took each of them on an adventure – a terrifying, wonderful journey that they would remember for ever. This was published in 2007 so is good for a recent choice. It is a surreal fantasy adventure story which was well-suited to this age group. It lent itself to some imaginative class activities too. Recommended!

CAPTAIN JOHNNO by Rob George A young deaf boy who calls himself "Captain Johnno" befriends Tony, an Italian fisherman in the small Australian fishing town they live in. Both feel outcast by the town and both share a great love of the sea.

When Johnno's beloved older sister leaves to go to boarding school, he is upset -- she is his protector and the only one who understands him. After a nasty confrontation with his father, Johnno runs away to an island hiding place, causing much distress in the town. His friend Tony helps him understand how much he is loved and missed by his family.

Both son and father learn patience and understanding. There is a movie of the book, from the //Touch the Sun// series by the Australian Children's Television Foundation. It is a fantastic book for this age group of students. There is plenty of action and humour but with serious and moving themes of differences and acceptance. More information can be found [|here.]

HITLER'S DAUGHTER by Jackie French While a group of modern day Australian children wait for their school bus in the rain, one spins a story about Hitler's Daughter. One of the listeners becomes very interested in Hitler and how his daughter would have felt about Hitler's deeds. This book was hard going for some students, but others were very interested in learning about the context for the story. It was an ideal opportunity to introduce other texts that provided further information for the students about the Nazis and Hitler during World War 2. It wasn't our students favourite book to listen to, but a good story and worthwhile as a means of learning more about this part of our history. [|The author answers questions about the writing of this book here.] HOW TO EAT FRIED WORMS by Thomas Rockwell. Originally published in 1973 but still very much enjoyed by kids today. I t is the story of a 10-year-old boy, facing the most revolting bet of his life. Billy must eat 15 worms in 15 days--but the reward will be worth it: $50 for a shiny new minibike. Luckily, Billy's friends cook up these fat juicy creatures in a variety of appetizing ways. Our students loved the yuck factor and were engaged in finding out whether or not Billy would win the bet. There's a movie too that's good, but does vary a lot from the novel.

 THE INDIAN IN THE CUPBOARD by Lynne Reid Banks This is close to top of the list for class serials for upper primary kids. It has imagination and humour and is a great stimulus for MI activities. A young boy named Omri discovers a cabinet that can bring plastic toy figures back to life with the turn of a magical key. When he brings the Indian to life, he finds out that he is an Iroquois of the 18th century.

 THE BURNT STICK by Anthony Hill This is a short novel that tells the story of a fictional member of what have come to be know as 'the stolen generations'. The Stolen Generations refers to a time in Australian History between 1910 and 1970. About one hundred thousand Aboriginal children were forcibly removed from their families by police or welfare officers. Many of the children were under five years of age. The Burnt Stick is a story that sensitively deals with this regrettable tragedy. It is certainly sad, but it is important  that students today have an understanding of the impact of past practices.

 ADRIFT by Allan Baillie A brother and sister and their cat are playing on an old wooden crate that drifts out to sea. This is a gripping adventure story with lots of suspense. Flynn, the older brother, must assume the role of parent and reassure and look after his younger sister Sally in a way he has never experienced before. Students respond to this book as a suspenseful adventure and as a portrait of sibling and family relationships.

 ROWAN OF RIN by Emily Rodda This is a great fantasy book to start the year: engaging and interesting but not too challenging emotionally or intellectually, and once again lends itself to a range of interpretive activities. The book is a classic quest and the very unlikely hero, Rowan, must solve a series of riddles to save his village. This is the first in a series and our students who enjoyed this book went on to read others in the series.

DELTORA QUEST by Emily Rodda (we read Forests of Silence and Lake of Tears, books 1 & 2) This series was a great winner and it was really rewarding to see some of our students who struggle a bit with reading picking up this and the subsequent books in the series and reading them. There's also a brilliant website [|here] which has a range of activities that require reading and knowledge of the books. Lief and Barda set out on their quest to restore the Belt of Deltora, rid the land of the evil Shadow Lord's rule and restore the rightful heir as king or queen. Each book is a self contained story involving the quest for one of the belt's gems.

NIPS XI by Ruth Stark White boys can't jump, can Asian kids play cricket? Lan's fed up with being called a nip. He wants to be a true-blue Aussie. What better way than by playing the greatest Anglo game of all? Lan gathers a team together and defiantly gives it a name: Nips XI. Now all they have to do is get some equipment, find a coach, get themselves a sponsor and learn the rules of the game. Then it`s time to challenge the best cricket team in the district. A funny, empowering story of cricket and curry, spinners and leggies, Nips XI is about overcoming cultural barriers, in sport and in life. (Review from []) This book was well received by our students, with many moments of humour, and much anticipation about whether the cricket team would be successful.

 LOVE AUBREY by Suzanne LeFleur This was a really tough book to read. Eleven year old Aubrey writes letters as she deals with her grief over the deaths of her father and sister in a car accident, and her abandonment by her mother. I wouldn't volunteer to read this book again myself, but I would recommend it because the depth of the student responses was really amazing. They connected with Aubrey and her story and some of our lowest achieving students produced their best pieces of writing in response. It's well written, moves at a good pace and is very accessible. But be warned: it is really, REALLY sad.

 UNCLE MONTAGUE'S TALES OF TERROR by Chris Priestley I'm not sure whether to recommend this book. It appealed to some but not others. It consists of self-contained very scary stories told by Uncle Montague that are tied together in a way that's revealed at the end.

 GRAFFITI ON THE FENCE by Elaine Forrestal Three young teenagers begin a campaign to terrorise the 'witch' who lives on the hill they like to use for skateboarding. Over the course of the story, the characters see each other as people and provide each other with mutual help. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica; font-size: small; line-height: normal;">The book is realistic teen fiction that deals with the theme of generational differences. This is not a long book and students relate to the young characters.

BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA by Katherine Paterson This is a very well-known story of Jess Aarons, whose goal to be the fastest runner at school is foiled by a new student, Leslie. Leslie introduces Jess to a new kind of life and they become best friends, until tragedy occurs. Jess, however, has gained enough from the friendship that his self-concept and ambitions have changed forever.

<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> BLABBERMOUTH by Morris Gleitzman As you would expect from Morris Gleitzman, this book has many laugh-out-loud moments but it also deals with serious themes of family, friendship and acceptance. Rowena Batts, an upper primary student, has been dumb since birth. She lives with her embarrassing dad and she starts at a new school. Students enjoyed the humour and it was good to read a book that deals with disability in this way.

<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">RUN FOR YOUR LIFE by David Line You would have to buy this book second-hand, but I highly recommend it as a class serial book. It's a thriller about two boys who overhear a murder plot then have to flee the culprits. It is tightly written, and although it was first published in 1965 there is little that is dated about the story. The plot moves quickly and students listen intently.

<span style="color: #008000; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> MIDNITE by Randolf Stow Another old classic, about an inept but lovable teenage bushranger and his 'gang' that consists of animals. Plenty of humour and not too challenging. Some of our students had it read to them last year but were very happy to listen to it again.

[|Here's a list of suggestions from Penguin Publishers, which I haven't tried:]

[|Boy Overboard] & [|Once]/[|Then]/[|Now] (they need to read these ones as they can be quite harrowing) by Morris Gleitzman [|Two Hands Together] by Diana Kidd [|Year of the Tiger] by Alison Lloyd [|Tiff and the Trout] by David Metzenthen [|Tan Callahan’s Secret Spy Files] by Jen Storer [|The Hidden Monastery] by Gabrielle Wang [|Blueback] by Tim Winton [|Lee Raven: Boy Thief], [|Halo] & [|The Lionboy] by Zizou Corder [|Wish] by Felice Arena [|The Peasant Prince] by Li Cunxin [|The First Book of Samuel] by Ursula Dubosarsky [|Born to Run] by Cathy Freeman [|Ziba Came on a Boat] by Liz Lofthouse [|Little Brother] by Allan Baillie [|The Silver Donkey] by Sonya Hartnett (I have read this and would give it a go as a class serial. MN)

[|Cat’s Mountain] by Allan Baillie