Librarians' Picks

Selected Reading Unearthed from the Youth Collection
Ann Arbor District Library

Table of Contents

1. Going to Daycare
2. Going to Nursery School
3. Elementary School: Picture Books and Readers
4. Elementary School: Fiction
5. Elementary School: Nonfiction
6. Middle School: Fiction
7. Middle School: Nonfiction

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Baird, Anne. The guppies of Hilly Dale House. 1990.

The toddler group at a daycare center has many adventures.
E BAI

Day, Alexandra. Carl goes to daycare. 1993.

Carl the rotweiler takes charge when he visits a daycare center.
E DAY

Doyle, Charlotte. Where's Bunny's mommy? 1995.

While Bunny (a rabbit) paints, climbs, eats and plays at daycare, his mommy is shown at work.
E DOY

Magorian, Michelle. Who's going to take care of me? 1990.

Eric wonders who will look out for him at daycare now that his sister has started school.
E MAG

Phillips, Tamara. Day care ABC. 1989.

An alphabetical tour of daycare, from Adam (asking for applesauce) to Zoe (zipping her zipper).
E PHI

Rogers, Fred. Going to day care. 1985.

Mr. Rogers explains what to expect at daycare. Photos feature many children in many daycare situations.
J 362.7 Ro

Simon, Norma. I'm busy, too. 1980.

Three preschoolers and their families have busy days at school and at work.
E SIM

Valens, Amy. Jesse's daycare. 1990.

Jesse's day and his mother's day are compared as one goes to daycare and one goes to work.
E VAL

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Going to Nursery School

Alexander, Martha. Sabrina. 1971.

On her first day of nursery school, Sabrina decides to change her name.
E ALE

Barkin, Carol. I'd rather stay home. 1975.

A photo-essay discusses a little boy's anxieties about nursery school.
J 152.4 Ba

Breinburg, Petronella. Shawn goes to school. 1973.

A little boy adjusts to his first day at nursery school.
E BRE

Caines, Jeannette. I need a lunch box. 1988.

When his big sister gets school supplies, a preschooler longs for a lunch box like hers.
E CAI

Hoffman, Phyllis. We play. 1990.

A nursery school day is described in rhyme.
E HOF

Kuklin, Susan. Going to my nursery school. 1990.

Using photographs and text, a little boy describes his nursery school.
E 372.216 Ku

Oxenbury, Helen. First day of school. 1983.

A little girl begins to enjoy nursery school when she makes afriend.
Reader OXE

Radlauer, Ruth. Molly. 1987.

A four-year-old thoroughly enjoys herself at preschool.
Reader RAD

Rockwell, Harlow. My nursery school. 1976.

A child describes the many activities at nursery school.
E 372 Ro

Turner, Gwenda. Gwenda Turner's playbook. 1985.

Children play with paints, blocks, swings, games and more at nursery school.
E TUR

Wells, Rosemary. Edward unready for school. 1995.

Not everyone is ready for school, and Edward the bear has parents who understand this.
E WEL

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Elementary School: Picture Books & Readers

Anderson, Eloise A. Carlos goes to school. 1973.

Carlos's first day at school has its ups and downs.
E AND

Boelts, Maribeth. Summer's end. 1995.

An elementary schooler thinks good times are ending when the summer ends, but then remembers interesting things about school.
E BOE

Brandenberg, Franz. Six new students. 1978.

The six Fieldmouse children find their new school more enjoyable than they had anticipated.
Reader BRA

Hennessy, Barbara G. School days. 1990.

Rhyming text and illustrations describe the familiar faces and objects of a day at school.
E HEN

Hillert, Margaret. Who goes to school? 1981.

Simple text and illustrations depict animals in schoolsituations and conclude that school can be fun for children.
Reader HIL

Jabar, Cynthia. Alice Ann gets ready for school. 1989.

Alice Ann experiences both fun and anxiety as she gets ready for the biggest event of her life.
E JAB

Keller, Holly. Harry and Tuck. 1993.

Twins Harry and Tuck have always acted and thought alike, but they start developing differences when they end up in different kindergarten classes.
E KEL

McCully, Emily Arnold. School. 1987.

A curious little mouse decides to find out what school is about.
E MCC

Krensky, Stephen. Lionel in the fall. 1987.

Lionel knows all the children in his class, but the teacher is new to the school.
Reader KRE

Marzollo, Jean. I spy school days: a book of picture riddles. 1995.

Readers must find answers to riddles by carefully studying photographs of school-related items.
E MAR

O'Connor, Jane. Lulu goes to witch school. 1987.

Lulu starts witch school, and meets a classmate who is best at everything.
Reader OCO

Parish, Peggy. Teach us, Amelia Bedelia. 1977.

Mixed-up maid Amelia Bedelia is in charge of the class!
Reader PAR

Poulet, Virginia. Blue Bug goes to school. 1985.

Blue Bug enjoys many school activities such as printing his name, cutting out snowflakes, and making a special surprise for the teacher.
Reader POU

Rey, Margret. Curious George goes to school. 1989.

The curious monkey makes a mistake in the art room, but finds a missing painting in time for an open house.
E REY

Russo, Marisabina. I don't want to go back to school. 1994.

Despite his older sister's warnings about things that couldgo wrong, Ben has a wonderful time in school.
E RUS

Schwartz, Amy. Annabelle Swift, kindergartner. 1988.

Annabelle's first day of school is a success, despite and because of some of the things her older sister has taught her.
E SCH

Schweninger, Ann. Off to school ! 1987.

Bulton Brown has an exciting first day at school as he and his classmates play games, draw pictures, and hear a story.
E SCH

Stevenson, James. That dreadful day. 1985.

When Mary Ann and Louie return unhappily from their first day at school, Grandpa tells them about his own dreadful first day at school.
E STE

Tester, Sylvia Root. We laughed a lot, my first day of school. 1979.

Juan discovers kindergarten is fun.
E TES

Udry, Janice May. What Mary Jo shared. 1966.

Mary Jo needs something wonderful for Show and Tell.
E UDR

Waddell, Martin. Little Dracula goes to school. 1992.

Although he is apprehensive about starting school, little Dracula finds that he loves it once he gets there.
E WAD

Wiseman, Bernard. Morris goes to school. 1970.

Morris the Moose goes to school and, in his own special ways, learns the alphabet, counts, sings, and spells.
Reader WIS

Wells, Rosemary. Timothy goes to school. 1981.

Timothy learns about being accepted during his first week of school.
E WEL

Wolf, Bernard. Adam Smith goes to school. 1978.

A photo-essay depicts a six-year-old boy's first week of school.
E WOL

Young, Selina. Ned. 1993.

Emily and her green toy donkey, Ned, go off to school together for the first time.
E YOU

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Elementary School: Fiction

Baker, Barbara. Third grade is terrible. 1989.

Liza is convinced third grade is going to be great until everything starts going wrong on the first day.
J Fiction

Caseley, Judith. Starring Dorothy Kane. 1992.

Dorothy moves to a new house, goes to a new school, and makes a new friend.
J Fiction

Cleary, Beverly. Dear Mr. Henshaw. 1983.

Ten-year-old Leigh Botts struggles with his parents' divorce, a new school, and bullies.
J Fiction

Cleary, Beverly. Ramona the pest. 1968.

Ramona Quimby meets lots of interesting people in kindergarten.
J Fiction

Giff, Patricia Reilly. The beast in Ms. Rooney's room. 1984.

Richard "Beast" Best dreads the new school year because he is repeating third grade.
Paperback Fiction G

Harris, Dorothy Joan. The school mouse. 1977.

Knowing that his mouse is now living at school makes first grade more appealing to a six-year-old.
J Fiction

Haywood, Carolyn. Back to school with Betsy. 1943.

Betsy and her friends start a new year.
J Fiction

Moss, Marissa. Amelia's notebook. 1995.

Amelia moves to a new home and school and keeps a hand-written, drawing-filled record of her experiences.
J Fiction

Smith, Janice Lee. The show-and-tell war and other stories about Adam Joshua. 1988.

Adam Joshua's school adventures include the first day, playing sick, stealing a library book, and trying to have the best "show-and-tell."
J Fiction

Zach, Cheryl. Benny and the no-good teacher. 1992.

Fourth grade starts badly when Benny's friends are in a different class and he has the strict new teacher.
J Fiction

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Elementary School: Nonfiction

Arnold, Caroline. Where do you go to school? 1982.

Different kinds of schools, the jobs performed by people who work there, and what children do at school.
J 371 Ar

Hamilton-Merritt, Jane. My first days of school. 1982.

Five-year-old Jane describes her first day of kindergarten.
J 372 Ha

Cork, Barbara. Going to school. 1990.

A "first experiences" photo-essay from Mr. Rogers talks about starting school.
J 372 Co

Hobby, Janice Hale. Staying back. 1982.

The true stories of seven elementary school students who shared the difficult experience of repeating a grade.
YD Parent-Shelf 372.128 Ho

Howe, James. When you go to kindergarten. 1994.

Text and color photographs explain what it is like to go to kindergarten.
J 372.218 Ho

Howlett, Bud. I'm new here. 1993.

Describes a young Salvadoran girl's experiences as she is integrated into an American school.
J 371.97 Ho

Lasker, Joe. Nick joins in. 1980.

When Nick, who uses a wheelchair, is assigned to a regular classroom, he and his classmates must overcome some apprehension.
J 371.9 La

Nichols, Paul. Big Paul's school bus. 1981.

A day in the life of Paul, a school bus driver.
J 371.87 Ni

Solomon, Chuck. Moving up from kindergarten to first grade. 1989.

Text and photographs prepare children for the move.
J 372.241 So

Stanek, Muriel. Starting school. 1981.

The young narrator describes classroom activities during the first day of school.
J 372.2 St

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Middle School: Fiction

Barrie, Barbara. Adam Zigzag. 1994.

Adam, who is dyslexic, struggles to find the right school and to stay out of trouble.
Y Fiction

Bridgers, Sue Ellen. Keeping Christina. 1993.

When Annie befriends a new girl at school, it is the beginning of major changes in Annie's homelife as well.
Y Fiction

Boyd, Candy Dawson. Fall secrets. 1994.

Sixth-grader Jessie enters a performing arts middle school and struggles with low self-esteem.
Paperback Fiction B

DeClements, Barthe. Sixth grade can really kill you. 1985.

Helen is afraid she'll be stuck in sixth grade forever, but a new teacher makes a big difference.
J Fiction

Gifaldi, David. Toby Scudder, ultimate warrior. 1993.

Toby starts sixth grade intending to follow his usual plan--never do homework, never lose a fight--but there are surprises in store for him.
J Fiction

Kassem, Lou. Middle school blues. 1986.

Cindy formulates ten rules of survival for her first year in middle school.
Y Fiction

Korman, Gordon. The twinkie squad. 1992.

When sixth-grader Douglas joins the Special Discussion Group, aka The Twinkie Squad, outrageous things start happening at the Thaddeus G. Little Middle School.
Y Fiction

Snyder, Zilpha Keatley. Libby on Wednesdays. 1990.

After years of homeschooling, Libby is sent to middle school, where she participates in an accelerated eighth-grade program and meets some unusual people.
Y Fiction

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Middle School: Nonfiction

James, Elizabeth and Carol Barkin. How to be school smart: secrets of successful schoolwork. 1988.

The authors give lots of practical tips for developing effective study habits.
J 371.302 Ja

Mernit, Susan. Everything you need to know about changing schools. 1992.

Guidance for coping with a new environment, new acquaintances, new classes.
J 371.291 Me

Orlow, Maria. Student's guide to good grades. 1990.

The author suggests both general study practices and techniques for specific subjects.
Y 371.302 Or

Schneider, Meg F. Help! My teacher hates me. 1994.

Homework, extracurricular activities, relationships and more are discussed humorously but practically in a readable guide.
Y 371.81 Sc

Note: For additional titles, check the following subject headings in the catalog:

               schools
               schools--fiction
               study skills

Arrangement and original material copyright © 1996 the Ann Arbor District Library. This list may be copied and distributed without requesting permission, so long as this notice remains attached and appropriate credit to the compilers is given.