Max. Ramona. Junie B. Favorite students may come and go, butthese irresistible kids will never

leave your side. Thank goodness! What would we do without thebeloved heroes of children’sbooks? From Harry Potter’sarrival at Hogwarts toMadeline’s Parisian adven-tures, their stories stick in ourminds long after the final bellhas rung. That’s why we asked morethan 200 teachers, children’s authors,and children’s literature experts toname the best picture and chapterbooks ever. Did your favorites makethe list? Read on to see. And saveup those gift cards—there aresurprising must-haves inside.(Go to www.scholastic.com/instructor to print an annotated list!)

TEACHERS PICK THE

TOP50KIDS BOOKS EVER

INSTRUCTOR NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2006 25

1. WHERE THE WILDTHINGS ARE by MauriceSendak (HarperCollins)is “so compressed in its language and so exuber-ant in its pictures and sopsychologically right,”says author Jane Yolen,herself nominated for OwlMoon. “I return to it againand again.” So do teach-ers! Max earned threetimes as many votes as acertain munching insect.

2. THE VERY HUNGRYCATERPILLAR by EricCarle (Penguin).

3. THE POLAR EXPRESSby Chris Van Allsburg(Houghton Mifflin). Formany of you this shadowystory is a winter must, upthere with hot chocolateand mittens. Third-gradeteacher Janice Wrightexplains: “It’s magic.”

4. GOODNIGHT MOON by Margaret Wise Brown (HarperCollins).

5. LOVE YOU FOREVERby Robert Munsch, illustrated by SheilaMcGraw (Firefly). “I can’t help myself, Icry every time I read it,”says Instructor editorHannah Trierweiler. Sniff.

Pass the tissues.

6. THE GIVING TREEby Shel Silverstein

(HarperCollins).

7. SYLVESTER AND THEMAGIC PEBBLE by WilliamSteig (Simon & Schuster).

8. MADELINEby Ludwig Bemelmans(Penguin).

9. THE LITTLE HOUSEby Virginia Lee Burton(Houghton Mifflin).

10. BLUEBERRIES FOR SALby Robert McCloskey(Penguin).

11. THE SNOWY DAY by Ezra Jack Keats(Penguin).

12. STELLALUNA by Janell Cannon (Harcourt).“Kids really connect tothe message,” wrote first-grade teacher LaurieFoote. What higher praisecould a book receive?

13. IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A COOKIEby Laura Numeroff, illustrated by FeliciaBond (HarperCollins).

14. THE OTHER SIDEby Jacqueline Woodson,illustrated by E.B. Lewis(Penguin).

15. OWL MOONby Jane Yolen, illustratedby John Schoenherr(Penguin).

16. THE SNOWMAN byRaymond Briggs (RandomHouse) is the only word-less tale on our list.

17. THE MYSTERIES OF HARRIS BURDICK by Chris Van Allsburg(Houghton Mifflin).

18. MAKE WAY FORDUCKLINGS by RobertMcCloskey (Penguin).

Anita Silvey, author of 100 Best Books forChildren, cherishesMcCloskey’s “subtle economy in text and art.”

19. SKIPPYJON JONES by Judy Schachner(Penguin). This 2003 storyof a mischevious cat hasthe distinction of beingthe newest teacher pick.

20. NO, DAVID! by DavidShannon (Scholastic).

21. THE KEEPING QUILT by Patricia Polacco(Simon & Schuster).

22. THE LITTLE ENGINETHAT COULD by WattyPiper, illustrated byGeorge & Doris Hauman(Penguin). Will the realWatty Piper please standup—and accept our hur-rahs? (It’s a pseudonymfor the original publisher;the author is disputed.)

23. THE MITTEN by JanBrett (Penguin). Second-grade teacher DonnaThaggard echoed manyvoters when she said “anybook by Brett” is boundto be an instant favorite.

24. GREEN EGGS AND HAMby Dr. Seuss (RandomHouse). Thank goodnessthe good doctor accepteda bet that he couldn’twrite a story using only50 words. As Instructoreditor Jennifer Prescottsums up in only fivewords: “I do so like it!”

25. CURIOUS GEORGEby H.A. and Margret Ray(Houghton Mifflin).

teachers’ picks

TOP25PICTURE BOOKS“Where the Wild ThingsAre does just what a picture book should do,”says New Jerseyteacher Bob Krech.“Every word counts.”

1. CHARLOTTE’S WEBby E.B. White (Harper-Collins). Some pig,indeed. Monica Edinger,fourth-grade teacher andauthor of Using BelovedClassics to DeepenReading Comprehension,calls Charlotte’s Web “thegreat American children’snovel...beginning with that remarkable first sentence ‘Where’s Papagoing with that ax?’”

2. BRIDGE TO TERABITHIAby Katherine Paterson(HarperCollins).

3. HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE by J.K. Rowling(Scholastic). When theNEA surveyed teachers onkids’ books in 1999, HarryPotter had yet to cast aspell. Now the wholeworld is hooked!

4. THE LION, THE WITCHAND THE WARDROBEby C.S. Lewis (HarperCollins).

5. HOLES by Louis Sachar (FSG).

6. THE GIVER by LoisLowry (Random House),makes kids think. “It’swonderful for discussingpolitics,” says braveteacher Jennifer Kopp.

7. BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE by KateDiCamillo (Candlewick).

8. TALES OF A FOURTHGRADE NOTHING by JudyBlume (Penguin).

9. A WRINKLE IN TIME byMadeleine L’Engle (FSG).Jennifer Roy, author ofYellow Star, says herchildhood fave “makesmath, science, and philos-ophy appealing.” Really.

10. FRINDLE by AndrewClements (Simon &Schuster).

11. CHARLIE AND THECHOCOLATE FACTORYby Roald Dahl (Random House).

12. JUNIE B., FIRST GRADER (AT LAST!)by Barbara Park (Random House).

13. WHERE THE RED FERNGROWS by Wilson Rawls(Random House).

14. TUCK EVERLASTINGby Natalie Babbitt (FSG).Snag this idea from JaneYolen: “I use the openingin writing classes as anexample of sheer beauty.”

15. HARRIET THE SPYby Louise Fitzhugh(Random House).

16. RAMONA QUIMBY, AGE 8 by Beverly Cleary(HarperCollins).

17. LITTLE HOUSE ON THEPRAIRIE by Laura IngallsWilder (HarperCollins).

18. FROM THE MIXED-UPFILES OF MRS. BASIL E.FRANKWEILER by E.L.Konigsburg (Simon &Schuster).

19. MANIAC MAGEEby Jerry Spinelli (Little, Brown).

20. THE SECRET GARDENby Frances Burnett.

21. RUBY HOLLERby Sharon Creech(HarperCollins).

22. ROLL OF THUNDER,HEAR MY CRY by MildredD. Taylor (Penguin).

23. ANNE OF GREENGABLES by L.M.Montgomery.

24. FREAK THE MIGHTYby Rodman Philbrick(Scholastic).

25. A SERIES OFUNFORTUNATE EVENTSby Lemony Snicket(HarperCollins). We can’tbelieve it’s over either. nn

TOP25CHAPTER BOOKS“Ican never read the chapter whereCharlotte dies,”second-grade teacher JenniferKopp admits. “I use arecording of E.B. Whitereading that part.”

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