Chapter Books for Ages 6-9

In our Facebook Hip Homeschool Moms Community we constantly see questions about reading and mamas asking for book list ideas. We all want to encourage our children to love reading, so we wanted to help you by creating a series of articles on various topics related to reading and book lists. Early Chapter Books for Ages 6-9 will be the first article in this series, so be watching for them!

The ability to read is the key that unlocks a world full of potential, creates lasting memories and it is the foundation for all learning. So, I really wanted to inspire my children to love reading and learning, not just reading because they had to.  To encourage reading in our home, we allowed our boys to pick the books they wanted to read (within specific age appropriate guidelines).  We also allowed them to push their bedtime out thirty minutes if they were reading. Needless to say, reading became an instant hit to avoid going to bed early! My children are all voracious readers now and I constantly have to tell them to turn the lights out and go to bed!

What are Chapter Books?

Chapter books are books for children who have learned to read, but are still in the early stages of reading.  The stories are complex enough to be divided into chapters, but certainly would not be considered a novel. They are usually not completed, at least early on, in one sitting.

Is My Child Ready for Chapter Books?

If your children are sounding out longer words, decoding them faster and are able to follow a story line through longer books, then they are most likely ready for chapter books.

What makes a Great Chapter Book?

1. For me to recommend them, they need to keep my children interested! If my boys are asking me to get the next book in the series, over and over again, then it is a great chapter book.
2. Great illustrations. Yes, our children are starting to transition into more complex reading, but they still like to see illustrations to break up the reading a little.
3. But the story is more developed and is figured out through reading the words not so much through looking at the images. That is a big shift and one that my children loved.

There are so many chapter books to choose from that it make it hard to create a manageable list! I’ve focused on ones that my children loved and ones that I’ve witnessed children getting excited about. The DK Readers Star Wars series was one of the very first chapter book series they chose and they are still reading Star Wars books 8 years later!  I’m sure I didn’t cover them all, so please let us know what you would add to this list!

To read more about each series, click on the image below. 

 

                                                  

                                                 

                          

                                             

                             

                                        

I think we all are trying to cut expenses where we can, so if the series is available in Kindle book form, it might be a great way to add to your library collection! Note, you don’t necessarily have to use a Kindle to read these! You can also get the free Kindle Reading App to be able to read Kindle books on your PC, smartphone, or tablet.

One final thought… we encourage you to continue reading to your children even though they now can read for themselves. This special time together will be something they remember always.

* Photo Credit:   By Laura Muntz Lyall (1860-1930) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons