Golden Kite Award
Golden Kite Award references 66 books assigned across applicable K-12 grade levels in US schools. The Golden Kite Awards, given annually since 1973 by the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), are the only children's literature awards judged by a jury of peers — fellow children's-book writers and illustrators. Categories include Fiction, Nonfiction, Picture Book Text, Picture Book Illustration, Middle Grade, Young Adult, and the Sid Fleischman Humor Award.
Narrow by grade
66 books referenced
- A Life in the WildPamela S. Turner
- Absolutely Positively NotDavid LaRochelle
- AlphabaticsSuse MacDonald
- Apples to OregonDeborah Hopkinson
- Arthur, For the Very First TimePatricia MacLachlan
- Ashley BryanAshley Bryan
- Balloons over BroadwayMelissa Sweet
- Between Shades Of GrayRuta Sepetys
- BigVashti Harrison
- Big Red LollipopRukhsana Khan
- Black PotatoesSusan Campbell Bartoletti
- Boats for PapaJessixa Bagley
- Bucking the SargeChristopher Paul Curtis
- By the Light of the Halloween MoonCaroline Stutson
Challenger DeepNeal Shusterman- Children of the Great DepressionRussell Freedman
- Chimney SweepsJames Cross Giblin
- Commodore Perry in the Land of the ShogunRhoda Blumberg
- Dust to EatMichael L. Cooper
- Franklin Delano RooseveltRussell Freedman
- Goldilocks and the Three DinosaursMo Willems
- Home PlaceCrescent Dragonwagon
- I Dream of TrainsAngela Johnson
- Jenny of the TetonsKristiana Gregory
Show all 66 titles
- King of Ragtime · Stephen Costanza
- Laura Ingalls Wilder · Tanya Lee Stone
- Lifeboat 12 · Susan Hood
- Little Little · M. E. Kerr
- Little Red Riding Hood (40th Anniversary Edition) · Trina Schart Hyman
- Make Lemonade · Virginia Euwer Wolff
- Martha Graham · Russell Freedman
- Me, My Goat, and My Sister's Wedding · Stella Pevsner
- Milo · Alan Silberberg
- Mr Tiger Goes Wild · Peter Brown
- Not Afraid of Dogs · Susanna Pitzer
- One Candle · Eve Bunting
- Panama Canal · Judith St. George
- Pie in the Sky · Remy Lai
- Pocketful of Posies · Salley Mavor
- Poverty in America · Milton Meltzer
- Ralph S. Mouse · Beverly Cleary
- Revolution · Deborah Wiles
- Rules of the Road #1 · Joan Bauer
- Salt to the Sea · Ruta Sepetys
- Sarah, Plain and Tall · Patricia MacLachlan
- Speak · Laurie Halse Anderson
- Stones in Water · Donna Jo Napoli
- Summer of My German Soldier · Bette Greene
- Tancy · Belinda Hurmence
- The Boxer · Kathleen Karr
- The Christmas Boot · Lisa Wheeler
- The Dirty Cowboy · Amy Timberlake
- The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia · Candace Fleming
- The Full Moon at the Napping House · Audrey Wood
- The Girl who Cried Flowers, and Other Tales · Jane Yolen
- The Haunting of Falcon House · Eugene Yelchin
- The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza) · Philemon Sturges
- The Lost Year · Katherine Marsh
- The Moorchild · Eloise McGraw
- The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle · Avi
- The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963 · Christopher Paul Curtis
- Time of the Month! · Valerie Scho Carey
- To Catch a Thief · Martha Brockenbrough
- True Believer · Virginia Euwer Wolff
- Vincent and Theo · Deborah Heiligman
- When Alexander Graced the Table · Alexander Smalls
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About this curriculum framework
This curriculum is one of dozens of named English Language Arts frameworks tracked across US public-school districts. Frameworks differ in scope (district-level vs state-level vs national), in mandate (required vs recommended vs elective), and in how prescriptive their reading lists are (single fixed text list vs broad reading-pool selection).
The book list below represents titles cited as required, recommended, or commonly assigned within this framework, sourced from the framework's primary documentation (or, where the framework is administered at district level, from public district curriculum pages). Each book's detail page links the specific source document for that citation.
How to use this Golden Kite Award reading list
The book list above represents titles ReadingList has confirmed as referenced by Golden Kite Award— either through the framework’s own published documentation, through audited classroom syllabi citing the framework, or through US state and district curriculum guides that map their reading expectations to it. Each book’s detail page links the specific primary source so parents, teachers, and students can verify the citation and locate the official document.
Reading lists evolve. Golden Kite Award citations on ReadingList are reviewed on a rolling basis as primary sources publish updates. If you teach or learn under this framework and a title on this page is no longer used (or you know of one that should appear), the ReadingList methodology page explains how to submit a correction with a citation.
Related on ReadingList
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Copy + paste this snippet into any school newsletter, classroom blog, library site, or homeschool resource page. The embed shows the top 12 titles and links back to the full list. Updates automatically when ReadingList’s data changes.
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Frequently asked questions
What books does Golden Kite Award include?
66 books are referenced by Golden Kite Award across applicable K-12 grade levels. Each book page cites the primary source assignment (the official curriculum standard, exemplar list, or syllabus where the title appears).
What grades does Golden Kite Award cover?
Golden Kite Award is a reading-program curriculum spanning applicable K-12 grade levels via the standards framework. Browse by grade using the grade-filter links on this page or visit /grade for the full grade index across all curricula.
Where does Golden Kite Award data come from?
Sourced from published curriculum documents + standards organizations. Cross-referenced with Common Core exemplars at achievethecore.org. Every book page on ReadingList.school cites the standards origin for that assignment.
Is Golden Kite Award required reading?
Golden Kite Award provides recommended exemplars + assignments — adoption varies by district and teacher. Always check with your school's English department for the specific required vs recommended list at your grade level.