Animal Books for 3rd Graders

Deep in an old, forgotten mine, Fig Pig grips his little lamp and marches bravely into the dark. But what lurks beyond the rusty rails and towering stone arches? A glittering chest? A snoring spider the size of a wheelbarrow? A wobbly walkway over bubbling lava? Fig Pig thinks he’s tough enough for anything - but can one brave little pig really handle all that? This decodable reader practices the ‘ough’ phonogram in words like ’tough,’ ’though,’ ‘brought,’ and ’enough.’

Rooster has spotted a mouse in his farmyard, and he’s certain this will be the greatest catch in farm history! But what happens when Mouse zips away in a flash and vanishes into a haystack? And whose angry WOOF is that behind the bushes? Can Rooster outrun a very big, very loud, very toothy problem? Feathers will fly in this farmyard chase! This decodable reader practices the ‘si’ making /zh/ sound in words like ‘confusion,’ ‘decision,’ ’treasure,’ and ‘vision.’

Spring has sprung, and Bug has a fizzy, buzzy, can’t-sit-still feeling in her belly - she wants to SING! But what happens when Duck only sings in the rain, Frog’s song has forty-seven verses, and Big Bird’s trill nearly blows Bug’s antennae off? Can one tiny bug find a song that’s truly her own, and maybe bring all her friends together too? This decodable reader practices the wr phonogram in words like ‘wriggle,’ ‘wrinkled,’ ‘wrist,’ ‘wrong,’ and ‘wry.’

Spot is the world’s greatest finder of things - lost socks, buried bones, even cheese that rolls under the fridge! So when he loses his girl Jane at the busy zoo, how hard can it be to track her down? But why does every clue lead him to the wrong animal? Can a very confused dog sniff out his best friend before the zoo swallows him whole? This decodable reader practices the soft c sound in words like ‘face,’ ‘race,’ ’nice,’ and ’entrance.’

Prince Din wants the biggest leaf ball in the kingdom, but the best leaves grow deep in the wild forest - where nobody dares to go! When a fierce tiger bursts from the bushes with gnashing teeth, the brave little prince finds himself hopelessly lost among the bamboo. Is that striped shadow really hunting him, or could it be something else entirely? This decodable reader practices the ‘gn’ sound in words like ‘gnarled,’ ‘reign,’ ‘sign,’ and ‘assign.’

The Clever Tortoise thinks he can win a race against Cheetah, the fastest animal on the whole plain. But how could a slow tortoise ever beat the swiftest runner around? When the other ’neighbors’ gather to watch and ’eighty’ animals cheer, Cheetah is sure his speed ‘outweighs’ one small tortoise. Could a clever plan and a little patience change everything? This Bookbot level practices the ’eigh’ sound with lesson words like ’neighbor’, ‘weighs’, and ’eight’.

When Zom offers to fix up Skel’s cramped little house into a proper palace, Skel jumps at the chance for more space. But can a zombie who spends three whole days getting the cobwebs just right actually finish building a whole house? And what will Skel find when he comes home from his trip? This decodable reader practices the kn phonogram in words like ‘knew,’ ‘knocking,’ ‘knuckles,’ ‘knobbly,’ and ‘knot.’

Kwaku Anansi has cooked a feast fit for a king, and he plans to eat every last bite himself. But when dusty, hungry Turtle knocks at the door, will clever Anansi share his soup, or trick his tired guest away from the table? And when Turtle sends a leaf ‘signed’ with an invitation to his own river feast, who will go home with an empty stomach this time? This Bookbot level practices the ‘gn’ sound in ‘gnawed’, ‘gnarled’, ‘gnashing’, and ‘resigned’.

On the golden savanna, Leuk the Hare is not the biggest or the loudest animal, but is he clever enough to win the king’s challenge? When Bour the Lion loses his golden bracelet, everyone races off to search the rough plains, everyone except Leuk, who simply sits and thinks. Can wit really beat brute strength? This Bookbot level practices the many sounds of the ough letters with words such as ’enough’, ’tough’, ‘rough’, ’thought’ and ’though’.

Welcome to the wide, green plains of Minecraft, where the grass stretches out as far as you can see! Can you hear a horse neigh near the fence, or spot a cow grazing in the shade? Which peaceful mobs live in this sunny neighborhood, and why does a farmer need to balance the herd? This decodable reader practices the ’eigh’ phonogram with words like ’eighty,’ ’neigh,’ ‘weighs,’ and ‘outweigh.’