6th Grade Non-Fiction Reading List

Allen, Thomas                                      George Washington, Spymaster: How the Americans Outspied the British and Won

the Revolutionary War

A biography of Revolutionary War general and first President of the United States, George Washington focusing on his use of spies to gather intelligence that helped the colonies win the war.

Blumberg, Rhoda                                                Shipwrecked!: The True Adventures of a Japanese Boy

In 1841, rescued by an American whaler after a terrible shipwreck leaves him and his four companions castaways on a remote island, fourteen-year-old Manjiro learns new laws and customs as he becomes the first Japanese person to set foot in the United States.

Brewster, Hugh                                    Anastasia’s Album

In a scrapbook derived from journals, letters, photographs, and watercolor paintings, the life of the last Russian princess is recreated, providing glimpes into her home life, the revolution, and her family's subsequent captivity.

Fleischman, John                                                Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science

Tells the story of Phineas Gage, a railroad construction foreman who survived eleven years years after an accident in which a thirteen-pound iron rod shot through his brain.

Fleischman, Sid                                   Escape! The Story of  The Great Houdini

A biography of the magician, ghost chaser, aviator, and king of escape artists whose amazing feats are remembered long after his death in 1926

Glover, Savion                                     Savion!:  My Life in Tap                    

Examines the life and career of the young tap dancer who speaks with his feet and who choreographed the Tony Award-winning Broadway show "Bring in da Noise, Bring in da Funk."

Macaulay, David                                 Building Big         

Focuses on the connections between the planning and design problems and the solutions that are finally reached when building bridges, tunnels, skyscrapers, domes, and dams.

Myers, Walter Dean                            U.S.S. Constellation: Pride of the American Navy

Examines the histories of the two American Navy ships called “USS Constellation" the first launched in 1797 and the second in 1854, discussing the role of the vessel in suppressing the illegal slave trade and in the Civil War, looking at what life was like for a sailor on the ship, and discussing its restoration in the 1990s.

Poole, Josephine                                 Joan of Arc          

A biography of the fifteenth-century peasant girl who led a French army to victory against the English, witnessed the crowning of King Charles VII, and was later burned at the stake for witchcraft.

Watkins, Richard Ross                       Gladiator               

Describes the history of gladiators, including types of armor, use of animals, amphitheaters, and how the practice fit into Roman society for almost 700 years.