English Language Arts / 1st Grade / Unit 5: Movements for Equality / Independent Reading Suggested Books

Independent Reading Suggested Books for Movements for Equality

See our Teacher Tool Independent Reading (K-5) for guidance on how to use the suggested texts below.

Non-Fiction Texts with Aligned Themes and Topics

Additional Books about Activism

Grandpa’s Corner Store by DyAnne DiSalvo-Ryan
Milo’s Museum by Zetta Elliott
No Voice Too Small: Fourteen Young Americans Making History by Lindsay H. Metcalf, Keila V. Dawson, Jeanette Bradly
The Cat Man of Aleppo by Karim Shamsi-Basha, Irene Latham
The Streets are Free by Kurusa (550L)

Civil Rights Movement

Freedom on the Menu by Carole Boston Weatherford (AD660L)
Nobody Gonna Turn Me ‘Round: Stories and Songs of the Civil Rights Movement by Doreen Rappaport
Pies from Nowhere: How Georgia Gilmore Sustained the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Dee Romito (890L)
The Teachers March! How Selma’s Teachers Changed History by Sandra Neil Wallace, Rich Wallace

Fighting for Women's Rights

Ballots for Belva: The True Story of a Woman’s Race for President by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
Bold and Brave: Ten Heroes Who Won Women the Right to Vote by Kirsten Gillibrand, Maira Kalman
Elizabeth Started All the Trouble by Doreen Rappaport (790L)
I Could Do That! Esther Morris Gets Women the Vote by Linda Arms White
Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told by Walter Dean Myers
Lillian’s Right to Vote by Jonah Winter
What Do You Do with a Voice Like That? The Story of Extraordinary Congresswoman Barbara Jordan by Chris Barton

Indigenous Water Protectors

Nibi is Water by Joanne Robertson

LGBTQ+ Movement

Sewing the Rainbow: A Story about Gilbert Baker by Gayle E. Pitman
This Day in June by Gayle E. Pitman
When You Look Out the Window: How Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin Build a Community by Gayle E. Pitman

Labor Movement

Cesar: !Sí, Se Puede! Yes, We Can! by Carmen Bernier-Grand
Joelito’s Big Decision by Ann Berlak
Journey for Justice: The Life of Larry Itliong by Dawn Bohulano Mabalon
Memphis, Martin, and the Mountaintop: The Sanitation Strike of 1968 by Alice Faye Duncan
Side by Side: The Story of Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez by Monica Brown (900L)
That’s Not Fair!: Emma Tenayuca's Struggle for Justice by Carmen Tafolla, Sharyll Teneyuca
Undocumented: A Worker’s Fight by Duncan Tonatiuh

People with Disabilities Rights

Benny Doesn’t Like to be Hugged by Zetta Elliott
Just Ask! by Sonia Sotomayor
Silent Star: The Story of Deaf Major Leaguer William Hoy by Bill Wise
The Black Book of Colors by Menena Cottin
The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes: The Story of Dr. Patricia Bath by Julia Finley Mosca (530L)

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