èAV

research-backed

From regular student assessment to contracting for independent studies, èAV systematically collects, analyzes, and uses data to generate knowledge, improve programs, and report on impacts.

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science of reading

The established and growing research we have about how students learn to read, including systemic phonics education.

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individualized

A facet of high-dosage tutoring in which a tutor offers personalized attention to their student, resulting in targeted support, and personalized literacy learning.

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high-dosage

The frequency of a learning experience. For example, èAV students receive twice weekly tutoring for maximum growth.

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educational equity

Ensuring every student, no matter their race, gender, socioeconomic level, or location has access to the resources and support they need to succeed in school and in life.

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Read across the United States

March 1, 2021

by Nemanja Demic

National AmeriCorps recruitment manager

In honor of Read Across America Day, we invite you to Read across the United States with this list of the most popular children’s books by state! was launched in 1998 by the , and is the nation’s largest annual celebration of reading.

Each year, the NEA sets a theme for the day. This year, the call to action is to create a nation of diverse readers. Those who participate in Read Across America Day will aim to motivate children to read through events, partnerships, and reading resources that are inclusive of all identities. 

Reading has the potential to take the reader out of this world, and into one unlike anything they have ever seen. It’s a known fact that each state across the country is vastly different from the next, so it only makes sense for the book choices to be different too. 

Our cross-country reading tour includes two books for each state: (1) the most popular book in the region and (2) one recommendation from èAV. Let’s start with the nine states plus the District of Columbia where èAV is located.

read across the united states

California: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

èAV’ recommendation: I Am Smart, I Am Blessed, I Can Do Anything! By Alissa Holder and Zulekha Holder-Young

Colorado: If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t! By Elise Parsley 

èAV’ recommendation: Ambitious Girl by Meena Harris and Marissa Valdez

Maryland: If I Had a Raptor by George O’Connor 

èAV’ recommendation: Windows by Patrick Guest and Jonathan Bentley

Minnesota: Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler 

èAV’ recommendation: The Arabic Quilt: An Immigrant Story by Aya Khalil and Anait Semirdzhyan

New York: Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin

èAV’ recommendation: Vamos! Let’s Go Eat by Raul the Third 

Oklahoma: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sheman Alexie

èAV’ recommendation: Finish the Fight: The Brave and Revolutionary Women Who Fought for the Right to Vote by Veronica Chambers 

South Carolina: Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Peterson 

èAV’ recommendation: Black Women in Science: A Black History Book for Kids by Kimberly Brown Pellum

Texas: If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff

èAV’ recommendation: Loretta Little Looks Back: Three Voice Go Tell It by Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney 

Washington: Wonder by R.J. Palacio

èAV’ recommendation: Swashby by the Sea by Beth Ferry and Juana Martinez-Neal 

Washington, DC: Leo: A Ghost Story by Mac Barnett

èAV’ recommendation: I Am Everything Good by Derrick Barnes and Gordon C. James

read across the united states

Here are the rest of the states’ top books and a èAV recommendation for each.

Alabama: Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel 

èAV’ recommendation: Just Like Me by Vanessa Brantley-Newton 

Alaska: Eloise by Kay Thompson 

èAV’ recommendation: A Story About Afiya by James Berry and Anna Cunha

Arizona: Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White 

èAV’ recommendation: We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom and Michaela Goade 

Arkansas: Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty 

èAV’ recommendation: I Am Enough by Grace Byers and Keturah A. Bobo

Connecticut: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee 

èAV’ recommendation: Mommy’s Khimar by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow and Ebony Glenn

Delaware: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

èAV’ recommendation: I Dream of Popo by Livia Blackburne and Julia Kuo

Florida: Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh 

èAV’ recommendation: Eyes That Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho and Dung Ho

Georgia: Home by Carson Ellis

èAV’ recommendation: The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi

Hawaii: The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt 

èAV’ recommendation: Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea by Meena Harris and Ana Ramirez Gonzalez

Idaho: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum 

èAV’ recommendation: Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You by Sonia Sotomayor and Rafael Lopez

Illinois: Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney 

èAV’ recommendation: 111 Trees: How One Village Celebrates the Birth of Every Girl by Rina Singh and Marianne Ferrer

Indiana: What Do You Do With An Idea? By Kobi Yamada 

èAV’ recommendation: Harlem Grown: How One Big Idea Transformed a Neighborhood by Tony Hillery and Jessie Hartland 

Iowa: Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak 

èAV’ recommendation: Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison 

Kansas: Ramony Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary 

èAV’ recommendation: The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael Lopez 

Kentucky: The Old Truck by Jarrett Pumphrey and Jerome Pumphrey 

èAV’ recommendation: All Because You Matter by Tami Charles and Bryan Collier 

Louisiana: Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes and Gordon C. James 

èAV’ recommendation: Your Name Is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow 

Maine: Julian is a Mermaid by Jessica Love 

èAV’ recommendation: Where Are You From? By Yamile Saied Mendez and Jaime Kim 

Massachusetts: The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses by Paul Goble 

èAV’ recommendation: Pecan Pie Baby by Jacqueline Woodson and Sophie Blackall

Michigan: Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall 

èAV’ recommendation: Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard and Juana Martinez-Neal

Mississippi: Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold 

èAV’ recommendation: Yasmin the Explore by Saadia Faruqi and Hatem Aly

Missouri: The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander and Kadir Nelson 

èAV’ recommendation: Sofia Valdez, Future Prez by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts 

Montana: Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd 

èAV’ recommendation: My Friends by Taro Gomi 

Nebraska: Freight Train by Donald Crews 

èAV’ recommendation: Mindy Kim and the Lunar New Year Parade by Lyla Lee and Dung Ho

Nevada: Good Dog, Carl by Alexandra Day 

èAV’ recommendation: Double Bass Blues by Andrea J. Loney and Rudy Gutierrez

New Hampshire: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle 

èAV’ recommendation: The Oldest Student by Rita Lorraine Hubbard and Oge Mora 

New Jersey: Go, Dog, Go! by P.D. Eastman 

èAV’ recommendation: Ready to Fly by Lea Lyon and Alexandria LaFaye

New Mexico: The Napping House by Audrey Wood and Don Wood 

èAV’ recommendation: Sadiq and the Green Thumbs by Siman Nuurali and Anjan Sarkar

North Carolina: Last Stop on Market Street by Matt De La Pena 

èAV’ recommendation: Señorita Mariposa by Mister G and Marcos Almada Rivero 

North Dakota: Story Boat by Kyo MacLear 

èAV’ recommendation: The Many Colors of Harpreet Singh by Supriya Kelkar and Alea Marley 

Ohio: Dreamers by Yuyi Morales 

èAV’ recommendation: Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao by Kat Zhang and Charlene Chua 

Oregon: Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall 

èAV’ recommendation: Astro Girl by Ken Wilson-Max

Pennsylvania: The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld 

èAV’ recommendation: My Cold Plum Lemon Pie Bluesy Mood by Tameka Fryer Brown and Shane Evans 

Rhode Island: Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes 

èAV’ recommendation: All the Way to Havana by Margarita Engle and Mike Curato 

South Dakota: Front Desk by Kelly Yang 

èAV’ recommendation: Under My Hijab by Hena Khan and Aaliya Jaleel

Tennessee: A Chair for my Mother by Vera B. Williams 

èAV’ recommendation: I Am Perfectly Designed by Karamo Brown and Jason “Rachel” Brown 

Utah: Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard 

èAV’ recommendation: Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o and Vashti Harrison 

Vermont: Drawn Together by Minh Le

èAV’ recommendation: Under the Ramadan Moon by Sylvia Whitman and Sue Williams 

Virginia: A Different Pond by Bao Phi

èAV’ recommendation: The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad and S. K. Ali 

West Virginia: The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner 

èAV’ recommendation: Thank You, Omu! By Oge Mora 

Wisconsin: Stellaluna by Janell Cannon 

èAV’ recommendation: Drawn Together by Minh Le and Dan Santat 

Wyoming: Corduroy by Don Freeman 

èAV’ recommendation: Super Satya Saves the Day by Raakhee Mirchandani and Tim Palin 

Sources:

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