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20 Free Literature Guides for Upper Elementary & Middle School

Literature is my favorite subject to teach as a homeschool mom. It was also my favorite subject in school when I was a kid. I've always loved to read and write!

So with homeschooling, literature is a subject in which I haven't really followed a curriculum. Sometimes I assign books and write my own questions and come up with my own activities. Other times I assign reports or have my kids keep up with chapter summaries, etc. Some books are just for pleasure and some books we read aloud. I also find free stuff online or purchase guides here and there. I can't possibly keep up with every single book my kids read!

As my kids get older, I find I'm relying on purchased guides or free stuff I find online. In fact, I will be planning for the next school year very soon. I only have a middle schooler and a high schooler left - my oldest is going off to college in the fall!

Anyway, I thought I'd take a moment to share 20 Free Literature Guides for Upper Elementary & Middle School. All of the following books are listed in alphabetical order and  have been read by at least one member of the family. The guides/questions I've written for my kids have stars on the left. The guides I found and used online have stars on the right. We've read the other books but haven't actually used the guides that I've linked to.

Click on book titles for study guide links. 

Click on images for amazon descriptions of each book.

*Links to my own study questions are probably broken since I'm transferring this post from WordPress. Just type what you are looking for in the search bar. :) Sorry for the inconvenience.

*All-of-a-Kind Family

My daughter and a few of her homeschool friends read this book during a summer book club. My daugher actually wrote most of the questions and did a great job! I also included activity and food ideas.

Bridge to Terabithia

I read this aloud to all 3 of my kids a few years ago. We all liked the story, and we even rented the movie afterward. When reading the book, I think I remember having to skip over characters taking God's name in vain a few times.

Coraline

I absolutely love this story! I've read it aloud to each of my kids separately. I started writing a guide but never finished. :( We've watched the movie as well, but I like the book MUCH better.

Ella Enchanted

Another winner, here! I just love Gail Carson Levine as an author. :) I read this book to my daugher, and we both enjoyed it.

*The Fairy's Mistake

This is a novella that my daughter and her homeschool friends read during their summer book club. I read the book, too, and wrote questions. I've also provided some fun, fairylicious food ideas.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Such a fun book! I read it and passed it on to my daughter. She wrote a wonderful book report on it. We watched the movie together as a family.

Frindle

I read Frindle aloud to my kids probably over 5 years ago. I typically like fiction that's more of the fantasy flair, but this one came highly recommend. It did not disappoint!

The Hobbit

Both of my boys have read the book on their own, but then I read it to all the kids before The Hobbit movies came out. My boys used The Hobbit Comprehension Guide from Veritas Press when they read the book.

Holes

I read Holes aloud to all 3 kids, and we all really loved the mystery of the mystery surrounding the holes! We watched the movie afterward.

Island of the Blue Dolphins *

It's been a very long time since I read this book, but my daughter recently read it and completed the linked study guide. The Glencoe study guides are really thorough and even include questions to other related reading material.

James and the Giant Peach *

When my boys were younger, I read James and the Giant Peach out loud to them. We watched the movie afterward and thought it was terrible. My daughter read the book and completed the linked study guide 2 years ago. The study guide is from Teachers Pay Teachers, and I thought it was great! I just checked to make sure it is still available for free. :)

*RED: The true story of RED RIDING HOOD

For a homeschool literature assignment, I went through this book with my daughter and her friend. Such a fun book! I truly enjoyed writing questions and coming up with an activity and food ideas. We'd meet up every week at Chick-fil-a (mostly) and go over questions, and when we were done with the entire book, we had a little party.

*Remarkable

Another book my daughter and her friends chose for their summer book club. And, again, I really enjoyed reading the book and coming up with discussion questions, activity ideas, and food fun.

*RUMP: The true story of RUMPELSTILTSKIN

Rump was the first book my daughter and her friends read for their book club a few summers ago. It was my favorite out of the 4 books they read. I'm a fairytale lover, so these types of books are right up my alley!

*Sarah, Plain and Tall

Such a sweet, timeless classic. My daughter read this one on her own, and I simply wrote questions by chapter for her to answer.

Shiloh

I just had to have my daughter read this book since she and the dog share the same name. :) I found questions online for her, but I can't seem to find the exact ones we used. However, I linked a glenco study guide since I've used those guides before and have liked them.

*Stone Fox

Goodness, this one make me cry every time. My daughter read this on her own, and I wrote questions. I also had her choose a couple of activities to do.

Tuck Everlasting

Such a wonderful, wonderful book! I read it first and then read it aloud to my kids years ago. When I read aloud to my kids, we just discuss as we go. I don't use anything formal when I read aloud, but I bet this book would be great to delve into more deeply. I've thought back on it often.

*The Waterstone

I've read most of Rebecca Rupp's books out loud to my kids, but they read this one on their own and answered questions I wrote. I thought it was such a great coming of age story wrapped up in the prominent theme of sacrificial love.

A Wrinkle in Time

 My oldest read this book 4 years ago and wrote a short review on it as his assignment. I've actually never read A Wrinkle in Time.

I hope you enjoy checking out these 20 free literature guides for upper elementary & middle school! Please feel free to share in the comments any free literature guides you've found or written. :) 

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