Books with simplified spelling patterns, which beginning readers can tackle independently with success. Please choose a level at which your learner can independently tackle about 95% of words.
Decodable books I use myself:
- Beginning Reading Instruction and Advanced Reading Instruction books (UK) or click here for the Australian supplier
- Bob Books ipad apps, of which there are two, the first one is perfect for young beginners (US). Paper books are also available here.
- Cumquatmay Rip Rap books (Aus, for older readers, and they don’t look at all like little kids’ books)
- Dandelion Launchers (UK, for tinies, also available as iBooks which sound words out for you)
- Dandelion Readers (UK)
- Decodable Readers Australia (Aus)
- Dockside Stage 4 iPhone and iPad app (UK) – designed for older learners who have learnt the main vowel spellings.
- Fitzroy Readers (Aus, also available with Audio CDs, and very affordably as iPad apps)
- Flyleaf books (UK)
- Free Reading decodable texts (US, free pdf downloads)
- Hooked On Phonics (US) also available as iPhone and iPad apps.
- Little Learners Love Literacy books (Aus), also available as iPad apps
- Magic Belt Series (UK, suitable for older learners)
- Moon Dogs Series (UK, suitable for older learners)
- Phonics stories for older learners (UK, suitable for older learners including adults)
- Pocketphonics Stories (UK, for iPad). Suitable for young children.
- Pocket Rockets (Aus), there are two sets, and the first set is also available as an Android app.
- Quackenworth digital books (US). Here’s the “long vowels” one in the Australian apps store for iPad. I use all but the Short Vowels one, which doesn’t just contain “short” vowels.
- Readingteacher.com (US) has lots of free online decodable books.
- Rescue Series (UK)
- Sound Out Chapter Books and Workbooks (US, suitable for older learners). Australian suppliers are Silvereye and Pro-Ed, NZ supplier is NZ Council for Educational Research.
- Sounds Write Initial Code Books, and Extended Code Books (UK)
- Split Vowel Spellings Set (UK)
- Starfall computer and iPad based books, and printables (US)
- SPELD SA free, downloadable decodable books and associated worksheets (Aus). I use the books on my iPad, having saved them all into iBooks.
- Talisman Series (UK, suitable for older learners)
- The Word Monsters: Learn to Read iPad and iPhone app (US)
- Totem Series (UK, suitable for older learners)
Other decodable books I have read/heard about but don’t use myself:
- All About Reading (US)
- The Alphabet Series (US)
- Auburn University free decodable books (US)
- Bug Club (UK)
- Collins Big Cat Phonics (UK)
- Comics for Phonics (UK, comics)
- Dr Maggie’s Phonics Readers (US), also available from mainstream suppliers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble
- EPS Phonics Plus Readers (US)
- Fantastic Phonics (US, downloadable books)
- Floppy’s Phonics readers (UK)
- Funny Photo Phonics (UK)
- Garside Readers (US)
- Get Reading Right Synthetic Phonics Practice Books and Decodable Stories (UK)
- Get Ready, Get Set, Read! (US)
- Go Phonics decodable storybooks (US)
- Goal! books (UK, suitable for older learners)
- Half Pint Readers (US)
- High Noon Books (US) has decodable nonfiction books, as well as high-interest, low level chapter books and other resources for struggling readers. Suppliers outside the US are listed here.
- Horizons 1998 Literature collections and textbooks (US)
- I Love Reading Phonics (UK)
- Jelly and Bean decodable phonic reading books (UK)
- Jolly Phonics Readers (UK) also available in Australia from Modern Teaching Aids
- Kiwi Phonics (NZ)
- Ladybird Superhero Phonics (UK)
- Learning a-z (US)
- Letters and Sounds Phase 3 Readers (UK)
- Mark’s Mad Phonics (UK, for ibooks, includes some free ebooks)
- Mature Reading Instruction books (UK, for adults, and a tutor guide is also available)
- Merrill Reading Program Student Readers Grades 1-3 (US)
- No Nonsense Phonics (UK, nonfiction, also available on Amazon)
- Open Court decodable books (US)
- Oxford Reading Tree Phonics series – 14 of these books are available as free eBooks
- Phonics Bug books (UK, grouped into 6 phases)
- Phonics Practice Readers by Modern Curriculum Press (US)
- Phonics Readers by Chris Morningforest and Rebecca Raymond (also available as eBooks)
- Phonics Readers by Steck-Vaughn (US)
- Phonemic Awareness and Sequencing (PAS) Stories (US, part of the Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing Program), available in Australia from Silvereye, ACER or ProEd.
- Poppin Auditory Discrimination Reading Series (Aust), available in Australia from Pro-Ed.
- Power Readers (US)
- Primary Phonics and More Primary Phonics readers (US)
- Project X Code Free sample eBooks are available here (UK)
- Project X Phonics (UK)
- Ragtag Rhymes (UK)
- Rapid Phonics (UK, suitable for older learners). Items available in Australia are here and here.
- Read With Biff, Chip and Kipper: Phonics. 5 of these books are available as free eBooks (UK)
- Read Write Inc Phonics Books and Non-Fiction (UK) Free sample eBooks are available here and here.
- Reading a-z (US, downloadable books)
- Reading For All Learners – I See Sam Phonics Books (US, also available for iPad)
- Reading Genie (US, free downloadable books)
- Reading Mastery Independent Readers for students in Reading Mastery I and II: Grade 1-3 (US)
- Reading Rods (US)
- Reading Teacher (US, downloadable E-books, some of which are free)
- Red Apple Readers – Reading on Park Planet (US, for iPad and iPhone). Free lite version is here. Theoretically available for Android but I can’t find it in Google Play. Try here.
- Rescue Series (UK, suitable for older learners)
- Rigby Star Phonics (UK?)
- Sam the Elf (eBooks)
- Songbirds Phonics. Free sample eBooks are available here (UK)
- Sound Discovery Readers and Storybooks – King Wizzit Series (UK)
- SPIRE Decodable Readers (US)
- Spalding Readers 1 and Readers 2 (US), Australian supplier is here.
- SRA Phonics little books and poetry posters (US)
- Steps to Success decodable reader series (US)
- Sundance Phonics Readers (US)
- Touchphonics (US)
- Wonder Books Nonfiction Phonics Series (US)
- Words and Pictures Fun With Phonics (UK)
- The Wright Skills decodable books (US)
The UK publisher Barrington Stoke also has books with enlarged font, simplified text and themes suitable for struggling older readers. Available in Australia via Allen and Unwin (on their website choose “Advanced Search” then Filter by Imprint – Barrington Stoke) or Seelect Educational Supplies.
The Dangerous Games books from Blake Education are written at about an eight-year-old decoding level but of interest to students aged 8-14, and they have other “Hi-Lo fiction” which can be a nice step in between between decodable books and mainstream books.
Decodable Big Books (note that books that are part of classroom programs have an interactive whiteboard version)
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You may wnat to add ReadingTeacher.com to your list of resources.
Regards,
Francis
I most certainly will! Thanks for pointing out my oversight in not already listing it
Thanks for this list! I’ve been so frustrated by the lack of decodable books for my son.
We also like All About Reading and Now I’m Reading series. We’ve both been losing our reading motivation but I think this list will help us get started again!
One of my students is really enjoying the Dockside 4 app, thanks for the recommendations!
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What an incredible long list! Thanks for compiling all these resources!
You’re most welcome! I was researching this area for myself/my clients so it just made sense to make it available to others. Thanks for the nice feedback.