I Try to Be a Good Person
Trisha Callella-Jones
I Try to Be a Good Person
Age Rating, Reading Level & Content Guide
by Trisha Callella-Jones
The text is written at a 2nd grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for younger children (ages 5–8), and the content is gentle with no concerning themes.
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About This Book
Being a good person isn't always easy, but this brave girl shows how honesty, kindness, and patience can make a big difference at school. She proves that small acts of caring and friendship have the power to brighten everyone's day—and that’s what truly matters.
Quick Assessment
This early reader book follows a young girl as she models positive character traits like honesty, kindness, patience, and helpfulness in everyday school situations. Perfect for ages 5-8, it gently reinforces social-emotional learning and good sportsmanship without any challenging content.
Why we rated I Try to Be a Good Person 7C
I Try to Be a Good Person is written at a Level 2 reading level across 16 pages. Strong independent readers around grade 3.0 can typically handle this book on their own; with parent or teacher support, I Try to Be a Good Person works for readers up to grade 4.0.
We rate I Try to Be a Good Person as 7C ("Clear") because the content sits in the "Gentle" range — no conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Across our four dimensions (emotional, physical, social, thematic) the book reads as evenly gentle; no single dimension stands out as a concern.
No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the gentle intensity score.
Thematically, I Try to Be a Good Person explores friendship, family, coming of age, and social justice — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.
Good fit for
- ✓ Children in the Ages 5-8 range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
- ✓ Patient readers who enjoy slower, character-driven stories.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about friendship, family, coming of age.
Maybe not for
- ! Reluctant readers who need a fast hook — the pacing here rewards patience.
For Parents
Content Intensity
7C — ClearNo conflict beyond everyday childhood experiences. Safe for sensitive readers.
Was our "Gentle" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Hook Factor
1/10A steady, thoughtful read that rewards patient readers.
Discussion Potential
3/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9781574713374
- Pages
- 16
- Publisher
- Creative Teaching Press
- Published
- March 1998
- Type
- Fiction