Choose a book to read. Or read the assigned book. Check the grade level to be sure the book is appropriate for 5th grade. Suitable choices include: Hatchet, Encyclopedia Brown, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, A Wrinkle in Time and The Secret Garden.
Take notes as you read the book. Focus on theme, characters, significant events and major plot points. Refer to them when you write the actual book report.
Write an introduction. State the name of the title and the author. Outline the story and describe the setting and main characters. In the book, Hatchet, for example, the story revolves around Brian Robeson, a young man stranded in the Canadian woods after a plane crash, who must survive with nothing more than a hatchet.
The body of the report consists of three or four paragraphs. Its purpose is to demonstrate understanding. Each paragraph discusses a different topic, such as theme, character description, plot overview and climax. Each paragraph is about five sentences in length.
Conclude with a final paragraph that focuses on the book's strengths and weaknesses. Looser in structure, the concluding paragraph can contain personal opinion or act as overall summary.
While editing, add specific scenes or quotes to support main points. For example, in the novel, Hatchet, the protagonist's state of mind is affected by his parents' divorce and his crucial decision to visit his father in Canada.