Read Aloud Books for Second Grade

This is fantastic and so very funny! There are two sisters: one who longs for adventure and danger, and another who only dreams of being a pampered princess. They live in the middle of nowhere and their lives are very ordinary, until one day, an evil villain kidnaps one of the sisters. This is just as funny for the adult reading aloud as it is for the kids listening. I can't recommend this one highly enough.

I can almost guarantee you'll fall in love with the charming Priscilla "Cilla" Lee Jenkins! She's a second grader getting ready for third grade, the birth of a baby sister, and trying her very best to become a best selling author before her family forgets all about her.

This is another quick read, but so much fun! The author himself describes this one as "very silly" and that's very accurate. A father goes out to get milk for the children's cereal and encounters a good amount of trouble . . . trouble that involves things like dinosaurs and wumpires and a floaty-ball-person-carrier. Kids love this one.

It's a classic for a reason! Wanda Petronski is a Polish girl at a school in Connecticut and she doesn't fit in. Her classmates ridicule her for wearing the same faded dress everyday and then laugh when Wanda earnestly tells them that she has a hundred dresses at home. It's only after Wanda moves away that her classmates realize that they were wrong and it's too late to apologize. This is one of those books that changes lives.

By Peter Brown | 288 Pages

When Roz the robot opens her eyes for the very first time, she discovers that she is bound by cords in a crate, alone on a wild island. She doesn't know how she got there or why she's on an island, but Roz realizes pretty quickly that she needs to figure out how to survive.

There just aren't enough great Robots in children's literature. Thank goodness for this absolute masterpiece by Peter Brown!

This is a fun animal story. Mama possum has trained all her babies and now it's time for them to head out into the world. But it doesn't take long before Appleblossom finds herself down the chimney in a human house. While Appleblossom's possum brothers try to launch a rescue team, she's becoming friends with a human girl inside the house.

Beatrice is feisty and creative and such a fun character, not unlike Ramona Quimby. Over summer break Beatrice and her best friend Lenny make a plan to wear matching black ninja suits on the first day of school. But when Beatrice shows up on the first day wearing her ninja suit, she sees that not only did Lenny forget their plan, but he's also made a new friend. This is a great book about friendship and you'll love Beatrice's creative solutions to her problems.

This book, with its snozzcumbers and fleshlumpeaters, needs little introduction. Kids like this one, a lot! Plus, it really is fun to read aloud.

Mysteries are fun to read aloud because they keep kids engaged and wanting more. These Boxcar Children mysteries are perfect for young elementary school age kids.

As far as I'm concerned, Mac Barnett is a genius. We've enjoyed every book he's written. In this one, he features himself as the main character - a James Bond type spy for the Queen of England. It's super fun and if your little listeners enjoy it, there's more in the series.

This is a strange and sweet book about a child, Livy, rediscovering the imaginary friend, Bob, she left behind at her grandmother's house in Australia. Now, Livy is trying to figure out what exactly Bob is and how to help him get home. The perspective shifts back and forth between Bob and Livy and there's a hint of mystery throughout the book. Very gripping!

I loved reading this aloud with my kids. It's pure magic! And 2nd graders will have a fun time comparing and contrasting the book with the movie.

This will always be one of my absolute favorite books to read aloud. My kids adore Pippi Longstocking - it's really hard not to.

I love this charming little book. One day Abel, a mouse, and his wife Amanda, also a mouse, are out on a picnic when a terrible storm blows in and Abel is swept up in a stream and carried away. He washes up on an uninhabited island and for days, weeks, months, tries desperately to escape. It's quite the adventure!

Another wonderful book from the author of Pippi Longstocking. In this one, Emil is a good hearted boy that always seems to find mischief. It's very funny and will definitely have your 2nd graders giggling and begging for more.

The three Green children have a nanny and their nanny is a PIG. She's well dressed, well spoken, and loves chocolate, but she is in fact a pig. This is a very fun read aloud and if you enjoy this quirky twist on the Mary Poppins books, there are more in the series.

Eleanor Estes wrote such sweet, gentle books for kids. This one is about an animal loving family. While there's not a ton of action, I find that many kids appreciate the slow and simple pace of this story. It's charming.

This is the best collection of wacky, funny, weird poems. I still remember reading these as a kid. They'll never go out of style and they'd be so fun to read aloud in a classroom.

A lot of kids have seen this movie, but the book is definitely better. Dragons, vikings, adventure. This one is great fun!

Once you get past the weird thought that a human woman birthed this tiny mouse, the rest of the book is superb. Stuart is an unforgettable character.

This fairy tale retelling is magical! And there are gorgeous illustrations throughout the book too. It's the story of an enchanted wood and the two sisters that break its terrible spell. Fairy tales make such wonderful read alouds.

I never read books based on movies or tv shows, but this really is the exception. I love the Hilda graphic novels and I really love the Netflix original series. This new chapter book series is based on the Netflix show, but it's really quite good on its own. Hilda is an explorer and adventurer and she meets trolls and elves and all sorts of magical folk in this exciting little book.

Kate Di Camillo weaves pure magic with words in this magnificent book. It's a classic tale of light vs. dark, and it's set in a castle. Bravery, adventure, and the best little hero you could ever hope to find in a book. Enjoy!

Did you know Julie Andrews, in addition to being a star, also writes fantastic children's books? It's really not fair. But, you should definitely read this book. The Whangdoodle was once the most extraordinary creature in the world but then he disappeared. But Professor Savant and the three Potter children are determined to find him once again. It's very magical.

I loved these when I was a kid, and now my kids love them. They are wacky stories from a crazy mixed up school, but they're so fun. And if you grew up reading these like I did, be sure to check out the newest one, just released in 2020: Wayside School Beneath the Cloud of Doom

Every Tuesday at Castle Glower, the castle adds something new - a new room, a new staircase, sometimes an entirely new wing. No one ever knows exactly what to expect on Tuesdays. But Princess Celie loves the castle's quirkiness and she's the only one who takes the time to map out all the new changes. When the king and queen are ambushed, Celie's secret knowledge about the castle helps save the day. This is an exciting series!