Good Books to Read Aloud to My 2 Sons

Frog and Toad!
Very good life lessons in there. Good book for friendship teaching. One of my personal favs

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I haven't read all of your responses but from what I understand you would like chapter books to read to your boys. I love love any books by Roald Dahl. These are fun for me to read out loud (The Beverly Cleary books are OK- but really not fun for me as an adult). My son loved Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator with its vermicious knids. James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The BFG (Big friendly Giant), Matilda, The Twits. All are fun reads. They can be a bit dark but my son loves them
We also have read Charlottes Web and Stewart Little by E.B. White. My son's kindergarten teacher read "The Boxcar Children" to him last year and he is really in to this series. The author is Gertrude Chandler Warner. They are mysteries that 4 kids solve. I think they are set in the 70s or 80s.
Also, excellent for boys is "Three Tales of My Father's Dragon" series by Ruth Stiles Gannett..
The first Harry Potter was fun for me to read but my son lost interest about 1/2 way through.
I think some of the chapter books are better left for the kid to read himself. My son is now reading the Magic Treehouse series- he is almost 7.
Also try some poetry. Shel Silverstein is awesome!
I get most of our books at the Goodwill or Value Village. We love the library as well.
Other series which I haven't read to the kids yet are the Little House on the Prairie books and Anne of Green Gables books- they may be more oriented to girls. I loved them when I was a kid.
My friend writes a blog and here is a list she put up. There is also a link to a blog called book scout. http://sycamorestirrings.blogspot.com/2010/07/more-book-t...
Happy reading. And seriously, check out those Dahl books. Fun!

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Flat Stanley books! We also liked Magic Tree House books, Frog and Toad, Mouse Soup, and Mouse Tales.

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Matt Christopher writes chapter books that are sports-related. The Magic Tree House books are great as well!!!

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I read mine the Misty of Chincateaqe (sp?) books when they were about that age, maybe a little older Later I read the all the INdian in the Cupboard books

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Just to throw in a classic - we enjoyed Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island!

My nephew was in first grade last year and introduced my daughter (5 years old) to the Mercy Watson series by Kate DiCamillo. Very funny! If he is just starting to read, Elephant & Piggy by Mo Willems are hilarious, but short. They don't have a lot of text, but you really have to "read" the pictures to get the meaning and they really help with expresiveness when reading aloud. They are expensive, but we checked them all out from the library. Anything by Cynthia Rylant is great for this age group. Henry & Mudge, Mr. Putter and Tabby and Poppleton are all series that she has written for this age group. Although I love Roald Dahl, I am a bit suprised to see it reccomended for such young children. I would make sure to read them yourself first. The themes are heavier and some of the language can be iffy if that is important to you (not bad, it's just maybe not for a 5 year old to be trying out at jr. kindergarten!). They are FABULOUS books, don't get me wrong, when I taught 3rd/4th grade they were very popular and appropriate. I know that most would scare my 5 year old (but then she is easily frightened). Magic Treehouse is very popular with both boys and girls of this age group. Marivin Redpost by Louis Saccar are popular too.

My four year old likes the Magic Tree House series. It's about a brother and sister (Jack and Annie) who travel to new and exciting places in their tree house. I suggest starting with the first book and read the first 3 in order so that you can explain the series. Also, my son LOVES the Littles books. The tiny people that live in the cracks in the wall. We found some at a garage sale.

hello
any books by Peggy Rathman are GREAT!!! love love love her!!
also.. They have different series for the Bearenstain Bears.. those go from easier to a tad bit harder and always have a good lesson in them..
best of luck

Frog and toad are good, also look at the Jr Classics like Robin Hood , Jungle Book, Etc.
Also if you can find it " The Alligator Case" is one of my FAVORITE books from when I was a kid.

Hank the Cowdog. My 2 boys loved these and read or listened to every one in the series. I think the author is John Erickson. Our library had alot of them on CD. They are hilarious.

You can read anything to them outloud.
Especially if it is books they like.
My daughter has to read for 20 minutes everyday including weekends and they have to log it, for school.
But she reads on her own. But sometimes asks me to read, too, which I do. It varies.
My daughter is 7.

Choose books they like.
That is the key.

Go to your bookstore... and ask them. In the kids section of any bookstore, they are very helpful. Just ask for books for that age group or what is popular.

all the best,
Susan

I use suggestions from Amblesideonline website and a book called Honey For A Child's Heart.

The Magic Tree House series are an excellent choice of 1st chapter book. My boys can't get enough of them.

Magic Tree house books are great. Also the Hank the Cowdog books. You will have to do the reading but they will love them. my sons loved both these series

If you give a...... (mouse a cookie, moose a muffin, pig a pancake etc...)
Horrible Harry
Junie B Jones
Romona the pest and other ramona books

Dr Seuss books are the best ever. Both of my boys were reading them on their own by age 3, they are funny and help create great imaginations.
My 2 yr old granddaughter is now reading her daddy's books. I love it!

I am repeating some of what you've already heard: Magic Tree House series (however, my boys were fans for a short while, my niece read them all).

My favorite are the Scholastic Book Fairs held at most schools. Check to see when your school's is or check out scholastic books online. They have warehouse sales a couple times a year with great bargains and the books are broken down by ages (Picture books, early readers, etc...). The best method is to take your children to a book store and head into the kids section. Let them lead the way to what they like. you don't have to buy them, just get a feel for what your kids like and then hit the library. It was always easier for my boys to find age-appropriate items in the book store and then check them out. Our library has a kids section, but it's not as easy for the kids to look through.

I also volunteer(ed) as reading help in my kids' school. My youngest boys are fourth graders now and I've been reading with the kids since Kindergarten. Some of the books that the kids were reading in first and second grade:
Henry and Mudge
Fly Guy (this one little boy just cracked up each time he read them)
Biscuit
Judy B. Jones
The Bob Books (they are very simple readers and go up in difficulty)

Also, ask the teacher what she reads in class. When you are reading with your child you can get anything that your child finds interesting. But for your child to read, find out what the teacher suggests.

As I am writing this, it is a late start day, my twins are sitting in a chair and reading. One is reading Goosebumps and the other is reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid. They love to read. When they were in Kindergarten we started with the Bob Books and each time they moved up a level (reading the books without help) they got a treat: granola bar, ice cream, picking what we would have for dinner, a sticker, a new notebook (they love to draw and write their own stories now).

Have fun, it's nice to cuddle at night and read together.

Henry and Mudge are great books, along with Biscuit (he's a dog and a big hit), Fly Guy

Frog and Toad Books
Berenstain Bear Books
Diary of a Worm/Spider/Fly are super cute
The Incredible Book Eating Boy
Wodney Wat
Charlotte's Web (I am reading that to my 5 year old)

We like to go to the library and pick out 15-20 books that look good, and just read them for a few weeks and pick new ones! Some picture books can take close to 15 minutes to read!

What about Encyclopedia Brown and Box Car Children for chapter books?

We love Henry and Mudge books (about a boy and his dog) and Mr. Putter and Tabby books (about an old man and his cat). We also LOVE everything by Kate DiCamillo and Beverly Cleary.

We've been reading the Chronicles of Narnia series to our 5 year old for the past month or so, and she has really seemed to enjoy them so far. She asks for them every night when it gets close to bedtime.

Here are a few varied themes for you to try: The Mouse and the Motorcycle, The Nose from Mars, Bunnicula, Cats Eye Corner, The One Eyed Cat, Help! I'm prisoner in the Library, The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Lion the Witch and The Wardrobe, The Adventures of Holly Hobby (this one goes to South America). There are so many books out there to try. Look at Goodwill and at the Library for choices. Have fun! And Good Luck!

Both of my kids (boy and girl) loved In A Dark Dark Room by Alvin Schwartz and Mouse Soup by Arnold Lobel. We have kept multiple copies of these books because they were so loved.

The If You Give A Mouse A Cookie series of books by Laura Numeroff are great too although they are not chapter books. Because your boys are young they will still love picture books for a while. Franklin (the turtle that is a tv show) has a series of books that have wonderful pictures. They are also longer stories than golden books with life lessons.

The chapter books I have read aloud to my kids are Charlotte's Web, James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to name a few.

The library is also a great source. They can pick out a couple of books each.

Happy Reading.

C.

List of great books to read aloud to your children. Divided by age group. You can most likely check them out of your local library.

http://www.bookitprogram.com/parents/100greatbooks.asp

I will echo the Magic Tree House series. My now 5th grader was hooked on those at that age, and my now 1st grader is enjoying them as well now. Most people think of the Little House series as a girl series, but my sons have enjoyed it as much as my daughter did, and there's such a sense of adventure with the pioneer time period. Your library will also have a great selection of early chapter books that hold attention with pictures scattered throughout - check the "early readers" section there, and see what interests him. Gulliver's Travels, as well as Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates (in modified version) are 2 others that comes to mind.
Happy Reading!

Hi Karma, when my boys were that age they liked books by Mark Teague. Unique interesting stories with irony and fantastic pictures! Not chapter books though.

My first grader likes the stage 1 Marley & Me, Transformers (his favorite) or Dr. Seuss. I've bought the level 1 books at Costco for a great price. Had the Marley books and the little porcupine guy :) My 5 year old loves any book but really likes the I Spy.
The Bob books are great to start out (but a little boring).

www.scholastic.com has great ideas too.

My son got an awesome book from baby's first book club called "Time for Bed" by Ruth Huddleston & W. Madgwick. it was first published in 1995 by Templar Publishing, but hopefully you can find it somewhere! it has little cardboard animals that you put to bed as the story progresses. it's a birthday party for benny bear and all the animals fall asleep one by one as the party plays out. he loved it!

Hello Karma,

Good question - the answer is ANY and ALL kids book are a good book to read - the fact that you are reading is the answer to help your kids!

At my daughter's 2nd grade information night the teacher recommended we read right about their reading level.

Great book for my daughter when she was in 1st grade were Henry and Mudge books, Mr. and Mrs. Green, early reader chapter books. Go the the library and it is full of excellent early reader books.

Positively,
Mags

I have been reading Charlotte's Web with my 4 yo (almost 5)...he is really enjoying it.

Winnie the Pooh, Beatrix Potter series, Cat in the Hat and everything by Dr. Seuss. Anything by R. Dahl. Little House on the Prairie series 8 books. Washington Irving, Rip Van Winkle, and Legends of Sleepy Hollow. Celtic Fairy Tales, Turkish Fairy Tales.

Forget Golden Books they are condensed for condensed minds.

Read the real thing in the original. You will expand your children's minds and imagination.

If he is not a reader, you can start with the early readers to get him interested in readers. Find a bookstore in the area that carries children's books and you will find lots of books for him. If he has an interest--like dinosaurs choose non-fiction books to read from. There are also easy chapter books to read from. Good luck.

My son loves the Truck Town books, written by Jon Scieszka. Most of these are picture books with some early readers, too. Check the library and go frequently. Let your son pick out the books. Oh, and don't forget non-fiction. Boys love to read about bugs and dinosaurs, trucks, and all kinds of things. Non-fiction is a hit with my 3 year old and they are usually at a fairly high reading level, so make sure there are plenty of pictures to capture their interest and that you can talk about.

My son also loves the Tonka Truck books. They are various levels of reading. Some picture books, other chapter books, and some early readers.

Reading aloud to your kids isn't just about reading the words, but also sharing the story or book. Talk about what you see in the pictures, predict what will come next (both you and your kids), model all aspects of reading. Relate some of what you are reading to something that you used to do or you did with kids recently. All of this discussion is part of the reading process and counts toward the time of reading. I have to limit the number of books at bedtime or my kids will never go to sleep. They would read all night. Speaking of which, I was the kids with the flashlight under the covers reading at night. Even when I was in 1st and 2nd grades. I love to read.

Ask family, friends to give bookstore gift cards for birthdays and Christmas and let your child pick out the books. My kids love picking out their own books to read. They choose books that they are interested in and want to read over and over. Don't be afraid to let them have some of the Disney movie books, too. Whatever kids decide they like will be a big help in keeping them interested in reading.

We love to go to story times at the library. Now that my kids are in school and we can't go to the story times as easily, we try to make sure we go to the night time Pajama story time and visit the library to check out books at least once a week. This was also one of my most favorite activities as a child. I loved when my parents took us to the library to borrow books. My kids both have a library card and they are 5 and 3. Both got one at 3 because they loved the idea and love reading.

My kids, 5-yr-old boy and 7-yr-old girl, adore the Magic Treehouse books. They're simple chapter books about a brother and sister who go on magical adventures. Each book also has a companion factual book related to the fiction book (I.e. "Dinosaurs Before Dawn" has a fact book about dinosaurs). Of course they're all sold separately! Our library usually has a bit of a wait for the books, so it's good to put in a request for several at a time. If your child's school does Scholastic orders, there are often some in there. We've also found at the library some superhero chapter books. My son LOVES those. So far they've been all Batman and Superman, and he's happy!

I had the same problem when my daughter wanted more advanced books. I was leary to go off recommendations because some contained things I wasn't happy with my daughter reading. I went to the library, and asked the librarian for recommendations. I told her what sorts of things we wanted to avoid, and she gave me a huge list of series and individual books. None would apply to you because your child is a boy, but the librarian was a much better resource for me than other parent recommendations. Also, once we find a book we like, we read every book written by that author.

Hi Karma,
I haven't read the other responses...so I'm probably repeating what others have written, but I love my local library. The librarians are more than happy to offer suggestions. I think there must be a million creative and challenging picture books appropriate for both boys as well as chapter books. And it's free! And the boys can play an active role in choosing books for themselves and helping in the check-out process. Have fun!
L.