Second Grade Reading List
Books on the reading list are arranged alphabetically by category.
Note that there are specific requirements for each category.
The requirements for students entering Grade Two are 1 folk/fairy tale book, 5 poems, 1 science book, 1 history or biography book, and 2 chapter books or easy readers.
Most books on the list are available through the Montgomery County Public Library system. You can search online and place books on hold at your local branch. Books marked with an asterisk (*) are recommended, but are not available through the county's library system.
Specific instructions on completing these requirements are available from the office.
Beginning Reader Series
Get Ready, Get Set, Read
Beginning Reader Series
Modern Curriculum Press Beginning to Read
Hillert, Margaret
Rookie Reader
Beginning Reader Series
School Zone: Start to Read
Beginning Reader Series
Wonder Books: Phonics
Beginning Reader Series
Biography
Abraham Lincoln
D'Aulaire, Ingri and Edgar
Buffalo Bill
D'Aulaire, Ingri and Edgar
Christopher Columbus
Krensky, Stephen
Daniel Boone
Streissguth, Tom
Emily (Emily Dickinson)
Bedard, Michael
George Washingtom
D'Aulaire, Ingri and Edgar
Laura Ingalls Wilder
D'Aulaire, Ingri and Edgar
Minty: a Story of Young Harriet Tubman
Schroeder, Alan
More Than Anything Else (Booker T. Washington)
Bradby, Marie
Picture Book of Thomas Edison
Adler, David
Seeker of Knowledge
Rumford, James
Chapter Books
B Is for Betsy and Others
Haywood, Carolyn
Betsy-Tacy and Others
Haywood, Caryolyn
Boy in the Doghouse
Duffey, Betsy
I'll Meet You at the Cucumbers
Moore, Lilian
In Aunt Lucy's Kitchen (and other Cobblestreet Cousins books)
Rylant, Cynthia
Jenny and the Cat Club
Averill, Esther
Littles
Peterson, John
My Father's Dragon/Elmer and the Dragon/Dragons of Blueland
Gannett, Ruth
Roommates Again
Galbraith, Kathryn
Runaway Radish
Haas, Jessie
Chapter Book--History
Charlie's House
Bulla, Clyde
Pirate's Promise
Bulla, Clyde
Secret Valley
Bulla, Clyde
Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims
Bulla, Clyde
Easy Reader
Abigail Takes the Wheel
Avi
Barry: the Bravest Saint Bernard
Hall, Lynn
Billy and Blaze (and others)
Anderson, C. W.
Brave Norman
Clements, Andrew
Bravest Dog Ever: the True Story of Balto
Standiford, Natalie
Buttons for General Washington
Roop, Connie
Clipper Ship
Lewis, Thomas
Contests at Cowlick
Kennedy, Richard
Good Night, Good Knight/Get Well, Good Knight
Thomas, Shelley
Grasshopper on the Road (and others)
Lobel, Arnold
Gus and Grandpa (and others)
Mills, Claudia
Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie
Roop, Peter
Kick, Pass and Run (and others)
Kessler, Leonard
Little Bear (series)
Minarik, Else
Long Way Westward
Sandin, Joan
Nate the Great (and others)
Sharmat, Marjorie
Ready, Set, Read -- and Laugh! (Easy Reader collection)
Cole, Joanna
Ready, Set, Read! (Easy Reader collection)
Cole, Joanna
Snowshoe Thompson
Levinson, Nancy
Tales of Amanda Pig (and others)
Van Leeuwen, Jean
Folk/Fairy Tale
Beauty and the Beast
Marianna Mayer, Jan Brett
How the Rooster Got His Crown
Poole, Amy
John Henry: an American Legend
Keats, Ezra Jack
Legend of the Blue Bonnet
de Paola, Tomie
Liang and the Magic Paintbrush
Demi
Once in a Wood: Ten Tales from Aesop
Rice, Eve
Paul Bunyan/Pecos Bill/Johnny Appleseed
Kellogg, Steven
Princess and the Pea
Ziefert, Harriet
Random House Book of Fairy Tales
Ehrlich, Amy
Shipwrecked Sailor: an Egyptian Tale of Hieroglyphs
Bower, Tamara
St. George and the Dragon
Hodges, Margaret
Stonecutter: a Japanese Folktale
McDermott, Gerald
Tortoise and the Hare
Miles, Betty
Town Mouse, Country Mouse
Brett, Jan
Twelve Dancing Princesses
Mayer, Marianna
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears
Aardema, Verna
History--American
Cecil's Story (Civil War)
Lyon, George Ella
Dakota Dugout (westward movement)
Turner, Ann
Drinking Gourd: the Story of the Underground Railroad
Monjo, F. N.
If You Lived with the Cherokee*
Kamma, ANne
If You Lived with the Sioux Indians
McGovern, Ann
Mexico (a True Book)
Heinrichs, Ann
Squanto and the First Thanksgiving
Kessel, Joyce
Star-Spangled Banner (Francis Scott Key)
Spier, Peter
Warm as Wool (westward movement)
Sanders, Scott
History--World
Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt
Fisher, Leonard
Greeks (Footsteps in Time)*
Hewitt, Sally
Growing Up in Ancient Greece
Chelepi, Chris
Mummies Made in Egypt
Aliki
Pharohs and Pyramids (Usborne Time Traveler)
Allan, Tony
History--World Geography
Map Scales
Wade, Mary
Mapping Penny's World
Leedy, Loreen
Poetry
At the Crack of the Bat: Baseball Poems
Morrison, Lillian
Child's Garden of Verses (various illustrators)
Stevenson, Robert Louis
Dragons Are Singing Tonight
Prelutsky, Jack
Insectlopedia
Florian, Douglas
Paul Revere's Ride (illustrated by Ted Rand)
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth
Plane Song
Siebert, Diane
Ride a Purple Pelican
Prelutsky, Jack
Talking Like the Rain
Kennedy, X. J.
Science
Bugs
Parker, Nancy
Bugs Are Insects
Rockwell, Anne
Corn Is Maize
Aliki
From Seed to Plant
Gibbons, Gail
Good Enough to Eat: a Kid's Guide to Food and Nutrition
Rockwell, Lizzy
Greg's Microscope
Selsam, Millicent
Hidden Life of the Forest
Schwartz, David
I Know How We Fight Germs/Why I Brush My Teeth/How My Cells Make Me Grow
Rowan, Kate
It Could Still Be Water
Fowler, Allan
Planet Earth Inside Out
Gibbons, Gail
Playing with Magnets
Gibson, Gary
Skeleton Inside You
Balestrino, Philip
Sunshine Makes the Seasons
Branley, Franklyn
Switch On, Switch Off
Berger, Melvin
What Are Levers? (others in Looking at Simple Machines)
Frost, Helen
What Is the World Made Of? All About Solids, Liquids and Gases
Zoehfeld, Kathleen
Your Skin and Mine
Showers, Paul