Year 2 Books

Year 2 Books

By year 2, children are expected to be reading a lot more independently, including reading aloud, reading and speaking words with two or more syllables and they are expected to continue to apply and improve their phonics knowledge. At this age, children are expected to develop their own opinions on books and relay information back to the teacher or parents about events in the books. 

By year 2 children are also expected to take SATS exams, which will often be their first experience with exam situations and being graded. We have a collection of practice assessment exercise books to help prepare them for their year 2 SATS exams, included in this pack are Maths, English, and Verbal and Non-Verbal reasoning. This collection of year 2 activity books aims to prepare them for the exam content and also make the exam setting less daunting for them. 

Classic Collections for Children

Our Ladybird Read it Yourself collection has simplified and easy-to-follow classic children’s stories like Cinderella, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Ugly Duckling and many more. This collection is beautifully illustrated with the text broken up into smaller and more manageable segments which makes them a perfect introduction to the classic children’s stories whilst keeping them appropriate for year 2. Within this collection, some books explore different animals, careers and vehicles to introduce them to different subjects that they may not have come across before. 

For more confident readers, we have Usborne Library Classics. This includes Jane Eyre, The Railway Children, Oliver Twist, Alice in Wonderland and many other well-known titles. This collection is inviting and is the perfect first step into the classics and will prepare the reader for tackling the standard-length books when they are ready. 

Non-Fiction Children’s Books

There are many non-fiction books available for children and at this age, it is a great time to introduce them. Not only do they contain a vast selection of images but they are often very easy to read and filled with facts. Usborne Beginners Science Collection contains facts about space, natural disasters, anatomy and more. It acts as a perfect introduction to science and non-fiction reading for year 2 children. The knowledge they learn from this collection will be interesting facts they can share with their friends and teachers as they gain more confidence and enthusiasm in the topics. 

Learning about animals 

Our collection of Zoe’s Rescue Zoo explores different species of animals and understands their needs and their behaviours with the added magical narrator that can talk to animals. This series teaches children about the responsibility for caring for animals as well as educates them about the different species. The books have longer paragraphs so they are aimed at more advanced year 2 readers or are perfect to read along together. The books contain charming illustrations and loveable characters throughout. 

If your child is interested in animals and learning about them, we also have a set of Dick King-Smith Sophie Stories. These are perfect year 2 books as they can be used for reading aloud or are highly recommended for a child’s first independent reading chapter book. As their reading improves they may want to progress onto other Dick King-Smith books like The Master of Animals Adventures collection which includes The Sheep Pig, or Babe as it’s more commonly known. 

When searching for children’s books about animals the obvious choice is Beatrix Potter. Our Beatrix Potter Collection contains 10 classic tales including Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle-Duck, Tom Kitten and many more. These tales are world-renowned for their stunning storytelling and delightful illustrations. The character of Peter Rabbit has been a well-known figure in TV and Film, resulting in the characters being easily recognisable and comforting. The original books have retained their significance in children’s literature and they are a perfect collection to transition from picture books into bigger paragraphs and longer stories. 

Picture Books 

Picture books are perfect for children who are still gaining confidence with their reading. The books often contain larger fonts and more illustrations to captivate their attention. For this section, we recommend Judith Kerr’s books Mog the Cat series and Oliver Jeffers Crayons collection. Mog the cat has been a staple title on children’s bookshelves for many years, the combination of beautiful storytelling alongside the illustration makes for a beautiful read. The books remain very popular today as children love reading about Mog’s adventures and seeing the world through her eyes. For our full Judith Kerr collection click here. 

Similarly, Oliver Jeffers' The Day the Crayons Quit was an instant bestseller, not only does it have vibrant illustrations and easy-to-read handwritten letter style but it has a very prevalent message about workers' rights and equality as well as a great way to learn colours as they lodge their complaints to a young boy who is just trying to colour in with them. 

Year 2 students are expected to have a clear understanding of phonics and sounding out words themselves. By using picture books such as these they will have the images to refer to when attempting to sound out new words. 

Magical Stories 

At this age children’s imaginations are starting to develop more and might be starting to create their own stories. Reading something fantastical and magical could help inspire their creativity so finding some of the best year 2 books to suit their abilities and imagination will encourage them to keep reading. 

Rainbow Magic Fairy series in total has over 200 books, we have a collection of 52 different stories ranging from Sky the Blue fairy to Marissa the science fairy. The wide variety of themes within the rainbow magic series will keep any child entertained for a very long time. Our collection A Year of Rainbow Magic aims to encourage children to read a book a week for the whole year. They are the perfect book for a child beginning to read independently or if you wish to read with them. They are wonderful and light-hearted stories, the illustrations within the books and the stories themselves make great year 2 books, often children will continue to read the series throughout KS1 and beyond.