Book recommendations for 2nd grade class?

[Kirby]

I have volunteered to be a guest reader in my son's 2nd grade class in a few weeks and I want to find a good book for the reading. According to my son all the readers do Dr. Seuss or something similar, but I want to kick it up a notch and do something they hopefully haven't heard a million times before.
So, any parents, teachers, librarians, book store employees out there that have any suggestions for 7 year olds?

 

[Lindley]

What length are you looking for?

I read My Side Of The Mountain in second grade, but that was take-home reading, not presentational.

 

[mimic]

I liked this book when I was a kid - it's about a boy who loses his beloved stuffed animal at a fair, and his sister gets it back for him. It's very sweet.

 

[auntiehill]

I've always thought the "Frog and Toad" books were great to read to that age level.

My nieces like "The Adventures of Taxi Dog," and "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Bad Day." I really like the latter; it lets kids know that everyone has a rough time now and then, and the pictures are just wonderful.

But, if you REALLY want to get laughs from the second-grade, you should read them, "Walter, the Farting Dog."
To a 7-8 year old, that is comedy GOLD.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Roald Dahl's 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' would be a good choice with the movie adaptation coming out November 13th.

 

[Mistral]

Where the Sidewalk Ends Shel Silverstein

or Laffcadio the Lion(spelling?) or

The Mouse On the Motorcycle

or Ferdinand(the Bull)

 

[John Picard]

I've always thought the "Frog and Toad" books were great to read to that age level.

LOVED those books when I was a young boy.

 

[RevDMV]

Any of the Shel Silverstein books are great. (Diary of a Wimpy Kid has a fun passage about those)

 

[Wrongway Janeway]

Tikki Tikki Tembo is always fun to read. Freckle Juice is another kids' favorite.

 

[thestrangequark]

I teach second grade reading, I'd love to help! I'm assuming you want a picture book?

For something unique I'd recommend Neil Gaiman's picture books, The Wolves in the Walls and The Day I Swapped My Dad For Two Goldfish. They are funny, engaging, and beautifully illustrated. They promote discussion as the text is accessible but relatively advanced for second grade. They both run a bit long though, for picture books, so if you need something shorter some I'd highly recommend Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. It's a kid-favorite.

 

[May 20]

I can vouch for Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus if you want another opinion. It's been part of my children's personal library for at least five years, and we still read it and laugh at Pigeon.

How I Became a Pirate is also a favorite around here.

 

[auntiehill]

Tikki Tikki Tembo is always fun to read....

I LOVED that when I was little.

 

[Bloodwhiner]

Your biggest limitation is going to be time, so look for something short but don't underestimate them.

I've found kids can listen too and understand books far beyond their reading ability. I've had kids that age listen and understand books like Swiss Family Robinson, The Wizard of Oz, Henry Huggins and many others.

Challenge the kids, they usually will surprise you.

 

[Kirby]

Thanks for all the recommendations everyone. I have a list and will hit Barnes and Noble this weekend to check them out. I love the Pigeon books, but they're way too short for the 20 minutes I have.

 

[Joshua Howard]

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.
http://http://www.amazon.com/You-Give-Mouse-Cookie-Give/dp/0060245867

It is probably the only children's book from that era of my life that I actually remember, and it teaches a valuable lesson: the fact that once you do something, you often have to do other things because of it; that for every action there is a consequence.

Children like mice. Usually.