Year 1 Confident reader

[CraftyC]

Hi! My daughter is in year 1. She is bringing home books from the Rigby Star yellow level, but she finds these very easy and quite boring. I am an english teacher and I reckon she is at a year 2 level. She loves reading but i just dont have the right books in the house that she can access. For Christmas I want to buy her some books that she can read herself, something to really kick in the love of books. I am looking for recommendations for year 2 level full books for independent reading, rather than gruffalo style bedtime stories. What did your kid love to read at that age? Or what book really hooked them into reading?

Thank you!

I would take some trips to the library and see what she takes a liking too.

This is a good resource from The Book Trust. https://www.booktrust.org.uk/books-and-reading/bookfinder/

It's perfectly normal for confident readers to be reading much more advanced books for "fun reading" than they are on the school reading scheme.

Various books by Jill Tomlinson eg Penguins Progress (there's one about a gorilla and one about an aardvark too) are good chapter books for a child's first attempt at non-picture books. However don't rush your child through the picture book stage. It's true that some reading-scheme stories are dreadfully dull because they have been written with phonic grading in mind rather than such pesky things as plot and character but there's some brilliant ones and you'll miss them when she grows out of them.

Isadora Moon is perfect for Year 2 level independent reading. So is the Kitty series, about a girl with cat superpowers. Rabbit and Bear books are lovely too.

If she likes animals, Holly Webb has written loads of Puppy and Kitten stories which were always popular when I taught that age. Helen Peters' series about Jasmine's animal rescue are lovely too. They're all titled A (animal) called (name), eg A Rabbit Called Clover. Rainbow Fairies are very popular too with that age group (very dull and formulaic for us adults but it's usually series like this that really kick start a young child's desire to read. Her tastes will mature as she grows.

I agree with the above though, there are so many lovely picture books out there aimed at Key Stage 1, moving beyond the pre-school classics. A trip to the library definitely sounds in order, to let her explore what she likes.

Do you think she would like poetry? There's a gorgeous new book out, Pick and Mix poetry, which is a collection of poems chosen by Julia Donaldson. It's beautifully illustrated and would make a gorgeous Christmas present.

I came on to suggest Daisy Meadows' books, but I see Rainbow Fairies has already been mentioned - helpfully Meadows is prolific so your daughter will have a lot of books to read!

Holly Webb is already mentioned for animal stories; Sue Bentley is another good author to look for - and don't forget the simpler Dick King-Smith books like The Hodgeheg!

In addition, I know she is rather unfashionable with adults today, but Enid Blyton is still much-loved by children in my experience (primary school library lead). The Magic Faraway Tree series and The Wishing Chair might be perfect for your daughter.

My Y1 confident reader loves the Allotment Lane School books by Margaret Joy, the Daisy and the Trouble With… series, and the Winnie the Witch books (with four short stories rather than the picture books). I have been pondering the Faraway Tree and some of the gentler Roald Dahls.

Maggie Sparks books
Worst Witch books
Faraway Tree / Wishing Chair
Isadora Moon
Claude books
Magazines (Chickadee / National Geographic for kids etc)
Osborne non-fiction
Princess Mirrorbelle (J Wilson chapter books)

Second Worst Witch and Princess Mirrorbelle. DD enjoyed the following about that age:

101 Dalmatians (Dodie Smith)
Sophie and the Shadow Woods
Shakespeare stores (Matthews/Ross)

Isadora Moon
books by Jeremy Strong - the hundred mile an hour dog etc
Gobbolino the witch’s cat
the owl who was afraid of the dark
Humphrey hamster
bill’s new frock - Anne Fine
olga de polga
my best fiend - Sheila lavelle
roald Dahl - the twits etc
rhe pirates next door, shifty McGuffey and slippery Sam (the longer follow on chapter books)
Frog and toad