Books to read aloud

I thought of another great one! I know you said he's too young for The Hobbit, so what about The Adventures of Tom Bombadil? It must have been a great disappointment to my mother that I never grew up to be a fan of Tolkein's other work, but Tom B always had a special place in my heart.

My stepsons love the Mr. Gum series: http://www.mrgum.co.uk/.  The books won the Roald Dahl Funny Prize and it's not surprising - they read a lot like Roald Dahl books (which are also GREAT for reading aloud!).

I wouldn't read Bridge to Terabithia to a child that young. ETA: I wouldn't read Number the Stars to a child that young either, especially if the parent doesn't even want Harry Potter, which is obviously fantasy. Those books are realistic fiction and could be very scary. I think the only Lois Lowry book I know of that I would read to a child that age is Gooney Bird Greene, the rest I can think of off the top of my head are too mature.

As a teacher for that age, here are the books my class always loved (boys and girls):
Ramona
Junie B. Jones
Judy Moody
Magic Tree House
Stories Julian Tells
Stories Huey Tells
Gooney Bird Greene (HILARIOUS!!!)
Pippi Longstocking
Peter Pan (there is an easier version and a harder version, I read the harder but they had their stamina built up through the year of reading aloud. My friend's class needed the easier version because she didn't read aloud much.)
The Secret Garden (I made them try the first 5 chapters, 1 week, and by the end of the week they loved it and wanted to keep going, good lesson on giving books a fair chance.)
Time Warp Trio (similar to Magic Tree House)
A to Z Mysteries
Flat Stanley
Some books by Roald Dahl (The BFG)
Magic School Bus (chapter books and picture books)

Most of these are series, but I only read one from each series to get them hooked. Also, if you talk about the books as well, there really are so many layers to picture books and they can be very challenging.

Excellent suggestions, everyone.  Thank you.

I wouldn't read Bridge to Terabithia to a child that young.

Yes, definitely for when he's older.  Although, to be honest, it wasn't one of my favorites - I skimmed a lot of it, if I recall.

I also forgot Frindle. Andrew Clements is a fun author.

I also forgot Frindle. Andrew Clements is a fun author.

Thanks!

Do you have any online resources you can pass along?  Books lists or something like that?  Our library site has some, but they seem to skip the young readers and go straight from Bob books to YA (so to speak).

There are so many authors and book series that have come along since I was a kid, it's hard to keep up!

This thread makes me wish I had a 6 year old to read aloud to! 

Thanks!

Do you have any online resources you can pass along?  Books lists or something like that?  Our library site has some, but they seem to skip the young readers and go straight from Bob books to YA (so to speak).

There are so many authors and book series that have come along since I was a kid, it's hard to keep up!

It's hard for me to keep up and I'm a reading specialist! I find the Scholastic Teacher Book Wizard to be helpful. There are some books there and there that are leveled wrong, but it's accurate for the most part. You can search by interest level, reading level, or you can put in the title of a book your son likes and it will come up with similar books. There are some books that aren't in there, but this is the best free resource I know of.

It's hard for me to keep up and I'm a reading specialist! I find the Scholastic Teacher Book Wizard to be helpful. There are some books there and there that are leveled wrong, but it's accurate for the most part. You can search by interest level, reading level, or you can put in the title of a book your son likes and it will come up with similar books. There are some books that aren't in there, but this is the best free resource I know of.

Excellent!  Thank you!!

My parents read Laura Ingalls Wilder's books to both me and my brother when we were about that age.

A really funny poet that my kids LOVED at that age was Colin McNaughton.

Another great poetry book is called Twinkle Twinkle Chocolate Bar.

You mentioned your son likes non-fiction- Usborne does a quite engaging series of non-fiction aimed at ages 5-7 or so on topics like bugs, castles, space etc.  Most pages have web-pages you can visit too that have more activities on the topic.  Here's the link:

http://www.usborne.co.uk/catalogue/browse.asp?css=1&cat=1&subject=r&subcat=IB

and

http://www.usborne.co.uk/catalogue/browse.asp?css=1&cat=1&subject=r&subcat=IBD

They also have true stories on topics like pirates, the wild west etc, but he may be a bit young for that.

Also, not that I recommend it to them, but lots of the boys in my class (I teach 5-7 year-olds as well!) enjoy the Horrid Henry books when they first step away from picture books.  I've got a book list as well which I can try to dig out later!

I forgot about Horrible Harry. They're funny. Boys love those books!

Jon Scieszka has Guys Read which lists a lot of books boys tend to like. He has it broken up into sections. It's only a few, though, but it's another good starting point.

I wouldn't read Bridge to Terabithia to a child that young. ETA: I wouldn't read Number the Stars to a child that young either, especially if the parent doesn't even want Harry Potter, which is obviously fantasy.

You are absolutely correct, I got a bit ahead of myself there.

I agree about the Junie B. Jones books.

Some books that I liked as a child, I don't enjoy reading aloud as an adult.  Ballet Shoes falls into that category for me.  Other books that I only thought were so-so as a child, I love reading aloud to kids now.  Wind in the Willows falls into that category.

When I first read Charlotte's Web aloud to a group of kids, I was amazed at how beautifully written it was and how much better than the over-familiar storyline would suggest.  I love reading that book and kids love hearing it.

A few books I read my son when he was about 6 that he really liked and I don't think have been mentioned yet are:  Mr. Popper's Penguins, The Mouse and the Motorcycle, and Babe the Sheep-Pig.

My personal preference would be to save Magic Tree House and maybe Flat Stanley books for later when he can read them himself as they are such enticing early readers for boys.