Grade 2 Book of Stories

Grade 2
Book of Stories
Grade 2
Book of Stories
Story One . . . . Cinderella
Story Two . . . . Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story Three . . . The Great Escape
Story Four . . . . The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story Five . . . . Hansel and Gretel
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Cinderella
By Madeleine Francis
Illustrated by Laura Vila
Once upon a time there was a girl named
Cinderella. She lived with her stepmother and
stepsisters. They treated Cinderella badly. They
made her do all the chores.
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 1
Grade: 2
Life had not always been hard for Cinderella
when her parents were alive. Then her mother
died. Her father married her stepmother. After
her father died, Cinderella was left alone with
her stepmother and stepsisters. They made
Cinderella their maid.
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 2
Grade: 2
One day, a messenger arrived from the palace of
the king. The messenger said, “The King seeks a
bride for the prince. He will hold a ball to which
all the girls of the kingdom are invited.”
“Even the maids?” Cinderella asked.
“Even the maids,” the messenger replied.
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 3
Grade: 2
When the messenger
left, Cinderella
begged her
stepmother, “Oh,
please let me go to
the ball! Please!”
“Yes, you may go,
Cinderella,” her
stepmother answered.
“Mother! What are you saying?” her stepsisters
screamed.
“Cinderella may go to the ball on one condition,”
she said. She turned to Cinderella. “You must
complete all of these chores first.” Her stepmother
handed Cinderella a list that went onto the floor.
“But the ball is tonight,” Cinderella said. “I’ll never
get all this done in time.”
“Exactly,” her stepmother smiled. And her
stepsisters laughed and laughed.
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 4
Grade: 2
Cinderella went to work. She cleaned the kitchen,
she mended clothes, and she dusted the entire
house. She did 100 other chores, too. She sewed
herself a beautiful dress from the scraps of
material that were left over from making dresses
for her stepsisters. Cinderella even found an old
necklace that had belonged to her mother. When
she was done, she looked beautiful.
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 5
Grade: 2
Cinderella was
ready to go to the
ball. Then, she heard
a voice behind her.
“Where do you think
you are going?” It
was her stepmother.
“I am going to the ball,” Cinderella said.
“You said I could go if I finished my chores and
I have.”
Cinderella’s stepmother was very jealous. She
was jealous of Cinderella’s beauty and kindness.
And Cinderella’s stepsisters were even more
jealous. They ripped the necklace off her neck.
Then, they ripped Cinderella’s beautiful dress to
shreds. “My beautiful dress!” Cinderella wept.
“Come on, girls,” her stepmother said to her
daughters, “we have a ball to go to.”
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 6
Grade: 2
Why are they so cruel? Cinderella wondered.
Suddenly, a beautiful fairy appeared.
“Who-who are you?” Cinderella asked.
“I am your fairy godmother. I am here to help
you, Cinderella,” she said.
“It’s no use, I can’t go to the ball. Look at me.”
“Do not worry, Cinderella. I will wave my wand.
I will give you the most beautiful dress. A coach
is waiting outside to take you to the ball.”
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 7
Grade: 2
And that is just what the fairy godmother did.
Cinderella went to the ball. The moment the Prince
saw her he knew that she was the girl he wanted
to marry. And they lived happily ever after.
Title: Cinderella
Story: 1
Page: 8
Grade: 2
Grandma’s Yo-yo
By Ashley Kim
Illustrated by Venantius Pinto
Hong and his mother moved to a new town.
When Hong got home from his school, he looked
for his mom. Instead, Grandma greeted him.
“Where’s Mom?” Hong asked.
“Hong, don’t you remember? Your mother is at
her new job. I am going to take care of you after
school from now on,” Grandma replied.
Title: Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story: 2
Page: 1
Grade: 2
“I just want to watch TV,” Hong muttered in a
grumpy voice. He tried not to show it, but he was
really sad. He missed his mom a lot.
“Would you like to play with me?” Grandma
asked. “There are lots of fun things we can do
together.”
Title: Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story: 2
Page: 2
Grade: 2
“Like what?” Hong asked.
“Here! Look at these photos of China.
That’s where I was born, you know.”
Hong looked at the photographs. China seemed
nice, but he was still thinking about his mom.
Title: Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story: 2
Page: 3
Grade: 2
Then Hong noticed something. In one of the
photographs, his grandma was playing
with a toy that he had never seen before.
“What’s that?” Hong asked.
Title: Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story: 2
Page: 4
Grade: 2
“It’s a Chinese yo-yo,” Grandma explained.
“Here, I have one for you. I used to play with
it when I was your age. I’ll show you how to
use it.”
Hong wanted to try. It was fun! He and Grandma
played with the yo-yo for a whole hour.
Title: Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story: 2
Page: 5
Grade: 2
“You’re good at it, Hong!” Grandma said. “And
I have many other Chinese toys that we can play
with together.”
“That sounds great, Grandma!” said Hong. “Can
you take care of me after school every day?”
Grandma winked. “I think I can arrange that,”
she said.
Title: Grandma’s Yo-yo
Story: 2
Page: 6
Grade: 2
The Great Escape
By Madeleine Francis
Illustrated by Margeaux Lucas
My name is Bryan. I have a hamster named Theo.
Most of the time I call him Teddy.
I love my hamster a lot.
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 1
Grade: 2
I want to play with him in the daytime, but I can’t.
That’s because Teddy sleeps during the day.
At night, when I go to sleep, Teddy wakes up. He
runs around in his cage. Now he wants to play.
Then in the morning, when I get up, Teddy goes
back to sleep!
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 2
Grade: 2
One day, my grandma woke me up extra early.
“Bryan,” she said, “the hamster got out!”
“Not again!” I said.
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 3
Grade: 2
My hamster is very clever. Somehow, he can get
out of his cage!
I looked everywhere. He loves to hide in corners.
I looked in every corner of our house.
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 4
Grade: 2
I could not find him anywhere.
Suddenly, to my surprise, Teddy came rolling by.
That clever hamster was in his hamster ball! He
rolled out the front door!
“Teddy,” I yelled. “Come back!”
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 5
Grade: 2
My mom, my grandma, and I ran after Teddy. Teddy
was rolling down the street.
“Teddy, come back!” we yelled.
My mom, my grandma, and I could not keep up with
him. He was so fast.
“Oh, no!” I said. “He’s headed for the bridge. We
have to stop him!”
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 6
Grade: 2
Just before he got to the bridge, I got to Teddy. I
scooped him up in my hands and gave him a hug.
“I hope you had fun, Teddy! Now let’s go home
and put you down to sleep. It’s eight in the morning.
Time for bed!”
Title: The Great Escape
Story: 3
Page: 7
Grade: 2
The Princess Who
Never Smiled
By Madeleine Francis
Photos by Tatiana Hamilton
Once upon a time, there lived a princess.
She never smiled.
Her father, the King, said, “I must find a way to
make my daughter happy. If only just once I
could see her smile!”
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 1
Grade: 2
The King tried everything. He paid a magician to
amaze his daughter. But the princess did not smile.
Next, he paid a clown to amuse his daughter. But
the princess did not smile.
The King began to wonder if anything, anything in
the world, could make his daughter smile.
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 2
Grade: 2
Meanwhile, a poor boy worked for a farmer. The
farmer gave the boy three coins. Now, the poor
boy was rich! What would he do with his coins?
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 3
Grade: 2
The poor boy went on a journey. He ran into a fish,
a cricket, and a mouse. He gave them each a gold
coin. Now he had none.
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 4
Grade: 2
The poor boy continued on his journey.
He fell into a ditch. Ouch!
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 5
Grade: 2
Suddenly, his friends, the fish, the cricket, and the
mouse, came to save him.
The princess saw all this from her bedroom window.
She laughed and laughed and laughed at the sight.
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 6
Grade: 2
“She’s laughing!” cried the King. “She’s laughing!
I am so happy that I am laughing, too!”
And so the princess met her true love, the poor
worker. And she smiled every day from that day on.
Title: The Princess Who Never Smiled
Story: 4
Page: 7
Grade: 2
Hansel and Gretel
By Madeleine Francis
Illustrated by Margeaux Lucas
Once upon a time there was a family. The boy
was named Hansel. The girl was named Gretel.
The father was a farmer. The mother had died
long ago.
One day, the father married a new wife.
The new wife was the stepmother of Hansel
and Gretel.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 1
Grade: 2
Times were hard. For many months, there was
no rain. The crops did not grow. Without crops,
there was no food. There was not enough to eat.
Now, the family was hungry and poor.
One night, the father asked, “Wife, what will
we do? We do not have enough to eat.”
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 2
Grade: 2
“Don’t worry,” the stepmother said. “I have a
plan. Tomorrow morning, we will take the kids
to the forest. We will go on a picnic.”
“A picnic!” the father said. “How will that help?”
“We will leave the kids in the forest,” said the
stepmother. “Then we will sneak away. The
kids will be lost. And we can have more food
at home.”
“That is a terrible idea. What kind of father
would do that to his children?” the father asked.
“A poor one,” the stepmother answered.
“I don’t like it, but I’ll do it,” the father said
sadly.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 3
Grade: 2
Little did the parents know that Hansel and Gretel
had heard every word.
“Don’t worry, Gretel,” Hansel whispered. “I have
a plan.”
The very next day, Hansel got up early. He
collected lots of bright blue pebbles. He put them
in his pocket.
After breakfast, the stepmother said, “Let’s have
a picnic!” Then, the family went to the forest.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 4
Grade: 2
As the family walked into the forest, Hansel
dropped a bright blue pebble every few steps.
“Now, children,” the mean stepmother said,
“your father and I are going to collect some
berries. We’ll be right back.”
The father kissed both of his children. Then he
walked away with the stepmother. Gretel started
to cry.
“Do not cry!” Hansel said. “We will find our
way home. I dropped blue pebbles all along
the way.”
Hansel and Gretel followed the pebbles all the
way home.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 5
Grade: 2
A few hours later, Hansel and Gretel arrived
home. The stepmother looked angry. The father
looked happy.
“Thank goodness, you came home!” their father
said.
“It was silly of you to get lost,” said the
stepmother.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 6
Grade: 2
After Hansel and Gretel went to bed, the parents
had a talk.
“We have to try it again,” the stepmother said.
“I can’t,” said the father. “I love them.”
“We are doing it again. Tomorrow,” the
stepmother said. Her voice was firm. This time,
Hansel and Gretel did not overhear them.
The next morning, the family went to the forest.
The stepmother gave each of them a crust of
bread. Hansel broke the piece into bits. He left
the bits as he walked through the forest.
“Now, children,” the stepmother said, “your
father and I are going to get berries. We will be
right back.”
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 7
Grade: 2
Of course, the parents did not come back.
“Do not worry,” Hansel told Gretel. “We will
follow the bread crumbs home.”
But the bread crumbs had been eaten by birds.
They were long gone. Now Hansel and Gretel
were truly lost.
Hansel and Gretel kept walking. They tried to
find a way home. Suddenly, they came upon a
gingerbread house. It was made of gingerbread
and candy.
The children ran to the house. They were so
hungry. They started eating.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 8
Grade: 2
An old woman came out. “Why, children! How
nice to see you.”
“We are lost,” Gretel explained.
“I can see that,” the old woman said. “Please
come inside and have a good meal. I will take
good care of you.”
Hansel and Gretel could not believe their luck.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 9
Grade: 2
As soon as they got into the house, the old
woman changed. She was a witch. She threw
Hansel into a cage. She made Gretel do all the
housework.
“I will eat Hansel when he is fat enough,” the
old woman said.
But Gretel tricked her. The old woman was
almost blind.
Every day, she checked to see if Hansel was fat
yet. “Let me touch your finger,” the old woman
said.
Gretel gave Hansel a chicken bone. The old
woman touched the chicken bone.
“I don’t understand it,” said the old woman.
“I keep feeding the boy. But he stays so thin.”
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 10
Grade: 2
“Well, I have had enough of waiting,” the old
woman said. “Thin or not, I am going to eat him
right now. Gretel, turn on the stove.”
Gretel opened up the stove. She had to think
fast. “Can you help me?” Gretel asked the old
woman. “There is something at the back of the
stove.”
The old woman stuck her head in the oven.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 11
Grade: 2
“Where?” the old woman asked.
With all her might, Gretel shoved the old woman
into the oven.
Then she unlocked Hansel’s cage.
“Quick! Let’s go!” Gretel cried.
They ran outside. A swan spoke to them. “You two
look lost. I can take you home if you like. Hop on.”
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 12
Grade: 2
So Hansel and Gretel hopped on. The swan carried
them home. When they got home, they found that
their stepmother had left. Only their father was
at home.
“Can you ever forgive me?” he asked them. “I looked
and looked for you. I know what I did was wrong.”
“We forgive you, Dad,” said Hansel and Gretel.
Soon the rains came again. The crops grew. There
was enough food. Hansel and Gretel lived happily
ever after.
Title: Hansel and Gretel
Story: 5
Page: 13
Grade: 2