Oxford Reading Tree Level 8 is the Class 2 reader in the Army Public Schools & Colleges System. The cover reads ‘4 Books in 1’, ‘Supplementary Reading Material’ and ‘For Grade 2’, and shows a girl in a red top and blue trousers standing on a patterned rug. The stories are written by Roderick Hunt and illustrated by Alex Brychta, with an Oxford University Press copyright of 2025. Available to order now for the 2027-28 session.
In Oxford University Press Pakistan’s catalogue the Level 8 Biff, Chip and Kipper stories are The Flying Carpet, The Kidnappers, A Day in London and The Rainbow Machine; this school edition gathers four Level 8 stories into one volume.
What the first pages tell us
The book opens with a guide for parents and teachers. The page we photographed belongs to the story ‘A Day in London’ (the title is faintly visible behind the text) and asks the adult to:
- Before reading: read the title and look at the cover picture, ask who is in the car (Gran, Chip, Biff, Kipper, Nadim and Anneena), read the back cover blurb and ask what the children might go to see in London and what might go wrong, and look through the pictures.
- About the words: the child will probably be able to read most words; encourage sounding out and blending the challenging ones (pigeons, heights, because, brought).
- During reading: break unfamiliar words into chunks or syllables (for example e-nor-mous), remind the child to blend from left to right, say the whole word if it is too tricky, and re-read sentences to focus on meaning.
Breaking words into syllables is new at this level and is a useful tool for Class 2 spelling.
Why Level 8 for Class 2?
By Class 2 a child should be reading simple stories independently. Level 8 stories are longer, with real plots (a trip to London, a mystery) and a bigger cast, and they introduce names from different backgrounds (Nadim and Anneena join Biff, Chip and Kipper). They are written to be fun, which is the best way to build a habit of reading.
Where this reader sits at Army Public Schools
Level 8 is the Class 2 step: the Class 1 reader was Level 7, and next year it is Level 9. Matching the level to the class means your child’s reading grows at the pace the school expects.
Questions to ask after each story
Level 8 has a bigger cast and more plot, so there is plenty to talk about. After each of the four stories, try these:
- Who was in the car in ‘A Day in London’? (Gran, Chip, Biff, Kipper, Nadim and Anneena.) Who was your favourite?
- What did the children go to see in London, and what went wrong?
- Find a long word and break it into chunks, like e-nor-mous. Now try with ‘pigeons’ or ‘heights’.
- How did Biff, Chip and Kipper solve the problem at the end?
- Have you ever been to a big city? What was the busiest or loudest thing you saw?
- If you could add a seventh passenger to the car, who would you choose, and why?
What changes from Class 1 (Level 7) to Class 2 (Level 8)
Level 8 introduces a skill the earlier guides did not mention: breaking unfamiliar words into chunks or syllables to work them out (for example e-nor-mous). This is how mature readers handle long words, and it helps spelling too. The child is also expected to deal with a longer, multi-scene story and to keep track of several characters. Ask your child to retell the story in three sentences: beginning, middle and end.
Who, when and how
Whom: Class 2 children at Army Public Schools. When: as home reading throughout the year. How: let the child read aloud for ten minutes, ask what they think will happen next, and talk about the pictures. Where: at home, in the car, at the library corner.
Frequently asked questions
What does ‘4 Books in 1’ mean?
Four separate stories are bound together in a single volume.
Which story is first?
From the photographed page, the first story is ‘A Day in London’.
Is it a school textbook?
It is Supplementary Reading Material, for extra reading practice.
Oxford Reading Tree Level 8 is available now. Order online, pay on delivery anywhere in Pakistan, or collect it in Lahore. Buying the whole class list? WhatsApp us the list and we will confirm every title in one go.
