As students move through school, every skill builds upon the ones learned previously, so it’s important to make sure your child is building a strong foundation as they move through each grade level. Whether you feel your child is struggling or not, it’s helpful to know exactly what they should learn at each grade level. Continue reading to learn more about the second grade English language arts standards.
Second Grade English Language Arts Standards
In second grade, students will build on many of the skills they learned in first grade. In addition to those skills, students will gain new understanding and become more independent in the following areas.
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Read and understand unfamiliar words using context clues: Your child should be able to read a sentence with an unfamiliar word and figure out what the word means based on the other words in the sentence. This is a huge step toward becoming an independent reader.
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Independently write stories: Your child should be able to write their own story from scratch with limited spelling, punctuation, and capitalization errors.
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Learn word choice and understand varied sentence structures: Your child should be able to choose between two similar or multi meaning words when writing a story to choose the one that works best in the context.
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Revise writing for clarity and grammar: Your child should be able to re-read their own writing to make sure it makes sense and to catch any spelling or punctuation errors they made.
How Will Students Build on These in Third Grade?
As students move into third grade, they are increasingly independent in their reading and writing skills. In the past, when students made mistakes in reading, they probably were not able to catch it and correct themselves. In third grade, students will learn how to correct themselves and read more fluently. They will also read even more complex texts and books, and many students begin reading chapter books in third grade.
Also in third grade, there is more of a focus on writing in all subjects, not just English language arts. For this reason, it’s crucial for development in all areas that students build strong writing skills.
How Do I Stop My Child from Losing Knowledge Over the Summer?
While summer is a great time for kids to relax and unwind, it shouldn’t be a time when they completely forget about everything they have learned. Students who don’t spend time reinforcing and building on their knowledge from the previous school year can actually regress in their learning. Make sure you take some time to practice reading, writing, and speaking with your child every day. Reading Genie is a great program that can help take the stress off of you and make sure your child is getting the enrichment they need. If your child is leaving second grade and is struggling with the skills they have been taught, Reading Genie can help get them back on track. Also our Summer Writing Workshop is a great way to make sure your child stays on top of and improves their writing skills in a fun a creative way.
