Listening/Speaking.  Students:

• listen responsively to stories and other texts read aloud
• choose and adapt spoken language according to the audience, purpose, and occasion
• identify rhymes, repeated sounds, or instances of onomatopoeia
• compare stories and other literature that reflect different regions, customs, and cultures
• ask and answer relevant questions
• make contributions to small or large group discussions
• gain increasing control of grammar, such as subject-verb agreement, complete sentences and correct tense usage

Reading.  Students:

• decode using all letter sound correspondences
• use knowledge of syntax (word order) and semantics (word meaning) to identify unfamiliar words
• read and comprehend a variety of second-grade level texts fluently
• learn new vocabulary words through wide reading
• make and explain important inferences in a story
• gather important information using resources and references
• read silently for increasing periods of time

Writing.  Students:

• write to record ideas and reflections for a variety of audiences
• use more complex capitalization, punctuation, and spelling
• compose complete sentences in written texts and use appropriate end punctuation
• engage in the writing process by generating ideas and developing and polishing final copies of compositions
• identify the most effective features of a piece of writing using criteria generated by the teacher and class
• take simple notes from relevant sources, such as classroom guests, information books, and media sources

In second grade mathematics, your child will learn:

Number, Operation, and Quantitative Reasoning.  Students:

• use number models to represent, compare, and order whole numbers
• read numbers less than 1,000
• name fractional parts of a whole or set of objects
• recall and apply basic addition facts
• add and subtract with two-digit numbers
• determine the value of a collection of coins
• model multiplication and division

Patterns, Relationships, and Algebraic Thinking.  Students:

• find patterns in the 100s chart
• use place value to compare and order numbers
• use patterns to remember addition facts
• solve subtraction problems using fact families
• generate ordered pairs from a real-life situation
• identify and extend a list of ordered pairs
• solve problems using patterns

Geometry and Spatial Reasoning.  Students:

• identify attributes of shapes and solids
• combine shapes and solids using attributes
• cut geometric shapes apart and identify the new shapes made
• locate and name whole numbers on a number line

Measurement.  Students:

• identify models for standard units of length, capacity, and weight
• measure using standard units
• describe length of an activity
• read a thermometer to gather data
• describe time on a clock (hours, minutes)

Probability and Statistics.  Students:

• construct picture and bar graphs
• draw conclusions and answer questions from graphs
• describe an event as more likely or less likely

Problem Solving.  Students:

• identify mathematics in everyday situations
• use a problem-solving model
• select or develop an appropriate problem-solving strategy
• use tools such as real objects, manipulatives, and technology to solve problems
• relate informal language to mathematical language and symbols
• reason and support their thinking using objects, words, pictures, numbers, and technology

In second grade science, your child will learn:

Scientific Investigations.  Students:

• conduct classroom and field investigations using safe practices
• learn how to use and conserve resources

Scientific Inquiry and Critical Thinking.  Students:

• ask questions about organisms, objects, and events
• plan and conduct simple descriptive investigations
• compare results of investigations with what students know about the world
• explain a problem and identify a task and solution related to the problem

Tools and Models.  Students:

• collect information using tools including rulers, meter sticks, measuring cups, clocks, hand lenses, computers, thermometers, and balances
• measure and compare organisms and objects

Properties and Patterns  Students:

• classify organisms, objects, and events based on properties and patterns
• identify, predict, replicate, and create patterns

Systems.  Students:

• know that systems have parts and are composed of organisms and objects
• identify parts that, when put together, can do things they cannot do by themselves

Change.  Students:

• observe, measure, and analyze changes, including weather, the night sky, and seasons 
• identify, predict, and test uses of heat to cause change

Living Organisms and Non-Living Objects.  Students:

• identify characteristics of living organisms and nonliving objects 

Basic Needs of Organisms.  Students:

• identify external characteristics of plants and animals that allow their basic needs to be met
• compare the ways living organisms depend on each other and on their environments

Processes of the Natural World.  Students:

• describe the water cycle
• identify uses of natural resources

In second grade social studies, your child will learn:

History.  Students:

• explain the significance of celebrations, such as Independence Day, and landmarks, such as state and national capitol buildings
• describe and measure calendar time
• create and interpret timelines
• name several sources of information about a given event
• compare various interpretations of the same time period
• identify contributions of people, such as Henrietta King and Robert Fulton

Geography.  Students:

• use symbols, find locations, and determine directions on maps and globes
• draw maps to show places and routes
• identify major landforms and bodies of water on maps and globes
• compare information from different sources about places and regions
• identify relationships between people and their physical environment
• identify ways people can conserve and replenish natural resources

Economics.  Students:

• explain how work provides income
• explain choices people have in a free enterprise system
• identify roles of producers and consumers

Government.  Students:

• identify functions of government
• identify governmental services in the community
• compare roles of public officials and identify ways they are selected

Citizenship.  Students:

• identify characteristics of good citizenship and identify historic figures and ordinary people who exemplify good citizenship
• identify patriotic songs and symbols

Culture.  Students:

• identify stories, statues, and other examples of local cultural heritage

Science, Technology, and Society.  Students:

• describe how science and technology have changed ways people meet basic needs and have changed communication, transportation, and recreation

Social Studies Skills.  Students:

• obtain information from a variety of sources
• use table of contents and glossaries to locate information
• sequence and categorize information
• identify main ideas, make predictions, and compare and contrast
• express ideas orally and create written and visual material
• use problem-solving and decision-making processes