• Language Arts Curriculum
    Reading is the priority in second grade. Students will be immersed in a print-rich environment to develop oral language skills, phonetic skills, vocabulary, comprehension, and an awareness of print materials as sources of information and enjoyment.
    • Students will use listening and speaking skills to participate in classroom discussions.
    • Students will use a variety of strategies to read new words and will read familiar selections with fluency and expression.
    • Students will continue to develop an understanding of character, setting, main idea, and story sequence in a variety of texts.
    • Students will increase vocabulary and comprehension strategies by reading age-appropriate materials across the curriculum, with emphasis on materials that reflect the State and School District Learnings in mathematics, science, and social studies.
    • The students will also demonstrate comprehension of fiction and nonfiction selections through classroom discussion and will begin to communicate ideas in writing.
    Language Arts Components
     
     Word Study
    • Students will develop an understanding of what sounds particular letters, groups of letters and letter relations make.

    Fluency and Independent Reading

    • Reader's Workshop
      Reader's Workshop is a framework that provides students with reading instruction and focused time to read self-selected books independently or with partners/small groups. 

      *      The structure of Reader's Workshop includes:

      –        mini-lesson The children receive explicit instruction in the process and skills of proficient reading 

      –        time for guided and independent practice: Students read high-interest, just-right books of their own choosing while the teacher works with individual students or small groups

      –        At the end of the workshop, the students usually gather together again.  The teacher may highlight an important concept or provide time for a few students to share their work.

      -        Teachers use the Great Valley Reader's Workshop curriculum to guide instruction.  It is divided into units; each focused unit was designed to teach specific skills and strategies. 

    • Guided Reading
    Vocabulary
     
    Comprehension
    • Teacher Interactive Read-Aloud and Reader’s Workshop will emphasize the importance of being strategic readers not simply decoders of words.
    Writing
      • Writer's Workshop
        -     During Lucy Calkins “Writer’s Workshop”, students write stories based on their own personal experiences. Help your child to think of ideas that they could write about in school.
         
    What Good Readers Do
    Before reading I think about...
    • the title
    • the pictures
    • what I already know about the topic (schema)
    • my purpose for reading
    • my predictions about the text
    • my questions
    While I am reading...
    • ask myslef, Does this make sence?
    • ask myself, Does this sound right?
    • focus on beginning sounds, "chunks" within words, and endings to figure out unknown words
    • backtrack when the meaning isn't clear
    • read on past difficult words or groups of words to get more information
    • confirm or correct my predictions
    After reading I...
    • think about the author's message
    • reflect on how the text matched or didn't match my predictions
    • think about how the text relates to real life