Literacy concepts assessed in Second Grade include:

Reading Literature and Informational texts

Students demonstrate the ability to think about reading by

• Asking and answering such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
• Recounting stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determining their central message, lesson, or moral; identifying the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.
• Describing how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges; describing the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text.
• Acknowledging differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud; identifying the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe.
• Comparing and contrasting two or more versions of the same story by different authors or from different cultures, including those by or about Minnesota American Indians; comparing and contrasting the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic.

Reading Foundational

Students demonstrate the mechanical skills of reading by

• Knowing and applying grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.
• Reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension; accurately reading grade-level text with purpose and understanding, using appropriate rate and expression.

Writing

Students compose ideas in the following genres

• Opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support their opinion, use linking words to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.
• Informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.
• Narratives and other creative texts in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.

Speak, Listen, Language

Students can

• Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
• Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension, gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issues.
• Tell a story or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, avoid plagiarism by identifying sources, and speak audibly in coherent sentences.
• Demonstrate command of grade-appropriate conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
• Demonstrate command of grade-appropriate conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation and spelling when writing.
• Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on second grade reading and content.