Welcome to 2nd Grade

Curriculum Night

Reading• Harcourt Trophies literacy program• Comprehension activities include

summarizing, comparing/contrasting, making inferences, asking and answering questions, etc.

• More emphasis on non-fiction reading.• Phonics help to strengthen decoding

and fluency.

Language Arts

• Each Harcourt story includes a

phonics and spelling skill,

vocabulary words and grammar

focus.

Writing• Examples of 2nd grade writing include

narrative, informational and opinion writing.

• Resources include Harcourt Writing, Writer’s Workshop (Lucy Calkins) and the Six Traits of Writing.

Math• Investigations: hands-on explorations

into math topics, problem-solving and inventive thinking about math.

• Major topics include number sense, addition and subtraction of larger numbers, time, money, measurement, geometry, graphing,, discrete math and fractions.

Science• Physical science: Solids, Liquids and

Gases• Earth science: Weather• Life science: Human Body,

Mammals, Insects• Topics include experiments and

integrated writing.

Social Studies• Resource: Harcourt Social

Studies, integrates reading and writing skills into Social Studies.

• Major units include: Government, Our World, People Around Us, The Marketplace, and Using Resources

Health• Harcourt Health: provides

foundation for studying healthy practices

• Healthy food choices• Importance of activity• Community health resources

Technology• Use of websites such as Dreambox,

Bookflix, and other resources.

• Programs include Pixie 2, Kidspiration, Word, Power Point, and Typing Agent.

• Internet used for research in science and social studies.

Grading• Proficient – Consistently uses a

skill, shows mastery of content. • Developing – Use of a skill is

emerging, on the way to mastery. • Area of concern – Experiencing

significant difficulty in an area.

Grading• Approximate ranges of grades:

– Proficient – scores of 90% or higher– Developing – scores of 70 – 89%– Area of Concern – scores below 69%

• Grading is based on a variety of assessments: teacher observation, checklists, paper and pencil, performance, rubrics, etc.

Homework• Homework provides practice of skills

and responsibility and follow-through.

• Homework is not graded, but checked for completion and effort.

• Parents are asked to check homework at home for accuracy, and to help correct errors immediately.

• Classroom Rules

• Behavior Expectations

Communication• Please stay in contact through

– Email– Class web page– Phone• Weekly updates and news are sent

through email.• Please check your child’s home

folder each night for notices and updates, and returned work.

Nothing succeeds like success!

Let’s look forward to a successful year in our shared goal: helping your child reach his or her potential!