Second graders are developing into great readers and writers! This is a special year because it is the last year that students are really learning the building blocks of reading. In third grade, students will begin to move from "learning to read" to "reading to learn". Second grade is so important because students understand the basics that they learned in kindergarten and first grade, and are able to apply it to their reading and writing. Below, you will see a few ways that you can help your child to make the significant leap from learning to read to reading to learn.
Reading to Learn
Fluency - Fluent reading includes reading with expression in your voice, reading with appropriate phrasing depending on the sentence, reading smoothly, reading with appropriate volume, and reading at a good pace. Fluent reading develops when students are able to make their reading sound like individuals speaking as they do in daily life. Your child's reading rate and accuracy are very important. The less time he/she spends on trying to read a word, the more time the brain has to focus on comprehension. When students read fluently, they are able to capture the meaning of a story. Here are a few tips to help you practice fluency at home.
- Reread familiar books - Practice rereading and focus on one or two specific things each time. Focus on changing your voice depending on the ending punctuation. Focus on pausing for commas. Focus on reading loud/soft depending on the character and how he/she feels. Using familiar books will allow students to focus on how they are reading not just what they are reading.
- Read aloud - When you read aloud to your child, you are modeling great fluency. You are teaching your child what a good reader sounds like when you are expressive and change how you read about different topics or characters.
- Books on tape - Rent books on tape from the library or buy them online. Again, your child will hear examples of a great fluent reader by listening and following along in a book.
Summarizing - Summarizing is an important skill to practice after reading. It teaches readers to identify the important parts in the text and explain them with a few details. Readers will also determine what information is not as important. This is a difficult strategy for many children. Here are some questions you can ask your child after reading to support them in summarizing a story.
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Extending Writing - In second grade, students should be writing frequently. Ask your child to extend their reading through writing at home. After you read a book with your child, have them write about the book. You can use some of the questions listed above to help them identify major parts of the story. Remember, second graders are transitioning from just reading to "reading to learn". Writing can help you to see that your child is truly learning from a book. If students are writing frequently, the transition to third grade will be much smoother.
Click on the links below for more specific second grade resources!
Model, Model, Model
Maybe your child is reading on their own, but they have not quite mastered reading smoothly and with expression. This is called fluency. When students' fluency increases, they are able to read just like they speak. They are paying attention to periods, question marks, and exclamation marks so that they can change their voice accordingly. If you want to increase your child's fluency, you must MODEL fluent reading for them. You will begin to hear your child adding voice throughout the story. Click the button on the right to read more!
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Recommended Reading
Students in second grade are moving from learning to read to reading to learn. This list of books was put together by a teacher blogger for use in the classroom. You can use these books at home too! Each book includes a link to Amazon.com which makes ordering easy!
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{Parent Friendly} Common Core
You hear the term a lot...Common Core...but you're not quite sure what it's all about. This literacy specialist breaks it down into a few main ideas. It is parent-friendly and easy to read!
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Summer Before 3rd Grade
How will you keep your child engaged in learning during the summer? Here are some fun tips!
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