Grade 2

Second grade provides a nurturing and challenging environment for learning. At this age, students become increasingly more accountable for their learning and choices. Organizational skills, strategies, and work habits are taught in a concise manner; expectations and structure are clearly defined and reinforced throughout the year. A challenging and joyful learning environment is created to allow for risk-taking, creative thinking, and laughter. Second graders learn how to navigate and negotiate developmentally appropriate social skills in a safe and supportive environment. The philosophy of the Responsive Classroom is reinforced through all aspects of life in the second grade.

See below for an overview of the curriculum.

2nd Grade Capstone Project

Students wrote and illustrated unique circular stories, printed and bound their books, and presented to an audience of parents, teachers and school administrators.

Grade 2 Curriculum

Mathematics

Demonstrate competence in addition and subtraction of three-digit numbers with regrouping; apply this knowledge in one- and two-step word problems
Understand and apply basic concepts of multiplication and division
Comprehend fractional parts of a whole
Use bar models as a problem solving tool
Create, read, and interpret bar graphs and pictographs, and use the information to solve problems
Use standard and metric measurement tools to measure length, weight, volume, and temperature
Use analog clock to tell time to five minutes
Review and practice coin and dollar identification; apply to real life word problems
Understand and use basic geometric shapes and concepts such as perimeter and area

Language Arts

Reading

Decode, comprehend, and discuss various genres, emphasizing fluency
Relate various text ideas to own experiences; text to text, self, and world
Apply independent reading strategies such as rereading, predicting content, using context clues and asking questions
In proper sequence, identify the story elements (main idea, character, setting, problem and solution)
Understand facts and details of a story, identify and analyze genre
Answer comprehension questions in full, meaningful sentences
Begin to use the dictionary as a tool for learning new vocabulary

Writing

Write complete sentences using modifiers and correct punctuation, stressing legibility and letter formation
Create and construct a short paragraph using a topic sentence, closing sentence, and detail sentences
Write a coherent journal entry, explore creation of descriptive poetry, write a biography and a friendly letter
Create and publish a circle story using the iPad, complete with text and illustrations
Organize thoughts and express them clearly in written work; utilize graphic organizers
Use prefixes, suffixes, and other spelling rules to form words correctly
Form uppercase and lowercase letters in manuscript and cursive

Science

Social Studies

Understand and use cardinal and intermediate directions (N, S, W, E, NE, etc.), use and understand map symbols and map scale, and create simple maps
Explore different roles in a community through research and interview; create a model of a community. Understand rural, suburban and urban communities.
Study the states, capitals, geography, and unique characteristics of all fifty United States
Explore the Peabody Essex Museum as a community using interview skills, observation, and critique; learn how to observe and critique a specific artifact at the museum
Study of chocolate: learn about the process of growing cacao, processing it, and the creation of chocolate products

Spanish

Communicate using basic conversational skills
Retell a simple story using learned text
Learn introductory Spanish vocabulary, including: greetings, polite expressions, weather and calendar, numbers, colors, and family
Describe the life cycle of a butterfly and butterfly migration in Spanish
Study unique cultural aspects of Mexico
Explore Spanish and Hispanic culture through books, songs, and games

Library

Integrated Technology

Students utilize iPads and Chromebooks to support classroom learning in reading (RAZ Kids, Accelerated Reader) and in writing various genre, including poetry, descriptive paragraphs, and narrative stories. Students use specific apps such Book Creator and Drawing Pad to publish books for the annual Author's Tea. In math, students use IXL and various math games to support skill development. In social studies, students use their devices to research the states and use apps such as Stack the States to learn about geography.

Music

Recognize, demonstrate, notate, and create with the rhythms: half note, whole note, half rest, and whole rest
Identify notes on the staff starting with Middle C, D, and E and moving to the spaces F, A, C, E
Identify, sing with accuracy, notate, and create with the melodic notes: do, re, mi, so, and la
Demonstrate independence and accuracy when singing rounds, partner songs, and more difficult melodies
Identify form, musical themes, and instruments in classical masterworks

Visual Arts

Become proficient with color mixing and be able to make neutral browns and grays using primary colors
Strengthen awareness and use of both compositional space and detail in drawings
Understand and create a realistic composition and an abstract composition
Become familiar with artists who work in the abstract, such as Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse
Introduce planning and revising as key components to the creative process
Plan and create a collaborative art instillation
Build a unique clay sculpture, using “score and slip” joints, coiling, and pinch pot techniques
Participate in a community critique using second grade art vocabulary

Woodworking

Physical Education

Perform various locomotor movements with ease while participating in general tag games
Demonstrate continuance of manipulative skills such as overhand throw, a catch, dribbling a soccer ball, and rolling a ball to a target
Demonstrate improving non-locomotor skill such as balancing on a balance beam, swinging on ropes, and other gross motor skill
Begin to use rackets for various balloon, ball, birdie striking games
Chase and dodge to avoid others in a game situation
Demonstrate the rules and boundaries expected for participation the gym and on the outdoor field
Demonstrate an understanding of strategies of large group games
Work productively with a partner or small group

Tower teaches me to be kind to everyone.

Arthur Medeiros, Tower Parent, recalling the words of his son, Jack.

Curriculum

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