A SNAPSHOT OF GRADE 2 LANGUAGE ARTS: Grade 2 benchmark expectations

The Language Arts Standards in Action: Balanced Literacy

What is Balanced Literacy?

Research tells us that writing, encoding, and reading, decoding, are two sides of the same coin—growth in one supports growth in another. As a matter of fact, the same can be said for the relationships among reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

A balanced literacy framework offers a structure for “balancing” reading and writing modes of instruction and learning so that each supports and strengthens the other. A balanced approach provides a daily variety of stimulating experiences in a social and supportive environment. In large group, small groups, “buddies,” and by themselves, students see skills modeled, experience skill-building in a shared scaffold, practice skills in a guided scaffold, and work independently. The components of a Balanced Literacy classroom include portions of the Language Arts block devoted to: reading aloud, shared reading, guided reading, independent reading, modeled writing, guided writing, independent writing, and word work (focused building of vocabulary, letters, letter forms, spelling, grammar).

What does it look like? Picture any first or second grade classroom at Enfield or Erdenheim. Spread throughout are small clusters of students, some independent workers, but only one group is working with the teacher. The students not working with the teacher are working purposefully, managing their own learning. A few are silently reading a self-selected book, responding in their reading journals and then sharing the response with a buddy. Two are whisper reading; another two are pair reading. Some are working independently or with a partner in a literacy center. Everyone seems to know the routine and the rules: murmuring and conferring, focused on their learning—each child moves from activity to activity on his or her own schedule. All of the classroom’s structure and its activities are designed to move the child from a level of high support, to moderate, to low, to little or no support in order to foster independence: self-reliance, self-monitoring.

What are the elements that make this classroom work?

A Work Board organizes the children and the activities:

lists the heterogeneous groups that have the same schedule of tasks

posts names and icons of routine tasks

provides flexible rotation of groups and meaningful tasks Literacy activities provide learning and practice opportunities Centers: making word wall words, art, writing, listening, poetry, response journals, computer, overhead projector, etc. Buddy reading: Students read to a partner Games

Independent reading: Students select their own reading material from browsing boxes/book tubs (sources at their independent reading level)

Guided Reading (Teacher works with a small group of children who have similar reading skills; uses leveled books (appropriate instructional level of the group) to teach processing strategies at increasing levels of difficulty

Shared reading--Morning Message and big book, usually the anthology (Using a

large text that everyone can see, teacher and children read together). Modeled writing (Teacher demonstrates) Interactive writing (Teacher and children work together to compose) Independent writing Read aloud (Teacher reads texts above students’ reading level to whole class or to

a small group) Guided writing --Teacher provides instruction

o Mini-lessons

o Individual conferences Assessment—daily by teacher observation and periodically with a running record, a tool for coding, scoring, and analyzing a child’s reading behaviors.

Flexible grouping--Children move ahead in their guided reading instruction when their running record indicates readiness. Therefore, students move ahead at their own pace.

Houghton Mifflin anthology: genre reading and extension activities Technology: webs, sorting, “Kidspiration” Word Study

Cunningham phonics Word Wall

Note: For more detailed descriptions of the elements of Balanced Literacy, see Grade 1 Snapshot.

1. Uses Before, During, and After reading strategies
2. Utilizes vocabulary strategies to comprehend the meaning of new words
3. Demonstrates fluency and comprehension in reading
4. Demonstrates comprehension
5. Follows written directions
6. Reads, explains essential content of informational texts and documents.
7. Reads, interprets, and responds to works of literature.
8. Compares the use of literary elements within and among texts.

1. o Connects reading to prior knowledge
2. o Makes predictions; revises them
3. o Visualizes
4. o Self-corrects mistakes
5. o Summarizes
6. o Reads familiar materials aloud with accuracy
7. o Makes responsible assertions about the ideas from text by citing evidence.
8. o Differentiates fact from opinion within text
9. o Sequences a story
10. o Responds to author’s purpose and formulates an opinion
11. o Identifies structures in literature (i.e., pattern books, predictable books, nursery rhymes, songs, poems, fairy tales, letters)
12. o Identifies main character, setting, problem, and resolution

1. Writes stories and poems
   1. Writes well-developed pieces using writing process
      1. Pre-writes to generate ideas
      2. Revises to improve focus, organization, content
      3. Edits to eliminate errors in conventions (reinforced by Daily Edit activity)
      4. Publishes for an audience

1. Identifies and uses a variety of sentence types
2. Uses basic capitalization and punctuation correctly
3. Knows functions of basic parts of speech: nouns (common, special, singular possessive, plural possessive), verbs (present tense, past tense, irregular verbs), adjectives and using adjectives to compare.

1. o Uses relevant illustrations
2. o Includes specific descriptions of people, places, and things
3. o Describes how something looks, feels, sounds, tastes, smells
4. o Uses proper format and sequence (beginning, middle, end; five parts of a friendly letter; topic/main idea/supporting details; time order words
5. o Makes judgments; gives reasons
6. o Maintains focus: awareness of audience and purpose; stays on topic
7. o Uses writing terminology of PA Writing Assessment Domain Scoring Guide to discuss writing issues
8. o Reflects upon and evaluates process and product

1. o Periodic, integrated Theme tests
   1. o Writing Workshop
      1. o Teacher anecdotal records
      2. o Samples
2. o SDST Writing Assessment Plan: Students take a district-developed writing assessment at the end of grade 2. Scores are used both to tailor individual instruction and to adjust program for grades 2, 3.

1. Listens to others in formal speaking situations
2. Listens to a selection of literature
3. Speaks using skills appropriate to formal speech and performance situations
4. Participates in small and large group presentations

1. o Exhibits appropriate eye contact and body language as listening behaviors
2. o Displays appropriate turn-taking behaviors
3. o Sequences a story
4. o Shows awareness of audience
5. o Reads aloud to others
6. o Delivers short “reports”
7. o Reports an emergency
8. o Organizes thoughts before speaking and has a clear beginning, middle, and end
9. o Participates as a speaker and/or listener through everyday conversation, interviews, class discussions, small group discussions, informal debates
10. o Gives directions and explanations

1. o Poses questions about a topic
2. o Takes notes with prompting and graphic organizers
3. o Summarizes main ideas
4. o Relates learned information to real life applications
5. o Documents sources with prompting and template