CT Common Core Reading Standards for 2nd Grade

On July 7, 2010, the Connecticut State Board of Education adopted the new Common Core State Standards. While the Standards have yet to be implemented (and will most likely undergo further changes), what follows is a summary of the National and Connecticut State Reading Standards for Students in the 2^nd Grade (broken down into two levels of common categories). These will eventually be implemented statewide, including all of Fairfield County:

Literature Standards

Key Ideas and Details

1. Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

2. Recount stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determine their central message, lesson, or moral.

3. Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

Craft and Structure

4. Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.

5. Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action.

6. Acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

7. Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.

8. (Not applicable to literature)

9. Compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story (e.g., Cinderella stories) by different authors or from different cultures.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

10. By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories and poetry, in the grades 2–3 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

Informational Text Standards

Key Ideas and Details

1. Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

2. Identify the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.

3. Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text.

Craft and Structure

4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 topic or subject area.

5. Know and use various text features (e.g., captions, bold print, subheadings, glossaries, indexes, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text efficiently.

6. Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

7. Explain how specific images (e.g., a diagram showing how a machine works) contribute to and clarify a text.

8. Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text.

9. Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

10. By the end of year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, in the grades 2–3 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

 Foundational Skills Standards

 Phonics and Word Recognition

1. Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

a)       Distinguish long and short vowels when reading regularly spelled one-syllable words.

b)       Know spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams.

c)       Decode regularly spelled two-syllable words with long vowels.

d)       Decode words with common prefixes and suffixes.

e)       Identify words with inconsistent but common spelling-sound correspondences.

f)        Recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words.

2. Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.

a)       Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.

b)       Read grade-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.

c)       Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.