2nd Grade

2nd Grade students build upon their learning habits and foundational skills from 1st Grade. To gain collaboration and cooperation skills, students enjoy working in groups or with partners. 2nd Grade students develop executive functioning skills such as organization, attention, perseverance, and time-management. In addition, students practice critical thinking skills such as analyzing, organizing, evaluating, and implementing strategies previously learned by solving a problem in a new way. They are empowered to make choices about where to work, how to practice skills, and which extension activities they want to complete.

2nd Grade Curriculum

Math

2nd Grade math focuses on reviewing and extending concepts from 1st Grade, such as number sense, place value, addition and subtraction strategies, and word problems. After learning a variety of strategies, students are encouraged to solve math problems using whatever strategy they are drawn to, and emphasis is placed on explaining their thinking to others afterward. This helps students develop mental flexibility and builds their toolbox of strategies they can call upon. Students learn fractions, 2D and 3D shapes, measurement, and are introduced to concepts of multiplication. Students get hands-on experience using money through the 2nd Grade Classroom Economy. Students earn a weekly salary from their classroom job, which they use to pay rent and make purchases in our classroom store.

Language Arts

As in 1st Grade, the 2nd Grade Language Arts program includes reading, writing, grammar, word study, and phonics. Teachers use a structured literacy approach to teach reading based on the science of reading, which demonstrates that both word recognition and language comprehension are required for skilled reading. Students learn decoding skills in explicit, sequenced small group lessons. Students also engage in lessons about comprehension skills and have ample fluency practice. In 2nd Grade, many students transition from learning to read to reading to learn, and the nonfiction units on animals and habitats are a hallmark of the 2nd Grade experience.

2nd Grade writing is taught using a workshop model, which moves students through a writing process of brainstorming, planning, writing, revising, editing, and publishing. Emphasis is placed on independence moving between each step of the process. Teachers support students’ individual growth by conferring with students and identifying areas for mini-lessons that are tailored to the needs of each class. Throughout the year, students write fictional stories, nonfiction reports, and personal narratives. Using a multisensory approach to learning grammar, students study the parts of speech by connecting each to a color. This helps students learn typical patterns in sentences, so they can eventually compose original sentences of varying lengths and complexities based on the color patterns they learn. Our scientific spelling lessons teach reliable patterns and rules of the English language so that students can learn to think more independently about how to spell words that are less familiar.

Social Studies and Thematic Learning

As 2nd grade students grow in their reading, writing, and math skills, more social studies and science topics are woven into their daily lessons. 2nd Grade students learn map skills and different types of communities, land and water forms, and how communities change over time. Students research and write about habitats with a focus on classifying animals and animal adaptations. After learning about our planet, students learn about outer space.

2nd Grade students participate in many STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) challenges throughout the year, which encourages them to try new approaches using imagination and invention. They also learn about many famous inventors and scientists.

Science

2nd Grade students attend science class twice every six days. Students learn about and engage in the scientific process as well as use many scientific tools such as microscopes, thermometers, and devices to measure time, weight, volume, and capacity. Science process skills include observing qualities, measuring quantities, sorting/classifying, inferring, predicting, experimenting, and communicating. Science experiments offer students many opportunities to work in groups, follow their own interests, explore cause and effect, and get messy!

2nd Grade Science topics include: Motion; magnetism; classifying objects; heat, light, and sound; weather patterns and seasonal patterns; properties of soil and rocks; natural resources; objects in the sky; plant parts; animal features and life cycles; food chains; the interdependence of living things.

Social-Emotional Learning

Lower School classrooms use the Responsive Classroom approach to classroom management. This approach focuses on establishing classroom routines, procedures, and relationships so students learn to make good choices that contribute to a positive learning environment. Students participate in classroom meetings where they discuss class issues, set goals, and practice active listening to work together to reach a common goal. Teachers guide students to collaborate in whole-class and small group settings successfully. 2nd graders focus on showing grit and perseverance through weekly STEAM challenges, which require them to create and follow a plan, test their product, and reflect on the outcome of the challenge.

Enrichment Classes

In 2nd Grade at St. Mark's, Students Practice:

Meet the 2nd Grade Team

Learn more about Lower School

Learn more about 3rd Grade

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2nd Grade

2nd Grade Curriculum

Math

Language Arts

Social Studies and Thematic Learning

Science

Social-Emotional Learning

Enrichment Classes

In 2nd Grade at St. Mark's, Students Practice:

Meet the 2nd Grade Team

Margaret Alvarez

Sarah Aylsworth

Dewayne Bowden

Sara Brannon

Roma Coleman

Amy Evans

MaryMichael Grivon

Amanda McGee

Jeff Merino

Laurie Mitchell

Amanda Rea

Emily Rueda

Kristin Sullivan

Kristin Uptmor

Charlotte Wallin

Heather Williams