A.R.

Ware Elementary School

Parents Night
Second Grade Reading, Writing, and Spelling
Dear Parents/Guardians,
I am very excited about working with your child this year. I have a lot of fun activities
planned to help your child succeed in literacy. We will have our curriculum for literacy split into
three main topics: reading, writing, and spelling.
Reading:
We will focus on helping your student become a fluent reader. Fluency is defined as the
ability to read with speed, accuracy, and proper expression. In order to understand what
they read, children must be able to read fluently whether they are reading aloud or
silently. When reading aloud, fluent readers read in phrases and add intonation
appropriately. Their reading is smooth and has expression.
Your child will also begin how to comprehend while they read. Comprehension is the
understanding and interpretation of what is read. To be able to accurately understand
written material, children need to be able to (1) decode what they read; (2) make
connections between what they read and what they already know; and (3) think deeply
about what they have read. One big part of comprehension is having a sufficient
vocabulary, or knowing the meanings of enough words.
I will evaluate all the students reading and they level they are at, to create reading
groups. Each reading group will focus on a different quality.
o Group 1: these students will be focusing on directed reading instruction (DRI)
o Group 2: these students will be focusing on how to read fluently
o Group 3: these students will be focusing on vocabulary and comprehension
Writing:
During this year we will focus on bettering your childs handwriting. They will be graded
on their letter formation, size of the letters, space provided between each word, and
their neatness. We will have around 4 handwriting grades per nine weeks.
We will focus on using the correct punctuation when creating sentences. This includes
capitalization, periods, question marks, exclamation marks, and even commas.
Your child will learn the different types of genres of writing and when to use each. The
ones we will focus on is:
o Poetry
o Journal Writing
o Non-fiction Writing
Spelling:

Throughout this year we will be using word study as our spelling program. "Word
study" is an alternative to traditional spelling instruction. It is based on learning word
patterns rather than memorizing unconnected words.
Each week students will be given words based on their level. Therefore, not all students
will have the same words for a particular week. We base what words they should be
able to spell on the developmental spelling assessment.
The spelling words will be sorted into no more than four categories, so the students are
able to sort their words which will help them learn word patterns.
Students will have a particular task they have to do with the words each day of the
week. On Thursdays we will take a practice spelling test, and then every Friday we take
a spelling test that will be graded. Therefore, every nine weeks the students should
have 8 word study grades.

I encourage you to contact me anytime you have questions or concerns about anything with
the literacy program. I look forward to spending this new school year teaching your child about
literacy and being part of a support system with you!
Thanks!

Rachel Thomas