How to Make Your Second Grader a ‘Spell Pro’

When children are in the second grade, they can grasp lessons better and become well versed with spellings as well. They are exposed to poetry, fiction as well as informational text during this phase and as a result, become better. Word instruction and vocabulary are some of the main components of the curriculum for second grade.

Students are expected to improve their knowledge of words and their usage. Second graders can demonstrate a good understanding of different meaning words, read with fluency and accuracy as well as integrate all their ideas and knowledge.

What are the Basic Spellings Taught to a Grade 2 Child?

Second graders must generally know the spelling of words such as fast, first, green, goes, always, around and more. They have a command of sight words that are appropriate for their grade and also comprehend any informational text with the help of specific vocabulary. They can also understand the informational text and use context well to understand and comprehend the right meaning for homonyms, which are similar-sounding words.

Students in second grade should also be able to understand compound words and advanced phonics. Spelling words must also include irregular words such as was, says, were, who, said, what as well as why. Children should be able to master long-vowel, r-controlled, short vowel and consonant-blend patterns and more. Also, words that end with -ight can be introduced to their vocabulary, including words such as flight, night, bright and compound words such as bedroom, sailboat, and grandfather.

Second graders can also expand their text comprehension and word knowledge with independent word-play to motivate themselves to improve and enhance their learning. Children can learn to spell through creative activities that make second-grade fun for them.

List of Words that are Great to Prepare Your Child for Spelling Contests

There are spelling words for grade 2 that can be taught to second graders to help them understand how to spell correctly. These words are necessary for a 2nd grader’s vocabulary, and with practice, they will be able to spell better and progress.

Here’s a list of words that can be taught to students in second grade:

Across, after, ago, alarm, always, above, angry, animal, around, aunt

Bait, ball, balloon, band, bang, barn, bath, bead, beam, bean

Camp, cannot, carry, cash, caught, centre, charge, chess, chest, chicken

Dash, dear, deep, deer, desk, die, dirt, dish, dock, doctor, does, dream, dress, drip, drive, drop, drove, drum

Every, everyone

There are many spellings for grade 2 games that can be played among the kids to make it easier for second-graders to understand and comprehend different words.

How Can Parents Help their Children?

Parents can help their children improve spellings by just incorporating a few practices in their day-to-day activities. This makes it a good practice for the child as they also get to enjoy while studying. Here are a few helpful tools for parents:

1. Homeschooling Guide

Getting a homeschooling guide makes it easier for parents to teach additional lessons to their kids. This helps kids answer difficult questions with ease and get that much-needed practice for questions that may be hard to comprehend.

2. Curriculum Lessons

Taking their child’s curriculum at home is important as parents will be able to assess how their child is doing at school and where she is lacking.

3. Lesson Activity Finders

The activity finder helps parents with extra practice for their kids by allowing parents to preview the lessons.

4. Planning Worksheet

A planning worksheet makes it easier for parents to control the number of lessons their children have to learn every day. Parents can estimate the total activities per day with the help of this worksheet.

5. Parents’ Forum

By having an online portal, parents will be able to communicate with other parents and understand how they teach their children. The community will be able to trade ideas, join discussions and ask questions on the online community.

The spelling skills of students can develop in line with the phonemic awareness, reading comprehension, reading fluency, vocabulary, grammar, phonics, reading and writing programs among others. Children can also develop these foundational skills if parents get them interested in words and spellings. This is done through constant reading, regular writing, spelling games and many more fun activities.

Children can reinforce and develop foundational skills with the help of a few activities which include:

• Constant reading and the use of workbooks for reading
• Regular writing to enjoy a head start when it comes to punctuation, spelling and other concepts
• Studying different spelling rules such as the relationship between sounds and letters
• Playing quizzes, word games, spelling games and more to develop spelling skill
• Taking regular spelling bee contests to improve spelling
• Personalised tutoring to boost their confidence
• Computer spelling programs that are structured
• Providing them guidance and instruction with the help of guided spelling activities including word boxes and word sort
• Setting aside blocks of time for reading and spelling activities
• Creating a language environment at home that is based on the quality and quantity of words that are spoken.

It is important to remember that each child is unique and will learn at a different pace. What works for one child may not necessarily work for another child as they have different grasping speeds. Second grade is a time for learning through fun and incorporating such interactive elements into their studying material and daily routine is a great way to keep kids engaged and interested throughout their second grade.

Also Read:

Tips for Choosing the Best School for Your Child
Unexpected Benefits of Homeschooling
Pros and Cons of Getting Education at Boarding School