Reading Activities for 2nd Grade Children

Children in 2nd grade are developing their reading, spelling and comprehension skills. A student in 2nd grade needs constant practice in decoding sounds, learning patterns, blending sounds into words and developing fluency. This student will also benefit from comprehension activities as well. Literacy activities should have these major goals in mind and should use as many learning styles as possible to accommodate all students.

Word Sorts

Word sorts allow students to see patterns in sounds and in words. Word sorts should be taught in a particular way. The teacher stacks the deck with words that can be contrasted by sound, pattern or meaning. In the process of sorting, students have an opportunity to make their own discoveries and form their own generalizations about how the English spelling system works. Word sorts are about discovery and student-centered learning, not teacher-led instruction. Allow a student to discover the spelling patterns on his own, and he will be more apt to remember it.

Kinesthetic Activities

Use movement and art whenever possible to teach reading skills. Finger paint letters, draw letters in shaving cream or form letters out of clay or pipe cleaners. Practice blending kinesthetically as well. Using big letters, drop a four- to five-letter word on the floor, one letter a time. Have the student walk slowly through each letter, blending them together. Then have him jump back to the beginning of the word and physically slide through the entire word as he reads it quickly. This exercise develops fluency and blending.

Sight Word Recognition

Choose a book that contains the sight words you want to review. Point to each word as you read it aloud. After several readings of the book, copy the text onto chart paper and cover the illustrations. With the pictures covered up, your pupils can concentrate on identifying the words. Have students practice reading recipes and looking for sight words, going to places such as libraries and police stations and then writing about the experience, and doing art activities and then writing about the completed project. These activities help with sight word recognition but also help with phonetic development in reading and spelling.

Word Walls

Word walls are an area in the classroom where newly learned sight words and phonetically read words are placed in alphabetical order. Students can use the wall as a dictionary or for assistance when reading. You can also use your word wall to showcase word families with similar endings, and help student identify patterns in reading and spelling.

References

• "Words Their Way"; Donald R. Bear, Marcia Invernizzi, Shane Templeton, and Francine Johnston; 2004
• "The Reading Teacher's Survival Kit"; Wilma H. Miller, Ed.D; 2001

Resources

• Reading Activities for Parents of 2nd Graders