The Common Core in Iowa

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Skills available for Iowa second-grade language arts standards

Standards are in black and IXL language arts skills are in dark green. Hold your mouse over the name of a skill to view a sample question. Click on the name of a skill to practice that skill.

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Iowa Academic Standards for ELA and Literacy (adopted in 2024): Grade 2 Iowa Academic Standards for ELA and Literacy (adopted in 2024): Grade 2
Iowa Core: Language Iowa Core: Language
Iowa Core: Reading: Foundational Skills Iowa Core: Reading: Foundational Skills
Iowa Core: Reading: Informational Text Iowa Core: Reading: Informational Text
Iowa Core: Reading: Literature Iowa Core: Reading: Literature
Iowa Core: Writing Iowa Core: Writing

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WF.2 Writing Standards: Foundational Skills

Writing Foundations
- WF.2.1 Print independently and legibly for a variety of tasks and purposes.
  - WF.2.1.a Produce manuscript writing with accuracy and automaticity.
  - WF.2.1.b Begin to produce cursive writing.

W.2 Writing Standards

Text Types and Purposes
- W.2.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.
- W.2.2 Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.
  - Select the detail that does not support the topic sentence (2-II.1)
  - Choose topic sentences for expository paragraphs (2-II.3)
- W.2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.
Production and Distribution of Writing
- W.2.5 With guidance and support from adults and peers, focus on a topic and strengthen writing as needed by revising and editing.
- W.2.6 With guidance and support from adults and collaboration with peers, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing.
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
- W.2.7 Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., read a number of books on a single topic to produce a report; record science observations).
- W.2.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.

L.2 Language Standards

Conventions of Standard English
- L.2.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
  - L.2.1.a Use collective nouns (e.g., group).
  - L.2.1.b Form and use frequently occurring irregular plural nouns (e.g., feet, children, teeth, mice, fish).
    - Form and use irregular plurals (2-ZZ.10)
  - L.2.1.c Use reflexive pronouns (e.g., myself, ourselves).
    - Choose between personal and reflexive pronouns (2-AAA.9)
    - Use reflexive pronouns (2-AAA.10)
  - L.2.1.d Form and use the past tense of frequently occurring irregular verbs (e.g., sat, hid, told).
  - L.2.1.e Use adjectives and adverbs.
  - L.2.1.f Produce, expand, and rearrange complete simple and compound sentences (e.g., The boy watched the movie; The little boy watched the movie; The action movie was watched by the little boy).
- L.2.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
  - L.2.2.a Capitalize holidays, product names, and geographic names.
    - Capitalizing days, months, and holidays (2-JJJ.2)
    - Capitalizing the names of places and geographic features (2-JJJ.3)
  - L.2.2.b Use commas in greetings and closings of letters.
    - Greetings and closings of letters (2-JJJ.6)
  - L.2.2.c Use an apostrophe to form contractions and frequently occurring possessives.
  - L.2.2.d Generalize learned spelling patterns when writing words (e.g., cage --> badge; boy --> boil).
  - L.2.2.e Consult reference materials (e.g., beginning dictionaries) as needed, to check and correct spellings.
Knowledge of Language
- L.2.3 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
  - L.2.3.a Compare formal and informal uses of English.
Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
- L.2.4 Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 2 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies.
  - L.2.4.a Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
  - L.2.4.b Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known prefix is added to a known word (e.g., happy/unhappy, tell/retell).
    - Determine the meaning of a word with pre-, re-, or mis- (2-OO.3)
    - Use the prefixes pre-, re-, and mis- (2-OO.4)
  - L.2.4.c Use a known root word to identify the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., addition, additional).
  - L.2.4.d Use reference materials (e.g., glossaries and beginning dictionaries) to determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases.
- L.2.5 Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings.
  - L.2.5.a Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe foods that are spicy or juicy).
  - L.2.5.b Distinguish shades of meaning among closely related verbs (e.g., toss, throw, hurl) and closely related adjectives (e.g., thin, slender, skinny, scrawny).
- L.2.6 Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts, including using adjectives and adverbs to describe (e.g., When other kids are happy that makes me happy).

The Common Core in Iowa

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RL.2 Reading Standards for Literature

Key Ideas and Details

RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details using evidence from the text.

RL.2.2 Recount and determine the central message, lesson or moral of stories, including but not limited to fables and folktales from diverse cultures.

RL.2.3 Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges, drawing on key details.

Craft and Structure

RL.2.4 Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.

RL.2.5 Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story, how the middle progresses the plot, and how the ending concludes the action.

RL.2.6 Acknowledge differences in the points of view (perspective) of characters, including by speaking in a different voice for each character when reading dialogue aloud.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

RL.2.7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a story to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.

RL.2.9 Compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story by different authors or from different cultures.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

RL.2.10 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.

RI.2 Reading Standards for Informational Text

Key Ideas and Details

RI.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details using evidence from the text.

RI.2.2 Identify the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.

RI.2.3 Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text.

Craft and Structure

RI.2.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 topic or subject area.

RI.2.5 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.

RI.2.6 Identify the main purpose of a text, including the author's point of view and or perspective.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

RI.2.7 Explain how specific images (e.g., a diagram showing how a machine works) and details contribute to and clarify a text.

RI.2.8 Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text.

RI.2.9 Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

RI.2.10 By the end of the 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.

RF.2 Reading Standards: Foundational Skills

Phonics and Word Recognition

RF.2.3 Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills to support decoding and encoding words.

RF.2.3.a Decode and encode long and short vowels in regularly-spelled one-syllable words.

RF.2.3.b Decode and encode common vowel teams. With prompting and support, decode and encode additional vowel teams.

RF.2.3.c Decode and encode regularly spelled two-syllable or multisyllabic words.

RF.2.3.d Decode and encode words with common prefixes and suffixes.

RF.2.3.e With prompting and support, decode and encode words with inconsistent but common spelling-sound correspondences.

RF.2.3.f Read grade-appropriate high frequency words with accuracy and automaticity.

Fluency

RF.2.4 Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.

RF.2.4.a Read grade-level text with purpose and understanding.

RF.2.4.b Use decoding skills to self-correct word recognition, rereading as necessary.

RF.2.4.c Read grade-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.

WF.2 Writing Standards: Foundational Skills

Writing Foundations

WF.2.1 Print independently and legibly for a variety of tasks and purposes.

WF.2.1.a Produce manuscript writing with accuracy and automaticity.

WF.2.1.b Begin to produce cursive writing.

W.2 Writing Standards

Text Types and Purposes

W.2.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.

W.2.2 Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.

W.2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.

Production and Distribution of Writing

W.2.5 With guidance and support from adults and peers, focus on a topic and strengthen writing as needed by revising and editing.

W.2.6 With guidance and support from adults and collaboration with peers, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing.

Research to Build and Present Knowledge

W.2.7 Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., read a number of books on a single topic to produce a report; record science observations).

W.2.8 Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.

L.2 Language Standards

Conventions of Standard English

L.2.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

L.2.1.a Use collective nouns (e.g., group).

L.2.1.b Form and use frequently occurring irregular plural nouns (e.g., feet, children, teeth, mice, fish).

L.2.1.c Use reflexive pronouns (e.g., myself, ourselves).

L.2.1.d Form and use the past tense of frequently occurring irregular verbs (e.g., sat, hid, told).

L.2.1.e Use adjectives and adverbs.

L.2.1.f Produce, expand, and rearrange complete simple and compound sentences (e.g., The boy watched the movie; The little boy watched the movie; The action movie was watched by the little boy).

L.2.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

L.2.2.a Capitalize holidays, product names, and geographic names.

L.2.2.b Use commas in greetings and closings of letters.

L.2.2.c Use an apostrophe to form contractions and frequently occurring possessives.

L.2.2.d Generalize learned spelling patterns when writing words (e.g., cage --> badge; boy --> boil).

L.2.2.e Consult reference materials (e.g., beginning dictionaries) as needed, to check and correct spellings.

Knowledge of Language

L.2.3 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

L.2.3.a Compare formal and informal uses of English.