Common Core State Standards
2nd Grade ELA Standards
All 40 Common Core English language arts standards for 2nd grade, grouped into strands and written in plain English. The official wording is one click away. 7 have free practice you can print today.
40 standards
Reading: Literature RL
9 standardsKey Ideas and Details
RL.2.1
Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why and how questions about a story on your own, like why the fox tricked the hen.
Official wording
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
RL.2.2
Retell a fable or folktale from another culture, like The Tortoise and the Hare, and say what lesson or moral it teaches.
Official wording
Recount stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determine their central message, lesson, or moral.
RL.2.3
Explain how a character deals with a big event or problem in a story, like what a lost puppy does to find its way home.
Official wording
Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.
Craft and Structure
RL.2.4
Find the rhymes, repeated lines, steady beats and words that start with the same sound in a poem or song, and tell how they add rhythm and meaning.
Official wording
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 how a story is built, with a beginning that sets things up, a middle where the action happens and an ending that wraps it up.
Official wording
Describe the overall structure of a story, including describing how the beginning introduces the story and the ending concludes the action.
RL.2.6
Notice that the characters in a story see things differently and show it by using a different voice for each one when reading their lines aloud.
Official wording
Acknowledge differences in the points of view 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 both the pictures and the words of a book or e-book to explain who the characters are, where the story happens and what goes on in it.
Official wording
Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.
RL.2.8
(RL.2.8 not applicable to literature)Not applicable
RL.2.9
Tell what is the same and what changes between two tellings of one story, like a Cinderella from Europe and one from China.
Official wording
Compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story (e.g., Cinderella stories) by different authors or from different cultures.
Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity
RL.2.10
By year’s end, read and understand stories and poems written for 2nd and 3rd graders, with some help on the hardest ones.
Official wording
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.
Reading: Informational Text RI
10 standardsKey Ideas and Details
RI.2.1
Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why and how questions about the facts in an informational text, like why bees make honey.
Official wording
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
RI.2.2
Say what an informational text with several paragraphs is mostly about, and what each paragraph focuses on, like one paragraph about what sharks eat.
Official wording
Identify the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.
RI.2.3
Explain how the events, science ideas or steps in an informational text link up, like how each step in a recipe leads to the next.
Official wording
Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text.
Craft and Structure
RI.2.4
Figure out what a subject word in a 2nd grade science or social studies text means, like habitat in a book about animals.
Official wording
Determine the meaning of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 topic or subject area.
RI.2.5
Use captions, bold words, subheadings, a glossary, an index or the menus and icons on a screen to find a fact quickly instead of rereading everything.
Official wording
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
Say why the author wrote an informational text, like to answer a question, explain how something works or describe a place.
Official wording
Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
RI.2.7
Explain what a diagram, photo or map adds to an informational text, like a labeled drawing that shows how a pulley lifts a load.
Official wording
Explain how specific images (e.g., a diagram showing how a machine works) contribute to and clarify a text.
RI.2.8
Find a point the author makes, like that recycling helps the planet, and explain how each reason given backs it up.
Official wording
Describe how reasons support specific points the author makes in a text.
RI.2.9
Read two informational texts on one topic, like two books about volcanoes, and tell where their most important points agree and where they differ.
Official wording
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 year’s end, read and understand history, science and how-to texts written for 2nd and 3rd graders, with some help on the hardest ones.
Official wording
By the end of 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.
Reading: Foundational Skills RF
2 standardsPhonics and Word Recognition
RF.2.3
Sound out cap and cape, vowel teams like oa and ai, two-syllable words like paper and words with prefixes or suffixes, and read tricky words like said on sight.
Official wording
Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.aDistinguish long and short vowels when reading regularly spelled one-syllable words.bKnow spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams.cDecode regularly spelled two-syllable words with long vowels.dDecode words with common prefixes and suffixes.eIdentify words with inconsistent but common spelling-sound correspondences.fRecognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words.
Fluency
RF.2.4
Read 2nd grade books with understanding, read them aloud smoothly and with expression after a few tries, and reread to fix a word that does not make sense.
Official wording
Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.aRead grade-level text with purpose and understanding.bRead grade-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.cUse context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Writing W
7 standardsText Types and Purposes
W.2.1
Write an opinion about a topic or book, give reasons for it linked with words like because and also, and finish with a closing sentence.
Official wording
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 a short report that introduces a topic, like how plants grow, builds its points with facts and definitions, and ends with a closing sentence.
Official wording
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 a story about one event or a few in a row, with details about what people did, thought and felt, order words like first and then, and a real ending.
Official wording
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.2.4
(W.2.4 begins in grade 3)Not applicable
W.2.5
With help from adults and classmates, stick to one topic and improve a piece of writing by revising the ideas and editing the mistakes.
Official wording
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 an adult’s help, type up and share a piece of writing using different tools, like a word processor or a class blog, sometimes working with classmates.
Official wording
With guidance and support from adults, use a variety of digital tools to produce and publish writing, including in collaboration with peers.
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
W.2.7
Join a class project that gathers information, like reading several books about insects to write a report together or keeping notes on a science experiment.
Official wording
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
Answer a question by drawing on something you remember or by finding the facts in books or websites the teacher gives you.
Official wording
Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
W.2.9
(W.2.9 begins in grade 4)Not applicable
Range of Writing
W.2.10
(W.2.10 begins in grade 3)Not applicable
Speaking and Listening SL
6 standardsComprehension and Collaboration
SL.2.1
Discuss 2nd grade topics and books in small and large groups, follow the rules, build on what others say and ask when something is unclear.
Official wording
Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.aFollow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion).bBuild on others' talk in conversations by linking their comments to the remarks of others.cAsk for clarification and further explanation as needed about the topics and texts under discussion.
SL.2.2
Retell the main ideas and details of a story read aloud, a talk or a video, like the steps shown in a video about making butter.
Official wording
Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.
SL.2.3
Ask a speaker questions to clear up a confusing part, learn more or go deeper into the topic, and answer questions about what was said.
Official wording
Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension, gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.
Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
SL.2.4
Tell a story or share something that happened, like a trip to the zoo, with the right facts and vivid details, speaking clearly in sentences that hang together.
Official wording
Tell a story or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking audibly in coherent sentences.
SL.2.5
Record yourself reading a story or poem, and add drawings or other visuals to a story or recount when they help make the ideas and feelings clear.
Official wording
Create audio recordings of stories or poems; add drawings or other visual displays to stories or recounts of experiences when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.
SL.2.6
Answer in complete sentences when the situation calls for it, like when asked to add detail or explain what was meant.
Official wording
Produce complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification. (See grade 2 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)
Language L
6 standardsConventions of Standard English
L.2.1
Use words like team, feet, myself and told correctly, choose between an adjective and an adverb, and expand or rearrange simple and compound sentences.
Official wording
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.aUse collective nouns (e.g., group).bForm and use frequently occurring irregular plural nouns (e.g., feet, children, teeth, mice, fish).cUse reflexive pronouns (e.g., myself, ourselves).dForm and use the past tense of frequently occurring irregular verbs (e.g., sat, hid, told).eUse adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified.fProduce, 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
Capitalize holidays, brands and place names, use commas in letter greetings, write don’t and Sam’s with apostrophes, spell by known patterns, and check a dictionary.
Official wording
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.aCapitalize holidays, product names, and geographic names.bUse commas in greetings and closings of letters.cUse an apostrophe to form contractions and frequently occurring possessives.dGeneralize learned spelling patterns when writing words (e.g., cage → badge; boy → boil).eConsult reference materials, including beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and correct spellings.
Knowledge of Language
L.2.3
Notice the difference between formal and casual English, like Good morning, Mrs. Lee versus Hey, and choose which fits the moment.
Official wording
Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.aCompare formal and informal uses of English
Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
L.2.4
Figure out a new word in 2nd grade reading from its sentence, a prefix like un- in unhappy, a root like add in addition, its parts like birdhouse, or a dictionary.
Official wording
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.aUse sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.bDetermine the meaning of the new word formed when a known prefix is added to a known word (e.g., happy/unhappy, tell/retell).cUse a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., addition, additional).dUse knowledge of the meaning of individual words to predict the meaning of compound words (e.g., birdhouse, lighthouse, housefly; bookshelf, notebook, bookmark).eUse glossaries and beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases.
L.2.5
Connect words to real life, like naming foods that are spicy or juicy, and tell apart close words like toss, throw and hurl or thin, slender and scrawny.
Official wording
Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings.aIdentify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe foods that are spicy or juicy).bDistinguish 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
Put new words from talks, books and read-alouds to work, including describing words like gentle and quickly, when speaking and writing about what was read.
Official wording
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).
2nd Grade Practice
Worksheet generators and printables already set up for this grade’s standards, free to use.
2nd Grade ELA Standards: Questions
Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Official wording from the Common Core State Standards PDFs at corestandards.org, last checked October 14, 2026. The plain-English lines on this page are EMStudio’s own explanations, shown beside the official wording. They are not part of the standard.