Pennsylvania Standards
Pennsylvania 2nd Grade ELA Standards
All 54 Pennsylvania English language arts standards for 2nd grade, each explained in plain English. The official wording is in Pennsylvania Department of Education's document, linked at the end of this page.
54 standards
Foundational Skills
2 standardsCC.1.1.2.D
Say the main sound of each consonant, know the long and short sounds of a, e, i, o and u, and read common sight words like the, of and you.
CC.1.1.2.E
Read second-grade texts with a goal and understanding, read aloud correctly at a steady speed with feeling on rereads, and fix words that do not fit the sentence.
Reading Informational Text
11 standardsCC.1.2.2.A
Name the main idea of a nonfiction text with several paragraphs and tell what each paragraph is mainly about.
CC.1.2.2.B
Show they understand a nonfiction text’s key facts by asking and answering who, what, where, when, why and how questions.
CC.1.2.2.C
Describe how a chain of events, ideas or steps in a nonfiction text are linked, like the steps for planting a seed.
CC.1.2.2.E
Find key facts in a text quickly using features like captions, bold print, subheadings and indexes, or online search tools and links.
CC.1.2.2.F
Explain what words and phrases mean as used in a second-grade science or history text, including words with more than one meaning, like plant.
CC.1.2.2.G
Explain how pictures, diagrams and charts add to a nonfiction text and make it easier to understand, like a diagram of a machine.
CC.1.2.2.H
Find a point the author makes, like that recycling helps the planet, and explain how each reason given backs it up.
CC.1.2.2.I
Read two informational texts on one topic, like two books about volcanoes, and tell where their most important points agree and where they differ.
CC.1.2.2.J
Learn and use second-grade everyday, school and subject words, like describe, compare and habitat, when reading nonfiction.
CC.1.2.2.K
Figure out unknown or double-meaning words in second-grade nonfiction using strategies like context clues, word parts, glossaries and dictionaries.
CC.1.2.2.L
Read and understand second-grade nonfiction, like biographies and science articles, on their own with skill.
Reading Literature
11 standardsCC.1.3.2.A
Retell stories, like fables and folktales, and figure out the big message, lesson or moral each one teaches.
CC.1.3.2.B
Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why and how questions about a story to show they understand its important details.
CC.1.3.2.C
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.
CC.1.3.2.D
Notice that characters see things differently, and show it by using a different voice for each one when reading their lines aloud.
CC.1.3.2.E
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.
CC.1.3.2.F
Describe how words and phrases give a story, poem or song its beat and meaning, like rhymes, repeated lines and alliteration.
CC.1.3.2.G
Use a story’s pictures and words, in a book or on a screen, to show they understand its characters, setting or plot.
CC.1.3.2.H
Tell how two or more tellings of the same tale by different authors or cultures are alike and different, like Cinderella stories from around the world.
CC.1.3.2.I
Pick from strategies like context clues, prefixes and dictionaries to work out unknown or double-meaning words in second-grade stories.
CC.1.3.2.J
Learn and use new second-grade words from stories and talk, from everyday words to school and topic words, like suddenly, character and castle.
CC.1.3.2.K
Read and understand second-grade stories and poems on their own, smoothly and with skill.
Writing
23 standardsCC.1.4.2.A
Write an informative piece that introduces a topic, groups related facts and definitions, links them with words like also, and closes with a final sentence.
CC.1.4.2.B
Name the topic at the start of an informative piece, like opening with a sentence that says it is about volcanoes.
CC.1.4.2.C
Build the topic with facts, definitions or both, like explaining what lava is and where it comes from.
CC.1.4.2.D
Group related facts together and finish the informative piece with a concluding sentence or section.
CC.1.4.2.E
Choose words that make facts vivid and exact in an informative piece, like scorching instead of hot when describing lava.
CC.1.4.2.F
In informative writing, capitalize proper nouns, use commas and apostrophes correctly, spell using common patterns, and check a dictionary when unsure.
CC.1.4.2.G
Write opinion pieces about familiar topics or books they have read, like which story in a unit was the funniest.
CC.1.4.2.H
Name what the opinion piece is about and say clearly what they think, like recess should be longer.
CC.1.4.2.I
Back up their opinion with reasons and details tied to it, like more recess means more time to run and play.
CC.1.4.2.J
Organize an opinion piece so the reasons are laid out clearly and a concluding sentence wraps it up.
CC.1.4.2.K
Use varied words and phrases that grab readers and win them over, like amazing or you will love it.
CC.1.4.2.L
In opinion writing, capitalize proper nouns, place commas and apostrophes correctly, spell with known patterns, and look up unsure words in a reference.
CC.1.4.2.M
Write stories about real or imagined events with details, like a day at the fair or a talking backpack.
CC.1.4.2.N
Begin a story by setting up what is happening and introducing the narrator, the characters or both.
CC.1.4.2.O
Add characters’ thoughts and feelings to show how they react to what happens, like Max felt nervous before the race.
CC.1.4.2.P
Put a short series of story events in order using time words like after that and finally, and give the story an ending.
CC.1.4.2.Q
Pick story words that create a feeling or picture, like tiptoed or crept instead of walked.
CC.1.4.2.R
When writing stories, capitalize proper nouns, use commas and apostrophes the right way, spell with common patterns, and check reference books as needed.
CC.1.4.2.T
With help from adults and classmates, stick to one topic and improve a piece of writing by revising the ideas and editing the mistakes.
CC.1.4.2.U
With help, use digital tools like a word processor or class blog to create, publish and share writing, working with classmates too.
CC.1.4.2.V
Work on research and writing projects by themselves or with classmates, like gathering facts on a state animal for a class report.
CC.1.4.2.W
Answer a question by drawing on something you remember or by finding the facts in books or websites the teacher gives you.
CC.1.4.2.X
Write regularly, from a report built over several days to a journal entry finished in one class, for different subjects, purposes and readers.
Speaking and Listening
7 standardsCC.1.5.2.A
Take part in shared discussions with classmates and adults, in a small group or the whole class, like planning a class project together.
CC.1.5.2.B
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.
CC.1.5.2.C
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.
CC.1.5.2.D
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.
CC.1.5.2.E
Speak in complete sentences when the situation calls for it, to give asked-for details or clear something up, like explaining a science result.
CC.1.5.2.F
Include drawings, photos or other visuals in a presentation when they help make ideas, thoughts and feelings clearer, like a poster for a talk.
CC.1.5.2.G
Use second-grade grammar correctly when speaking, like irregular plurals such as children and past tenses such as told.
The official Pennsylvania documents
- Pennsylvania Core Standards for English Language Arts and Mathematics · adopted February 2014 · since March 2014
The plain-English lines on this page are EMStudio's own explanations of Pennsylvania's standards, not the official wording, which Pennsylvania Department of Education publishes in the documents above. Codes and strand names identify each standard.