Reading Fluency

• Have your child reread the same book more than once. This strategy not only builds fluency, but it also builds confidence and motivation as they process the text. 

• Time your child's reading and make a chart to track their improvement. The goal is not to speed read, but to read with appropriate fluency.

• Pay attention to punctuation while reading, ensuring to stop fully at a period and pausing at a comma. Your child should match their voice when they read a question mark or an exclamation mark. Here is a video to help you work with your child. 

• Here is an example of what fluent reading sounds like.

• Here is an example of what fluent reading does not sound like.

Solving Difficult Words 

• When your child comes to a tricky word while reading, here are some prompts you can ask:

  • Look for word patterns or words you know.

  • Sound it out! Think of the rules you learned in phonics. 

Reading Comprehension

• Read or have your child read a story and choose a few questions to answer.

Read and Respond

• Have your child read or listen to a story, then have them respond to their reading using one of these questions:

  • Tell the important things that happened in the story.

    • Sentence stem: The important things that happened in the story were ______________. Be sure to include the character, the problem, important events, and the solution. 

    • Example: The important things that happened in the story were that Ava had a loose tooth. She didn't want to go to the beach because she was worried about losing her tooth. Her family had ideas about how to get the tooth out. Ava didn't like any of them.  Ava found a plum and took a bite.  Finally, her tooth fell out, and her family could leave. 

  • What kind of person is __________?

    • Sentence stem: ___________ is a _____________ because _______________. I know this because __________________.

    • Example: Sarah is a kind person because she helps her friends at recess. I know this because when she was playing outside, she helped pick up trash with her friends. 

Retell a Story

• Use this story map to write about the important things that happened in the story.

Typing Skills

• To support your child in responding to text, we want our students to practice typing. Use Typing.com or Typingclub to practice proper typing techniques.

Writing Complete Sentences 

• Have your child write to persuade something they want or want to do. Have them go back and check for capitalization, punctuation, and grammar. 

  • Example: I would like to go to the store to buy a new puzzle. The reason I want to buy a new puzzle is because it will be something fun to do indoors. Puzzles are fun to do alone or with a friend.  Another reason I want a puzzle is that it keeps my brain active. I can sort the pieces to help when putting the puzzle together. 

Practice Letter Formation

• Use the letter formation guide to practice forming upper and lower case letters.

Recognizing and Counting Coins

• Identifying real coins by name and tell the value of each coin. 

• Count a collection of coins from your car/money jar/around the house to find the total. 

• Practice skip counting by 5, 10, and 25. 

• Count coins in this order: Quarter, dime, nickel, penny.  Before counting coins, have your child group coins that are the same.

Addition and Subtraction Fact Fluency

• Fact strategies are less about memorization and more about a strategy to get there.  In order for a child to be fluent in math facts they should be able to access a fact in 5 seconds or less.  This chart shows and explains each fact strategy that students should be proficient in by the time they leave 2nd grade.  Below are some activities based on fact strategies your child can work on:

  • Doubles partner game

  • Near Doubles - This is a great video that explains this fact strategy

  • Ten Buddies (2 numbers when added equal 10)

  • Building to ten (Example 7 + 4, we know that 7 + 3 is 10.  4 is one more than 3 so 7 + 4 = 11)

  • Use this addition and subtraction graphic organizer to represent and solve addition and subtraction facts in a variety of ways.

  • *If these fact strategies are too difficult for your child, check out our incoming 2nd grade page for other fact strategies.

• Addition games with cards, dominos, objects, etc. (Examples: play war using 2 cards or 1 domino, count the number of dots on each side of the domino and add them together.

• Using sidewalk chalk, draw numbers 0-20 in a straight line like a number line.  Give your child a fact such as 13 + 4.  Your child will stand on 13 and jump up 4 numbers to find the sum is 17.  Practice with addition and subtraction facts within 20. 

• Ask your child an addition or subtraction problem.  Have your child explain how they got the answer.  If your child is using their fingers that is ok.  Encourage them to use to apply the mental math fact strategies listed above. 

Addition and Subtraction with and without Regrouping

• This video explains why we use the term regrouping and how our students have been taught using manipulatives. 

• Students should be proficient adding and subtracting 2 digit and 3 digit numbers.  

• Partner game to practice addition WITHOUT regrouping

• Partner game to practice addition WITH regrouping

• Partner game to practice subtraction WITHOUT regrouping

• Partner game to practice subtraction WITH regrouping