Second grade students are taught their roles in the school and in the community. Students develop an understanding of the diversity of cultural backgrounds, belief systems, ethnicities, and languages by observing their school, neighborhood, and community. Second grade students continue to develop their knowledge of symbols and map skills. Citizenship and community service are also emphasized.
The first strand provides for the study of culture and cultural diversity. Culture is the shared social process whereby members of a group communicate meaning and make sense of their world. Culture helps students understand themselves as individuals and as members of various groups. This understanding allows students to relate to people in our nation and throughout the world.
The second strand includes experiences that offer civic ideals, principles and practices of how a citizen should act in a democratic republic. Citizenship includes both the attitudes and the actions of a citizen in a democratic society. The development of responsible citizenship in grades K-2 fosters appropriate participation in group activities such as assuming responsibilities in the school and neighborhood, understanding the civic responsibility to vote, and the importance of state and national holidays, symbols, and landmarks.
The third strand extracts experiences from the student's neighborhood, towns, and state to supply students with basic geographic knowledge and skills. The purpose of geography is to understand the physical and cultural features of places and their natural settings. Geographic tools such as compasses, maps, and globes are utilized to help students acquire, arrange, and use information to make decisions important to their well-being (e.g., how to get to a friend's house, or where to shop or how to go to school).
The last strand introduces students to simple economic principles and decisions. Financial literacy gives a student the ability to understand finances and how to manage money. Students learn how to prioritize their economic wants, and make basic financial decisions.