2nd Grade Syllabus

RELIGION

• Recognize and Celebrate Feast Days of Saints

• The Trinity-Father, Son & Holy Spirit

• The Ten Commandments

• God is Love and created all things out of love

• God Made us in His image and likeness

• God Calls us to love Him and one another

• The Communion of Saints

• Adam & Eve and God’s plan for creation

• Original sin

• We Sin

• Baptism-original sin

• Heaven, Purgatory & Hell

• Memorize & Recite Prayers, Hymns & Scripture

MATH

Knowledge

• Acquire basic numeracy

• Understand equivalent forms of the same number using diagrams, objects, and numbers

• Recognize basic geometrical shapes and parts of shapes

• Solve word problems

Skills

• Count, read, write, and compare numbers up to 1,000, both symbolically and through physical construction

• Acquire facility with basics of place value

• Perform basic addition and subtraction functions of one-, two-, and three-digit numbers

• Understand basic fraction concepts

• Count by 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, 10s

• Identify and construct circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, ovals, cubes, tetrahedral pyramids, cylinders, cones, spheres, and rectangular prisms

• Recognize and describe appearance of basic patterns in nature

• Recognize equivalency in number, shape, pattern, and other physical characteristics

• Construct basic sets and groupings of objects in the environment and nature and be able to articulate the criteria for inclusion and exclusion

• Recognize and solve simple replacement codes

• Solve simple geometric puzzles

• Recognize the relationship of tone to the size, length, shape, and material of the object being sounded (e.g., bells of different size being rung or the length or thickness of a string being plucked)

• Take linear measurement and be able to articulate changes in measurement over time; introduce basic means of recording measurement

• Tell and record time and change sin time in seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years

• Recognize and calculate basic currency; introduce coin-tossing scenarios as an introduction to probability

Aptitudes

• Recognize the ubiquity of number and shape in the world around us

• Develop a sense of wonder at recognizing how the world can be expressed mathematically

• Develop a love for constructing math, numerically and geometrically

MUSIC

Knowledge

• Know elements of music: melody, harmony, rhythm, pitch, tone. 2.1A

• Begin to think about what music means and why it is or is not beautiful

• Know a variety of instruments by sight and by sound. 2.1B

• Be introduced to the tradition of sacred music. 2.5A-C

• Begin to understand the symbols in music. 2.2A-C

• Use music terminology (tempo: presto, moderato, andante; dynamics: fortissimo, pianissimo). 2.1C

Skills

• Begin to read music. 2.2A-C

• Begin to acquire some musical skill singing and playing elementary instruments. 2.3A&B/D&E, 2.4A-C, 2.6A-D

• Begin to concentrate on, listen to, and discuss a piece of music

• Move rhythmically with music. 2.3C, 2.6D

Aptitudes

• Begin to develop a love and appreciation for beautiful music and its power

• Begin to understand the relationship between music, prayer, and liturgy. 2.5C

• Acquire the habit and develop powers of patient, attentive listening

HISTORY

Knowledge

• Understand history and culture as a human desire for goodness, truth, and ultimately God

• Develop better understanding of Roman civilization: people, places, geography, religion, government, economics, art, architecture, music, technology, and culture

• Discuss how physical environment affected Roman culture and the urban/rural divide in the Roman Empire 2.7A-D

• Discuss how people then and now make decisions about where to work and live 2.9A&B

• Understand producing and consuming in ancient Rome 2.10A-C

• Understand how Rome became the home of the Roman Catholic Church

• Begin to see how Christianity transformed the Roman Empire

• Begin to see Roman contributions to culture, such as monuments. Compare/contrast community, state, and local monuments with Egyptian, Greek, and Roman monuments 2.1B

• Learn to identify the basic geography of Rome and its neighbors

• Learn Roman technological contributions 2.8A-C, 2.17A&B

• Understand the structure of the Roman government and their collection of taxes/tributes 2.11A-C

• Compare/contrast Roman government and culture with local government and culture

• Local governmental services (police and fire protection, libraries, schools, parks) 2.11B

• Know current public officials, including mayor, governor, and president. Know how they are selected (election and appointment to office) and how citizens can participate 2.12A-D

• Local stories, poems, statues, paintings, customs, symbols, and celebrations 2.14D, 2.15A&B

• Patriotic songs, including the “Star-Spangled Banner” and “America the Beautiful” 2.14A&B

Skills

• Memorization of key historical facts

• Beginning map reading and recognition

• Use a globe 2.5A&B, 2.6A-C (also identify continents, bodies of water, state capital, U.S. capital, Canada, and Mexico)

• Understand a timeline 2.2A-C

• Ability to narrate historical stories 2.18D

• Begin to see connections between historical events and themes

• Beginning ability to formulate and discuss philosophical questions

• Artistically render historical scenes from imagination

• Obtain information from and express ideas using a variety of sources (artifacts, art, maps, oral presentations, etc.) 2.3A&B, 2.18A-C,D, 2.19A&B, ELA2.12B, ELA2.13A-G

LANGUAGE ARTS

Knowledge

• Alphabetize words. 2.2D

• Phonics and reading. 2.2A&B

• Spelling. 2.2C(i-vi)

• Beginning writing

• Beginning grammar. 2.11D(ii-viii)

• Beginning poetic understanding (poetry, fables, fairy tales, descriptive and figurative language, repetition). 2.9A&B,2.10D&F

• Latin roots (chants), early vocabulary, phrases, prayers. 2.3A-C

Skills

• Learn to read grade-level texts proficiently and independently. 2.4&5

• Develop reading comprehension

• Employ correct grammar in writing and speech, including singular/plural nouns, verb tenses, and coordinating conjunctions. 2.11D(ii-viii)

• Learn good penmanship, using proper technique, and beginning cursive. 2.2E

• Recognize and write complete sentences. 2.11D(i)

• Memorize, recite the definitions of, and identify the parts of speech, including comparative and superlative adjectives and adverbs. 2.3C, 2.11D(ii-viii)

• Say and write the days of the week, the seasons, the months of the year, their home address, titles of respect, abbreviations, and dates. 1.1E, 2.11(ix)

• Understand and use beginning punctuation, apostrophes, contractions, capital letters, synonyms, antonyms, idioms, and homographs. 2.3D, 2.11(x)

• Be able to order simple ideas, organize paragraphs, revise, edit, and copy final work. 2.9D(iii), 2.11A-E

• Compose correspondence. 2.12C

• Narration: retell stories in detail, with vocal clarity, poise, and eye contact; eventually, retell the narrative thread of a story. 2.7D, 2.8A-D. 2.12A

• Act out stories with other students as characters. 2.9C

• Develop ability to identify main ideas and supporting text. 2.9D(i-ii)

• Generate and answer comprehension questions about a reading passage in complete sentences. 2.1A, 2.6A-I

• Copy work: copy sentences from works of history, the Bible, or literature

• Dictation: listen to an oral recitation and write down a sentence(s) from works of history, the Bible, or literature. 1.12A&B

• Recitation: recite poems or psalms from memory with vocal clarity, poise, and eye contact

• Conversation: ‘Socratic’ discussions should teach students to begin questioning and discussing stories, pictures, fables, or proverbs according to five rules: 1) Read the text carefully. 2) Listen to what others say and don’t interrupt. 3) Speak clearly. 4) Use evidence from the text to support your statement

SCIENCE

Knowledge

• Observe the basic needs of animals and identify factors in the environment, including temperature and precipitation, that affect growth and behavior such as migration, hibernation, and dormancy of living things. 2.9A&B

• Observe how the physical properties and behaviors of plants and animals help them to meet their basic needs. 2.10A&B

• Identify state and national birds and flowers. SS2.14C

• Record the stages of development of some insects, such as the grasshopper or butterfly. 2.10C

• Learn to identify flora, fauna, and wildlife indigenous to the region. SS2.14C

• Understand basic regional geography

• Matter and energy. 2.5A-D

• classify matter by physical properties, including relative temperature, texture, flexibility, and whether material is a solid or liquid

• compare changes in materials caused by heating and cooling;

• demonstrate that things can be done to materials such as cutting, folding, sanding, and melting to change their physical properties

• combine materials that when put together can do things that they cannot do by themselves such as building a tower or a bridge and justify the selection of those materials based on their physical properties.

• Force, motion, and energy. 2.6A

• investigate the effects on objects by increasing or decreasing amounts of light, heat, and sound energy such as how the color of an object appears different in dimmer light or how heat melts butter

• Compare sources of freshwater and saltwater. 2.7B

• Distinguish between natural and manmade objects. 2.7C 

• Record and graph weather information (including temperature, wind conditions, precipitation, and cloud coverage) to determine weather patterns. 2.8A&B

• Record changes in the moon. 2.8C

• Discuss food chains. 2.9C

• Begin to develop an elementary understanding of the human body

• Begin to understand the “body-soul unity” of the human person, and the specific characteristics and capacities distinguishing humans from other animals

Skills

• Be able to narrate the above knowledge

• Develop skill of observing (location, patterns or movement?), rendering, and cataloging (properties, what things are made of, how they move?) this knowledge in a “nature notebook.” 2.4A&B, 2.6C

• Plan and conduct investigations: ask questions, gather data, communicate findings). 2.2A-F, 2.3A-C, 2.1A&B

Aptitudes

• Develop a capacity at attend to and notice nature