Grade Level Writing Expectations - Second Grade

Writes Clearly and Effectively

Ideas/Development

Maintains focus on topic
Includes details in retelling and personal narratives
Includes supporting information through adjectives or explanatory sentences
Chooses appropriate title for work

Organization

Attends to sequence, often using indicators (e.g. next, first, after)
Groups ideas, sometimes in paragraphs

Voice

Begin to demonstrate awareness of the audience
Recognize individuality in the illustrations and writings of others
Begin to use details in drawings and/or writing that express unique personality

Sentence Fluency

Varies sentence beginnings, often including prepositional phrases
Maintains consistent "person"
Maintains consistent tense, especially past tense

Word Choice

Uses formal or book language within some writing

Conventions
Spelling	Capitalization	Punctuation	Grammar & Usage	Sentences / Paragraphs
Increased correct spelling (from first grade) of high-frequency and grade-level words Phonetic spelling on some words Common contractions Spelling resources	Local geographic names (e.g., Yakima) First word in greeting and closing of a letter	Comma after greeting and closing of letter Colon when writing time (e.g., 12:30) Apostrophes correct in contractions (e.g., don't) Some use of quotation marks Uses quotation marks in dialogue	Standard verb forms in past tense or past participle (e.g., He went home. We were going home.) Possessive pronouns (e.g., its, theirs) Subject pronouns (e.g., she vs. her)	Multiple sentences

Understands and Uses the Writing Process

Prewriting

Plans more deliberately and in more detail, often using a word web or story frame

Drafting

Uses a plan to draft text, but willing to amend where necessary

Sharing/Responding

Takes note of suggestions and assistance to clarify and refine writing
Accepts and considers feedback on own writing

Revising

Uses a simple checklist for revising and editing

Editing

Uses a simple checklist for revising and editing
Uses a dictionary and spelling lists to check meaning and accuracy
Edits to meet 2nd grade standards of conventions

Publishing

Attends to spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and tense in final draft
Maintains consistent size, spacing, and formation in handwriting, especially in published work

Reflecting

Maintains interest from one time to another on same piece
Begins to assess writing using 6-traits language
Self-reflects on piece selected for portfolio based on learning that took place

Addresses Audience, Purpose, and Form

Shows awareness of audience in letters and when writing instructions by using second person
Responds to literature in some detail
Uses more forms (e.g., diagrams) especially in informational writing
Produces a variety of written forms, including stories, reports, letters, and journal entries
Explains why one form is more appropriate than another

Suggested Text Forms

	Literature or Literary Forms	Informational, Task-oriented, and/or Technical Writing
New to Grade Level	Poems: patterned poetry, couplet	Questions and answers Instructions (explain how to) Learning logs
Previously Introduced	Narrative: experiential stories Narrative: fictional stories Personal letters, cards, and notes Diaries/journals Recounts Rhymes Retellings	Labels Captions Informational sentence Recounts Answers to questions