What is this skill?
Second grade comprehension is built around asking and answering who, what, where, when, why and how about a text. Children read longer stories now, roughly 70 to 110 words here, and have to keep track of several characters and events. Some answers can be found by looking back. Others take a little reasoning: if Amara's book is due on Friday and today is Thursday, when must she return it?
The stories in this practice are original, with titles such as "The Class Pet," "Lemonade for the Shelter" and "The Swing Line," and each comes with its own questions. Short one- and two-sentence reads ask a single question, including yes-or-no ones such as whether Mateo gave up on his sandcastle, and "most likely" questions such as what Priya was doing with flour on her hands and a sweet-smelling kitchen. The mini-quest uses at most one story and fills the rest with short reads.
Why it matters
Around this age children begin to read to find things out and not only to practice reading. The habit of going back to the text to check an answer is one of the most valuable a second grader can form, since it carries through every later grade and every subject, including word problems in math.
Questions that begin with why and how matter most, since they ask a child to connect ideas: a character did this because of that. Stories stop being a list of events and turn into something with reasons behind them. That thinking also makes a child a better writer, because they start to explain why things happen in their own stories.
Common mistakes
- Answering from what they already know about the topic. A child who has a dog may answer a question about Biscuit from their own dog's life. Ask them to show you the sentence that gives the answer.
- Stopping at the first answer that looks right. A choice may repeat words from the story and still be wrong. Have your child read each choice, then return to the text before deciding.
- Skipping small words that change the meaning. In "Zoe forgot her lunch, so her teacher shared an apple," the words forgot and so carry the whole idea. If your child misreads a sentence like this, ask them to read it aloud slowly.
How to help at home
- While reading together, stop once or twice and ask a why question: "Why do you think she did that?" Follow with, "What in the story makes you say so?"
- Use the five question words as a retell: who was in it, where were they, what happened, when, and why. A finger for each one helps.
- Teach your child to reread. When they get stuck, say, "Let us go back and find it," and do it with them. Looking back is what good readers do.
- Read a kids' news article or a recipe together, and ask a question that needs the text to answer it. Real-life reading counts too.
Worked examples
These are real questions from the Tutorsaurus 2nd grade reading comprehension practice, with the answers worked out.
Example 1
What kind of animal is Pickles?
The Class Pet Room 12 has a class pet named Pickles. Pickles is a small brown hamster with a pink nose. Every Friday, a different student takes Pickles home for the weekend. This week it was Amara's turn. She carried the cage carefully to the car. At home, she gave Pickles fresh water and a slice of apple. Pickles stuffed the apple into his cheeks until they puffed out like balloons. Amara laughed. On Sunday night, she cleaned the cage so it would be ready for school. On Monday, Pickles was back in Room 12, running on his wheel.
Choices: a hamster, a rabbit, a turtle
Answer: a hamster. Pickles is a small brown hamster with a pink nose.
Example 2
Why did Jamal pack an umbrella?
Jamal looked at the gray sky and put an umbrella in his backpack.
Choices: He wanted to play with it., He thought it might rain., It was sunny.
Answer: He thought it might rain. A gray sky is a clue that rain is coming, so Jamal packed an umbrella.
Example 3
Where is Kenji?
Kenji whispered to his friend and pointed at the stage. The lights went dark.
Choices: at the park, at the pool, at a show
Answer: at a show. A stage and dimming lights are clues that Kenji is at a show.
Printable worksheet (PDF) — one page of questions from this practice that work on paper, easier ones first, with an answer key on page 2. Free to print, no sign-up.