2nd Grade

A complete 2nd grade homeschool curriculum

All four subjects of a 2nd grade year: Learning to Read finishes the phonics journey through long vowels and multisyllable words, Grade 2 Mathematics teaches number, shape and measure with pictures before symbols, and the K-2 science and social studies courses run hands-on, explorations and expeditions a parent leads, with Clara checking in out loud after each week.

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What a 2nd grade year usually includes

What a week actually looks like

Five days from the opening week of 2nd grade, taken from the lessons themselves rather than written to sound good.

The week starts with a check on tens and ones: you count out a pile of objects, a few dozen buttons or blocks work, bundling every ten into a group, until your child can say '3 tens and 4 ones is thirty-four' and mean it. No new teaching yet, just finding out what's already solid.

Day two is about the bundle itself: thirteen loose objects, ten of them tied or grouped into a single 'ten,' with the leftover three named separately, so '1 ten and 3 ones is thirteen' stops being a memorized phrase and starts being something your child can see.

Naming two-digit numbers from the bundles: two ten-groups and five loose ones become twenty-five, spoken and then written, with a second example, four tens and one, to prove it wasn't a fluke. Outside that day, science runs its own experiment: two identical objects, one in direct sun and one in deep shade, left for an hour, then compared by touch to find out which one the sun actually warmed.

The big jump: ten separate ten-bundles get gathered into one hundred, counted by tens up to a hundred while your child counts along and watches the bundles physically become a bigger thing. Then it's their turn to build a few of their own out of blocks.

By the end of the week your child is building real three-digit numbers, placing one hundred block, two ten-bundles and three ones to make 123, then doing it alone for a number like 212. Social studies wraps its own week the same way, looking back: a photo or memory of your child as a baby next to a picture of them now, naming what changed, size, teeth, words, skills, all of it, and what stayed the same.

What this actually asks of you

About half hands-on with you, half Clara-led, same shape as the rest of K-2. Reading and math run independently once your child is settled; science and social studies are activities you lead together, with Clara only for the check-in after.

SubjectClara’s roleParent’s roleChild’s independent work
ReadingAsks every question aloud, finishes phonics through long vowels and bigger wordsNearby for the "say it out loud" momentsReads and answers largely alone
MathematicsAsks every question aloud, tapped answers, place value to 1,000Nearby, not required to teach the lessonWorks through the lesson largely alone
ScienceA short spoken check-in after the activityLeads a hands-on activity: gathers the materials, runs the scriptDoes the activity with the parent, answers the check-in aloud
Social StudiesA short spoken check-in after the activityLeads a hands-on activity: rules, money, maps, a family memoryTakes part, then answers the check-in aloud

Every 2nd grade course, unit by unit

4 courses, 21 units, 186 skills. Nothing is hidden: open any unit to see every skill inside it, and every course can be tried as a real lesson without an account.

Learning to Read: Systematic Phonics

This teaches reading the way the research says reading works: sounds first, taught explicitly, in a careful order. Schools call it systematic synthetic phonics. Clara teaches each sound out loud and plays the blending games with your child that a good reception teacher would. Your child then shows they can read by tapping the right printed word. The question is spoken aloud; the answer words never are, because reading them is the whole point. Every word your child is asked to read uses only sounds already taught. We check that mechanically when the course is built, so it is a promise rather than a hope.

5 units · 36 modules
  1. Unit 1: First Sounds, First WordsThe letter sounds, taught in the order that makes real words fastest — your child reads their first word (at) in week one.6 skills ▸
    • The sounds s, a, t, pThe sounds s, a, t, p
    • The sounds i, n — and real blendingThe sounds i, n — and real blending
    • The sounds m, d, g, oThe sounds m, d, g, o
    • The sounds c, k, e, u, rThe sounds c, k, e, u, r
    • The sounds h, b, f, lThe sounds h, b, f, l
    • The sounds j, v, w, x, y, z — and the word 'the'The sounds j, v, w, x, y, z — and the word 'the'
  2. Unit 2: Words With More in ThemSentences, the two-letters-one-sound teams (sh, ch, th, ng, ck), and words that start with two quick sounds (stop, flag).6 skills ▸
    • Reading whole sentences — and the words 'I' and 'a'Reading whole sentences — and the words 'I' and 'a'
    • Two letters, one sound: shTwo letters, one sound: sh
    • More hand-holders: ch and thMore hand-holders: ch and th
    • The endings ng and ckThe endings ng and ck
    • Two sounds at the start: bl, st, tr and friendsTwo sounds at the start: bl, st, tr and friends
    • Big finish: reading like a champion — and 'to' and 'no'Big finish: reading like a champion — and 'to' and 'no'
  3. Unit 3: The Vowels Grow UpSilent e (cap becomes cape), the vowel teams (ee, ea, ai, ay, oa, ow, igh), and chopping longer words into chunks.8 skills ▸
    • Silent e makes the vowel say its name: a_eSilent e makes the vowel say its name: a_e
    • Silent e with i and o: i_e, o_eSilent e with i and o: i_e, o_e
    • Two vowels together: ee and eaTwo vowels together: ee and ea
    • The teams ai and ayThe teams ai and ay
    • The teams oa and ow (the 'oh' one)The teams oa and ow (the 'oh' one)
    • The sound igh — and 'said' and 'was'The sound igh — and 'said' and 'was'
    • Longer words: two chunksLonger words: two chunks
    • Checkpoint: read a whole little storyCheckpoint: read a whole little story
  4. Unit 4: The Tricky VowelsBossy r (car, fork, bird), the two sounds of oo, the loud ow/ou, and oi, oy, aw, ew.8 skills ▸
    • Bossy r: arBossy r: ar
    • Bossy r: or, erBossy r: or, er
    • Bossy r: ir and urBossy r: ir and ur
    • The teams oo (moon) and oo (book)The teams oo (moon) and oo (book)
    • The loud teams: ou and owThe loud teams: ou and ow
    • The teams oi and oyThe teams oi and oy
    • The teams aw and ew — and 'they' and 'what'The teams aw and ew — and 'they' and 'what'
    • Checkpoint: every vowel sound you ownCheckpoint: every vowel sound you own
  5. Unit 5: Real ReadingEndings (-s, -ing, -ed), soft c and g, silent letters, three-chunk words, reading with expression, and the last tricky words.8 skills ▸
    • Endings that do work: -s, -ingEndings that do work: -s, -ing
    • Endings from the past: -edEndings from the past: -ed
    • Soft c and soft gSoft c and soft g
    • Silent letters: kn, wr, mbSilent letters: kn, wr, mb
    • Three-chunk wordsThree-chunk words
    • Reading smoothly: punctuation is stage directionsReading smoothly: punctuation is stage directions
    • Tricky-word round-upTricky-word round-up
    • You are a reader: the final storyYou are a reader: the final story

Try a real Learning to Read: Systematic Phonics lesson, no account needed →

Number, Shape, and Measure: Grade 2 Mathematics

A full second-grade math year built for one adult and one child at a kitchen table. Your child moves from understanding what the digits in a number like 347 mean, to adding and subtracting two-digit numbers with regrouping, to meeting multiplication before it has a name in the form of equal rows and columns. Then it goes outward: measuring with a ruler, telling time to five minutes, counting coins, naming shapes by their sides and corners, splitting a pizza fairly into thirds. Every idea arrives first as something they can hold, blocks or coins or paper shapes or a ruler, before it becomes a written number sentence. By June your child can read an unlabelled word problem and work out for themselves which kind of math it is asking for.

8 units · 78 modules
  1. Unit 1: Place Value to 1000: Bundles of TenThis unit teaches that any number is just groups of ten, bundled up. Your child moves from tens-and-ones with two-digit numbers into bundling ten tens into a hundred, then reading, writing, and comparing three-digit numbers. Whatever blocks or drawings you use here become the mental picture for every number they write for the rest of the year.8 skills ▸
    • A bundle of ten ones as one tenGiven a pile of up to 9 loose ones, bundle them into a group of ten when possible and state how many tens and ones remain.
    • A bundle of ten tens as one hundredGiven ten bundled tens shown as blocks, name the group as one hundred and state how many ones it equals.
    • Reading and writing 3-digit numbers as hundreds, tens, onesGiven a 3-digit number built from blocks, read it aloud and write it using hundreds, tens, and ones digits in the correct places.
    • Flexible grouping of the same quantity across hundreds, tens, and onesGiven the same quantity built two different ways (e.g., 3 hundreds 2 tens vs. 2 hundreds 12 tens), explain why both represent the same number.
    • Comparing three-digit numbers using <, =, >Given two 3-digit numbers with the same hundreds digit, compare them using greater than, less than, or equal to based on the tens or ones place.
    • Skip-counting sequences by 5s, 10s, and 100sGiven a start number, skip-count forward by 5s, 10s, or 100s to a stated stopping point.
    • Place value of hundreds, tens, and ones digits in an unfamiliar 3-digit numberGiven a 3-digit number never used in instruction, build it with blocks in a way the teacher did not model and justify the digit values.
    • Place value of hundreds, tens, and ones applied to a real, non-block quantity contextGiven a real classroom-counting context never modeled in the unit (e.g., counting the total pencils in the whole school building using boxes of 100, packs of 10, and loose pencils, with no blocks or place-value mat present), state how many hundreds, tens, and ones the total has and justify the answer without being told which representation to use.
  2. Unit 2: Adding and Subtracting Within 100 (and Thinking in Hundreds)Your child takes the bundling idea from Unit 1 and uses it to add and subtract two-digit numbers — physically breaking a ten into ten ones, or bundling ten ones into a ten, with the same blocks. It moves from fully-modeled block work toward doing it on paper alone, then into word problems. Facts within 20 (like 8+7) get practiced daily but aren't retaught — they should already be fast.10 skills ▸
    • Regrouping ten ones as one tenGiven a pile of ones blocks totaling more than 10, the student bundles 10 ones into 1 ten and states the new count.
    • Two-digit addition with regroupingThe student adds two two-digit numbers within 100 that require regrouping ones into a ten, using blocks then a written record.
    • Two-digit subtraction with regroupingThe student subtracts two-digit numbers within 100 that require breaking a ten into ten ones, using blocks then a written record.
    • Addition as a check for subtractionThe student explains why adding the subtracted number back to the difference recreates the starting number, using a part-whole block diagram.
    • Adding multiple two-digit addendsThe student adds up to four two-digit numbers within 100, tracking regrouped tens across more than one column.
    • One-step word problems within 100The student solves a one-step addition or subtraction word problem within 100 by matching the story to a number sentence.
    • Two-step word problems within 100The student solves a two-step word problem within 100, identifying the hidden middle quantity before finding the final answer.
    • Addition and subtraction facts within 20The student recalls addition and subtraction facts within 20 automatically, without counting on fingers.
    • Regrouping applied to an unfamiliar bundling contextGiven an unfamiliar context (splitting a mixed bag of two different bundled items into totals), the student applies regrouping to find a combined total without being told which operation to use.
    • Two-step word problem in an untaught real-world contextGiven a two-step story set at a birthday party (a context never used for teaching, with numbers to 100 and no operation words), the student finds the hidden middle amount and the final answer using only a picture of party items to count.
  3. Unit 3: Equal Groups and Arrays: The Road to MultiplicationYour child takes 'equal groups' from Unit 2 and renames them as arrays — objects lined up in rows and columns. They find totals by repeated addition, sort counts into two equal piles to decide even or odd, and ask which counts can form a neat rectangle at all.9 skills ▸
    • Arrays as rows and columns of equal-sized groupsChild builds an array with a given number of rows and a given number in each row, using counters.
    • Finding an array's total by repeated addition of equal rowsChild counts the total number of objects in an array by counting each row and adding the rows together.
    • Repeated-addition sentence as a record of an array's structureChild writes (by tapping number and plus-sign tiles) the repeated-addition sentence that matches a shown array.
    • Invariance of an array's total under rotation (rows vs. columns)Child determines whether a set of objects counted by rows gives the same total when counted by columns instead.
    • Even and odd numbers as splitting a count into two equal groupsChild sorts a set of counters into two equal groups by pairing, and names the count as even or odd based on whether any counter is left over.
    • Which whole numbers of objects can form a rectangular array without leftoversGiven a number of objects, child predicts before building whether that number will form a perfect rectangle (array with no leftovers), then tests the prediction with counters.
    • Reasoning about rectangular arrays for an unfamiliar, unpracticed countChild explains, using a specific count of objects the child has never arranged before, whether it can form a rectangle and why, without being told the count in advance.
    • Repeated-addition sentences as records of pictured arraysChild recalls, when shown a completed array picture with rows and columns already drawn, the correct repeated-addition sentence matching it.
    • Transfer of the rectangle-array test to an unfamiliar real-world object contextChild decides whether a real-world object set the class has never discussed (e.g. a photo of a tiled floor with an irregular border, or a bag of buttons the teacher pours out unannounced) can be arranged into a rectangle with no leftovers, using only the pairing/building method, with no array, muffin-tin, or egg-carton example having been used for that specific object type during instruction.
  4. Unit 4: Measuring Length and Time in Standard UnitsYour child learns to measure length with a ruler in inches and centimeters, and to read a clock to the nearest five minutes with a.m./p.m. The core idea underneath both: fair comparison needs a fixed-size unit — a ruler's inch never changes, unlike a hand span or a stride.11 skills ▸
    • Measuring length in whole inches using a ruler aligned at zeroMeasure the length of a real object to the nearest whole inch using a ruler placed with one end at the 0 mark.
    • The inverse relationship between unit size and the count produced when measuring the same lengthMeasure the same object once in inches and once in centimeters and state which unit gives the bigger number.
    • Estimating length in whole-unit increments prior to measuringEstimate the length of an object in inches before measuring it, then measure to check the estimate.
    • Comparing two measured lengths and determining their differenceFind the difference in length between two objects by lining up their ends and counting the leftover units.
    • Using a number line model to add and subtract whole-number lengthsRepresent an addition or subtraction of lengths on a ruler-based number line, starting the count at 0.
    • One-step addition/subtraction word problems set in a length contextSolve a one-step word problem involving lengths in the same unit, choosing addition or subtraction based on the story.
    • Telling time to the nearest five minutes with a.m./p.m. distinctionRead and state the time shown on an analog clock to the nearest five minutes, including a.m. or p.m. given a context clue.
    • Reading whole-hour times on an analog clock (short hand on the number, long hand on 12)Read and state whole-hour times shown on an analog clock, naming the hour pointed to by the short hand when the long hand points to 12.
    • Elapsed time reasoning with an unfamiliar story contextDetermine an unknown end time given a start time and an elapsed number of hours, in a context the child has not measured before (e.g., a trip length stated in a new story).
    • Ordering times using a.m./p.m. labels within a daily routineCompare two written or shown times and identify which comes first in the school day, using a.m./p.m. labels.
    • The general principle that smaller measuring units always produce larger counts for the same length, applied to unfamiliar unitsDecide whether counting more small blocks or fewer big blocks gives a longer measured line, when shown a brand-new pair of same-length lines measured in two unnamed, never-before-seen unit shapes (not inches or centimeters).
  5. Unit 5: Money: Counting and Comparing Coin and Bill ValuesYour child learns that coins are unequal-sized groups — a dime is one small object worth ten, a penny is one small object worth one. That's a genuinely new idea after four units where 'how many objects' and 'how much value' were the same number. It leans hard on skip-counting (Unit 3) and the bundling idea that ten small units make one bigger unit (Unit 1).11 skills ▸
    • The value of penny, nickel, dime, and quarterName the value of a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter when shown the coin.
    • Skip-counting a single coin type to a totalSkip-count a group of same-value coins (all nickels, or all dimes) to find the total value.
    • The ordering step in counting mixed coinsOrder coins from smallest to largest value before counting a mixed group.
    • The total value of a mixed coin groupFind the total value of a mixed group of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters by combining skip-counting and counting on.
    • The mismatch between coin size and coin valueExplain why a dime is worth more than a nickel even though the dime is physically smaller.
    • Comparison of total value between two unequal-looking coin groupsCompare two different coin groups to determine which has greater total value, or that they are equal.
    • Dollars-and-cents notation ($ and ¢ symbols)Write a total money amount using dollar and cent notation ($ and ¢) for amounts under one dollar and for whole dollar amounts.
    • One-step money word problems (buying with exact amount)Solve a one-step word problem involving buying an item with exact coin or bill amounts.
    • Making change with simple coin amountsDetermine the coins needed to make change from a purchase using simple amounts (e.g., pay a quarter for a 15-cent item).
    • Comparing a coin total to an unstated two-item combined priceDecide whether a mixed coin group is enough to buy two items together, when no one has stated their combined price.
    • The equivalence between one dollar bill and 100 cents in coinsCompare the value of a dollar bill to an equivalent group of coins (100 pennies, or mixed coins totaling $1).
  6. Unit 6: Shapes and Their AttributesYour child learns that a shape's name comes from countable features — number of sides, corners, whether sides are equal — not from how it looks at a glance. This moves them past Grade 1's 'name-by-sight' approach into naming by side count, spotting vertices, and comparing side lengths.9 skills ▸
    • Side count as the naming rule for triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, and hexagonsChild names a shape as a triangle, quadrilateral, pentagon, or hexagon by counting its sides.
    • Side of a polygon as a countable, touchable partChild touches each side of a shape one at a time to count the total number of sides.
    • Vertex as the meeting point of two sidesChild points to the vertex (corner) of a shape where two sides meet.
    • Equal versus unequal side length within one shapeChild compares two sides of the same shape to decide if they are equal or unequal in length.
    • Grouping shapes by side count rather than appearanceChild sorts a mixed pile of shapes into groups by shared side count, ignoring color, size, and orientation.
    • The idea that appearance (size, color, orientation) does not determine a shape's name, but side/angle count doesChild explains why two very different-looking shapes share the same name.
    • Constructing a shape from a stated rule about side count and equal lengthChild builds or draws a shape that matches a spoken set of attribute clues (e.g., '4 sides, all equal').
    • The pattern that a polygon's name follows its side count, extended beyond the four names taughtGiven a brand-new shape never shown in class with an unusual number of sides, child predicts what it should be called by extending the side-count naming pattern.
    • Applying side-counting and equal-length comparison to a real-world object outside the shape-card context used throughout instructionShown a real object never discussed in this unit (a stop sign, a picture frame, a slice of pizza box), child taps whether it has equal sides by visually comparing, with no adult touch-counting model and no string provided.
  7. Unit 7: Fractions as Equal Shares: Halves, Thirds, and FourthsYour child learns to split circles and rectangles into halves, thirds, and fourths. The one idea repeated every day: equal shares means equal SIZE, not equal COUNT of pieces. A shape cut into three unequal pieces is not thirds, no matter how confidently it looks like three pieces.10 skills ▸
    • The number words for equal shares (half, third, fourth)Recall the words 'half,' 'third,' and 'fourth' when shown a shape split into 2, 3, or 4 equal parts.
    • Circles and rectangles partitioned into two equal sharesRecognize a picture of a circle or rectangle correctly split into two equal shares as showing halves.
    • The fold-and-check procedure for making two equal shares from one wholeExecute the teacher-modeled fold-in-half routine on a new paper rectangle: fold so the two edges line up exactly, open it, and point to the fold line as the cut between two equal shares.
    • Equal versus unequal partitions of the same wholeClassify a shape split into a given number of pieces as an equal partition or an unequal partition by comparing piece sizes.
    • The justification that equal shares requires equal size, not equal count of piecesExplain why two pieces of a partitioned shape are or are not equal shares by pointing to a size comparison (overlay or matching edges), not just the piece count.
    • Differently-shaped but equal-area halves of one wholeCompare two correctly-cut halves of the same-sized whole that have different outline shapes (e.g. straight cut vs. diagonal cut) and confirm both are equal shares.
    • Physical partitioning of paper shapes into a requested number of equal sharesPartition a paper circle or rectangle into two, three, or four equal shares by folding or cutting, when asked for a specific share name.
    • The relationship between number of equal shares and the size of each shareInfer, when shown two same-size wholes each split into a different number of equal shares (e.g. one into halves, one into fourths), which single piece is bigger.
    • Fraction naming as relative to its own whole rather than an absolute sizeJudge whether a half of one whole and a half of a different-sized whole can both correctly be called 'a half,' given only that each piece matches its own whole's other half.
    • Equal-size sharing among people applied to an untaught, non-geometric real-world contextGiven a real classroom object never used in instruction (e.g. a shared bag of pretzels, a lunch tray, a garden plot photo), judge whether a proposed split into pieces gives each of 3 people equal shares, with no fold, cut-line, or picture-overlay cue provided.
  8. Unit 8: Year-End Integration: Mixed Problem SolvingNo new skills get taught here. This is where every routine from the year — place value, adding/subtracting, arrays, measuring, money, shapes, fractions — gets mixed together unlabeled, because real problems never come with a unit number attached. It starts by checking each skill still works alone, then mixes two topics, then three, then all seven.10 skills ▸
    • Addition and subtraction within 100 in word-problem contextGiven an unlabeled word problem naming objects being joined or separated, the child selects addition or subtraction within 100 and solves it.
    • Place value representation of two-digit numbersGiven a two-digit number, the child represents it as tens and ones using base-ten blocks or a drawing.
    • Arrays as repeated additionGiven a picture of an array, the child states the repeated addition sentence it shows.
    • Identifying problem type from problem context across all prior unitsGiven a mixed set of unlabeled word problems (money, measurement, arrays, place value), the child sorts each by the action described (joining, separating, comparing, sharing) before solving.
    • Estimation as an approximate check on an exact measurementGiven a real object and a ruler, the child measures its length in inches and checks the number against an estimate made by eye.
    • Equality of partitioned shares in fractionsGiven two differently-sized pieces from a partitioned shape, the child determines whether they show equal shares.
    • The difference between count of parts and equality of partsGiven a shape divided into parts of visibly different sizes, the child explains why it is not divided into equal fourths even though it has four parts.
    • Multi-step problem combining money, measurement, and fractionsGiven a multi-step performance task combining a coin total, a measured length, and a fraction of a shared object, the child solves each part in sequence and states the final answer.
    • Selecting an appropriate strategy in an unfamiliar combined contextGiven a brand-new context never used in any prior unit (splitting a stack of stickers three ways, some by count and some by leftover fraction), the child decides which of this year's ideas applies and solves it.
    • Selecting the correct operation and problem type in a real-world context with no visual cue from this unit's material familiesGiven a story about a farm animal that gets fed scoops of feed at feeding time and then some scoops spill and are lost, told with no numbers pictured in the familiar coin/ruler/array/shape formats this unit used, the child decides on their own whether this needs joining, separating, comparing, or sharing math, and solves it.

Try a real Number, Shape, and Measure: Grade 2 Mathematics lesson, no account needed →

Science Explorations: Kindergarten to Grade 2

You run one small hands-on exploration a week from a script, and we tell you what to grab, what to say, and what to listen for. Clara then checks in with your child on screen for five minutes, out loud. The learning happens at the sink and on the sidewalk with you next to them. The app's job is to keep the record of it.

4 units · 36 modules
  1. Unit 1: Weather, Sky and SeasonsNine weeks of watching the actual sky: daily weather, wind you infer, sun that warms, shadows that move, puddles that vanish, and a family severe-weather plan.9 skills ▸
    • What is the weather doing today?Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about naming today's weather and comparing days.
    • The wind you cannot seeDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about how we know wind exists without seeing it.
    • Sun, shade and warm thingsDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about sunlight warming things and shade keeping them cool.
    • Shadow shapesDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about shadows changing with the sun's position.
    • Rain, puddles and where water goesDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about where puddle water goes.
    • Hot days, cold days, and dressing for themDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about choosing clothes and plans to match the weather.
    • Season watch: one tree, all yearDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about what the adopted tree looks like right now and predicting its change.
    • Storms and staying safeDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about what to do when severe weather comes.
    • Weather station week (review)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about putting all the weather ideas together.
  2. Unit 2: Pushes, Pulls and Things That MoveForces at floor level: pushes and pulls, ramps and races, collisions, balanced tugs, light and shadows, magnets, and a ball-run build that fails on purpose.9 skills ▸
    • Push it, pull itDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about sorting pushes and pulls.
    • Hard push, soft pushDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about bigger pushes making things go farther and faster.
    • Ramps and racingDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about steeper ramps and faster rolling.
    • Crash! Changing directionDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about bumps and collisions changing which way things go.
    • The tug-of-war week (balanced pulls)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about two pulls that cancel out.
    • Sunlight and dark places (light as energy)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about materials blocking light and making shadows.
    • Tree check #2 + motion reviewDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about what changed on the tree and finding pushes and pulls at home.
    • Make it move without touching itDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about magnets pulling some things and not others.
    • Build a ball run (engineering week)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about building something, watching it fail, and fixing one part.
  3. Unit 3: Living Things and Their PlacesAlive or not, what living things need (with a control cup), body parts with jobs, babies and parents, habitats, traveling seeds, and a sit-spot that produces a real question.8 skills ▸
    • Alive or not alive?Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about sorting alive, not alive, and once-alive.
    • What do living things need?Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about what seeds need to sprout and grow.
    • Body parts with jobsDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about animal body parts and what each part is for.
    • Babies and their parentsDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about animal babies resembling their parents.
    • Where animals live and whyDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about matching animals to the places that meet their needs.
    • Plants make more plants (seeds travel)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about how seeds get to new places.
    • Tree check #3 + living things reviewDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about the tree's story across three seasons.
    • Being a scientist outdoors (unit capstone)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about watching quietly and asking a science question.
  4. Unit 4: Stuff and What It DoesMaterials and their properties, choices that fit purposes, water's three states, changes you cannot undo, sound as vibration, an instrument build, and the year's capstone question.10 skills ▸
    • The great material sortDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about sorting objects by what they are made of and how they feel.
    • Why is a window glass and a pillow soft?Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about materials chosen because their properties fit the job.
    • Water's three costumesDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about ice, water and steam being the same stuff.
    • Changes you cannot undoDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about changes that can be undone and changes that cannot.
    • Sound is a shakeDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about shaking and vibrating things making sound.
    • Loud, quiet, high, lowDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about loud versus quiet and high versus low sounds.
    • Build an instrument (engineering week #2)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about changing a design to change its sound.
    • Tree check #4: the year in four picturesDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about the tree's whole year of changes.
    • The big review safariDo the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about finding weather, forces, living things, materials and sound in the real world.
    • Question fair (capstone)Do the hands-on exploration, then show Clara you can talk about asking a question and planning how to find out.

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My World: Social Studies for K-2

You run one small activity a week from a script, and we tell you what to grab, what to say, and what to listen for. Clara checks in with your child on screen for five minutes, out loud. By June you own a shelf of things your child actually made: a story book they authored, a family constitution, working maps, and a sealed time capsule.

4 units · 36 modules
  1. Unit 1: Me, My Family, My StoryHistory starts at home: the child's name, family, growth, daily sequence, traditions, an elder interview, their address, homes near and far — bound into a book they author.9 skills ▸
    • The story of my nameDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about knowing and telling the story of their own name.
    • Who is in my family?Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about who is in their family and how family members help each other.
    • Then and now: meDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how they have changed since they were a baby and what stayed the same.
    • My day, in orderDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about putting the events of a day in order.
    • A family traditionDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about what a tradition is and naming one of their family's.
    • Grandparent interview (or a family elder)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about asking an older person what life was like long ago.
    • Where I live: my addressDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about saying where they live, from street to country.
    • Different families, different homesDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about homes being different while meeting the same needs.
    • My story book (unit review)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about telling their own story from their book.
  2. Unit 2: Rules, Jobs and MoneyCivics and economics at kid scale: why rules exist, fair vs equal, community jobs, needs and wants, earning and the save-spend-share jars, a family market, real votes, and a signed family constitution.9 skills ▸
    • Why do we have rules?Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about why games and families have rules.
    • Fair is not always equalDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about the difference between everyone getting the same and everyone getting what they need.
    • Community helpers scavenger huntDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about community jobs and what would happen without them.
    • Needs and wantsDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about sorting needs from wants.
    • Where does money come from?Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about money coming from work and trading for things.
    • Save, spend, shareDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about choosing to spend, save or share money.
    • The trading game (goods and services)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about goods you can hold and services people do.
    • Who decides? (voting week)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how voting lets a group decide fairly.
    • Make our own laws (unit capstone)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about making rules together and agreeing to follow them.
  3. Unit 3: Maps and PlacesGeography by making: mapping the bedroom, symbol keys and treasure hunts, a field-tested walk map, land and water, cardinal directions, how places shape lives, and the room-to-Earth zoom.8 skills ▸
    • A map of my roomDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about what a map shows and drawing a place from above.
    • Treasure maps and symbolsDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about map symbols standing for real things.
    • Our neighborhood walk-mapDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about mapping a walk using landmarks in order.
    • Land and waterDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about telling land from water on a map and naming landforms.
    • Which way? (directions)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about using north, south, east and west.
    • Hot places, cold places, and how people liveDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how the place people live shapes how they live.
    • From my street to the whole Earth (zoom-out week)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how home fits inside town, state, country and Earth.
    • Map fair (unit capstone)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about making a map with a key and showing it works.
  4. Unit 4: People and the PastThe past through evidence: old objects as clues, school and travel and communication then vs now, the town's own story, symbols and holidays treated plainly, changemakers, a review museum and a sealed time capsule.10 skills ▸
    • Old things are cluesDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about using old objects as clues about the past.
    • School, long agoDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how school long ago was different from now.
    • Getting around, then and nowDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about putting ways of traveling in order from long ago to now.
    • Talking across distance, then and nowDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how people far apart talked long ago and now.
    • Our town's storyDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about finding out how their town has changed.
    • Flags, songs and symbolsDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about flags and symbols standing for groups and places.
    • Holidays tell storiesDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about holidays remembering and celebrating things.
    • People who changed thingsDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about how a real person saw a problem and changed things.
    • The review museumDo the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about showing and explaining what they learned all year.
    • The time capsule (capstone)Do the activity together, then show Clara you can talk about making a time capsule for their future self.

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2nd Grade questions

How does a 2nd grader answer math questions without typing?+

Every question is read aloud and answered by tapping, the choices are numbers, pictures, or models on screen. Clara can also describe what’s on the screen and ask your child to pick, so a child who can’t yet read fluently can still do real math.

Is this a complete 2nd grade year?+

Yes. Reading, math, science and social studies are all live, reading and math on screen with spoken questions and tapped answers, science and social studies as parent-led hands-on courses with short spoken check-ins.