NY.RI.2. Reading Standards for Informational Text

Key Ideals and Details

RI.2.1. Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

RI.2.2. Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.

Craft and Structure

RI.2.4. Determine the meanings of words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 2 topic or subject area.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas

RI.2.9. Compare and contrast the most important points presented by two texts on the same topic.

Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity

RI.2.10. By the end of year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, in the grades 2–3 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

NY.2P. Grade 2: Social Studies Practices

2P.C. Comparison and Contextualization

2P.C.1. Identify similarities and differences between communities.

2P.D. Geographic Reasoning

2P.D.1. Ask geographic questions about where places are located and why they are located there, using geographic representations, such as maps and models. Describe where places are in relation to each other and describe connections between places.

2P.D.2. Distinguish human activities and human-made features from “environments” (natural events or physical features—land, air, and water—that are not directly made by humans).

2P.E. Economics and Economic Systems

2P.E.4. Describe the goods and services that are produced in the local community, and those that are produced in other communities.

2P.E.5. Identify goods and services that government provides and the role of taxes.

2P.F. Civic Participation

2P.F.2. Participate in activities that focus on a classroom, school, or local community issue or problem.

2P.F.3. Identify different political systems.

2P.F.4. Identify the role of the individual in classroom, school, and local community participation.

2P.F.6. Identify situations in which social actions are required.

NY.2. My Community and Other Communities

Individual Development and Cultural Identity

2.1. A community is a population of various individuals in a common location. It can be characterized as urban, suburban, or rural. Population density and use of the land are some characteristics that define and distinguish types of communities.

2.1a. An urban community, or city, is characterized by dense population and land occupied primarily by buildings and structures that are used for residential and business purposes.

2.1b. Suburban communities are on the outskirts of cities, where human population is less dense, and buildings and homes are spaced farther apart.

2.1c. Rural communities are characterized by large expanses of open land and significantly lower populations than urban or suburban areas.

2.1c.1. Students will identify the characteristics of urban, suburban, and rural communities and determine in which type of community they live.

Civic Ideals and Practices

2.3. The United States is founded on the principles of democracy, and these principles are reflected in all types of communities.

2.3a. The United States is founded on the democratic principles of equality, fairness, and respect for authority and rules.

2.3a.1. Students will explore democratic principles, such as dignity for all, equality, fairness, and respect for authority and rules, and how those principles are applied to their community.

2.3b. Government is established to maintain order and keep people safe. Citizens demonstrate respect for authority by obeying rules and laws.

2.3b.1. Students will examine the ways in which the government in their community provides order and keeps people safe, and how citizens can demonstrate respect for authority.

2.3c. The process of holding elections and voting is an example of democracy in action in schools, communities, New York State, and the nation.

2.3c.1. Students will learn about the process of voting and what opportunities adults in the community have for participation.

2.3c.2. Students will participate in voting within the classroom and in school, as appropriate.

2.3d. Symbols of American democracy serve to unite community members.

2.3d.1. Students will examine the symbols of the country, including the eagle, American flag, the Statue of Liberty, the White House, and Mount Rushmore.

2.4. Communities have rules and laws that affect how they function. Citizens contribute to a community’s government through leadership and service.

2.4c. Citizens provide service to their community in a variety of ways.

2.4c.1. Students will explore opportunities to provide service to their school community and the community at large (e.g., beautifying school grounds, writing thank-you notes to helpers).

2.4c.2. Students will identify how adults can provide service to the school and the community at large.

Geography, Humans, and the Environment

2.5. Geography and natural resources shape where and how urban, suburban, and rural communities develop and how they sustain themselves.

2.5c. Humans modify the environment of their communities through housing, transportation systems, schools, marketplaces, and recreation areas.

2.5c.2. Students will describe the means people create for moving people, goods, and ideas in their communities.

2.5d. The location and place of physical features and man-made structures can be described using symbols and specific geography vocabulary.

2.5d.1. Students will use a compass rose to identify cardinal (North, South, East, West) and intermediate (Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, Northwest) directions on maps and in their community.

2.5d.2. Students will locate the equator, northern and southern hemispheres, and poles on a globe.

2.5d.3. Students will use maps and legends to identify major physical features, such as mountains, rivers, lakes, and oceans of the local community, New York State, and the nation.

Economic Systems

2.8. Communities face different challenges in meeting their needs and wants.

2.8a. The availability of resources to meet basic needs varies across urban, suburban, and rural communities.

2.8a.2. Students will examine how available resources differ in communities (e.g., home-grown food available in rural farm areas vs. shopping in supermarkets).

2.8d. Taxes are collected to provide communities with goods and services.

2.8d.1. Students will explore the purpose of taxes and how they are collected in their communities.

2.9. A community requires the interdependence of many people performing a variety of jobs and services to provide basic needs and wants.

2.9a. Goods are the products a person or group of people makes. Services are actions performed by a person or group of people with a certain skill.

2.9a.1. Students will distinguish between goods and services and identify goods produced in their community.

2.9b. Members of a community specialize in different types of jobs that provide goods and/or services to the community. Community workers such as teachers, firefighters, sanitation workers, and police officers provide services.

2.9b.2. Students will explain the services provided by community workers.

2.9c. At times, neighboring communities share resources and workers to support multiple communities.

2.9c.1. Students will explore how communities share resources and services with other communities.