Start your school year strong with this engaging four-week beginning-of-the-year reading comprehension unit designed specifically for 2nd grade! Rooted in best practices from the science of reading, this unit includes everything you need to target reading comprehension, sentence writing, grammar practice, vocabulary, and critical thinking—all while building classroom community with high-quality read-alouds and hands-on activities.

Perfect for back to school activities in 2nd grade, this resource combines mentor sentences, reading fluency tasks, sentence starters, and fiction and nonfiction reading comprehension passages to support all learners.

Books Featured in This Unit:

Each week centers around a different picture book with integrated comprehension and literacy skill instruction.

• A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon
• Sheila Rae, the Brave by Kevin Henkes
• Chester’s Way by Kevin Henkes
• The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig
• Edward the Emu by Sheena Knowles
  

Weekly Comprehension Focus Skills:

• Making connections
• Writing summaries using BME (beginning, middle, end)
• Character traits
• Making and confirming predictions
  

Each comprehension skill is reinforced through interactive notebook templates, comprehension printables, question cards, and reading passages tailored to 2nd grade.

Sentence Writing and Grammar Practice:

This unit features a full scope of sentence writing practice worksheets and grammar review activities designed to build fluency, structure, and confidence in student writing.

Grammar Topics Include:

• Writing complete and incomplete sentences
• Identifying and forming simple and compound sentences
• ABC order practice
• Understanding and using compound words
• Using sentence starters to expand writing
• Editing correct and incorrect sentences
  

Included Grammar Resources:

• Digital grammar posters
• Sentence search and sorting activities
• Pocket sorts, flapbooks, and booklet-style grammar review
• “My Sentences Are Superb” student booklet
• Mentor sentence routines for each week

Crafts, Directed Drawings, and Creative Writing:

Bring learning to life with thematic crafts and directed drawings, each paired with related writing activities to encourage independent writing and vocabulary development.

Directed Drawings Include:

• Emu
• Crayon
• Camilla Cream
• Chester

Craft Projects Include:

• Self portrait activity
• Crayon and Brian from The Invisible Boy
• Sheila Rae
• Pill bottle (paired with A Bad Case of Stripes)
  

Each project includes writing pages to help students connect reading to their own lives and build writing fluency.

Vocabulary and Reading Fluency Activities:

Strengthen student vocabulary with interactive games and assessments that reinforce context, synonyms, and comprehension.

Vocabulary Materials:

• Word and definition cards
• Vocabulary BINGO, Match, and Rock & Roll games
• Picture-It activities
• Vocabulary assessments

Reading Fluency and Comprehension Tools:

• Fiction and nonfiction reading passages
• Book-specific question cards
• Anchor charts and interactive notebook pages
• Comprehension assessments for each book
• Independent and small group reading activities

Nonfiction Texts Include:

• Excellent Emus
• Germs, Germs Go Away!
• Our Kind Classroom
• Kevin Henkes Biography
  

Why Teachers Love This Unit:

• Aligned to Common Core and TEKS standards
• Easy to implement—ideal for independent, small group, or whole class instruction
• Designed with flexibility: use all four weeks in sequence or pick and choose what works best for your class
• Built-in support for nonfiction reading comprehension, grammar worksheets, and vocabulary templates
• Developed with 2nd grade writing and reading comprehension goals in mind
  

This fall Rooted in Reading unit helps students grow in all key literacy areas—from reading comprehension to grammar, sentence writing, vocabulary, and critical thinking—all while developing a genuine love of reading.

Want to preview more Rooted in Reading resources? Check out our full yearlong bundle for 2nd grade!

You can find the list of books, and skills and standards (Common Core and TEKS) we will cover in our 2nd Grade Overview.

Note: Books for read-alouds are not included. We provide a complete list and recommend checking your school library, online retailers, or DonorsChoose for access.