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2nd grade · English Language Arts · Unit 9 of 12

Reading Detectives

Clues, feelings and who is telling it

What your child practices

Reading short texts to work out who is telling the story, what will happen next, how characters feel, and how things are the same and different.

Alabama Course of Study content standard: 2.23; 2.26 · comparing characters and noticing who tells the story

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Use clues in the text to figure out why characters do things.
  2. If the story says “I”, a character is telling it. If it says “he” or “she”, someone outside the story is.
  3. Steps to follow use order words like first, next and last.

Example: Lena put bread down, added jam, then put the other slice on top. What did Lena do last? “then” shows what came last. The last step was the other slice. Answer: put the other slice on top

Reading Detectives in Alabama

In the Alabama Course of Study, this is unit 9 of 12 in 2nd grade English Language Arts, after Word Pictures and before Text Features.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    How are Pepper and Willow the same?

    Two Pets

    Mateo has a dog named Pepper. Pepper loves to run and fetch sticks.

    Lena has a cat named Willow. Willow likes to nap in the sun.

    Both pets like to be petted.

    • Both like to be petted.
    • Both love to fetch.
    • Both are dogs.

  2. Question 2

    How are Pepper and Willow different?

    Two Pets

    Mateo has a dog named Pepper. Pepper loves to run and fetch sticks.

    Lena has a cat named Willow. Willow likes to nap in the sun.

    Both pets like to be petted.

    • Pepper likes to run. Willow likes to nap.
    • Pepper naps. Willow runs.
    • They are exactly alike.

  3. Question 3

    Which pet is most likely to be tired after a walk?

    Two Pets

    Mateo has a dog named Pepper. Pepper loves to run and fetch sticks.

    Lena has a cat named Willow. Willow likes to nap in the sun.

    Both pets like to be petted.

    • Willow
    • Pepper
    • neither

  4. Question 4

    What did Lena do right after she put bread on the plate?

    Making a Sandwich

    First, Lena put two slices of bread on a plate. Next, she spread butter on one slice.

    Then she added cheese and a leaf of lettuce.

    Finally, she put the other slice on top.

    • added lettuce
    • put bread on top
    • spread butter

  5. Question 5

    What did Lena do last?

    Making a Sandwich

    First, Lena put two slices of bread on a plate. Next, she spread butter on one slice.

    Then she added cheese and a leaf of lettuce.

    Finally, she put the other slice on top.

    • spread butter
    • put the other slice on top
    • added cheese

  6. Question 6

    What kind of text is this?

    Making a Sandwich

    First, Lena put two slices of bread on a plate. Next, she spread butter on one slice.

    Then she added cheese and a leaf of lettuce.

    Finally, she put the other slice on top.

    • steps to follow in order
    • a made-up fairy tale
    • a poem

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