The Common Core 2nd grade standard adds more vowel teams, two-syllable words with long vowels, prefixes and suffixes, and words whose common spellings don't always match their sounds. In Zupzi Read's program, that is mostly Vowel Teams, Diphthongs and Silent Letters, Prefixes and Suffixes and Rare Spellings (Levels 7 to 10).
- 4 levels of the program
- 52 lessons
- Official standards text
- Coming soon
This page describes Zupzi Read's program: the order the app teaches in, lesson by lesson. Zupzi Read is coming soon to the App Store, and it goes there only with the whole program, ages 3 to 8.
The standards are the official text, quoted as written. The right-hand column is where each item sits in Zupzi Read's program, lesson by lesson; schools and states use their own versions of the standards, and classes move at different speeds.
RF.2.3: Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.
| Item | The standard says | Where it is in Zupzi Read's program |
|---|---|---|
| RF.2.3.a | Distinguish long and short vowels when reading regularly spelled one-syllable words. | Level 5 (magic e) and Level 7 (vowel teams). |
| RF.2.3.b | Know spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams. | Level 7 and Level 10: vowel teams. |
| RF.2.3.c | Decode regularly spelled two-syllable words with long vowels. | Level 6 (open syllables) and the long words of Levels 7 to 10. |
| RF.2.3.d | Decode words with common prefixes and suffixes. | Level 9: prefixes and suffixes, with the spelling rules (doubling, dropping the e, y to i). |
| RF.2.3.e | Identify words with inconsistent but common spelling-sound correspondences. | Level 10: rare spellings, like ough and ear. |
| RF.2.3.f | Recognize and read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words. | Heart words, through Level 8. |
Source: Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, Reading Standards: Foundational Skills (K–5) (CCSSO, 2010; PDF published 2022). © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.
The levels behind this grade
Level 7: Vowel Teams18 lessons
Bossy r (ar, or, er, ir, ur), then the vowel teams ai/ay, ee/ea/ey, oa/ow/oe, ie/igh, oo, ew/ui/ue and au/aw. Goal of the level: read the common vowel teams.
- car
- far
- jar
- star
- farm
- park
- card
- dark
- yard
- shark
- for
- fork
Level 8: Diphthongs and Silent Letters4 lessons
The diphthongs oi/oy and ou/ow, and the silent letters in kn, wr and mb. Goal of the level: read diphthongs and words with silent letters.
- coin
- oil
- join
- point
- soil
- boy
- toy
- joy
- enjoy
- royal
- out
- loud
Level 9: Prefixes and Suffixes12 lessons
-er/-est, -ly, -less/-ful, un-, pre-/re- and dis-, and the spelling changes: doubling a letter, dropping the e, changing y to i. Goal of the level: read words with prefixes and suffixes.
- cats
- boxes
- wishes
- dogs
- dishes
- hats
- faster
- slower
- taller
- fastest
- slowest
- tallest
Level 10: Rare Spellings18 lessons
The rarer spellings: ough, air/are/ear, soft c and g, gn and gh; and the endings -tion/-sion, -ture and -able/-ible. Goal of the level: read longer words with prefixes and suffixes.
- dollar
- collar
- lizard
- wizard
- doctor
- actor
- color
- mirror
- tractor
- harbor
- hair
- pair
Word pronunciations come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, Copyright (C) 1993-2015 Carnegie Mellon University. All rights reserved.
Questions about 2nd grade reading
What phonics does a 2nd grader learn?
By the standard: more vowel teams, two-syllable words with long vowels, prefixes and suffixes, words whose common spellings don't always match their sounds, and irregular words.
Which Zupzi Read levels match 2nd grade?
Mostly Levels 7 to 10. A grown-up can choose “Start at level”, and the app also moves ahead when a reader shows mastery.
More by age and grade
Phonics, step by step:
