CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.2.1f

ELA2nd GradeConventions of Standard English

The Standard

Produce, expand, and rearrange complete simple and compound sentences (e.g., The boy watched the movie; The little boy watched the movie; The action movie was watched by the little boy).

Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts

What This Standard Means

Students need to write complete sentences with a subject and predicate, then make them longer or change the order without losing meaning. They should handle simple sentences and compound sentences joined with words like and, but, or so.

Mastery looks like a student taking “The dog ran” and turning it into “The brown dog ran across the yard” or “The dog ran, and I chased it.” Students often get stuck by adding details that create fragments, using run-ons, or rearranging words into sentences that sound awkward or change the meaning.

Ways to Teach It

Give pairs sentence strips with subjects, verbs, details, and conjunctions, then have them build and rebuild complete sentences.
Ask students to expand “The cat slept” three ways, then explain which version gives the clearest picture.
Show five mixed sentences and fragments, and have students mark C for complete or F for fragment.
Use a classroom photo and ask students to write one simple sentence, then expand it with details they can see.