South Dakota ELA 2.RL.1

ELA2nd GradeReading Literature

The Standard

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

South Dakota English Language Arts Standards (2025)

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students ask about the people, places, and events in a story. They answer using details from the words or pictures.
What Mastery Looks Like: After reading a short story, a student can identify the characters, setting, and main events. They can explain why a character acted and how a problem was solved, using story details.
Common Misconceptions: Students may name a character without saying what that character did. They may guess why something happened instead of using a clue from the story. They may confuse where an event happened with when it happened.
How to Assess It: Read aloud The Little Red Hen. On an exit slip, ask: 'Why did the hen refuse to share the bread? Name one earlier event that supports your answer.'

Lesson moves

Give pairs three picture cards from The Mitten; have them order the events and write one question about each card on a sticky note.
After reading The Little Red Hen, ask partners, 'Why did the hen refuse to share the bread, and which event tells you?'
Play question-card match: students draw a who, where, or how card and find a page in The Little Red Hen that answers it.
After reading The Mitten, show a glove from lost and found and ask where the mitten was lost and which picture shows it.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to 2.RL.1, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

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