Search the California Content Standards

Standard:
With guidance and support from adults, demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings. a. Sort words into categories (e.g., colors, clothing) to gain a sense of the concepts the categories represent. b. Define words by category and by one or more key attributes (e.g., a duck is a bird that swims; a tiger is a large cat with stripes). c. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., note places at home that are cozy). d. Distinguish shades of meaning among verbs differing in manner (e.g., look, peek, glance, stare, glare, scowl) and adjectives differing in intensity (e.g., large, gigantic) by defining or choosing them or by acting out the meanings.

Standard:
Use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts, including using frequently occurring conjunctions to signal simple relationships (e.g., because).

Standard:
Ask and answer questions to help determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases in a text. (See grade 1 Language standards 4–6 for additional expectations.) CA

Standard:
Know and use various text structures (e.g., sequence) and text features (e.g., headings, tables of contents, glossaries, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text. CA

Standard:
Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text.

Standard:
Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses. (See grade 1 Language standards 4–6 for additional expectations.) CA

Standard:
Explain major differences between books that tell stories and books that give information, drawing on a wide reading of a range of text types.

Standard:
Identify who is telling the story at various points in a text.

Standard:
Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 2 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies. a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase. b. Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known prefix is added to a known word (e.g., happy/unhappy, tell/retell). c. Use a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., addition, additional). d. Use knowledge of the meaning of individual words to predict the meaning of compound words (e.g., birdhouse, lighthouse, housefly; bookshelf, notebook, bookmark). e. Use glossaries and beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases in all content areas. CA

Standard:
Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings. a. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe foods that are spicy or juicy). b. Distinguish shades of meaning among closely related verbs (e.g., toss, throw, hurl) and closely related adjectives (e.g., thin, slender, skinny, scrawny).