English Language Development

time to organize their ideas and prepare the language
they will use in their presentations. Both of these tasks
(organizing thoughts and planning for language use) support
language development. In addition, engaging children
in readers’ theater and skits, choral readings of poems
and chants, and singing songs that contain sophisticated
language are not only creative and motivating, they are
ideal for developing new ways of using English. Other tasks,
such as face-to-face or audio recorded book talks, oral
presentations using video, and other creative ways of using
multimedia promote language development and engagement
with school learning.

Using Language Conventions

Contributing to effective expression is students’ command over language conventions, such as
grammar and usage in writing and speaking (L.2–3.1) and capitalization, punctuation, and spelling
in writing (L.2–3.2). Conventions are taught explicitly and are applied in the contexts of meaningful
spoken and written communication.

In the transitional kindergarten through first grade span, children learned the skills identified in
figure 4.7, yet these skills likely will need attention during grades two and three to maintain. See
chapter 3 of this ELA/ELA Framework for definitions and details.

Figure 4.7. Language Conventions Learned in Prior Grades and Maintained in the

Second- and Third-Grade Span

Language Standard 1 (conventional

grammar and usage in speaking and

writing)

Language Standard 2 (conventional

capitalization, punctuation, and spelling

in writing)

a. Print all upper- and lowercase letters.

b. Use common, proper, and possessive

nouns.

c. Use singular and plural nouns with

matching verbs in basic sentences.

d. Use personal, possessive, and indefinite

pronouns.

e. Use verbs to convey a sense of past,

present, and future.

f. Use frequently occurring adjectives.

g. Use frequently occurring conjunctions.

h. Use determiners.

i. Use frequently occurring prepositions.

j. Produce and expand complete simple

and compound declarative, interrogative,

imperative, and exclamatory sentences in

response to prompts.

a.Capitalize dates and names of people.

b. Use end punctuation for sentences.

c. Use commas in dates and to separate

single words in a series.

d. Use conventional spelling for words with

common spelling patterns for frequently

occurring irregular words.

e.Spell untaught words phonetically,

drawing on phonemic awareness and

spelling conventions.

For ELs in particular, but

indeed for all children, using

English in a variety of ways

and across a range of content

areas (including science and

social studies) is critical for full

academic English language

development.

Grades 2 and 3 Chapter 4 | 303