Dear Family,

Second grade has begun, and your child is reading The Superkids Hit Second Grade, which is

Level 5 of The Rowland Reading Program. This level builds upon skills children learned in previous

years and takes their reading, spelling, and language skills to the next stage of development.

Most days of each week, your child will bring home a Backpack Page that suggests ways your child

can practice two very important skills: spelling and reading fluency.

Each week, your child will be given a spelling list and a test on the words at the end of the week.

Some words on the list, called Pattern Words, follow sound-spelling patterns children learned in

kindergarten and first grade. Children can spell these words by sounding them out, remembering

patterns or rules they have learned. The other words, called Memory Words, don’t follow the rules.

Children have to memorize the spelling of these words. The weekly spelling test will include a few of

the Pattern Words and all of the Memory Words. The Backpack Pages give your child ways to practice

spelling words at home before taking the test.

Fluency is the ability to read accurately and quickly. Fluent readers sound natural when they read

aloud, as if they are speaking. Fluency is important because it is the bridge between recognizing words

and understanding their meaning. Children’s overall fluency improves when they practice reading the

same text aloud three or four times. Once each chapter, your child will bring home a Backpack Page

that contains a story he or she has read in class. Help your child practice reading it aloud with the goal

of reading with greater fluency.

Second grade itself is a kind of bridge between learning to read, the child’s most important task

in kindergarten and first grade, and reading to learn, the child’s most important task in future years.

The spelling and fluency skills your child practices at home will help your child cross this bridge

successfully, to become a lifelong reader and learner.

Sincerely,

and

Second-Grade Teacher Author of The Rowland Reading Program

Founder of Rowland Reading Foundation

P.S. If you have any questions about your child’s progress throughout the year, please don’t hesitate

to contact me at .