Second Grade
Second graders at Foote School engage in hands-on experiences that build meaning. Supporting students’ social emotional growth is a core aspect to the curriculum.
Second Grade Curriculum
Students expand their vocabulary and develop skills to identify and manage their feelings. They continue to explore their own identity and develop an understanding of stereotypes. Students learn about life in the past in the New Haven area with a focus on Native Americans and hone their scientific observational skills while building on the foundational skills introduced in first grade. After an introduction to the Spanish language in K and first grade, second-graders are introduced to the Chinese language. Finally, the hallmark of second grade is their heightened autonomy and self determination. They close their second grade year with confidence to employ their acquired skills and with a thirst for learning.
Indigenous Foundations
The year begins with lessons and projects that focus on the indigenous Quinnipiac people, who once coexisted with early settlers in New Haven. Through hands-on experiences, such as building miniature wigwam dioramas and a life-sized classroom wigwam, students gain insight into Native American daily life, particularly their deep respect for nature, resourcefulness, and sustainability.
As the curriculum progresses into spring, students shift their focus to contemporary Indigenous life, exploring how traditions, such as Powwows, healing rituals, and Green Corn Festivals, continue to shape native communities today. Discussions on identity and stereotypes are woven throughout, encouraging students to think critically about representation and cultural narratives.
Butterfly Cycle
The butterfly flits throughout the science curriculum — from studying its life cycle in the organisms unit, to its movement in the balance and motion unit, and ultimately to its habitat in the soils and plants unit, when students then use their accumulated knowledge to plant native species for next year’s butterfly garden. In the fall, new second graders find monarch caterpillars in the butterfly garden, and the cycle begins again!