What should my child know in Year 2 (US 1st grade)? A reading and writing checklist for SEN parents

Wondering if your 6 or 7 year old is on track with reading and writing? Any child can find Year 2 hard. For children with SEN, such as dyslexia, ADHD, autism, speech and language needs, dyscalculia or anxiety, gaps can show up earlier or look a little different. This simple checklist shows what children in Year 2 in England (roughly US 1st grade) are taught, with a quick tip for each area and what to do if your child is finding it hard.

In England, Year 2 is the last year of Key Stage 1, for children aged 6 to 7. What they learn in English is set out in the national curriculum for English. In the US, children of the same age are usually in 1st grade, and many states base their reading standards on the Common Core standards for Grade 1, or their own version of them.

The checklist below is written in plain English. It is a guide to help you spot gaps, not a test. Children with special educational needs (SEN, or SEND in England) often need more time, practice and a different approach with these skills, and that is okay. Look out for the short notes in each section if your child has, or might have, a particular need.

Try it today: a 10-minute check

You don’t need to go through the whole list in one go. Start small.

1. Pick one section below, such as reading words or handwriting.
2. Watch your child during a normal moment, like reading their school book or writing a birthday card. Tick what they can do easily.
3. Circle one thing they find hard and practise just that for 10 minutes a few times this week. Keep your notes to share with the teacher.

1. Handwriting

Can your child:

• write lower-case letters that are the right size next to each other?
• write capital letters and numbers the right way round and the right size?
• leave even spaces between words?
• start to join some letters (UK schools often begin joined-up writing in Year 2; many US schools teach print first and cursive later)?

Tip: If letters are back to front, tracing big letters with a finger helps build muscle memory. Try these handwriting activities for children aged 5 to 7.

If your child has ADHD: keep writing practice to short bursts of 5 minutes, with a movement break in between, and praise effort over neatness. These quick activities for kids with ADHD make good brain breaks.

2. Reading words (phonics)

Can your child:

• blend sounds together to read a new word?
• read common words quickly, without sounding them out?
• read “tricky” words that don’t follow the rules (US: sight words or irregular words)?
• read words with two or more syllables?
• read words with endings like -ing, -ed and -er?
• re-read a familiar book more smoothly and confidently?

UK note: children in England take the phonics screening check in June of Year 1. It has 40 words, a mix of real and made-up words. Children who don’t meet the standard take it again in Year 2.

Tip: Clapping out syllables makes long words feel less scary. Try these 5-minute clapping syllables games, or go back to the basics of reading if blending is still hard.

If your child gets anxious: reading aloud can feel scary, especially in front of others. Let them read to a pet or a teddy, or take turns a page each, and see calm ways to help kids with anxiety.

3. Reading comprehension

Can your child:

• listen to stories, poems and fact books that are too hard to read alone, and talk about them?
• retell a story or fairy tale in the right order?
• tell you what a new word might mean?
• notice when something they read doesn’t make sense, and go back to correct it?
• answer and ask simple questions about a book?
• guess what might happen next?
• learn a short poem by heart and say it with expression?

Tip: Keep reading aloud to your child, even if they can read a little themselves. It builds vocabulary and a love of stories. See how to help a child who struggles with reading.

Autistic children may read words well but find it harder to work out how a character feels or guess what happens next. Pause to point at faces in the pictures and talk about feelings, and keep reading time to a familiar routine. Read more in what is autism?

If your child has speech and language needs (SLCN or DLD), new words and retelling a story in order can be hard. Draw a simple story map together, then retell it using the pictures. Try these speech and language activities to do at home.

4. Writing (composition)

Can your child:

• write short stories, real events and simple poems?
• say a sentence out loud before writing it down?
• jot down ideas or key words to plan?
• read their writing back to check it makes sense?
• spot and fix some spelling and punctuation mistakes?

Tip: Let your child tell you their story first and draw the plan as pictures. Writing it down comes second. If letters and spellings stay muddled even with practice, learn to spot signs of dyslexia in a child’s writing.

5. Spelling

Can your child:

• spell many words by sounding them out?
• spell common tricky words, like said, because and people?
• spell short forms like don’t, can’t and she’s?
• add endings like -ment, -ness, -ful, -less and -ly (enjoyment, kindness, helpful, careless, sadly)?
• start to tell apart words that sound the same, like to, too and two?
• write a short sentence you read out to them?

US note: in the Common Core, apostrophes for short forms and possessives are listed for 2nd grade, so a 1st grader may not be taught these yet.

Tip: Practise a few words at a time, not a long list. Start with the 100 words every child needs to learn and try the Rule of 10 spelling method.

6. Grammar and punctuation

Can your child:

• use capital letters and full stops (US: periods)?
• use question marks, exclamation marks and commas in a list?
• use an apostrophe to show who owns something, like the girl’s book?
• write statements, questions, exclamations and commands?
• describe things with extra words, like the blue butterfly?
• use past and present tense correctly, like she went and she is going?
• join ideas with and, but, or, because, when, if and that?

Tip: Build sentences out loud first: “I like football because…”. If your child knows what they want to say but can’t get it on paper, try these reading and writing aids.

Every child develops at their own pace

Children have a whole school year to learn these skills, and a child born in the summer can be almost a year younger than classmates. Some skills may be taught through other subjects, like history or art. Not every school follows the same plan either: academies and private schools in England don’t have to follow the national curriculum, and US states set their own standards.

This checklist is not a diagnosis. Missing a few items is normal. What matters is a pattern: lots of gaps, or skills that don’t improve even with extra practice.

If your child is older but still finding many of these skills hard, it’s fine to go back a step. Strong foundations in reading and spelling make everything later easier. Start with how to teach 1, 2 and 3 letter words.

Could it be SEN?

Lots of different needs can show up first as trouble with reading and writing. These patterns don’t mean your child has SEN, but they are worth noting down:

• Dyslexia: slow to link letters and sounds, spells the same word in different ways, or reading stays slow even with lots of practice. See signs of dyslexia in a 6 year old child.
• ADHD: knows the skill but rushes, loses their place, makes careless mistakes or can’t settle long enough to finish. See this ADHD checklist for home and school.
• Autism: reads words well but finds feelings, jokes or “reading between the lines” hard, or gets very upset by changes to routine. See autism signs when starting school.
• Speech and language needs: a small vocabulary, muddled sentences, or finding it hard to follow instructions or retell a story. See this guide to speech, language and communication needs.
• Anxiety: avoids reading aloud, gets tummy aches before school or melts down over homework. See anxiety symptoms in kids.

This checklist is about reading and writing, not maths. If numbers are hard too, look at these dyscalculia signs by age.

When to talk to the school

Talk to your child’s teacher if you notice several gaps, if your child seems upset or anxious about reading and writing, or if things haven’t improved after a term of practice. Take your notes with you.

• In the UK: ask to speak to the school’s SENCo (special educational needs coordinator) about extra support.
• In the US: start with the teacher. You can also ask your child’s public school in writing for a free evaluation for special education services.

Read more about how to get help from teachers, dyslexia assessments, step by step and what happens at a speech and language assessment.

Helpful articles

• Signs of dyslexia in 5 to 10 year olds: an age-by-age checklist
• Signs of dyslexia in a 6 year old child
• ADHD and autism in children: differences, overlaps and AuDHD
• Dyscalculia vs dyslexia: differences, overlaps and how to help
• 50 words that are hard for dyslexics to read and spell
• 200+ free phonics worksheets (PDF)
• Speech and language development chart: ages 1 to 5

The bottom line

In Year 2 (US 1st grade), children are learning to read words more quickly, understand and talk about books, spell common words and write simple sentences with full stops and capital letters. Whether your child has dyslexia, ADHD, autism, speech and language needs, anxiety or no diagnosis at all, use the checklist to spot one or two gaps, practise little and often, and talk to the school if you’re worried. Mooki Cards have ten-minute activities to help your child build these skills at home.