Subject area descriptions are based on what students are expected to learn (provincial learning outcomes). Classroom programming may vary to accommodate local situations such as second language learners, multi-grade classrooms, and students with special needs. As well, subjects may be combined through integrated themes. Parents are encouraged to discuss specific details about their child's programming with the classroom teacher.

In all grades, students develop skills in literacy and communication, working with others, solving problems, and using technology.

 

Music

Students begin to develop their musical skills and understandings through a variety of learning activities.

Grade 2 students:

• Begin to read, write, and play rhythms, using accents and musical markings.
• Explore melody through songs and instruments.
• Recognize syllables and hand signs.
• Begin to write simple pieces of music.
• Play simple accompaniments.
• Recognize differences in pitch, form, and harmony.
• Become familiar with common orchestral instruments.

Visual Arts

Through a variety of learning activities and experiences, students learn about visual art forms in their environment, make their own art, and appreciate the art of others.

Grade 2 students:

• Develop an understanding of themes in art through discussing and viewing natural and crafted materials they see around them, viewing their own and others' work, and drawing, painting, or creating three-dimensional objects.
• Learn to use design elements such as line, shape, texture, balance, and unity in their art for different purposes (such as creating motion).
• Use a variety of materials such as crayons, pencils, paint, clay, and so on, to express themselves visually.

Arts Education K-8...

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In the study of English language arts, Early Years students learn to listen, speak, view, represent, read, and write at different times and in different ways. Classroom learning reflects "everyday" experiences where students learn to choose and use appropriate materials for real purposes.

At the end of Grade 2, students can do many of the following learning activities/tasks:

• Talk and think about what they, and others, can do to set and keep track of new learning goals.
• Discover ways to understand and make meaning from texts; practise reading and viewing a variety of "just-right" books, chants, poems, magazines, articles, and videos independently; and show connections between texts and their own feelings, experiences, and ideas.
• Ask questions to learn more about own or class topics/projects; and follow directions to find answers from sources such as elders, libraries, tables of contents, pictures, multimedia materials, and so on.
• Use their talking, drawing, and writing to communicate an idea to someone; and think about what their ideas look or sound like to others by changing their words, pictures, or presentation.
• Participate in large and small groups to work cooperatively.

English Language Arts K-8...

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From Kindergarten to Grade 12, students use seven critical processes to build their understanding of mathematics and to support lifelong learning:

• Communication—showing learning orally, through diagrams, and in writing.
• Connections—making connections among everyday situations, other subject areas, and mathematics concepts.
• Estimation/Mental Mathematics—developing understanding of numbers and quantities.
• Problem Solving—investigating problems, including those with multiple solutions.
• Reasoning—justifying thinking.
• Technology—using technology to enhance problem solving and encourage discovery of number patterns.
• Visualization—drawing on mental images to clarify concepts.

Grade 2 students:

Patterns and Relations	Sort objects. Compare and create patterns. Change patterns to different forms.
Statistics and Probability	Independently ask questions. Collect and display information in different graphs. Draw conclusions.
Shape and Space	Estimate, measure, and compare lengths (cm/m). Use non-standard units for most other measurements. Name, describe, and build different objects/shapes. Describe changes in position.
Number	Use numbers to 1000. Explore halves, thirds, and quarters. Use different methods to add and subtract numbers to 100 in problems.

Mathematics K-8...

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In the combined physical education/health education curriculum, students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes for leading physically active and healthy lifestyles. The curriculum content highlighted for each grade is organized within five general learning outcomes (GLOs), which are the same for each grade.

General Learning Outcomes (GLOs)	Content Highlights
1. Movement
The student will demonstrate competency in selected movement skills and knowledge of movement development and physical activities with respect to different types of learning experiences, environments, and cultures.	Grade 2 students: Recognize concepts related to balance (e.g., keeping centre of gravity low); pathways (e.g., straight, zigzag); directions (e.g., clockwise, counter-clockwise); planes (e.g., frontal, horizontal); qualities of effort (e.g., time, force, flow); moving in relation to a partner (e.g., lead, mirror, dodge); rules and strategies for tag games; and fair-play behaviour. Demonstrate basic movement skills (e.g., running, jumping, skipping, rolling, underhand and overhand throwing, catching, striking, bouncing, kicking, balancing) by participating in a variety of physical activities.
2. Fitness Management
The student will demonstrate the ability to develop and follow a personal fitness plan for lifelong physical activity and well-being.	Grade 2 students: Sustain participation in a variety of physical activities that contribute to skill/fitness development and enjoyment.
3. Safety
The student will demonstrate safe and responsible behaviours to manage risks and prevent injuries in physical activity participation and in daily living.	Grade 2 students: Identify and follow basic safety rules related to physical activity (including cycling), safe exercising, clothing, and footwear. Identify safety rules for roads and vehicles, school buses, electricity, weather, seasons, stairs/balconies, tools, Internet use, water/ice conditions, unsupervised situations, and assisting an injured person.
4. Personal and Social Management
The student will demonstrate the ability to develop self-understanding, to make health-enhancing decisions, to work cooperatively and fairly with others, and to build positive relationships with others.	Grade 2 students: Identify examples of personal responsibilities and skills for setting short-term and long-term goals; determining positive and negative consequences of decisions; showing responsibility and respect; communicating positively with others; showing ways friends can be helpful; sharing and expressing feelings; and recognizing causes of stress and ways to reduce stress.
5. Healthy Lifestyle Practices
The student will demonstrate the ability to make informed decisions for healthy living related to personal health practices, active living, healthy nutritional practices, substance use and abuse, and human sexuality.	Grade 2 students: Identify appropriate choices related to personal health practices, active living, and healthy eating. Identify basic changes in growth and development, gender differences, and how living things produce their offspring.

Note: In Grade 2, the health topic that contains potentially sensitive content is human sexuality in GLO 5. Prior to teaching the content, schools are expected to communicate appropriate information to parents, including a parental option. A parental option means that parents may choose a school-based or alternative delivery (e.g., home, professional counselling).

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In the Kindergarten to Grade 12 science classroom, students are actively engaged in "doing" science and developing related skills and attitudes, as well as extending their understanding of science concepts. In addition, they make links between science and daily life and appreciate both the power and limitations of science.

Grade 2 students develop an understanding of science concepts in the following units (thematic clusters):

• Growth and Changes in Animals
• Properties of Solids, Liquids, and Gases
• Position and Motion
• Air and Water in the Environment

These topic areas serve as contexts for students to develop the following skills, attitudes, and understanding about the nature of science:

• Recognize that learning can come from observing and investigating.
• With teacher guidance, use tools to observe, measure, and construct.
• Construct an object or device to solve a problem, based on specific criteria.

Science K-8...

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Social studies is the study of people in relation to each other and to the world in which they live.  In Manitoba, social studies comprises the disciplines of history and geography, draws upon the social sciences, and integrates relevant content from the humanities. As a study of human beings in their physical, social, and cultural environments, social studies examines the past and present, and looks toward the future. Social studies helps students acquire the skills, knowledge, and values necessary to become active democratic citizens and contributing members of their communities, locally, nationally, and globally.

Grade 2 students explore life in Canada, beginning with a study of their own community and moving outward to other communities. They become aware of their Canadian heritage as they discover stories of their local community's past and present. They explore ways in which people interact with the natural environment and come to understand the nature of communities. Students enhance their awareness of the cultural and geographic diversity of Canada through the study of an Aboriginal community and one other Canadian community. Through this exploration, students discover the diversity and commonalities that link Canadian communities.

Communities in Canada

Cluster 1: Our Local Community
Students focus on various aspects of communities. They locate their local communities on a map and explore the influence of the natural environment, important people and leaders, and cultural groups in their communities. Through stories of their local community, past and present, students become aware of their identity and heritage. They also consider their personal contributions to leadership and peaceful conflict resolution.

Cluster 2: Communities in Canada
Students enhance their awareness of the cultural and geographic diversity of Canada through the study of one Aboriginal community and one other Canadian community. They explore natural and constructed features of communities and examine concepts related to natural resources, work, goods, and services, and how these factors shape life in communities. They also discover how communities have changed over time.

Cluster 3: The Canadian Community
Students explore different aspects of Canada, including national symbols, the origins of place names, and the presence and influence of diverse languages and cultural communities. They examine the diverse yet similar aspects of the Canadian community and how people in communities meet their needs. They also locate Canada on a map and consider connections that link Canada to other countries.

 

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