Grade by Grade
B. Foundations of Language · Reading Words: Sounds, Patterns and Meaning

Heart Words and Reading Smoothly

B2.1 B2.5 A1About 40 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can read Grade 2 heart words like said, was, of, does, could and friend quickly.
  • I can sound out the regular parts of a heart word and remember the tricky part.
  • I can read with accuracy (the right words), a good speed and expression.
  • I can notice when I make a mistake and fix it.

Words to know

high-frequency word
A word we see very often in books, like the, said and could.
heart word
A word with a tricky part that doesn't follow the usual rules. We learn that part "by heart".
fluency
Reading smoothly: the right words, at a good speed, with expression.
accuracy
Reading the words correctly.
self-correct
Noticing your own mistake while reading and fixing it.

Remember from Grade 1

In Grade 1 you learned heart words: words like the, said and was that have a tricky part. We sound out the parts we can, and learn the tricky part by heart.

In Grade 2, you will learn more heart words and use them to read smoothly, like you are talking.

WordRegular partsHeart (tricky) part
saids, dai says /e/
waswa says /u/ and s says /z/
of(none)o says /u/ and f says /v/
doesdoe says /u/ and s says /z/
could, would, shouldc, w, sh, doul says /ŏŏ/ (the l is silent)
friendf, r, n, die says /e/
many, anym, n, ya says /e/
oncen, ceo says /wu/
twotwo says /oo/
peoplep, p, leeo says /ē/
Grade 2 heart words: mark the tricky part with a ♥
Worked example

Let's learn a heart word

Learn: friend

  1. Say it and use it: "My friend and I built a snow fort."
  2. Say the sounds and tap them: /f/ /r/ /e/ /n/ /d/. Five sounds.
  3. Match letters to sounds: f → /f/, r → /r/, ie → /e/, n → /n/, d → /d/.
  4. The tricky part is ie. Draw a ♥ over it. That's the part to remember by heart.
  5. Spell it out loud, then read it three times fast.

friend: f-r-ie-n-d. Only one part is tricky; the rest follows the rules!

friend/f//r//e//n//d/5 soundsOnly one part is tricky: ie says /e/.Learn that part by heart ♥
friend has five sounds. Four letters do just what we expect. The heart marks the tricky part, ie, which says /e/.

What is fluency?

Fluent readers sound like they are talking. Fluency has three parts:

  1. Accuracy: reading the right words.
  2. Rate: a just-right speed, not too slow (like a snail 🐌) and not too fast (like a race car 🏎️).
  3. Expression: using your voice to show feelings and follow the punctuation.

Scoop the phrases

Fluent readers read in chunks of words that go together, not one word at a time.

Not: "The... dog... ran... to... the... park."

Yes: "The dog | ran | to the park."

Try sliding your finger under each chunk like a scoop.

Not like this:The… dog… ran… to… the… park.Like this:The dogranto the park.3 scoops
Fluent readers scoop words into chunks. Three smooth scoops sound like talking. Stopping after every word sounds like a robot! 🤖

Fix it up: self-correcting

Even great readers make mistakes. The secret is to notice and fix them.

Ask yourself:

  • Did I look at all the letters? Check the middle and the end.
  • Does it make sense? If the sentence sounds silly, go back.

If something's wrong: go back, look carefully at the word, sound it out, and read the sentence again.

Worked example

Let's self-correct

The page says: The mouse ran into the house. Leo reads: "The mouse ran into the horse."

  1. Leo stops: "Wait. A mouse ran into a horse? That sounds odd."
  2. He looks at all the letters of the last word: h-o-u-s-e. ou says /ow/. That's house, not horse!
  3. He rereads: "The mouse ran into the house." Now it matches every letter and makes sense.

Leo noticed, checked all the letters, and reread. That's what fluent readers do!

Just for fun

Try this: read the heart word was backwards. You get saw! Now read saw backwards… and you are back to was. 🔁

Practice passage

Read this passage three times. The first time, read carefully. The second time, read a bit smoother. The third time, add expression!

Once upon a cold winter day, Amira and her friend Sam went to the park. They could see their breath in the air. "Look!" said Amira. "The pond is frozen!" Many people were skating. Sam was a bit scared, but he tried anyway. "I did it!" he shouted. It was the best day of the week.

Hands-on activity

Three-read race against yourself

You need: the practice passage above (or a page from a favourite book), a timer or phone stopwatch, and a pencil.

  1. Read 1: Read the passage aloud while a grown-up times you. Write down the time.
  2. Read 2: Read it again. Try to be smoother.
  3. Read 3: Read it again with expression: excited voice for "Look!" and proud voice for "I did it!"
  4. Compare your times. Did you get faster and still read every word right?

Grown-ups: the goal is smooth, accurate reading, not racing. Praise expression and self-corrections, not only speed.

Your turn

1

Read: said, was, of, does

2

What is the tricky part in could?

3

Read: My friend would like two apples.

4

Name the three parts of fluency.

5

Read in chunks: The big brown bear | went into | the dark cave.

6

You read "I put on my cat to go out in the snow." What went wrong? Fix it.

7

Read: Once, many people came to see the parade.

More practice: warm-up

1

Read: any

2

Read: should

3

Read: people

4

Read: two

5

Should you read like a snail, a race car, or like you are talking?

More practice: on your own

1

What is the heart part in many? What does it say?

2

Read with expression: "Watch out!" yelled Dad.

3

Leo read "I was a dog in the yard." The page says "I saw a dog in the yard." How can he fix it?

4

Why do we reread a passage more than once?

5

Read: Should we go to the rink? Does your friend have skates?

Challenge

1

Look at does and goes. They look like rhymes but don't sound alike. Explain.

2

Read the practice passage. Which three sentences need the most expression? Why?

3

Make up a sentence using could, people and friend. Then read it fluently.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

What is the tricky part in said?

2.

Which is a heart word?

3.

Which reader is fluent?

4.

You read a sentence and it doesn't make sense. What should you do?

5.

In could, which letter is silent?

6.

Why read a passage three times?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Grade 2 students read high-frequency words, including irregular heart words, automatically, by decoding the regular parts and remembering only the irregular part (B2.1). They read connected text fluently: with accuracy, appropriate rate and expression, and they self-correct (B2.5). Noticing and fixing their own errors is a key thinking skill (Strand A1, transferable skills such as self-directed learning).

How to help at home:

  • Use the heart-word routine for new tricky words: say it, tap the sounds, match letters to sounds, mark the heart part.
  • Do repeated reading with short passages, 2 to 3 minutes a day. Keep the tone light.
  • When your child makes an error, wait! Give them a few seconds to notice. If they don't, say "Check that word again" and point to it.

Common difficulties:

  • Memorizing words by shape. This breaks down fast. Always connect letters to sounds, even in heart words.
  • Speed over accuracy. Praise accuracy and expression first. Speed comes from practice.
  • Not noticing errors. Ask "Did that make sense?" after a sentence, sometimes even when it was right, so it becomes a habit.
  • was/saw, of/for, then/when mix-ups. Practise these pairs side by side.

If your child reads very slowly and with many errors even on familiar words, talk to the teacher about extra support.