Rebuses for second graders should be under 500 words; between 200 and 300 words is probably the ideal length for children in second grade. The goal is to create a simple story, substituting pictures for new vocabulary words, which are repeated. Many rebuses have a humorous twist at the end, often utilizing a play on words to convey a joke.
Language arts teachers and writing tutors can help second graders develop rebus stories by discussing appropriate themes with the students. To inspire confidence in young writers, give them assignments about familiar topics, such as seasons, family or school. Because rebus stories have these added attractions for students, teachers can also use rebus exercises to reinforce new lessons in various subjects, building vocabulary and writing skills at the same time.
When using rebus stories to build vocabulary, consider the reading and comprehension levels of your students. If possible, use a rebus to introduce challenging vocabulary words, particularly ones that are difficult to spell, such as "mosquito" or "sword." When selecting words to introduce through a rebus, remember that you must be able to use a simple picture to represent the word. For example, "shoe" would be easy to illustrate, but "size" would not.
For gifted second graders, incorporate sight words for the third grade or higher or choose vocabulary words introduced in reading assignments as part of a rebus story. When developing a rebus as a vocabulary-building exercise, try to select several words that can be introduced in a single story through the use of pictures. For example, you could ask students to develop a story using the words "alien," "fingerprint" and "fang," which are all familiar to most fifth graders but not well-known to second graders. Similarly, the words "lobster," "tortoise" and "squid" -- considered third grade words -- could be combined into a rebus story set near an ocean.
Because second graders often learn the meaning of words from surrounding context, you can help students grasp the meaning of a new word by stating the meaning first then introducing the word. Second grade readers like mysteries and are developing more sophisticated senses of humor. While second graders often speak in long sentences, they process written language a few words at a time. Keep sentences in your story under 10 words; when introducing new vocabulary words, remember that shorter is better. The most important thing to remember, when writing a rebus for -- or writing one with -- second-graders, is that the exercise should be fun. Try to write a story that makes your students smile or giggle; the more fun they have reading and writing, the more they will get out of both activities.