Fourth grade

The student entering fourth grade has mastered most of the basic reading and arithmetic skills. The emphasis in this grade is on helping the child learn to read critically for information, write clearly and coherently, be confident and skilled in math, use class time productively, and organize her time for homework and class assignments. The child is progressing toward the time when she will begin to acquire information independently and to assume responsibility for mastering materials presented.

Language Arts
Writing: The emphasis of this class is to create situations wherein the student will write frequently and with enthusiasm. We use the 6 + 1 Traits of Writing program as our foundation in teaching writing. The traits are: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions and presentation. Our goals are to increase fluency and clarity in the student's writing and provide the student with many opportunities to develop confidence as a writer.

The writing process approach provides the student with time to develop her ideas. Writing well involves selecting an appropriate topic, using convincing details, arriving at a strong and integrated voice, and polishing for publication. Students are encouraged to discuss their work, offer one another constructive suggestions, and remind one another of solutions to editing problems. In addition, students will frequently be introduced to or reminded of a particular technique in writing. They will be provided with many published pieces modeling examples of the traits.

Word Study: The students use the Scholastic Spelling Workbook as an aid in studying letter and sound patterns of words. We teach orthography, the correct sequences of letters in the writing system, and vocabulary as well as dictionary, thesaurus, and study skills. The basis of our Word Study curriculum is derived from Words Their Way by Bear, Invernizzi, Templeton and Johnston. Word study activities call for active problem solving. Students are encouraged to look for spelling patterns, form hypotheses, predict outcomes, and test them. These activities require students to continually ask themselves, "What do I know about this new word, and how is it similar to words that I already know?”

Reading: Our Reader’s Workshop includes independent reading, guided reading and literature study. The focus is on Reading is Thinking: introduction to and practice with essential active reading skills such as questioning, predicting, connecting, visualizing, inferring and sequencing.

Literature: Students are asked to read selected books that are representative of diverse literary genres. The theme of identity threads throughout the literary and history units. While reading actively and practicing comprehension skills, students engage in literature discussions. Discussion skills and strategies are expanded upon as the year progresses. After completing their reading, each student completes a response project that measures her basic understanding of character, setting, plot, theme, conflict, and resolution. These projects are designed to meet the strengths of various learning styles. Students will have the opportunity, for example, to write book reports, design dioramas and make captions for important scenes, construct graphic representations of character and plot, and give dramatic presentations of their favorite passages.

 

History
The history of California is addressed from different cultural, social, political, economic, and literary points-of-view. Students explore how the concept of identity manifests itself in history, literature, and their own lives. Appropriate non-fiction, historical fiction and library resources anchor a close examination of themes important to the California experience: geography, economics, government, social development, and culture. Diverse resources including library materials, computers, guest speakers, and field trips are utilized to widen and reinforce each student's historical understanding.

 

Mathematics
The goals and guiding principles of the Investigations in Number, Data and Space (aka TERC) are:

• Support students to make sense of mathematics and learn that they can be mathematical thinkers. Focus on computational fluency with whole numbers.
• Provide substantive work in important areas of mathematics – rational numbers, geometry, measurement, data, and early algebra and connections among them.
• Emphasize reasoning about mathematical ideas.
• Engage the range of learners in understanding mathematics.

Students come to school with innate knowledge and ideas about numbers, shapes, measurements, patterns and data. The Investigations program provides an environment that stresses making sense of the mathematical knowledge and ideas they already have and enables the students to extend this knowledge to mathematics they have not yet encountered. All mathematical content, computational fluency and skill is grounded in meaning. Students learn that they are capable of having mathematical ideas, applying what they know to new situations and thinking and reasoning about unfamiliar problems.

The units in the 4th grade are: Factors, Multiples and Arrays; Describing the Shape and of the Data; Multiple Towers and Division Stories; Size, Shape and Symmetry; Landmarks and Large Numbers; Fraction Cards and Decimal Squares; Moving Between Solids and Silhouettes; How Many Packages? How Many Groups?; Penny Jars and Plant Growth.

In addition to Investigations, we use DynaMath, a math magazine, which follows the NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) Standards. It is filled with high-interest, relevant activities.

Ongoing review throughout the year, test preparation, and regular assessment are invaluable tools to help us evaluate your daughter’s progress.

 

Sciences
The science program encourages observation, communication, comparison, and organization of fundamental concepts. Hydrology is the main fourth grade theme. Oceanography, therefore, is a major topic.

Other topics include geology, ecology, environmental studies, and animals. Much of this is accomplished through hands-on experiments, creating practical models, building habitats, and drawing accurate representations of scientific diagrams.

Units of study are supplemented with field trips, speakers, and outside resources. Merrill’s Accent on Science is a resource text, and SuperScience is a science magazine used in addition to our regular curriculum.

 

Current Events
Current events are regularly discussed. Many of the subjects center around the students’ own copies of Scholastic News, which include scientific and historical articles as well as current news topics presented in a child-friendly format.

 

Responsive Classroom
Morning meetings are held daily to greet one another, discuss the issues and concerns of the students, and to practice respect and appreciation of each other and our community. Since the social tenor of the class is so crucial to the learning process, impromptu class meetings are certainly held if the need arises.

 

Homework and Parental Help
Homework will provide practice and/or discovery with material already covered by the teacher in class. Students should spend no longer than one hour each night on homework. If a problem arises regarding homework, please contact the teacher to discuss it.

As the year progresses, long-term assignments such as book reports will be given. Due dates are listed regularly in the classroom. It is important that children, not their parents, develop the habit of seeing that homework is completed on time.

 

Conferences
Conferences are conducted differently in 4th grade than in kindergarten through third. Your 20- minute conference time will consist of meeting with the Humanities teachers for 10 minutes and meeting with the Math teachers for 10 minutes.

 

Community Service 2010-2011
Community Service is an important part of Burke’s Lower School program. Kindergarten and first grade students normally participate in short-term projects that are of special interest to them. Older students take on year-long responsibility to be of service to Burke’s and to others.

New this year! The fourth grade will be escorting the kindergarten students from morning drop off to their classrooms. This community service will begin in early October.

Also new this year! Fourth grade students will be in charge of caring for and raising the U.S. flag daily. They will be trained on proper techniques beginning early October.

Lower School students participate in service activities and projects that are designed and led by the student governing body, Youth Voice.

Students assume responsibility for the Lower School Lost and Found, sorting through the clothing, making announcements, and returning labeled items to their owners.

During the holidays, each girl has the option of raising money, by helping out at home, toward a gift for a child from the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco. The fourth grade works closely with the Bay Area Women’s and Children’s Center to orchestrate this event.