Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Curriculum Guide

Fourth Grade

253.265.2150
gigharboracademy.org
6820 32nd St NW, Gig Harbor, WA 98335

Gig Harbor Academy
Gig Harbor Academy is committed to providing the highest quality
education to all students. One way to provide a quality education is with
an effective curriculum that reflects high standards and high expectations.
Thus, GHA has developed rigorous content standards aligned with
national guidelines. But even the most rigorous standards cannot make
schools and students successful without the support of parents.
Each grade level’s curriculum guide is designed to inform parents of
GHA’s expectations for students in the major curriculum areas: reading/
writing, mathematics, and science. These expectations are aligned with
the curriculum that is used by the classroom teacher for daily instruction.
These curriculum guides also provide examples of what your child should
know and be able to accomplish upon completion of each academic year.
GHA believes in educating the whole child, therefore these expectations
are the foundation upon which we build the educational experience for
each student.
Because of learning styles and differences, we know that not all children
reach the same expectations at the same time. If at any time you wish
to talk about your child’s educational progress, classroom teachers are
always available to speak with you directly. GHA believes that all children
can learn if parents and schools work together.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Reading Writing and Speaking

GHA’s English Language Arts Learning Expectations are adapted from
two professional organizations, National Council of Teachers of English
and the International Reading Association’s combined document titled,
NCTE/IRA Standards for the English Language Arts.
GHA embraces an inquiry based whole language approach to literacy
instruction which encourages students to engage in reading and writing
which is meaningful to them and in which they have a sense of personal
investment. We integrate classroom activities so that the learning of
reading and writing mutually reinforce each other. In fourth grade,
reading and writing skills support an increased emphasis on content-
area learning and utilization of a variety of resources to locate and read
primary sources of information.
Classroom instruction continues to develop fluency as students use
strategies such as word analysis, use of context clues, and the making
of inferences to gain meaning from text. Students will use these reading
strategies before, during, and after reading to develop and demonstrate
comprehension.

Balanced Literacy

Gig Harbor Academy employs a balanced literacy approach to reading
and writing acquisition. A balance literacy program contains all of
the components necessary for students to master written and oral
communication. It includes teaching phonics, spelling patterns, grammar
and writing skills, reading and comprehension strategies, presentations,
performances, and much conversation and discussion about reading and
writing. In the classroom, there is direct and indirect reading and writing
instruction, through modeled, shared, guided and independent reading
and writing experiences. Children are given direct instructional support
and a variety of daily reading and writing experiences that promote
student engagement in the complex process of becoming independent
readers and writers.

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Reading Writing and Speaking

In a balanced literacy classroom, teachers provide individualized support
through conferencing that may include re-teaching and prompting
for reading and writing behaviors as young children begin to read. As
children mature in their reading abilities, Thinking Map and Story
Mapping enables students to think about how the different story elements
work together such as characters– setting– problem– main events–
resolution. Character sketching helps students focus on how the main
character’s personal traits often direct the action of the story. Children are
given ample opportunities for group discussions which encourage their
engagement. Under the guidance of the teacher, students help each other
to unravel confusing concepts.
A key component of a balanced literacy program entails scaffolding
instruction in order to make learning to read and write less problematic
for all children. One example of scaffolding is guided reading where the
teacher works with a small group of students that are on the same reading
level or have similar instructional needs. Students usually have their own
texts and the teacher works with the students on skills and strategies.
Guided reading includes mini-lessons with a targeted focus that meets
a specific need of a particular group of students. A mini-lesson could
include word attack skills, comprehension skills/strategies, or grammar
or mechanics. The class will regroup during sharing time to discuss what
they learned, either done independently, with partners or in groups.
During shared reading time, the teacher will often assess what students
have learned and give them time to reflect on their own learning. This
develops responsible learners and accountability.
In writing narratives, explanations, and researching topics, students will
construct questions about their topic, select and narrow the topic, develop
a plan for writing, organize information into several paragraphs with a
central idea and supporting details, and synthesize the information for
use in oral presentations. The instructional focus includes an emphasis
on written expression, with revising and editing for correct sentence
formation, grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling continuing
to be important skills in fourth grade.
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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide
Reading
When reading students will be able to:

• Refer to details in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly
and when drawing inferences from the text

• Compare and contrast the treatment of similar themes and topics
and patterns of events in stories, myths and traditional literature
from different cultures.

• Explain major differences between poems, drama and prose, and
refer to the structural elements poems, and prose when writing or
speaking about a text.

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• Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story, drawing
on specific details in the text.

• Determine the theme of a story or poem from details in the text;
summarize the text.

Writing

When writing students will be able to:
• Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view
with reasons and information.
• Write informative/explanatory pieces to examine a topic and
convey ideas and information clearly.
• Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or
events using effective technique, descriptive detail, and clear event
sequences. Conduct short research projects that build knowledge
through investigation of different aspects of a topic.

Speaking

Students use speaking and listening to express, explore, and learn about
ideas.

• Develop skills to gather and share information, persuade others,
express and understand ideas, coordinate activities with others, and
analyze ideas.

• Develop a presentation with a particular purpose that keeps
listeners interested.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Mathematics

GHA math standards are adapted the National Council of Teachers of
Mathematics (NCTM), Principles and Standards for School Mathematics.
The fourth grade math curriculum places emphasis on multiplication and
division with whole numbers and solving problems involving addition
and subtraction of fractions and decimals by finding common multiples
and factors. Students will be fluent in the basic multiplication facts
through the twelves’ table and the corresponding division facts as they
become proficient in multiplying larger numbers. Students also will refine
their estimation skills for computations and measurements. Students
will identify and describe representations of points, lines, line segments,
rays, and angles, including endpoints and vertices. Concrete materials
and two-dimensional representations will be used to solve problems
involving perimeter, patterns, probability, and equivalence of fractions
and decimals. Students will recognize images of figures resulting from
geometric transformations, such as reflection, translation, and rotation.
Students will investigate and describe the associative property for addition
and multiplication.

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Mathematics has its own language of specialized vocabulary and language
patterns which will be integrated into classroom instruction. Students
will begin to use correctly the concepts, symbols, and vocabulary of
mathematics. Problem solving has been integrated throughout the math
curriculum at GHA and, in all grades; the development of problem-
solving skills is a major goal.

Numbers and Operations

Students explain and represent with models the relationship between
whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.

• Add and subtract four digit numbers (with exchanging), multiply
two digit numbers by a single multiplier and two digit numbers by
another two digit number, and use short and long division with
single and double digit divisors.

• Compute problems involving fractions, i.e., part/ whole
relationships, equivalencies, mixed proper and improper fractions,
lowest common denominator, adding / subtracting fractions.

• Compute problems involving decimals, i.e., rounding, percent,
addition and subtraction to the hundredths place.

• Understand the use of parenthesis to combine and order operations.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Geometry

Students describe geometric properties and relationships using
appropriate vocabulary.

• Use perimeter, area, and volume in simulated and real life situations.
• Recognize basic geometrical shapes and their relationships with

one another.
• Do tessellation work and apply concepts of rotation, congruence,

and symmetry.
• Identifies parallel and perpendicular lines, and constructs circles

and polygons using a compass.

Measurement

Students carry out simple unit conversions within a system of
measurement.

• Calculate area, perimeter, and volume of simple shapes.
• Measure (using correct units) money, length, area, volume, weight,

capacity, and temperature (metric and standard).
• Introduce conversion from English to metric units and vice versa.

Algebra

Student use relationships in patterns to make predictions by using tables,
charts, physical objects, and symbols.

• Recognize and predict patterns.
• Solve simple equations with unknowns.

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Data Analysis and Probability
Students appropriately represent and interpret data.

• Understand and use a variety of graphing devices, i.e., tallies, bar
graph, pictographs, pie charts, simple scatter plots, etc.

• Understand and use the concepts mean, median, and average.
• Collect and present meaningful data by means of surveys and

interviews.
• Recognizes probabilities and predicts outcomes.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Science

GHA follows the Next Generation Science Standards developed by American
Association for the Advancement of Science, National Science Teachers
Association, and National Research Council.
The science learning expectations in fourth grade help students formulate
answers to questions such as: “What are waves and what are some things
they can do? How can water, ice, wind and vegetation change the land?
What patterns of Earth’s features can be determined with the use of maps?
How do internal and external structures support the survival, growth,
behavior, and reproduction of plants and animals? What is energy and
how is it related to motion? How is energy transferred? How can energy
be used to solve a problem?”
Students are able to use a model of waves to describe patterns of waves
in terms of amplitude and wavelength, and that waves can cause objects
to move. Students are expected to develop understanding of the effects
of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation.
They apply their knowledge of natural Earth processes to generate and
compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of such processes on
humans.
In order to describe patterns of Earth’s features students analyze and
interpret data from maps. Fourth graders are expected to develop
an understanding that plants and animals have internal and external
structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and
reproduction. By developing a model, they describe that an object can be
seen when light reflected from its surface enters the eye.
Students are able to use evidence to construct an explanation of the
relationship between the speed of an object and the energy of that
object. Students are expected to develop an understanding that energy
can be transferred from place to place by sound, light, heat, and electric
currents or from object to object through collisions. They apply their
understanding of energy to design, test, and refine a device that converts
energy from one form to another.

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In the fourth grade learning expectations, students are expected
to demonstrate grade-appropriate proficiency in asking questions,
developing and using models, planning and carrying out investigations,
analyzing and interpreting data, constructing explanations and designing
solutions, engaging in argument from evidence, and obtaining, evaluating,
and communicating information. Students are expected to use these
practices to demonstrate understanding of the core science expectations
below.
Energy

• Use evidence to construct an explanation relating the speed of an
object to the energy of that object.

• Make observations to provide evidence that sound, light, heat, and
electric currents can transfer energy from place to place.

• Ask questions and predict outcomes about the changes in energy
that occur when objects collide, i.e., change in the energy due to the
change in speed, not on the forces, as objects interact.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

• Apply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts
energy from one form to another, i.e., devices could include electric
circuits that convert electrical energy into motion energy of a
vehicle, light, or sound; or, a passive solar heater that converts light
into heat. Constraints could include the materials, cost, or time to
design the device.

Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for
Information Transfer

• Develop a model of waves to describe patterns in terms of amplitude
and wavelength and that waves can cause objects to move, i.e.,
models could include diagrams, analogies, and physical models
using wire to illustrate wavelength and amplitude of waves.

• Develop a model to describe that light reflecting from objects and
entering the eye allows objects to be seen.

• Generate and compare multiple solutions that use patterns to
transfer information, i.e., solutions could include drums sending
coded information through sound waves, using a grid of 1’s and 0’s
representing black and white to send information about a picture,
or using Morse code to send text.

From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

• Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal
and external structures that function to support survival, growth,
behavior, and reproduction, i.e., structures could include thorns,
stems, roots, colored petals, heart, stomach, lung, brain, or skin.

• Use a model to describe that animals receive different types of
information through their senses, process the information in
their brain, and respond to the information in different ways, i.e.,
different systems of information transfer.

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Earth’s Place in the Universe

• Identify evidence from patterns in rock formations and fossils in
rock layers to support an explanation for changes in a landscape
over time, i.e., evidence from patterns could include rock layers
with marine shell fossils above rock layers with plant fossils and
no shells, indicating a change from land to water over time; or, a
canyon with different rock layers in the walls and a river in the
bottom, indicating that over time a river cut through the rock.

Earth’s Systems

• Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of
the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind,
or vegetation, i.e., variables to test could include angle of slope in
the downhill movement of water, amount of vegetation, speed of
wind, relative rate of deposition, cycles of freezing and thawing of
water, cycles of heating and cooling, and volume of water flow.

• Analyze and interpret data from maps to describe patterns of
Earth’s features, i.e., maps can include topographic maps of Earth’s
land and ocean floor, as well as maps of the locations of mountains,
continental boundaries, volcanoes, and earthquakes.

Earth and Human Activity

• Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and
fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the
environment, i.e., renewable energy resources could include
wind energy, water behind dams, and sunlight; non-renewable
energy resources are fossil fuels and fissile materials. Examples of
environmental effects could include loss of habitat due to dams, loss
of habitat due to surface mining, and air pollution from burning of
fossil fuels.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide
• Generate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts

of natural Earth processes on humans, i.e., solutions could
include designing an earthquake resistant building and improving
monitoring of volcanic activity.

Engineering Design

• Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that
includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials,
time, or cost.

• Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem
based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints
of the problem.

• Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and
failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or
prototype that can be improved.

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Social Studies

Social Studies at Gig Harbor Academy has inquiry at the heart of
instruction. Teachers use questions to spark curiosity, guide instruction,
and deepen understanding of topics being investigated. Each inquiry unit
takes root in a compelling question that draws from one or more of the
social studies disciplines of civics, economics, geography, and history.
Children are naturally curious about the complex world they inhabit. But
they quickly become disengaged when instruction is not engaging nor
meaningful. Intentionally teaching social studies in an inquiry approach
and having compelling questions drive student investigations builds
critical thinking, problem solving, and participatory skills that makes
learning not only more engaging but also more relevant.
Fourth grade begins with a social studies inquiry unit titled “Washington
Geography” focusing on physical geography in general and on
the relationship between early Native American nations and their
environments in particular through the compelling question “Does
where you live matter?” The compelling question highlights the idea that
geography is not a neutral entity. Environments can exert an influence on
human existence, but they are not immune from change—human activity
can modify the physical landscape. The reciprocal relationship between
humans and their surroundings lies at the heart of this inquiry.
Three supporting questions that students will investigate are “What
physical features make Washington’s geography diverse?” Where in
Washington did early Native Americans settle and how did physical
features affect their settlements?” and “How did the early Americans
in Washington interact with their physical environment to meet their
needs?” In order to answer these questions, students have to gather
and evaluate information, develop answers using evidence, and then
communicate their conclusions.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Spanish

The ultimate goal of Spanish at Gig Harbor Academy is students’
acquisition of the speaking skills needed to interact in Spanish in real-
life situations. The curriculum is organized around broad themes such
as family members, greetings, animals, alphabet, shapes, and colors.
This allows students to connect the language they are learning to
meaningful content. Lessons in Spanish are planned to include a wide
range of culture-rich, age-appropriate activities, such as singing, dancing,
rhyming, playing Spanish educational games, and using iPads with
students working independently, in pairs, and in groups.
Spanish class incorporates materials that encourage young students’
interaction and involvement with the language, including stuffed
animals, puppets, storybooks, videos, and games. Students are engaged
in activities, such as storytelling, that emphasize the gradual acquisition
of language rather than the memorization of vocabulary and rules. Also,
incorporated into lessons are cultural activities, such as introducing the
foods, music, and dance that are enjoyed in Spanish speaking countries.
Spanish is used in the classroom as much as possible both by teacher and
student. If a student asks the meaning of a word in the foreign language,
the teacher uses both gesture and description to explain the word, rather
than reverting to English.

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Most students at Gig Harbor Academy are beginners to Spanish and have
had no previous instruction in the language. It is our intent to teach Spanish
in an engaging and fun way so that students, over time, will develop the
ability to do such things as greet and respond to greetings, express likes
and dislikes, make requests, and begin to provide information. We do
this through various topics such as family, shopping, directions, food and
customs, places and events. As a culminating educational experience, all
students participate in an annual Spanish festival performance.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Art

Gig Harbor Academy has implemented an approach to education referred
to as Discipline Based Arts Education. (DBAE). DBAE is an approach
developed by The Getty Center for Education in the Arts. DBAE continues
to be an outstanding framework which insures that all students receive an
excellent and ongoing study of the arts. It also involves the integration
of visual art into any curriculum in order to enhance overall learning.
DBAE presents a time proven art curriculum involving the following four
components: aesthetics, art criticism, art history and art production:

Art Production:

The production of art guides students through higher levels of thinking,
imagination, and contemplation. The production of art conjures
imaginative and critical thinking processes. The production of art
expresses our deepest understanding of our visual world. The creation of
art in any form is the expression of the heart, mind, spirit, and hand. Art
helps children understand other subjects more clearly – from math and
science, to language arts and geography…and much more.

Art History:

Art history has given us a peek into an understanding of past cultures
and times. By studying art history we begin to realize the connections
which help us make sense of the world. Not only do students begin to
understand art history, they begin to connect the dots relating to our
physical, spiritual, and soulful life on this planet.

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Art Criticism/Analysis:
One may look inside of oneself and love a particular piece, and another may
not. Analysis and criticism simply speaks about it. There is a difference
between liking a work of art and understanding its relevance to the big (art
world) picture. This process involves higher levels of thinking. Art
criticism and analysis often goes hand in hand with the beginnings of
aesthetics.
Aesthetics:
The values and ideas of “what is beautiful” is a highly personal one. Students
begin to understand the relationship between what is personally beautiful
and what is more beautiful as a collective society. Critical thinking skills
are used in aesthetics as we endeavor to design and create our personal
environments as well as to personally respond to architecture and public
spaces.
All grade levels work with a variety of materials and methods which are
age appropriate. By the completion of 5th grade, GHA art students have a
solid foundation in visual art which well prepares them for middle school
art classes.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

Physical Education

The physical education program at Gig Harbor Academy is a
comprehensive and skills-based curriculum. The program helps students
develop locomotor skills, balance, spatial awareness and manipulative
skills. Students engage in a wide variety of outdoor activities, sports,
and challenges that will increase their physical, social, teamwork and
cooperation skills. The goal is to provide a safe, fun and motivating class
that will encourage all students to want to participate , have fun and try
their personal best. In addition, positive sportsmanship is taught and
encouraged throughout the year.

The physical and health curriculum exposes students to relevant issues,
with the goal of promoting healthy choices while helping students
understand the benefits of lifelong physical activity. Focused fitness
activities help teach students the importance of physical health and
daily nutrition. Gig Harbor Academy students are offered differentiated
instructional strategies that create a safe and inclusive environment
ensuring that all students are successful.

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Technology

The objective of technology enrichment at Gig Harbor Academy is two-
fold, digital citizenship and creating information:

Digital Citizenship:

Digital citizenship is the appropriate, safe, and responsible use of
technology. In the lower grades we ask questions such as, “How do you
safely go places on the computer?”, “What can you do when someone
is mean to you online?”, “How can you use the alphabet to find things
online?”. In the upper grades, questions such as, “Which keywords will
give you the best search results?”, “What kinds of responsibilities does a
good digital citizen have?” are asked.

Bridging the Gap Between Consumption and Creation:

At Gig Harbor Academy we wish to teach creation rather than only
consumption of information. Even our youngest children have now been
raised with electronic devices and use them intuitively. However as adults
we daily use computers to write documents, organize data, and automate
tasks. Our technology program is designed to bridge that gap between
consumption and production, and do so in an exciting and meaningful
way.

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Fourth Grade Curriculum Guide

To that end there are a number of fundamental concepts to outline
and build upon step-by-step. Among these are articulating a problem,
expressing a concise and specific solution, then developing a logical and
elegant procedure to carry out that solution. We will explore how large
problems can be broken down to simple tasks and handled in turn or in
parallel through teamwork.
At Gig Harbor Academy there are several devices and robots available
that allow for the introduction and exploration these ideas with even
some of the youngest students. Scratch, an environment developed by
scientists at the MIT Media Lab is utilized. Students can program and
share interactive media such as stories, games, and animation.
As children explore Scratch, they learn to think creatively, work
collaboratively, and reason systematically. They also use math and language
in a meaningful and motivating context, supporting the development of
early–childhood numeracy and literacy.
In the upper grades structured languages are introduced, where specific
commands or phrases are used to accomplish the solutions we have
designed. Students work hands-on with core computational concepts
such as iteration and conditionals, and math concepts such as coordinates,
variables, and random numbers. When students learn about variables
in traditional math classes, they usually feel little personal connection
to the concept. But when they learn about variables in Scratch, they are
used immediately and meaningfully, whether they control the speed of an
animation, or keep track of the score in a game they are creating.
As they learn about the process of design a student will start with an idea,
create a prototype, debug it when things go wrong, get feedback from
others, then revise and redesign it. This spiral leads to new ideas, which
lead to new projects, and so on. Designing animation, games, or stories
through Scratch enables students to express themselves more fully and
creatively, develop as logical thinkers, and understand the workings of
new technologies they encounter everywhere. The problem-solving habits
they develop will help them achieve and overcome throughout their lives.

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Music

The objective of the Gig Harbor Academy music program is to develop
joyful musicians who are confident and accurate singers, controlled and
accurate rhythmic performers, and inquisitive listeners who are sensitive
to the expressive and historical qualities of music.
In each class, students are given the opportunity to: sing focusing on
tune, pitch, and expressiveness; read: developing skills from identifying
notation symbols to reading complex notation; listen: to quality music
of many genres and cultures; move: reinforcing beat, and form, and
exploring Laban’s themes of movement; and to play instruments:
improving instrumental technique from shakers and sticks to drums and
pitched percussion, to ukulele and recorders.

Beginning in preschool, GHA students are introduced to a variety of ways
to make music with their voices and bodies through stationary gross-
motor movement, locomotor movement and lots of vocal exploration.
From prekindergarten to first grade, students follow the First Steps in
Music curriculum and participate in a “musical workout” of eight different
activities in each class. Second through fifth grade classes are guided by
the Conversational Solfege curriculum and focus on reading notation as
they improve their musical skills. Fourth and fifth grade classes also add
recorders and The Complete Recorder Resource to their music classes to
increase their technical abilities and study music theory in greater depth.
The music program also includes two large music performances each year,
plus several opportunities to perform musical selections at our “Colors”
all-school gatherings and other school events.
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Empowering every child
through joyful discovery

Gig Harbor Academy
6820 32nd Street NW, Gig Harbor, WA 98335

253-265-2150
www.gigharboracademy.org