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Curriculum Overview
Language Arts
Language arts objectives embrace discussion, questioning, listening, vocabulary development, understanding a text, making connections, a variety of genre and writing process including content and mechanics. Fourth graders meet PreK-3 expectations and …
Students will:
· Learn to participate effectively in small and whole groups discussions, both sharing and listening to others
· Expand reading, writing and speaking vocabulary including independent use of dictionary and thesaurus
· Make judgments about imaginative/literary texts and support with evidence from text including foreshadowing, sensory details and figurative language
· Summarize informational/expository texts identifying facts, cause and effect, fact and opinion, author’s purpose
· Enjoy and use distinguishable features of a given genre such as poetry, prose, fiction, nonfiction and drama as a vehicle for understanding and analyzing that text
· Read aloud with phrasing and expression appropriate for the genre
· Use research as vehicle for expository writing
English as a Second Language (ESL)
English language learning students (ELLs) learn the same curriculum as all other students. Teachers in the Martha’s Vineyard Public Schools are trained or in the process of being trained in Sheltered English Instruction (SEI), which enables them to make the mainstream curriculum comprehensible to English language learners as they learn English. All content in the core subjects of language arts, math, history/social studies, and science is taught in English, using SEI strategies to make the material accessible and the learning environment welcoming, stimulating and inclusive for learners from different cultures and languages. The language arts curriculum is supplemented by English language development (ELD) classes taught by ESL teachers and is aligned with the Massachusetts DOE’s “English Language Proficiency Benchmarks and Outcomes for English Language Learners” and “English Language Arts Frameworks”.
Mathematics
In grade four classrooms, students are problem solvers who are able to communicate their mathematical ideas to others. In order to achieve this, they draw logical conclusions and explain their thinking. The goal is for students to become flexible in making connections and using a variety ways to show their work. Fourth graders meet PreK-3 expectations and in…
Number Sense
· Understand and express in multiple ways place value when writing and reading big numbers to 100,000
· Understand common fractions and decimals as less than a whole and in their equivalent forms
· Recognize meaning of math vocabulary (e.g. odd, even, factor, multiple, square, variable, money) and use in solution of problems
· ·Select and use appropriate operation (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division) to solve a problem and understand reciprocal nature of operations
Patterns, Relations and Algebra
· Create, describe, explain and extend symbolic and numeric patterns
· Use pictures, models, tables, charts, graphs, words, number sentences and mathematical notations to interpret mathematical relationships
· Solve problems involving relationships such as pricing and map work
· Determine how a change in one variable relates to a change in a second variable (Input-output table)
Geometry
· Compare and classify 2 and 3D geometric shapes by attributes and describe model, draw, compare these shapes
· Identify angles as acute, right, obtuse
· Describe and draw intersecting, parallel, and perpendicular lines
· Use ordered pairs on a graph to locate points and describe paths
· Describe and execute flips, turns and slides. Identify symmetry in 2D shapes
Measurement
· Understand measurement vocabulary such as length, area, weight, volume and chose appropriate unit for measure a given figure
· Perform simple conversions: hours to minutes, cents to dollars, yards to feet or inches, etc.
· Identify time to the minute, a.m. and p.m., elapsed time on clock and calendar Estimate and calculate area and perimeter of rectangle, triangle, or irregular shape
· Identify and use metric and standard English units and tools to estimate, measure and solve problems involving measurement of area, length, volume, weight, time, angle size and temperature
Data Analysis, Statistics and Probability
· Collect and organize data and determine appropriate ways to display
· Use varying data sets such as tables, bar graphs, pictographs, line graphs, line plots and tallies to draw conclusions and make predictions
· Designate and conduct experiments using concrete objects (counters, number cubes, spinners, coins) to classify outcomes as certain, likely, unlikely or impossible
History/Social Science
In grade four social studies class, the focus is on the people and geography of the United States including political and physical geography. Students also learn about the land and people of contemporary Mexico and Canada. Fourth graders meet PreK-3 expectations and in…
Immigration
· Discuss the rights immigrants have acquired and how they can become citizens
· Identify how different European countries influenced different regions of the United States/World
· Identify settling location of African Americans during Great Migration, recent African groups, Spanish speaking groups and major immigrant groups who settled in Massachusetts
History
· Recognize national historic sites and describe their significance around Washington, DC
Geography
· Determine latitude and longitude of places studied
· Use map features (compass rose, scale, legend, title) to interpret a map
· Locate regions of the United States including states and capitals in each region, climate, physical features and natural resources
· Identify unique features of U.S. (example Everglades, Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore, etc.) and where three indigenous peoples live
Canada and Mexico
· Identify geographic locations, natural resources, physical features, climate and relation to economy of country
· Describe major ethnic groups – language and religion
· Identify historical events such as independence and how it was achieved
Science
In grade four science class, students ask questions and make predictions that can be tested. They keep records and conduct multiple trials. As patterns arise, they collect data and communicate findings using graphs, charts, maps, models and reports. Fourth graders meet PreK-3 expectations and in…
Life Science
· Understand which animal adaptations are inherited and which are acquired and why
· Give example of how inherited characteristics may change over time to adapt to the environment
· Recognize some animals behaviors are instinctive and some are learned
Earth and Space Sciences
· Understand the components (air temperatures, moisture, wind speed and direction and precipitation) that make up weather
· Use weather instruments to measure weather at a given place and time Differentiate between weather and climate Revisit the water cycle
· Know the components of the solar system Understand how day and night and the seasons occur
· Recognize the phases of the moon over the course of one month
Physical Science
· Define the properties of different states of matter
· Identify and classify materials which do and do not conduct electricity
· Recognize that sound is produced by vibration
· Recognize that light travels in a straight line and can be reflected, refracted and absorbed
World Languages
Spanish
Fourth graders meet PreK-3 expectations and …
· Learn and understand history and traditions of Spanish speaking children
· Understand the correlation between parts of speech in English and Spanish
· Develop an understanding of the sounds of the Spanish language
In fourth grade, students learn how to discuss their school day. They learn the vocabulary for school supplies and for class names. They learn higher numbers so that they can start to tell time in Spanish and discuss their class schedules. They may learn about schools in Spanish-speaking countries and compare and contrast schools in these countries and their own schools. Students are also working on the Spanish alphabet and how to read Spanish, focusing on the vowel sounds and how they are different from the vowel sounds in English. In preparation for the Mexican holiday of cinco de mayo, students learn about Mexico, its people and its geography.
Computer Technology/ Media
Today’s school library media program plays an integral role in educating children for the future. It is where students learn to find, analyze, evaluate, interpret and communicate information and ideas—skill they will need as adults to live and work in an information-based society.
Art
Fourth graders meet PreK-3 expectations and in…
Artwork
· Create 2D and 3D artwork using a variety of media and assemblage
Design
· Learn elements and principals of design including line, pattern, color, shape, texture, symmetry, space and background
Personal goals
· Demonstrate observation, abstraction and invention and expression
Group goals
· Work as a group to create a display
Music
Fourth graders meet K-3 expectations and in…
Voice
· Work on pitch matching breath support and control
· Take part in 2-part harmony singing
Recorder
· Begin use of right hand
· Expand range of notes to octave and a third
· Continue to build repertoire of various styles
Class Lessons
· Recognize and identify several famous classical compositions
· Recognize and name all the major orchestral instruments by sound
Physical Education
Fourth graders meet K-3 expectations and in...
Sports
· Develop knowledge of multiple team and individual sport skills and games
Personal goals
· Show acceptance of differences of others in physical activity setting
· Exhibit a physically active life style
Health/Social-Emotional Learning
Fourth graders meet preK-3 expectations and….
begin to learn about the various strands in the State Health Framework i.e. Physical, Social and Emotional Health; Safety and Prevention; and Personal and Community Health.
Responsive Classroom
The Vineyard schools are committed to the Responsive Classroom Approach to teaching and learning which fosters a safe, challenging, and joyful classroom in Kindergarten through fifth grade. Responsive Classroom consists of practical strategies for bringing together social and academic learning throughout the school day. Children’s developmental needs remain at the center of decisions about everyday practices for a developmentally grounded curriculum.
Home/School Connection
Keep informed of your child’s progress by: taking rime each day to talk with your child about school; attending parent conferences, Open House, and other school activities.
Help your child develop good study habits by: establishing a regular routine for completion of homework; offering encouragement and help in completing assignments as needed;
Develop attitudes that encourage learning by: providing books, newspapers, and magazines; using television and computers in educationally appropriate ways;
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