4th-5th Grade Units of Study

Art Through the Ages! 

(Visual Arts)

Students will study art, its forms, purposes, and all of the ways it has changed throughout time. They will create a unique accordion book that demonstrates their understanding of each art style. 

Marking History, Making History: A project-based learning task (Unit 1)

Students will combine their skills as historians, researchers, and writers to complete this project-based learning task. How can we as historians UNCOVER and SHARE stories about our community?

Ancient Chinese Newspapers (Unit 2)

Our language arts and social studies Quest class will cover a cross-curricular unit on ancient Chinese newspapers. We will learn about the elements of newspapers and editorials and ancient Chinese history. Students will:

• Study Ancient Chinese Alphabet and Symbols

• Study the geographic regions and climates of Ancient China

• Explore and explain the importance of terrace farming

• Use comic strip design to tell the story of the Terra Cotta Army

• Articulate the pros and cons of the Great Wall of China

• Explore the perspectives of Confucianism and give advice based on those beliefs

• Research and advertise for Ancient Chinese Inventions

• Create a final newspaper product that will engage readers, present their work

"Math Quest Adventure" (Unit 1)

4th and 5th grade QUEST students (math, science, and general intelligence) have begun working with Mrs. Cooper once a week during resource time on a QUEST Problem-Solving Adventure! This cross-curricular unit is designed to help students develop a variety of problem-solving strategies, including:

• Guess and Check

• Draw a Picture

• Make a Table or Chart

• Look for a Pattern

• Work Backwards

• Act It Out

During their adventure, students will work together as a team to solve problems and earn travel dots, allowing them to trek through 4 different lands and pass through 7 gates. Who will make it to the treasure chest at the journey's end?

"Engineering with M&Ms PBL" (Unit 2)

Background: Astronauts love to have good food in space, but they can’t eat it like we do on Earth. Why? There are a few reasons. The main reason is that objects float in space! Food does not stay down on a plate or even on your hand. Another reason is that there is not much room on a spacecraft, so food has to be in a small, light package. Lastly, astronauts have a lot to do, so packages should make eating easy and fast! 

Mission: Astronauts LOVE M&Ms, but when they open the bag, they fly around everywhere. Use the engineering process to design, build, and refine a package that will make eating M&Ms in space easy and fast for astronauts. Your group will have “$5” to buy supplies at from your teacher’s store. 

Skills/Objectives:

• Work independently and collectively to identify the project's problem, criteria, and constraints. 

• Design possible solutions that fit the criteria and constraints of the project. 

• Work cooperatively to select, design, build, and refine a model for the given task. 

• Demonstrate the ability to critique others' work and use feedback to refine their own designs productively.

"Phantom of Bell Tower" (Unit 3)

Jennie Jensen and Jerry Kramer bump into each other after each learns about a mysterious phantom who has been haunting local residents. Is the Phantom also ringing the bell at the abandoned church? Is the bell ringing some kind of code? Who is going to be the next victim? Jerry and Jennie take off to investigate. Along the way, they jot down their ideas and collect a knapsack full of clues. Students will use these clues as they step into the two young detectives' shoes and solve the mystery!

Skills: 

• Solve open ended problems with self determined strategies. 

• Investigate and formulate questions from problem situations.

• Represent situations in a variety of ways.

• Communicate mathematical ideas with peers and teachers. 

• Work on reasoning skills. 

• Use estimates and measurements to solve problems. 

• Use knowledge of numbers and operational sense to solve real world problems. 

Introduction to Leadership and Creativity (Unit 1)

Students will study the skills and qualities of good leaders. They will research one of their favorite leaders and create a presentation for how that person embodies the qualities we have studied.  (Competency, Commitment, Courage, and Candor)

Students will study the skills and qualities of creative thinkers. They will research one of their favorite creative innovators or adapters and create a presentation for how that person embodies the qualities we have studied.  (Fluency, Flexibility, Originality, and Elaboration)

Holiday Culture Walk (Unit 2)

Students will work to create culture stops that can be presented within our school and community events. They will help raise community awareness and understanding of the alternative ways winter holidays are celebrated throughout the different cultures that are represented within our Grant County community. 

Our goals:

• Study the traditions of a holiday from another culture. 

• Create a game or craft to teach others about the holiday or help them celebrate it in some way. 

• Demonstrate our leadership skills by working with our schools and community to find & organize presentation outlets.

• Present our ideas to the public and our school community and volunteer to assist working at our culture stop booths.

Create a Culture (Unit 3)

Students will study the elements define a culture and use their creativity to develop their own. 

Our task: Work together to create and define all aspects of an entirely new culture within a selected time period in history. Including: Consistency with the materials and norms of time period chosen/Totem poles, fables/literature, habitat/environment, living quarters, language, government/power structure, economy/currency, education, holidays/celebrations, food and preparation, clothing, flag design, sports/recreation, time period fact sheet, and presentation. 

What skills are we refining:  Creative Thinking, Leadership, Research, & Presentation