Classroom Learning
First Trimester Learning
SCIENCE
Human Body, Vision, & The Brain
"In this unit, students investigate structures and functions of the human body. Students explore how our bones and muscles are interconnected, how our eyes interact with light and impact our vision, and how our brain responds to stimuli in our environment."
SOCIAL STUDIES
Iowa Corn & Agriculture
"Corn has been at the center of Iowa life for much of its existence, and Iowa leads the United States in corn production." Students will investigate how farming in Iowa has shown continuity and change. They will analyze sources and then write an argumentative essay.
history.iowa.gov/history/education/educator-resources/goldies-history-kits
educateiowa.gov/standard/social-studies/grade-4-social-studies
READING
Literature
educateiowa.gov/standard/literacy/grade-4-literacy
WRITING
Realistic Fiction
"Students will plan, revise, and edit narratives using grade level appropriate conventions when communicating their real or imagined experiences."
https://educateiowa.gov/standard/literacy/grade-4-literacy
MATH
"In this unit, students learn about factors and multiples and apply their understanding of the area of rectangles. Students determine if a number between 1 and 100 is prime or composite."
Fraction Equivalence & Comparison
"In this unit, students deepen their knowledge of fractions. They explore the size of fractions, write equivalent fractions, and compare and order fractions with the denominators 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 100."
Extending Operations to Fractions
"In this unit, students think about how fractions can be composed (put together) and decomposed (taken apart). They also learn about fraction operations: multiplying fractions and whole numbers, adding and subtracting fractions with the same denominator, and adding tenths and hundredths."
im.kendallhunt.com/k5/curriculum.html
educateiowa.gov/standard/mathematics/grade-4-mathematics
2nd Trimester Learning
SCIENCE
The Birth of Rocks
"In this unit, students investigate features and processes of the Earth’s surface. Students explore the rapid process of volcanic eruptions! In contrast, students also explore the gradual Earth processes of weathering and erosion. Students apply their knowledge and design solutions to mitigate the impacts of these processes on humans."
Waves of Sound
"In this unit, students investigate the science of sound. Students construct physical devices to feel the vibrations that allow us to communicate across distances. Students also use digital devices to visualize the characteristics of different sound waves that cause us to hear different things."
SOCIAL STUDIES
Industrial Revolution
"The Industrial Revolution marked a period of development in the latter half of the 18th century that transformed largely rural, agrarian societies in Europe and America into industrialized, urban ones.The positives and negatives of the Industrial Revolution are complex." Students will investigate, gather evidence, and write an opinion piece using reasons and information about how innovation impacts people's lives."
history.iowa.gov/history/education/educator-resources/goldies-history-kits
educateiowa.gov/standard/social-studies/grade-4-social-studies
READING
Informational Text
Students will learn about "text structure, how to make inferences to determine the main idea, and summarize a text. When reading they will, "compare and contrast different viewpoints", and learn how to recognize when the "author uses evidence to support those views." They will continue to work on reading "multisyllabic words in grade level texts while recognizing, and explaining figurative language."
educateiowa.gov/standard/literacy/grade-4-literacy
WRITING
Essay
Students will "plan, revise, edit, and use grade level appropriate conventions to write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons and information."
https://educateiowa.gov/standard/literacy/grade-4-literacy
Math
From Hundreths to Hundred-Thousands
"In this unit, students learn to express small and large numbers, from hundredths to hundred-thousands. They learn to write tenths and hundredths using decimal notation and to work with whole numbers within 1 million."
Multiplicative Comparison & Measurement
"In this unit, students make sense of multiplication as a way to compare quantities. They use this understanding to convert units of measurement and to solve problems about measurement."
Multiplying & Dividing Multi-Digit Numbers
"In this unit, students deepen their understanding of multiplication and division and expand their ability to perform these operations on multi-digit numbers."
3rd Trimester
SCIENCE
Energy, Energy Transfer, & Electricity
"In this unit, students explore energy! Students investigate how energy is stored, how it can make objects move, and how collisions transfer energy between objects. Students also construct devices that convert energy from one form into another, such as heat into motion and electricity into light."
Social Studies
The Great Depression
"Students will investigate the time period of the Great Depression through a variety of primary and secondary sources. They will use the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) to generate questions and then investigate primary and secondary sources to gain an understanding of how people, including the government, dealt with the devastation of The Dust Bowl. Students will analyze sources, evaluate information, gather evidence and make claims about the ideas of scarcity, the New Deal, poverty and how farmers dealt with the environmental changes."
history.iowa.gov/history/education/educator-resources/goldies-history-kits
educateiowa.gov/standard/social-studies/grade-4-social-studies
Reading
Literature Including Poetry
Students will "summarize text and determine the theme of a variety of literature, including poetry. They will learn about story structure, and how to compare and contrast points of view and themes." They will complete their work on reading "multisyllabic words in grade level texts while recognizing, and explaining figurative language."
educateiowa.gov/standard/literacy/grade-4-literacy
Expository Writing
"Students will take notes from reading research to write an informational piece through planning, revision, and the editing process."
educateiowa.gov/standard/literacy/grade-4-literacy
Math
Multiplying & Dividing Multi-Digit Numbers
"In this unit, students deepen their understanding of multiplication and division and expand their ability to perform these operations on multi-digit numbers."
"In this unit, students learn new language for describing parts of geometric figures and practice identifying and drawing them. They also learn to talk about angles, measure their size, and draw angles of different measurements."
Properties of Two-dimensional Shapes
"In this unit, students classify triangles and quadrilaterals based on the attributes of their sides and angles. They also learn about lines of symmetry in two-dimensional figures. Students then use these attributes of figures to solve geometric problems, including those about perimeter and area."
"In this unit, students apply what they have learned throughout the year to strengthen major concepts and fluency goals of the grade."