Class Highlights » 4th grade

4th grade

In Religion, we will be deepening our knowledge of the Catholic faith by learning how to navigate the Bible, discovering how God speaks to us through scripture, how to use virtues and the Church's social teachings to guide our morality, as well as growing our understanding of Marian devotion, Saints from around the world, and the purpose of celebration during Advent and Lent. 
 
In English Language Arts, the core of our focus is Literature and informational text. We will read 4 novels; Matilda, Esmeralda Rising, Number the Stars, and then different 4th novels that are assigned to students in groups. We also have weekly vocabulary and spelling words, as well as grammar and phonics!
 
In Math, we begin the year with place value, then addition and subtraction algorithms, before moving into multiple digit multiplication & division, fractions & decimals, order of operations, data & measurement, and area and perimeter in geometry. We end the year with our interdisciplinary "Build-A-City" project, where students apply their math and science engineering skills to design their own city as a class. 
 
In Writing, students will take our paragraph writing skills and learn to develop multi-paragraph essays including personal narratives, research papers, formal and informal letters, imaginative stories, poems, plays, and we write a story together that turns into a class book!
 
In Social Studies this year, we will learn about the history of California! This includes Indigenous tribes, the Mission System, the Mexican-American War, the Compromise of 1850, California's Constitution, and our final project where we discover how our government works through a mock legislature!
 
In Science, we begin by learning about the functions of living structures; how they grow and use their body parts and senses! Then we will study Earth's geology by examining volcanoes, rocks, and fossils. We end the year studying energy & electricity where we find out about things like how roller coasters work and where our electricity comes from!