Reading
As we move into February, 4th graders will be diving into historical fiction book clubs. When reading historical fiction, kiddos will notice that the novels themselves are inherently complex. After all, the characters in each student’s book will be living in places where students have not lived and will be living during time periods students may not have a lot of background knowledge on (example: Flint, Michigan in 1936). Therefore, our 4th grade readers must figure out the nature of the setting, the ways people lived in that particular time period, and the relationships the characters have to historical tension. So, at this point of our school year together, the reading work will be appropriately intense. The kids will be reading an assigned text in their book club with a focus on either the American Revolution, The Great Depression, Pioneer Life, or Segregation and Civil Rights. These books all contain a very powerful message and will teach kids about incredibly significant times in our country's history.
The overarching goals of our historical fiction unit are to build strong reading skills in areas such as character analysis, determining theme(s), inferring within a text, comparing and contrasting texts, synthesising across texts, and talking and writing about our reading. These are skills that our 4th grade readers can apply across any fiction text that they pick up and read regardless of whether or not it is historical!
By the end of the unit, students will be able to accomplish various goals such as inferring about characters by: inferring about their motivations and desires, inferring about a character’s unique perspective, and inferring about character feelings based upon the historical experiences or roles each character has.
Historical fiction moves swiftly and has multiple layers. This being said, I will model the learning we do in this unit. I will be modeling each learning target using Lois Lowry’s powerful historical fiction novel entitled Number the Stars. I will facilitate as the kiddos engage in book talks ans share their thinking with each other in their book clubs.
Writing
As we begin a new month, we will also begin a new unit in writing. This unit will focus on literary essays. (There is a strong link between this unit and our reading unit.) This writing will allows us to pause to really notice, experience, and reflect on the ideas in our books. We will be reading a variety of short texts and devising theories about the characters in the text. The kids will learn how to fine-tune and revise their theories, identity evidence from the text to support their theories, evaluate the validity and strength of the evidence, and synthesize their thinking as they craft a literary essay. Students will be reminded to carry forward all that they learned in their opinion and persuasive writing so far: to state a clear thesis, to craft a solid organizational structure, to support their thesis with both reasons and evidence, to use transitional phrases, clarity and cohesiveness, and to provide a conclusion that relates to their stated thesis. This being said, by the end of the unit students will be able to develop a complex, interpretive essay comparing story elements across multiple texts.
Math
In February we will begin our math unit on measurement and shapes. In this unit the kids will learn about the US Standard System of Measurement as well as the Metric System. They will learn how to convert from one unit of measurement to the other, calculate perimeter and area, classify polygons, measure angles, and how to accurately use measurement tools. Learning will be differentiated through small group instruction as well as extension activities that will challenge all students.
These are links to videos and activities that will help you support your child at home as we begin our investigation of Measurement and Geometry.
Useful Links:
Young AmeriTowne
Students are learning about the Free Enterprise and Economics. Over the next few weeks we will be discussing choices and decisions, supply and demand, banking, checking accounts, how government works, how to write a deposit slip/check, how to fill out a job application, and how to interview. These are just some of the concepts we will explore. The fourth grade will be attending Young AmeriTowne on Friday, March 29th.
Technology
This month as Mrs. Fleet and I co-teach, we will support the kids as they learn how to use multiple digital resources while comparing/contrasting various themes and problems/solutions in the text. We will guide students as they craft short, constructed responses based on their analysis of the text and support their thinking with strong evidence. As you can see, this month and the next will provide the kids with multiple opportunities to polish their skills as readers who think critically and who can articulate their thoughts in writing.