Welcome t o Fourth Grade

1. Welcome toFourth Grade

2. Meet the teachers… Ms. Beckley Mrs. Sinatro Mrs. Kantrowitz Mr. Tavera Ms. White Mrs. Farooque

3. What are the Common Core State Standards (CCSS)? K-12 national academic standards in mathematicsand English language arts/literacy adopted by CT State Board of Education in 2010 • Establish what Connecticut students should know, be able to do and understand as they progress through grades K-12 • Will be fully implemented in grades K-5 over the next two years

4. The Common Core State Standards: Are clear, consistent, and high-level based on research and evidence Align with college and career expectations Include rigorous content and application of knowledge through higher order thinking skills Build upon strengths and lessons of current state standards Are informed by other top-performing countries so that all students are prepared to succeed in our global economy and society

5. How will the Common Core impact our work at each grade level?

6. How will the Common Core Standards impact what your child is learning this year? Grades K, 2, 4: English Language Arts/Literacy Our revised curriculum provides: • Balance of literature and literary non-fiction • More time reading increasingly complex text • Opportunities for discussion/academic discourse • Wide range of writing tasks appropriate to purpose and audience • Writing to inform or argue using text evidence • Literacy as part of science and social studies/history with increased focus on academic vocabulary

7. Will your child take the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT)? • Students in Grades 3-5 will continue to take the CMTs in the spring of 2013 and 2014, with the piloted national test beginning spring of 2015.   • National assessments based on Common Core Standards are in design/pilot stage for implementation in 2014-2015

8. Where can you find out more about the Common Core State Standards? • Curriculum in an Nutshell documents at each grade level highlight curriculum revisions • Link via West Hartford Public Schools website www.whps.org (right column) • www.corestandards.org

9. Math We understand that math is frustrating (hopefully not all the time!)

10. Math Trailblazers • Problem solving • New topics: double digit multiplication and long division • Math facts –10 minutes of practice each day is expected • Communication – students work on expressing how they solved a problem: verbally, in pictures and in written words

11. Math Class

12. Reading Storytown Anthology

13. Moving Readers P  Q New Characteristics of Texts at this Level Genre/Forms More complex fantasy Science Fiction Memoir, autobiography Historical Fiction Books with sequels Short stories Diaries and logs Content Fiction – settings requiring knowledge of content (history, geography) Themes and Ideas Complex ideas on many different topics requiring real or vicarious experiences (through reading) Language and Literary Features Explicit and obvious reasons for character change Settings distant in time and space from students’ typical experiences Texts with multiple points of view revealed through characters’ behaviors Vocabulary Many complex content-specific words in nonfiction, mostly defined in text, illustration or glossary Words Many Technical words that are difficult to decode Words that are seldom used in oral language and are difficult to decode Book and Print Features * timelines

15. Book Clubs High interest novels are chosen according to each student’s own personal reading level Q R S

16. Where to find just right books??? • Go to scholastic.com to find the Book Wizard http://bookwizard.scholastic.com/tbw/homePage.do • In the upper right corner under ‘Reading Systems’, click “Guided Reading” button. • Directly under “Guided Reading” system, click “Leveled Search” button. • Go through and set your personal preferences. (be sure to input correct reading level) • Hit “search”. • You will now be viewing a list of books selected for your child’s level. • Print list or write down a few titles to take to your public library. • READ, READ, READ!! • Note- 80% of your reading should be AT your level

17. Writing • Fictional narrative – The writer is a character in the story. There is generally a problem to solve. • Elaboration • Focus throughout the piece • Clear logical organization • Expository – Focuses on opinion and explanatory writing.

18. Grade 4 - Writing Prompt Read the sentence below. Imagine that a gorilla walked into your classroom and sat down at a desk. • Write a story about what happened next. • When you write your paper, be sure to • tell your story in the order things happened. • include who or what your story is about. • include when and where your story takes place. • include details about the events in your story.

19. Example of a Score of 4 (goal)from: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/curriculum/language_arts/languageartshandbook-part5.pdf

20. Language • Students will demonstrate command of conventions of standard English. • Uses knowledge of language to convey ideas precisely • Understands and uses grade appropriate vocabulary

21. Cursive

22. Science • Hydrologic Cycle How does heating and cooling affect water? What is the relationship between the sun and water on Earth? How does water affect the Earth’s surface? • Earth Materials Describe the role of water in erosion and river formation. Describe the properties of minerals and relate them to their potential uses. Describe the properties of rocks and relate them to their possible environmental conditions during their formation and to their potential uses. • Sound and Light Sound and light are forms of energy. What is sound? How does sound travel? How can different sounds be made? • Ecosystems (3 field trips to Westmoor Park, Hammonassett Beach and MDC/Spice Bush Pond)

23. Science 5-E Instructional Model • Engage – generate student interest by having them raise their own questions • Explore – Student to student interaction while performing an experiment • Explain – Students compare their ideas and provide justifications for their findings • Elaborate – Students use what they have learned to explain a new event or idea • Evaluate – Students demonstrate their understanding of concepts and performance skills

24. Social Studies • Immigration • Country Research • International Celebration Geography Continents and major bodies of water Latitude and longitude Using a map key to interpret information Computes distance and scale

25. Climate • Scotland is near the Arctic circle. The warm Gulf stream makes the winter mild. The average winter temperatures are 37°F to 41°F. Summers are cool. Temperatures about 59°F. Western Scotland is usually warmer than Eastern Scotland. Example of a student’s PowerPoint slide.

26. Social Studies Explorers • In Spanish and in the classroom we study early explorers • Students research an explorer • Wax museum in the spring – generally at the end of the school day

27. Social Studies • Citizenship • Decision-making, problem-solving, listening, speaking, personal and group interaction skills – Second Step • Develops an awareness of current events – Time for Kids

28. Are those 4th grade teachers serious?!? Homework

29. This is how homework should be: Read for 20-30 minutes a night. Find a quiet spot to do your work. Spend no more than 1 hour on homework. (does not include reading Be prepared District Policy

30. Curriculum in a Nutshell Please be sure to take a copy of all handouts Curriculum in a Nutshell is online at: http://www.whps.org/curriculum/elementary%20curriculum%20grade4.pdf Please sign up for a conference