Fourth Grade
Meet your teacher- Ms. Mathews!
Curriculum
READING, LANGUAGE ARTS, and WRITING
The Open Court Reading Program continues from Fourth into Fifth Grade. It is a research-based comprehensive reading, writing, and language arts program, which uses systematic, explicit instruction, this program helps all students master the foundational skills needed not only to move to proficiency, but also to achieve greater goals of reading independently with confidence inside and outside the classroom. The Student Anthology includes a variety of narrative and informative texts to help students understand concepts such as: key ideas and details; writing as a craft; and the integration of background knowledge and ideas. The Grade 5 Student Anthology is available in print and digitally with audio.5th Grade Themes include: Perseverance, Cycles, Celebrating World Communities, Our Planet, Our Home, Making a Nation, Art and Impact.
MATHEMATICS
Students master the concepts of adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing fractions, mixed numbers, decimals, and whole numbers. Students apply this knowledge to create and complete real-world story problems that use all four operations. Students learn rules of multiplication and division using powers of ten, and how to apply these concepts when converting between metric units of measure. Students work with the coordinate plane to create quadrilaterals and triangles and identify their unique properties. Students work with shapes to find side lengths, area, and perimeter of complex figures. Students will use iPads daily to access and practice core concepts.
SCIENCE
Students will integrate technology, engineering, and various field trips to enhance and teach core concepts of physical and earth science. Students study microbiology, learning the basic structures and functions of cells, as well as how these cells have evolved into the unique and diverse living things we now live among. Students explore the many biomes of the Earth and the different ecosystems within them. Students also use data collection to complete activities that strengthen their understanding of the steps of the Scientific Method. Students will learn about ecosystems, animal and plant adaptations, the solar system, forces and motion, and more. Throughout this, students learn to become stewards of the Earth and learn about our duty to protect, restore and observe our local and global ecosystems.
SOCIAL STUDIES
Fifth Grade students will learn about North America before the founding of the United States as well as the first several decades of the republic through the Impact Social Studies Curriculum. By engaging with diverse perspectives and primary sources, students build an understanding of the cooperation and conflicts that defined the early nation. Fifth Grade Chapters/Themes include: How Were the Lives of Native Peoples Influenced by Where They Lived?; What Happened When Diverse Cultures Crossed Paths?; What Is the Impact of People Settling in a New Place?; Why Would a Nation Want to Become Independent?; What Does the Revolutionary Era Tell Us About Our Nation Today?; How Does the Constitution Help Us Understand What It Means to Be an American?; What Do the Early Years of the United States Reveal About the Character of the Nation?; and What Was the Effect of the Civil War on U.S. Society?
TECHNOLOGY / S.T.E.M.
Quarterly research projects entail science, technology, engineering and math core concepts; specific topics are connected and researched based on areas of study in core subjects and to address common core and Illinois Standards. Students use iPads as their primary school supply for all notes and specific information for studying. Smartboards and projectors are used to access online curriculum, promote digital citizenship, and for oral presentations. Approved Providence St. Mel online databases are accessed, utilized and cited throughout the year. A SMART Board is integrated daily to enhance instruction. 4th and 5th grade students participate in National Engineering Week.