4th Grade Language Arts

In our fourth-grade class, students master the foundations of the paragraph, learning what paragraphs are, why they are useful, and how to write them well. During class, the teacher guides students through the paragraph-writing process, from selecting a topic to organizing ideas to developing a personal style. Students are given frequent opportunities to practice writing through a variety of in-class exercises and homework assignments. Additionally, students learn essential grammar concepts and new vocabulary words, improving their mechanics and breadth of vocabulary for use in their writing.

What happens in class?

Each lesson will include a different combination of:

• warm-up activities tied to the day’s objectives
• a writing lesson relevant to their ongoing writing project
• review and practice of grammar concepts drawn from their Grammar Town textbook
• a vocabulary lesson drawn from their Caesar’s English I vocabulary textbook

Homework

Students should expect to spend 60-90 minutes on homework each week. Throughout the year, students will work on several multi-week writing projects. During most weeks, they will complete part of a project at home. It is crucial that students keep up with this process work and come prepared for class each week. Students will also have some reading in their grammar text, Grammar Town, and in their writing text, Paragraph Town, and they will be asked to complete exercises and an online quiz based on the words in their Caesar’s English I vocabulary textbook.

Teacher Feedback

Since students will compete most of their writing in class, there will be many opportunities for the teacher to provide informal feedback face-to-face while students are working. The teacher will conference with students regularly during class, providing oral feedback and some informal written notes on their work. At the end of each multi-week project, students will submit their final draft and receive detailed, formal written feedback from their teacher.

Exams

Students will take an exam at the end of each quarter during class. Each exam will assess students on the grammar and vocabulary covered that quarter.