Curriculum Night

4th Grade2014-2015

Carl A. Furr Elementary

Common Core StandardsNorth Carolina adopted the National

Common Core Standards for ELA and Math.

This is the third year of full implementation throughout the entire state.

These standards match the global shift in education to college and career readiness by deepening students’ knowledge.

Field Trips

Dan Nicholas Park – November 10

If you would like to chaperone for this trip, fill out the

online background check form ASAP.

Raleigh – March 25.Capitol Building

Legislative Building

History Museum

Science Museum

Essential Standards-Science

The units that are covered in 4th grade Science now include:

Forces and Motion Matter: Properties and Change Energy: Conservation and Transfer Earth and the Universe Earth History Ecosystems Molecular Biology

Essential Standards-

Social StudiesThe units in Social Studies this year include:

Economics and Financial LiteracyCivics and Government North Carolina History and CultureGeography and Environmental Literacy

Social Studies will also be integrated into the ELA curriculum through Reader’s Workshop studies on historical fiction and nonfiction texts.

Math Common CorePlace Value

Read ,write, and compare numbers to one million, use all four operations to answer word problems (multiplication, division, addition, subtraction)

Fractions

Add, subtract, multiply, and compare fractions

Mixed numbers and improper fractions

Algebra

Order of Operations and algebraic expressions

Input/Output charts

Measurement and Data

Measurement conversions and volume

Line plots

Area and Perimeter

Geometry

Draw and identify lines and angles

Classify shapes by properties

Math WorkshopKids will rotate in differentiated groups focusing

on the skill being taught

They will rotate between the teacher station (small group instruction), Reasoning (solving word problems and constructing viable arguments), and DreamBox (laptops)

DreamBox parent letter

http://www.cabarrus.k12.nc.us/furr

Words Their WayWe are not teaching Spelling in the traditional

manner again this year.

Students are working with words based on their spelling and phonetic patterns. They also define the words, understand parts of speech, and find the words in their reading material.

Each week students work with words on their individual levels.

Students sort words according to patterns and learn to spell the words according to those patterns. Students then spell new words according to those same patterns.

http://www.cabarrus.k12.nc.us/furr

WritingStudents will integrate writing across

the curriculum.

There are three types of writing taught this year:1.Argument/Opinion-based2.Expository/Nonfiction3.Narratives

Listening and SpeakingThis is a new emphasis to our

curriculum.

This will be met by partner discussions and book clubs during Reader’s Workshop.

Students will also present projects completed throughout the year which will develop these skills.

Reading Common CoreEmphasis on informational text and literature

Reader’s Workshop aligns to the Common Core by allowing students to go deeper with a self-selected text.

Students are expected to be able to answer the following questions for all texts:What is the author saying? Cite evidence.How did the author say it? Examine author’s craft.How do I evaluate what the author has told me, and

how can I go beyond that?

Reading GoalsGrade Level

Quarter 1 Quarter 2 Quarter 3 Quarter 4

3rd Grade M N O P

4th Grade P Q R R/S

5th Grade S T U V

Text Gradient ClustersThe level of the text increases in letter

with an increase in difficulty.

Being fluent does not mean that a book is appropriate for students—we must look at the content of the book.

Grading with Reader’s Workshop

We moved away from the traditional way of grading with Reader’s Workshop.

Students will be graded with rubrics throughout the school year.

Sometimes you will simply receive the rubric rather than the work because it is located in students’ reading journals.

AssessmentsBenchmark assessments will be completed twice a

year—between November 5th-20th and February 25th-March 8th.

Students will be assessed through Running Records three times a year formally.

Discovery Ed will be used for computer assessments throughout the school year.