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Fourth Grade is a time of change - of broadening interest, new social challenges, and growing responsibility for most students. As they experience different situations in the classroom and with friends on the playground. They develop self-confidence and respect for themselves and others. We see them starting to "Grow Up" as they learn to plan more efficiently and remember to take care of more details in everyday life. They must also accept responsibility for more independence in school work - some homework, musical involvement in band or orchestra is optional, book reports, small projects and studying for tests (especially in science and geography).

After a brief overview of how the Bible was written and the times from Genesis through Ruth, we closely examine the books from I Samuel through Esther. Attention is given to how the prophets interacted with the kings and God. The focus is on how God remains faithful to Israel even though Israel was not faithful to God. Bible memory is an important part of our program.

Science consists of four main units. In the unit on light, we study light beams and shadows, reflection, and color with a variety of activities. 4th graders also study other forms of energy that God created: sound, magnetism, and electricity. One unit, weather, is studied almost completely through computers and other technology that allow us to observe and analyze God's creative power and force in nature. 4th graders also spend time observing and creating ecosystems, observing foodchains in the animal kingdom and classification of vertebrates and invertebrates. Plant structure is also studied.

Language arts are integrated through all of the subjects in fourth grade, and studied systematically through the Open Court curriculum. Reading, spelling, phonics, writing, listening, speaking are all featured in the curriculum. In fourth grade punctuation, mechanics, usage, and grammar are important skills that are developed. Journals are used for personal response and reflection in many areas. Students frequently participate in dramatic activities such as Readers' Theatre. Creative writing will include writing basic paragraphs, stories, poetry, and many other forms throughout the year. As they work on their writing, fourth graders should be able to write in complete sentences, compose good paragraphs, and write simple stories with a developing plot that interests and makes sense to the reader. An important goal is that the students learn to express themselves using the six-traits writing process.

Read-Up is a reading incentive program in which fourth graders will participate every other marking period of this year. It is a computerized program which allows students to read books from a large list of choices, take multiple choice tests on the computer for specific books, and receive points based on book difficulty and test score. Rewards are then given for number of books read and points earned.

As Christians, it is important for us to know about our world and the people in it. By knowing this, we are better able to be stewards of God's world and its resources, as well as developing a sense of empathy and understanding of people in other parts of our country and the world. We integrate a study of the world through a component of the Everyday Mathematics curriculum. Second semester 4th grade students study the United States, looking at its Geography, History of movement and settlement as well as its Economic, and Political systems. Included in this study are map skills and Core Democratic Values.

Geographic Review of our World or GROW is a weekly activity which encourages the use of map skills and knowledge of the world around us.

Some of the experiences your child will have in 4th grade mathematics instruction include:

• Collecting, displaying, and interpreting numerical information for example, about the climate in the United States and other parts of the world, about the way people live and the foods they produce, about mammals, about the children themselves.
• Exploring the role of mathematics in geography - for example, using longitude and latitude to locate places in the world, using a map scale to find the distance between places, using a time zone map to compare the time of day in various locations.
• Developing methods for estimating the length, height, and weight of objects and also practice making accurate measurements.
• Examining several methods for adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing numbers and become proficient at using one of these methods for each operation.
• Beginning the study of algebra and continuing the study of geometry.
• Predicting the outcomes of events that occur by chance and check the predictions by performing experiments.

By fourth grade, students are becoming more skillful in their art work and more interested in that skill and discipline rather than in the expressive free aspect of art. Materials can be quite complex for a fourth grader, and attention can be sustained for lengthy projects. Students enjoy interacting with their class- mates by working together on projects that also co-ordinate with their classroom studies.

Our goal through music education is to bring your child to understand and experience music as a gift of God which was given to us to develop and use for God's glory and our own enrichment. By means of listening, singing, creating, movement and manipulation of melodic and rhythm instruments your child will be led to perceive music as an artistic organization of sounds and silences through an enjoyable exploration of

1. rhythm (beat, meter and its patterns);
2. melody (pitch, melodic direction and shape, intervals, scales);
3. harmony (chords, rounds, descants, partner songs);
4. tone color (vocal, timbre, string, brass, woodwind, percussion, and orchestral sounds);
5. expressive qualities (dynamics, tempo and style); and
6. form (strophic, AB, ABA, theme and variations, rondo, sonata). In this way your child will experience music on his/her developmental level, and in a way which is delightful to the ear and challenging to the mind.

In fourth grade P.E., we develop the sports skills and learn the rules of soccer, basketball, floor hockey, volleyball, and softball. We have fitness tests in the spring. In every activity we continue to develop sportsmanship. When we participate in gym? we not only exercise our bodies, but we also "exercise" our Christianity.

Appreciation of literature is taught as the children listen to books read aloud from various genres by the librarian and as they are aided in selecting books to read for enjoyment. They are taught how to use reference materials such as encyclopedias and almanacs, in addition to learning to locate books through the card catalog.

In order for fourth graders to be organized, they must have a three- ring notebook for their schoolwork. They will be filling out daily assignment sheets. Please look for those to come home every afternoon.

Fourth graders will be doing research projects this year. Teacher-guided class activities will be used to teach research skills, and an independent project will be assigned. Homework will include Bible memory, unfinished work, book reports, reviewing for tests, and occasional projects.

1. Eat a good breakfast every day.
2. Get a good night's rest.
3. Read every day after school.
4. Establish a daily routine for organizing school needs.
5. Review your papers with your child.
6. Have a place at home where homework and studying can be done.
7. Pray with your child about school and learning to find his/her place in God's Kingdom.