GRADE 4
English/Language Arts Learning Expectations
Oral Language
Engages in small group and class discussions by asking questions and giving appropriate responses
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Listens to the views of others, to obtain answers to questions, to obtain general ideas, and to evaluate ideas and information
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Follows agreed-upon rules and carries out assigned roles in self-run small group discussions
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Uses teacher/student-developed assessment criteria to prepare and evaluate presentations
Speaks effectively using newly acquired ideas and vocabulary
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Uses context to determine the meanings of unknown words
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Identifies the meaning of many common prefixes and Greek and Latin roots to determine the meaning of words.
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Identifies the meanings of common idioms (“tip of the iceberg”) and playful uses of language (pun).
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Identifies and applies the meaning of the terms antonym and synonym.
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Gives oral presentations for a variety of purposes using eye contact, proper pace, adequate volume, clear pronunciation, and gestures.
Reading
Uses word segmentation and syllabication to decode and understand new words
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Uses phonics to recognize words
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Uses syllable strategies to decode and spell multi-syllabic words (e.g. “sister” = two syllables, “sis” and “ter,” “independence”= four syllables, “in-,” “-de-,” “-pen-,” “-dence”)
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Uses known parts of words, word segmentation, and syllabication to decode and understand new words
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Identifies words or word parts from other languages
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Uses dictionaries to locate pronunciation and meaning
Reads accurately and fluently using appropriate pacing, volume, and expression
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Reads fourth grade texts aloud with fluency, and comprehension using appropriate timing, change in voice, and expression (Anastasia Krupnik, Lois Lowry; Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Judy Blume)
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Reads passages orally and recognizes errors in word identification
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Reads again to replace appropriate word based on what makes sense in the passage
September 2008
Re-reads and self-corrects for understanding
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Reads fourth grade text silently with comprehension
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Reads passages and recognizes errors in word naming
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Reads again to replace appropriate word based on what makes sense in the passage
Uses a variety of comprehension strategies to show understanding of a fictional text, including poetry (e.g. connections, visualizing, questioning, author's purpose, story elements)
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Uses the information to speak and write about connections with the text (how parts of the text relates to its other parts, how the text relates to the reader’s experiences, and how the text connects to what is happening in the world)
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Interacts with the text orally and in writing (thinking within the text, about the text and beyond the text)
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Identifies main ideas and themes and uses them for interpretation
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Identifies the elements of time and place and the role of setting in the story
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Analyzes elements of plot and character through dialogue in scripts
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Identifies similarities and differences between characters or events in a work of literary and the actual experiences in an author’s life
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Learns about origin myths, and characters and events from mythology and other traditional literature
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Identifies the speaker of a poem or story
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Identifies themes as lessons in folktales, fables, myths and legends
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Becomes aware of author’s purpose and point of view
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Identifies foreshadowing clues (author’s hints about what will happen in the story)
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Identifies figurative language and its impact on the passage
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Recognizes the use of dialect in American folktales
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Distinguishes among forms of literature such as poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and drama
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Uses drama to interpret literature
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Identifies common elements of poetry, including repetition and similes
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Uses graphic organizers for comprehension, to sort, to compare and contrast
Uses a variety of comprehension strategies to show understanding of a non-fiction text, including poetry (e.g. text features, vocabulary, cause/effect, main idea/details, fact/opinion, chronological order)
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Uses graphic organizers for comprehension, to sort, to compare and contrast
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Becomes aware of author’s purpose and point of view
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Distinguishes cause from effect and fact from opinion
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Summarizes main idea and supporting details
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Locates facts and answer the reader’s questions
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Identifies and uses knowledge of common textual features (paragraphs, topic sentences, concluding sentences, glossary, and common graphic features)
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Identifies and uses knowledge of chronological order when reading nonfiction
September 2008
September 2008
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Identifies main ideas, basic facts in texts, and themes and uses them for interpretation
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Identifies formal and informal language used in advertisements
Uses evidence from the text to apply critical thinking skills (e.g. support judgments, compare/contrast, make inferences, draw conclusions)
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Makes judgments about setting, characters, and events, and supports them with evidence from the text
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Compares and contrasts common themes in literature from different cultures
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Locates facts and answer the reader’s questions
Identifies characteristics and analyze different genres
