Fourth Grade Curriculum
Thrive Academy’s fourth grade students develop increased responsibility, accountability, and independence as they become partners in their own learning. Emphasis is placed on critical thinking and cooperative learning as tools for discovery. Character education is integrated across specials and within the classroom on a daily basis. Some of the highlights in 4th grade include exploring fossils, magnifying glass exploration and science experiments including making their own slime.
Language Arts
In grammar, students study the parts of speech; plural and singular nouns; pronouns; past, present, and future verb tenses; adjectives; adverbs; prepositions; sentence types; and capitalization. Students continue to grow as readers through daily practice. They continue reading to learn with a focus on main ideas and text structures. They also work on summarizing what they have read. Vocabulary and spelling skills are explicitly taught and facilitate students’ understanding and use of new spelling patterns and vocabulary terms.
Science
Through hands-on laboratories, students develop hypothesis, control variables, measure, observe, and predict as they investigate and experiment. Units of study integrate science and math during experiments that require measuring such as our slime making experiment. During the course of the year, students study health and fitness, plant life cycles, habitats, fossils and camouflage/adaptations.
Specials
Art: Fourth graders are social and eager to please but also able to work independently. This year the students will work on a group art project, such as making a mural or collage to strengthen artistic skills, fine-motor development and social relationships.
Physical Education: Students hone their team organization, collaboration, and sport specific skills during units on basketball, soccer, kickball, football, golf and volleyball. Students also participate in yoga/acrobatics and learn a variety of leisure games.
Music: Students continue to learn rhythmic patterns using instruments. Students work together to sing in groups to familiar songs. Students strengthen their motor imitation skills while learning group dances with their peers.
Mathematics
Fourth grade students build on mathematical concepts learned in third grade. Students continue to grow their skills in addition, subtraction, skip counting, money skills and time telling. Fourth grade students are introduced to multiplication and division. Students also learn measuring concepts including measuring length, weight and height.
Character Education
Character Education is an integral part of the 4th grade curriculum. Students learn new social and emotional skills during daily morning meetings and are encouraged to model these skills as they work collaboratively with their peers. Throughout the year students are learning to dream big, focus on each other’s strengths, explore interests, maximize positive relationships, overcome limiting beliefs, develop an attitude of gratitude, and make a difference in their community.