Sackville Heights Elementary
General Curriculum Outline
Grade 4 Pridy 2023-2024
902-869-4700
[email protected]
http://mrpridy.weebly.com/home.html
While each curriculum area below is listed separately for convenience, it is important to realize our curriculum is integrated, meaning presented as an interdependent study rather than discrete subjects. Factored into this is the ability to accommodate students who learn at different rates, in different ways, and who have different abilities and learning styles.
I have a Google Classroom that your child can log into using their gnspes information. We are learning to complete assignments within this electronic classroom. Should we move to home learning, your child will need to access our Google Classroom.
Language Arts
The integrated curriculum plan across NS builds math and literacy skills learning into the subject areas of Science, Social Studies, Health and Art.
-The grade 4 literacy program includes whole-class, small-group, and independent teaching and learning opportunities. Students will participate in a wide range of speaking and listening, reading and viewing, and writing or representing activities. These may include but are not limited to : journals, research projects, narratives, letters, media texts, poetry and time dedicated to independent reading, book talks and shared reading.
-Spelling is an integral part of the Language Arts program and is completed during word work activities.
-The workshop approach that is used in our class will usually involve a short 10 minute mini lesson involving one or more of the language arts strands. This is followed by practice and conference time with staff and peers and concluded with time to share what was learned and completed. Mini-lessons are sometimes guided by the areas where students have demonstrated a need for clarification and further practice of a particular goal or to introduce new concepts.
Math
The Math curriculum is also integrated into the core subject areas and areorganized into five strands. They are:
Number Sense – place value to ten thousand, comparing, decimals, fractions
Number Operations – addition & subtraction, multiplication & division, estimation
Patterns and Relations – problem solving, predicting, identifying errors
Measurement – area, telling time
Geometry – 2 & 3 dimensional shapes, congruency, symmetry
Statistics – collecting and organizing data, reading and constructing pictographs and bar graphs
Fact Fluency - Strategies for basic fact recall with a focus on students being accurate, efficient and flexible.
-The 3 Read problem solving strategies will be practiced on a regular basis and integrated throughout these curriculum strands. Each lesson consists of an exploration portion, followed by skills practice and finished off with sharing.
SOCIAL STUDIES
This year, the theme of the Grade 4 program is Exploration. The following topics will be discussed and explored:
Concept of exploration- and the stories of various explorers including Acadians, African Nova Scotians, Gaels, Mi’kmaq and others.
Stories of exploration
Physical and political landscape of Canada
Impact of exploration
SCIENCE
The science program is an activity-based program. It is designed to link subject areas across the curriculum. The main goals of the science program are to investigate, observe, predict, test, measure, classify and experiment. This year in Grade 4, our class will explore the following topics to accomplish these skills:
-Habitats
-Light
-Sound
-Rocks, Minerals and Erosion
HEALTH
The program focuses on a child’s development of an understanding of self and relationships with others, developing a sense of healthy lifestyles and personal safety. The following topics may be discussed:
-Personal health -Personal safety
-Healthy relationships -Self esteem and mental health
-Puberty and gender -Physical activity
The Puberty unit is generally presented in late May or early June. In Grade 4, the focus is on body changes, (physical and emotional). I will be sending a group email prior to this unit to encourage families to begin a conversation with your child, prior to our lessons in class.
Visual Arts
This year, art will be integrated into many subject areas. All students are encouraged to try specific activities and to show growth in their personal works of art.
- Drawing and Painting
- History / Art appreciation
- Language of art
-Technology / Digital Art
ICT
Students will use digital tools such as Google Apps for Education, ipads, Sphero robotic ball and others to:
-Plan, create and publish their work
-Gather, record, share and interpret information and data.
-practice problem solving
-Understand and apply basic concepts of computer science.
-To learn about Digital Citizenship and the safe, legal and responsible use of IT.
Tools for Assessment and Evaluation
As stated in the Principles of Learning, “Learners have different ways of knowing and representing knowledge.” Balanced assessment means that students have different opportunities to show what they know and can do when trying to achieve the learning outcomes. Tools that may be used to gather information about each child include but are not limited to:
Work samples – assignments
Journals – informal writing shared among students and teachers
Projects/Reports/Presentations – formal assignments extending over a period of time.
Performances – skits, public speaking, debates, role playing, movies.
Tests/Quizzes – a time limited written or oral response to questions on a specific concept
Peer and Self Evaluation – students assessing their own and others’ work using clear guidelines
Observations/Anecdotal Records – continuous gathering of information on student learning
Goal Setting - collaborative process among student, teacher and parents/guardians to establish goals that the child will work towards over a given time period.
Rubrics – identify and describe the criteria used to assess student performance
Conferencing – discussion between student and teacher regarding student accomplishments
I look forward to the year ahead, and welcome questions as they arise.
Jeff Pridy
[email protected]
902-869-4700