Grade 4 - November Issue
Our Grade 4 teacher explains classroom goals for the month of November.
Activities of the Month: Practise your multiplication tables. Learn about rocks and minerals.

Mathematics

Multiplication - Let the Good "Times" Roll! Have you ever tried to eat soup with a fork? Well, that's about how frustrating Math is going to be in the next few months for students who have not yet memorized their multiplication tables! One of the easiest ways to ensure success in Math is for your child to know their times tables up to 9x9. In the Number Sense and Numeration strand, there are several expectations that hinge on students having these multiplication facts memorized. With five different strands of Math to cover each term, there really isn't a lot of class time that can be set aside to simply practise. Students will need to devote time outside of school in order to master this skill.

At the beginning of the year, students should already have recall of the easier times tables (i.e. the x1 and x0 tables). A good rule of thumb is for your child to have a new times table under their belt by the end of each month. However, the quicker your child is able to reach the year-end goal of all facts to 9x9, the better! Every other day, I play different games that require students to recall their facts. I try to make it as fun (and fast-paced) as I can, in the hopes of making students want to learn their times tables. Multiplication.com is a great web site that gives games, worksheets and activities that can be adapted, or printed, for use at home.

Data Management - Tally Ho! Students really seem to love graphing activities! (I think it's the part about getting to colour your answers!) In previous grades, students were required to read and construct a variety of graphs, so they should have no difficulty reading and discussing a simple graph (i.e. what the graph is depicting, the relationships between the different items being graphed). This month, students will be taken through a "graphing process". They will think of survey questions, conduct surveys, record their findings using a tally chart, and then take the information and graph it. It sounds straightforward, but when you have more than 20 students, and each one is conducting their own survey, the classroom often resembles a press conference gone haywire! As this will not be an entirely new experience for students, emphasis will be placed on students working independently throughout the process, and on producing a quality graph (i.e. ruler lines, titles, neatly shaded, etc.).

Reading - A Novel Idea

I can't stress how important it is for Grade 4 students to be reading independently. In my classroom, part of each night's homework is to read for at least 15 minutes. As junior students, they will be expected to read novels as part of their Language program, in addition to the short stories they read in the primary grades. If your child is not a strong reader, or does not read chapter books at home, the act of reading an entire novel will overwhelm them.

Many schools have incorporated a daily silent reading time for students to read books of their choice. At our school it's called D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything And Read). During this time, students are expected to read independently for approximately 15 minutes. I strongly encourage my students to have a novel that they keep in their desk for this time, rather than selecting a different book each day. This reduces the amount of time wasted by choosing books, and gives them an opportunity to practise the skills they will use when we complete novel studies in class.

A large part of getting any student hooked on reading is choosing the right story. As adults, we have different preferences for reading material, and most students at this age level already have strong opinions about which types of fiction and non-fiction are interesting. When I choose a new novel to read aloud to my class, I always take a class poll first. What I think is an interesting storyline may not always be echoed by my students! Before getting started, you may wish to look at popular titles for Grade 4 students. Visit the library with your child and find a book that appeals to him or her. Children are often more eager to read when they feel as though they've had a part in the decision-making.

Science: Earth and Space Systems - Solid As A Rock!

In Grade 3, students studied the properties of soil. Before starting the Grade 4 topic of "Rocks, Minerals, and Erosion", it is expected that students have a general understanding of what makes soil (i.e. pebbles, sand, clay) and some general uses for it (i.e. planting). At the beginning of the unit, my students will explore the differences between rocks and minerals, and practise classifying different samples. I look for students to be active listeners during the lesson (i.e. answering and asking questions), and then observe if they can apply this new knowledge during hands-on activities in the classroom. Canadian Rockhound is an informative site about rocks and minerals.

Physical Education: Soccer Skills

We are just about to conclude our study of soccer skills. Students have been instructed on two stopping techniques called the "inside foot trap" and the "wedge trap", and have learned the correct foot position for passing the ball. Having completed a variety of drills and games, students should now be able to dribble the ball a short distance at a moderate pace and with good foot control. They should also be able to receive a pass using one of the studied stopping techniques, and deliver a pass to another teammate with good accuracy. Students will now be expected to apply these skills during the playing of an actual soccer game.

T. Tinley, Grade 4
R. Byrns Curry P.S., Ottawa