Fourth Grade at St. John Regional Catholic School

Our class theme is 'God asks us to be the best student we can be.'

I believe that one of our school's most precious resources is the parent. I believe that when the parents and the school come together, we form a dynamic team with a common goal and that is the education of your child. I am very blessed to work in a school where God is present throughout our day.

The 4th grade children keep assignment notebooks and they record their assignments in them so that the parents can review their work. Homework is important in my classroom because I believe it is that link between school and home and it acts as a reinforcement of the day's lessons. It also helps to build that study skill foundation that prepares them for the upper grades. The homework usually is an assignment that was started in class and should not take more than an hour to complete.

The following is a brief description of the subject matter that is covered in fourth grade:

Religion - We cover the commandments, beatitudes, rosary, and Stations of the Cross.

Reading - We read stories from a basal and we read trade books. We begin the year by reading Lost on a Mountain in Maine to go along with our Maine Studies unit. Vocabulary is taken from our readings to be learned and used as spelling words. We work on comprehension and inferential information.

Language Arts - The children do lots of writing. Students learn how to be better writers using the 6 traits writing process. English/Language lessons are taught through a mini- lesson approach and then incorporated into their writing. Spelling is taught through a combination of reading vocabulary and words from their writings. We have weekly spelling tests.

Math - I believe that it is very important for the children to come to fourth grade with a strong knowledge of their multiplication tables. This has proven to be the turning point in many children over the years. Those students who know their tables seem to develop a fondness for math and those children who don't seem to know their tables fluently seem to develop an opposition to math. We will study multiplication and division with single- and double- digit problems. We will also do problem-solving lessons that involve these operations. We will learn about fractions and we even have an introduction to algebra.

Social Studies - Fourth graders focus on United States Geography. Our Maine studies unit is incorporated into the Language Arts curriculum.

Science - is taught through a hands-on approach. We study topics like electricity, sound, and geology. We also make sure to read as many nonfiction materials as possible to enhance the Science and Social Studies program.