Hillel Torah Curriculum


4th Grade General Studies
 
 

Mission Statement
Hillel Torah Curriculum
Parent Handbook


Curriculum Overview


 
Teacher: Ms. Mariko Takemoto

Language Arts  (Reading, Writing, Spelling, Speaking, Listening and Grammar)

The children will experience a wide range of instructional activities in critical analysis/thinking, vocabulary building, listening comprehension, classification, following directions, recognizing the main idea, recalling details, identifying a problem, sequencing, similarities/differences, fact/opinion, drawing conclusions, evaluating, cause/effect, predicting outcomes, writing, discussing and/or speaking through the literary elements of fiction, traditional literature, poetry, biography and non-fiction. A lot of our writing will be integrated into the other subjects.

Developing Skills:    

  • Appreciation of literature
  • Writing fluency in all genres (autobiographical, incident, journal writing, report of information, story, drawing conclusions, and poetry)
  • Basic mechanics (parts of speech, grammar and sentence structure)
  • Listening skills
  • Handwriting
  • Reference skills (Dictionaries, Encyclopedia)
  • Book reports and projects in class – there will be specific book report forms
  • Novels- Discussion and writing on readings

 
4thGrade Book Reports – Tentative Dates:
AssignmentDate Due
Free Choice9/25/08
Biography11/13/08
Jewish Author12/11/08
American Historical Fiction1/15/09
American Folk Tales2/12/09
Mystery3/12/09
Free Choice4/2/09
Nonfiction of your Choice5/7/09
Poetry6/4/09
 

Mrs. Rosen, the school librarian, will help us with our book reports by preparing a shelf for each of the genres as the date approaches.
Reading Street – Scott Foresman  (developing comprehension, sequencing, inferential and decoding skills)
  • Collection – student anthology organized around themes that provoke students’ curiosity and interest
  • Supplementary grade level books and chapter books
  • Practice book supports and practices skills related to reading, writing, grammar, mechanics and spelling.

Themes:
  1. Understanding Ourselves
  2. Sharing the Earth
  3. Creative Solutions
  4. Discovering Hidden Worlds
  5. The Stories We Tell
  6. Transformations

Novels:
  1. James and the Giant Peach – Ronald Dahl
  2. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing – Judy Blume
  3. The Trumpet of the Swan - E.B. White
  4. Landry News - Andrew Clements
  5. The Stories We Tell
 *Additional novels may be added to our list.*

Grammar

Every week we will have activities for learning grammar skills that will improve you child’s ability to read and write. We will focus on:

  1. Parts of speech
    • Nouns
    • Verbs
    • Adverbs/adjectives
    • Prepositions/interjections
  2. Dictionary skills
    • Guide words
    • Abbreviations
    • Alphabetical order
  3. Sentences
    • Complete sentences
    • Punctuation/capitalization
    • Kinds of sentences
    • Writing paragraphs
    • Writing letters
Writing Process
  1. Prewriting (brainstorming, discussing)
  2. Writing (first draft)
  3. Revision (make corrections)
  4. Editing and Proofreading (proper spelling, capitalization, grammar)
  5. Publishing (final copy)
  6. "WrIte" Program with Mrs. Kopin

Math

Textbook:  The Path To Math Success, Silver Burdett Ginn, 2002

  • Place Value
  • Adding and Subtracting Whole Numbers
  • Multiplication and Division Facts
  • Multiplying by One-Digit Numbers
  • Multiplying by Two-Digit Numbers
  • Dividing by One-Digit Divisors
  • Fractions
  • Decimals
  • Geometry
  • Dividing by Two Digit Numbers
  • Money
  • Using Data and Probability
  • Time and Measurement
Organizational Skills
  1. Daily Assignments
  2. Time Management
  3. Homework
  4. Sense of Responsibility
  5. Working in small groups and with partners
Social Studies
At the fourth grade level, the social studies curriculum will help the students to compare and contrast the regions of the United States, and understand the State of Illinois, its government, history, economy, geography and people.

 
Textbook:  Regions by Scott Foresman-Addison Wesley
 
  1. Reviewing Map and Globe Skills
    1. Using a Legend
    2. Using Scale
    3. Using Directions
    4. Using a Grid
    5. Mapping the Round Earth
    6. Latitude and Longitude
  2. A Look at Earth
    1. Land
    2. Water
    3. World Geography
  3. The Northeast: A Forest Region
    1. The Northeast Long Ago
    2. Working in the Northeast
    3. Living in the Northeast
  4. The Southeast: A Forest Region
    1. The Southeast Long Ago
    2. Working in the Southeast
    3. Living in the Southeast
  5. The Middle West: Forest and Grassland
    1. The Middle West Long Ago
    2. Working in the Middle West
    3. Living in the Middle West
  6. The Southwest: Grassland and Dry Land
    1. The Southwest Long Ago
    2. Working in the Southwest
    3. Living in the Southwest
  7. The Rocky Mountain Region: Forest, Grassland, and Dry Land
    1. The Rick Mountain Region Long Ago
    2. Working in the Rocky Mountain Region
    3. Living in the Rocky Mountain Region
  8. The Pacific Coast Region: Forest and Dry Land
    1. The Pacific Coast Region Long Ago
    2. Working in Pacific Coast Region
    3. Living in the Pacific Coast Region
  9. Current Events
  10. State Fair Project
Science
Teacher:  Mrs Lebovitz (also incorporated in Language Arts and Math Unit)
Textbook:  Science 2000 by Mc Graw Hill/National Geographic
  1. Life Science -- Animals
    1. Describing Animals
      1. Animal Characteristics
      2. Animals without Backbones
      3. Animals with Backbones
    2. See How They work
      1. Organ Systems
      2. Development and Reproduction
      3. Animal Survival
  2. Life Science -- Human Body: A Body in Motion
    1. Moving About
      1. Skeletal System
      2. Muscular System
    2. Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drugs
      1. Respiratory System
      2. Alcohol and Tobacco
      3. Medicines and Other Drugs
  3. Earth Science -- Learning About Earth’s History
    1. Interpreting Evidence in Rocks
      1. What You Can Learn from Rocks
      2. Clues from Fossils
    2. Learning About Earth
      1. Shaping Earth’s Surface
      2. The Story of Soil
      3. Inside Earth
  4. Earth Science – Earth’s Water
    1. Places to Find Water
      1. Water, Water Everywhere
      2. Follow the Water
      3. Motions in the Oceans
    2. Water on its Way to You
      1. Go With the Flow
      2. Water Please!
  5. Physical Science -- Electricity and Magnetism
    1. Paths for Electricity
      1. It’s Shocking
      2. Electrical Pathways
      3. Different Circuits
    2. Making and Using Electricity
      1. Electricity and Magnets
      2. Making Electricity
      3. Transforming Electricity

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