This parent guide supports parents in helping their child at home with the 4th grade ELA content.

Students will create a diorama of a character showing heroic attributes. This can be implemented in any character study unit.

Students will be reading historical fiction book at their own level. They will read, summarize, and create three book projects that correlate with some of the 4th grade common core reading standards.

This lesson employs direct instruction and small-group discussion to help students learn new vocabulary skills while reading Patricia Polacco?s Pink and Say.

In this lesson, traditional stories of the Native peoples (i.e., narrative text) introduce students to the study of animals in Alaska (i.e., expository text). Students use the Internet to listen to a Yu'pik tale told by John Active, a Native American living in Alaska. They also use online resources to find facts about animals in Alaska. Students compare and contrast the two types of text in terms of fiction and nonfiction. The narrative stories provide students with a context to begin studying a content area topic; this lesson emphasizes the integration of curriculum.

Jacqueline Adams has written for Highlights. In this short story, a young girl struggles with loneliness and boredom after she moves to a new home. As students read, they take notes on the different things that Aly does to fight off her boredom.

Four Questions Protocol is a good strategy for students to use when reading the material.

Three Column Notes is a great resource to use as students read and pace themselves through reading material.

Three Column Notes is a great resource to use as students read and pace themselves through reading material.

Three Column Notes is a great resource to use as students read and pace themselves through reading material.

To scaffold, AVID offers 2 and 3 column notes for different grades. See link at the bottom of the document.

Three Column Notes is a great resource to use as students read and pace themselves through reading material.

To scaffold, AVID offers 2 and 3 column notes for different grades. See link at the bottom of the document.

Three Column Notes is a great resource to use as students read and pace themselves through reading material.

In this lesson, collaborative groups will read a variety of American tall tales, then report elements of their story to the whole class. Students add story information to a collaborative, whole-class character study matrix that summarizes all the stories. In a writing activity, students compare two characters of their choice. The lesson process is applicable to any set of related texts.

Leeann Zouras has written for Highlights. In this short story, a girl and her family collect dandelions for a Greek dinner. As students read, they take notes about how Athena feels about the dandelions.

In this short story, a girl and her family collect dandelions for a Greek dinner. As students read, they take notes about how Athena feels about the dandelions.

This lesson will teach how characters evolve across a story, and that often times the important changes are subtle. This lesson uses accountable-talk during a read aloud of One Green Apple by Eve Bunting to demonstrate how, as readers, students can use the traits of their character as a lens through which to interpret deeper, more significant changes stirring within. They will ultimately use those observations about their characters to author an epilogue for their books. The epilogue will allow students to demonstrate what they have learned about their main character, and it will allow the teacher to assess how well the students understand their characters and the changes their characters experienced across the text.

In this lesson, students compare the classic tale with a version set in the pre–Civil War South, Moss Gown by William Hooks, noting the architecture, weather, time period, and culture as depicted in the text and illustrations. Internet research projects and Story Map graphic organizers then provide background for a discussion of how the setting of a story affects the characters and plot. Students read one or more other versions of the Cinderella story and compare them using a Venn diagram. During the final two sessions, students plan, write, and peer edit their own Cinderella stories.

For this activity, 4th and 5th grade AIG learners will read a book of choice featuring characters who are gifted in some way. Students will then use the bibliotheraphy questions to create a presentation showing how they identify and do not identify with the characters and events of the book.

While the resource is targeted to upper elementary school students, it could be modified to use with middle school students.

Stacey’s original project was created for a 3rd grade lesson with students creating book summary graphics on Canva.com / This idea was remixed for 4th grade AIG and Library collaboration

In the AIG ELA classroom, students will read fiction books in their genre book study groups, as determined by the AIG coordinator. Throughout their reading, students will use Google Keep to manage notes and submit occasional check-in reflections using Google Classroom, with both the AIG coordinator and librarian available to read and respond to these reflection questions.

At the completion of their book, students will use their Google Keep notes and Classroom reflections to create a sharable artifact on a digital platform. Students will be given instruction for three separate digital tools that can be used for their summary: Canva for a graphic, Anchor for a podcast, and Flipgrid for a video.

In the digital artifact, students must include key details (no endings), character and setting descriptions, themes, as well as a “rating”. Students will create their artifact and present them in a digital gallery for other readers in the school to access from the library.

Students examine books, selected from the American Library Association Challenged/Banned Books list, and write persuasive pieces expressing their views about what should be done with the books at their school.