Time and Priorities: A Fourth Grade September

As I think about the lessons that will fill the first month of school, I am once again met with the time and priorities challenge that all teachers face. At fourth grade our main objectives include reading well, writing well, and math concept, knowledge, and skill. Yes, there are discrete standards embedded in these goals, but the standards like the subject areas are easily life-long challenges as we can always work to grow our fluency, skill, and concept in reading, writing, and math.

To help with this dilemma, we have scope and sequences for ELA and Math, essentially road maps for teaching. Yet, even with these road maps there's not enough time or energy for all the wonderful tools, strategies, and lessons available. Hence I am continually weighing one approach, strategy, and choice against another, and of course the students are rightfully impacting those decisions with their interests, needs, and reactions daily.

So, with this in mind, the key is to first develop the overall unit plan--the "loose-tight" objectives and lessons with a time line.  Then begin the journey revising along the way.

Specifically, in my fourth grade class during September, that path will look like this.

Early Morning Keyboarding

• Try out programs, let students choose the ones they like best.
• After initial exploration, take a baseline typing test, chart the scores.
• Make individual goals related to practice efforts, attitude, and outcome.
• Practice, practice, practice.
• Reassess in about two weeks time, reset goals, practice.  
• Once most students' keyboarding skills have reached 30wpm, we'll use early morning teach time each day for another discrete goal.

Writing Journals

• Create online and offline journals.
• Establish a pattern of daily writing. Use "Fletcher" lessons. 

Writing Genre Studies/Digital Projects

• Animoto "I AM" Poems
• "Architect of Your Own Learning" Photobooth/Sentence Project

Reading Response/Close Reading

• Model this with The Gold Threaded Dress interactive read aloud focusing on a review/introduction to reading comprehension strategies.
• Establish Reading "Dialogue Journals."
• Start with "One Today" Reading Response/Close Reading Class Activity.
• Prep reading response/close reading activities related to upcoming "Farm Days" field study and Culture Unit. 

Social Studies/Science

• Culture Flags
• Self Portraits: History of Skin
• Animal Adaptation Reading Response/Activities 
• Start U.S. Tour Project

Field Study: Farm Days First Trip

Math

• Initial Assessments: Math Autobiographies, Attitudinal/Initial Concepts Assessment, Standardized Test, Facts Test, Performance Assessment.
• Place Value Unit
• Addition and Subtraction Review and Practice
• Measurement Unit
• Begin Math Journals (grid-paper journals)

Assessments

• Reading: Standard School Assessments
• Writing: Introduce Yourself
• Math: Standard School Assessment and others as noted above.

Regular Practice

• Reading daily and home study. 
• Writing daily and home study.
• Lexia and Symphony Math 2-3 times each week (online skills programs)
• Xtra Math: Nightly, SumDog: daily and home study.

Learning to Learn, Team Building, Behavior, and Routines

• Regular focused meetings on these topics.