Dear Parents and Guardians,

Have you ever wondered if your child is learning what he or she needs to know?

Academic Content Standards set expectations for teaching and learning. Standards are statements of knowledge and skills that every child is expected to learn and use in solving everyday problems and to become a contributing citizen. Your child’s school uses the Standards to assist in matching teaching and learning with testing so that youngsters are tested on the same knowledge and skills that they have learned.

This booklet tells what your child will be learning this school year in the major academic subjects. The Grade Level Indicators listed are specific statements of the knowledge and skills that a student must demonstrate. The Indicators serve as checkpoints that monitor progress towards the learning that your child will demonstrate on statewide tests, from elementary school all the way through high school.

As you look through this parent resource, you will see that the Indicators are grouped under the relevant Standards. The Ohio State Board of Education has adopted Standards and Grade Level Indicators in the core subjects mandated for statewide tests.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

MATHEMATICS

SOCIAL STUDIES

SCIENCE

If after reviewing this booklet, you have questions or concerns, please contact your child’s teacher.

This parent resource was developed by the Tuscarawas-Carroll-Harrison Educational Service Center to further our mission of “helping schools help students.”

English Language Arts

Acquisition of Vocabulary

Indicator

1. Determine the meaning of unknown words by using a variety of context clues, including word, sentence and paragraph clues.

2. Use context clues to determine the meaning of synonyms, antonyms, homophones, homonyms and homographs.

3. Recognize the difference between the meanings of connotation and denotation.

4. Identify and apply the meaning of the terms synonym, antonym, homophone and homograph.

5. Identify and understand new uses of words and phrases in text, such as similes and metaphors.

6. Identify word origins to determine the meaning of unknown words and phrases.

7. Identify the meanings of prefixes, suffixes and roots and their various forms to determine the meanings of words.

8. Identify the meanings of abbreviations

9. Determine the meanings and pronunciations of unknown words by using dictionaries, glossaries, technology and textual features, such as definitional footnotes or sidebars.

Reading Process: Concepts of Print, Comprehension Strategies and Self-Monitoring Strategies

Indicator

1. Establish and adjust purposes for reading, including to find out, to understand, to interpret, to enjoy and to solve problems.

2. Predict and support predictions using an awareness of new vocabulary, text structures and familiar plot patterns.

3. Compare and contrast information on a single topic or theme across different text and non-text resources.

4. Summarize important information in texts to demonstrate comprehension.

5. Make inferences or draw conclusions about what has been read and support those conclusions with textual evidence.

6. Select, create and use graphic organizers to interpret textual information.

7. Answer literal, inferential and evaluative questions to demonstrate comprehension of grade-appropriate print texts and electronic and visual media.

8. Monitor own comprehension by adjusting speed to fit the purpose, or by skimming, scanning, reading on or looking back.

9. List questions and search for answers within the text to construct meaning.

10. Use criteria to choose independent reading materials (e.g., personal interest, knowledge of authors and genres or recommendations from others).

11. Independently read books for various purposes (e.g., for enjoyment, for literary experience, to gain information or to perform a task).

English Language Arts

Reading Applications: Informational, Technical and Persuasive Text

Indicator

1. Make inferences about informational text from the title page, table of contents and chapter headings.

2. Summarize main ideas in informational text, using supporting details as appropriate.

3. Locate important details about a topic using different sources of information including books, magazines, newspapers and online resources.

4. Identify examples of cause and effect used in informational text.

5. Draw conclusions from information in maps, charts, graphs and diagrams.

6. Clarify steps in a set of instructions or procedures for completeness.

7. Distinguish fact from opinion.

Reading Applications: Literary Text

Indicator

1. Describe the thoughts, words and interactions of characters.

2. Identify the influence of setting on the selection.

3. Identify the main incidents of a plot sequence, identifying the major conflict and its resolution.

4. Identify the speaker and recognize the difference between first- and third-person narration.

5. Determine the theme and whether it is implied or stated directly.

6. Identify and explain the defining characteristics of literary forms and genres, including poetry, drama, fables, fantasies, chapter books, fiction and non-fiction.

7. Explain how an author’s choice of words appeals to the senses and suggests mood.

8. Identify figurative language in literary works, including idioms, similes and metaphors.

Writing Processes

Indicator

1. Generate writing ideas through discussions with others and from printed material.

2. State and develop a clear main idea for writing.

3. Develop a purpose and audience for writing.

4. Use organizational strategies (e.g., brainstorming, lists, webs and Venn diagrams) to plan writing.

5. Organize writing, beginning with an introduction, body and a resolution of plot, followed by a closing statement or a summary of important ideas and details.

6. Vary simple, compound and complex sentence structures.

7. Create paragraphs with topic sentences and supporting sentences that are marked by indentation) and are linked by transitional words and phrases.

8. Vary language and style as appropriate to audience and purpose.

9. Use available technology to compose text.

10. Reread and assess writing for clarity, using a variety of methods (e.g., writer’s circle or author’s chair).

11. Add descriptive words and details and delete extraneous information.

12. Rearrange words, sentences and paragraphs to clarify meaning.

Indicators continued on next page

English Language Arts

13. Use resources and reference materials, including dictionaries, to select more effective vocabulary.

14. Proofread writing and edit to improve conventions (e.g., grammar, spelling, punctuation and capitalization) and identify and correct fragments and run-ons.

15. Apply tools (e.g., rubric, checklist and feedback) to judge the quality of writing.

16. Prepare for publication (e.g., for display or for sharing with others) writing that follows a format appropriate to the purpose using techniques such as electronic resources and graphics to enhance the final product.

Writing Applications

Indicator

1. Write narratives that sequence events, including descriptive details and vivid language to develop plot, characters and setting and to establish a point of view.

2. Write responses to novels, stories and poems that include a simple interpretation of a literary work and support judgments with specific references to the original text and to prior knowledge.

3. Write formal and informal letters (e.g., thank you notes, letters of request) that follow letter format (e.g., date, proper salutation, body, closing and signature), include important information and demonstrate a sense of closure.

4. Write informational reports that include facts and examples and present important details in a logical order.

5. Produce informal writings (e.g., messages, journals, notes and poems) for various purposes.

Writing Conventions

Indicator

1. Write legibly in cursive, spacing letters, words and sentences appropriately.

2. Spell high-frequency words correctly.

3. Spell plurals and inflectional endings correctly.

4. Spell roots, suffixes and prefixes correctly.

5. Use commas, end marks, apostrophes and quotation marks correctly.

6. Use correct capitalization.

7. Use various parts of speech such as nouns, pronouns and verbs (e.g., regular and irregular, past, present and future).

8. Use conjunctions and interjections.

9. Use adverbs.

10. Use prepositions and prepositional phrases.

11. Use objective and nominative case pronouns.

12. Use subjects and verbs that are in agreement.

13. Use irregular plural nouns.

English Language Arts

Research

Indicator

1. Identify a topic and questions for research and develop a plan for gathering information.

2. Locate sources and collect relevant information from multiple sources (e.g., school library catalogs, online databases, electronic resources and Internet-based resources).

3. Identify important information found in the sources and summarize important findings.

4. Create categories to sort and organize relevant information charts, tables or graphic organizers.

5. Discuss the meaning of plagiarism and create a list of sources.

6. Use a variety of communication techniques, including oral, visual, written or multimedia reports, to present information gathered.

Communication: Oral and Visual

Indicator

1. Demonstrate active listening strategies (e.g., asking focused questions, responding to cues, making visual contact).

2. Recall the main idea, including relevant supporting details, and identify the purpose of presentations and visual media.

3. Distinguish between a speaker’s opinions and verifiable facts.

4. Demonstrate an understanding of the rules of the English language.

5. Select language appropriate to purpose and audience.

6. Use clear diction and tone, and adjust volume and tempo to stress important ideas.

7. Adjust speaking content according to the needs of the audience.

8. Deliver informational presentations (e.g., expository, research) that:

a. present events or ideas in a logical sequence and maintain a clear focus;

b. demonstrate an understanding of the topic;

c. include relevant facts, details, examples, quotations, statistics, stories and anecdotes to clarify and explain information;

d. organize information to include a clear introduction, body and conclusion;

e. use appropriate visual materials (e.g., diagrams, charts, illustrations) and available technology; and

f. draw from several sources and identify sources used.

9. Deliver formal and informal descriptive presentations recalling an event or personal experience that convey relevant information and descriptive details.

COMMENTS

Mathematics

Number, Number Sense and Operations

Indicator

1. Identify and generate equivalent forms of fractions and decimals. For example:

a. connect physical, verbal and symbolic representations of fractions, decimals and whole numbers; e.g., ½, ⁵⁄₁₀, “five tenths,” 0.5, shaded rectangles with half, and five tenths; and

b. understand and explain that ten tenths is the same as one whole in both fraction and decimal form.

2. Use place value structure of the base-ten number system to read, write, represent and compare whole numbers through millions and decimals through thousandths.

3. Round whole numbers to a given place value.

4. Identify and represent factors and multiples of whole numbers through 100, and classify numbers as prime or composite.

5. Use models and points of reference to compare commonly used fractions.

6. Use associative and distributive properties to simplify and perform computations; e.g., use left to right multiplication and the distributive property to find an exact answer without paper and pencil, such as 5 x 47 = 5 x 40 + 5 x 7 = 200 + 35 = 235.

7. Recognize that division may be used to solve different types of problem situations and interpret the meaning of remainders; e.g., situations involving measurement, money.

8. Solve problems involving counting money and making change, using both coins and paper bills.

9. Estimate the results of computations involving whole numbers, fractions and decimals, using a variety of strategies.

10. Use physical models, visual representations, and paper and pencil to add and subtract decimals and commonly used fractions with like denominators.

11. Develop and explain strategies for performing computations mentally.

12. Analyze and solve multi-step problems involving addition, subtraction, multiplication and division using an organized approach, and verify and interpret results with respect to the original problem.

13. Use a variety of methods and appropriate tools for computing with whole numbers; e.g., mental math, paper and pencil, and calculator.

14. Demonstrate fluency in adding and subtracting whole numbers and in multiplying and dividing whole numbers by 1- and 2-digit numbers and multiples of ten.

Mathematics

Measurement

Indicator

1. Relate the number of units to the size of the units used to measure an object; e.g., compare the number of cups to fill a pitcher to the number of quarts to fill the same pitcher.

2. Demonstrate and describe perimeter as surrounding and area as covering a two-dimensional shape, and volume as filling a three-dimensional object.

3. Identify and select appropriate units to measure:

a. perimeter – string or links (inches or centimeters);

b. area – tiles (square inches or square centimeters); and

c. volume – cubes (cubic inches or cubic centimeters).

4. Develop and use strategies to find perimeter using string or links, area using tiles or a grid, and volume using cubes; e.g., count squares to find area of regular or irregular shapes on a grid, layer cubes in a box to find its volume.

5. Make simple unit conversions within a measurement system; e.g., inches to feet, kilograms to grams, quarts to gallons.

6. Write, solve and verify solutions to multi-step problems involving measurement.

Geometry and Spatial Sense

Indicator

1. Identify, describe and model intersecting, parallel and perpendicular lines and line segments; e.g., use straws or other material to model lines.

2. Describe, classify, compare and model two- and three-dimensional objects using their attributes.

3. Identify similarities and differences of quadrilaterals; e.g., squares, rectangles, parallelograms and trapezoids.

4. Identify and define triangles based on angle measures (equiangular, right, acute and obtuse triangles) and side lengths (isosceles, equilateral and scalene triangles).

5. Describe points, lines and planes, and identify models in the environment.

6. Specify locations and plot ordered pairs on a coordinate plane, using first quadrant points.

7. Identify, describe and use reflections (flips), rotations (turns), and translations (slides) in solving geometric problems; e.g., use transformations to determine if 2 shapes are congruent.

8. Use geometric models to solve problems in other areas of mathematics, such as number (multiplication/division) and measurement (area, perimeter, border).

Patterns, Functions and Algebra

Indicator

1. Use models and words to describe, extend and make generalizations of patterns and relationships occurring in computation, numerical patterns, geometry, graphs and other applications.

2. Represent and analyze patterns and functions using words, tables and graphs.

3. Construct a table of values to solve problems associated with a mathematical relationship.

4. Use rules and variables to describe patterns and other relationships.

5. Represent mathematical relationships with equations or inequalities.

6. Describe how a change in one variable affects the value of a related variable; e.g., as one increases the other increases or as one increases the other decreases.

Mathematics

Data Analysis and Probability

Indicator

1. Create a plan for collecting data for a specific purpose.

2. Represent and interpret data using tables, bar graphs, line plots and line graphs.

3. Interpret and construct Venn diagrams to sort and describe data.

4. Compare different representations of the same data to evaluate how well each representation shows important aspects of the data, and identify appropriate ways to display the data.

5. Propose and explain interpretations and predictions based on data displayed in tables, charts and graphs.

6. Describe the characteristics of a set of data based on a graphical representation, such as range of the data, clumps of data, and holes in the data.

7. Identify the median of a set of data and describe what it indicates about the data.

8. Use range, median and mode to make comparisons among related sets of data.

9. Conduct simple probability experiments and draw conclusions from the results; e.g., rolling number cubes or drawing marbles from a bag.

10. Represent the likelihood of possible outcomes for chance situations; e.g., probability of selecting a red marble from a bag containing 3 red and 5 white marbles.

11. Relate the concepts of impossible and certain-to-happen events to the numerical values of 0 (impossible) and 1 (certain).

12. Place events in order of likelihood and use a diagram or appropriate language to compare the chance of each event occurring; e.g., impossible, unlikely, equal, likely, certain.

13. List and count all possible combinations using one member from each of several sets, each containing 2 or 3 members; e.g., the number of possible outfits from 3 shirts, 2 shorts and 2 pairs of shoes.

COMMENTS

Social Studies

History

Indicator

1. Construct time lines with evenly spaced intervals for years, decades and centuries to show the order of significant events in Ohio history.

2. Describe the earliest settlements in Ohio including those of prehistoric peoples.

3. Explain the causes and effects of the frontier wars of the 1790s, including the Battle of Fallen Timbers, on American Indians in Ohio and the United States.

4. Explain how Ohio progressed from territory to statehood, including the terms of the Northwest Ordinance.

5. Explain how canals and railroads changed settlement patterns in Ohio and Ohio’s economic and political status in the United States.

6. Explain the importance of inventors such as the Wright Brothers, Charles Kettering, Garrett Morgan, Granville Woods and Thomas Edison.

People in Societies

Indicator

1. Describe the cultural practices and products of various groups who have settled in Ohio over time:

a. the Paleo Indians, Archaic Indians, Woodland Indians (Adena and Hopewell) and Late Prehistoric Indians (Fort Ancient);

b. historic Indians of Ohio (Ottawa, Wyandot, Mingo, Miami, Shawnee and Delaware);

c. European immigrants;

d. Amish and Appalachian populations;

e. African-Americans; and

f. recent immigrants from Africa, Asia and Latin America.

2. Describe the impact of the expansion of European settlements on American Indians in Ohio.

3. Explain the reasons people came to Ohio including:

a. opportunities in agriculture, mining and manufacturing;

b. family ties; and

c. freedom from political and religious oppression.

Geography

Indicator

1. Use a linear scale to measure the distance between places on a map.

2. Use cardinal and intermediate directions to describe the relative location of places.

3. Describe the location of Ohio relative to other states and countries.

4. Use maps to identify the location of major physical and human features of Ohio including:

a. Lake Erie;

b. rivers;

c. plains;

d. the Appalachian Plateau;

e. bordering states;

f. the capital city; and

g. other major cities.

5. Describe and compare the landforms, climates, population, vegetation and economic characteristics of places and regions in Ohio.

Indicators continued on next page

Social Studies

6. Identify manufacturing, agricultural, mining and forestry regions in Ohio.

7. Explain how resources, transportation and location influenced the development of cities and industries in Ohio including major industries such as oil, steel, rubber and glass.

8. Identify how environmental processes (i.e., glaciation and weathering) and characteristics (landforms, bodies of water, climate, vegetation) influence human settlement and activity in Ohio.

9. Identify ways that people have affected the physical environment of Ohio including:

a. use of wetlands;

b. use of forests;

c. building farms, towns and transportation systems;

d. using fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides; and

e. building dams.

10. Use elevation, natural resource and road maps to answer questions about patterns of settlement, economic activity and movement.

Economics

Indicator

1. Identify the productive resources needed to produce a good or service and suggest opportunity costs for the resources involved.

2. Explain how the availability of productive resources in Ohio promotes specialization in the production of goods and services and leads to trade.

3. Explain how entrepreneurs organize productive resources to produce goods and services and that they seek to make profits by taking risks.

4. Explain ways in which individuals and households obtain and use income.

5. Explain why people in Ohio specialize in what they produce and then trade with others, which then increases the amount of goods and services available.

6. Explain why many jobs in Ohio depend on markets in other countries and why Ohio is a market for goods and services from other countries.

Government

Indicator

1. Explain major responsibilities of each of the three branches of government in Ohio:

a. the legislative branch, headed by the General Assembly, makes state laws;

b. the executive branch, headed by the governor, carries out and enforces laws made by the General Assembly; and

c. the judicial branch, headed by the Ohio Supreme Court, interprets and applies the law.

2. Explain why elections are used to select leaders and decide issues.

3. Explain the purpose of a democratic constitution:

a. to provide a framework for a government;

b. to limit the power of government; and

c. to define the authority of elected officials.

4. Explain that the Ohio Constitution tells how the state government should be organized and guarantees the rights of individuals.

Social Studies

Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities

Indicator

1. Describe the ways in which citizens can promote the common good and influence their government including:

a. voting;

b. communicating with officials;

c. participating in civic and service organizations; and

d. performing voluntary service.

2. Explain why personal responsibilities (e.g., taking advantage of the opportunity to be educated) and civic responsibilities (e.g., obeying the law and respecting the rights of others) are important.

3. Explain the importance of leadership and public service.

4. Explain why characteristics such as respect for the rights of others, fairness, reliability, honesty, wisdom and courage are desirable qualities in the people citizens select as their leaders.

Social Studies Skills and Methods

Indicator

1. Obtain information about state issues from a variety of print and electronic sources, and determine the relevance of information to a research topic:

a. atlases;

b. encyclopedias;

c. dictionaries;

d. newspapers; and

e. multimedia/electronic sources.

2. Use a glossary and index to locate information.

3. Use primary and secondary sources to answer questions about Ohio history.

4. Describe how archaeologists and historians study and interpret the past.

5. Identify main ideas and supporting details from factual information.

6. Distinguish between fact and opinion.

7. Read and interpret pictographs, bar graphs, line graphs and tables.

8. Formulate a question to focus research.

9. Communicate relevant information in a written report including the acknowledgement of sources.

10. Use a problem-solving/decision-making process which includes:

a. identifying a problem;

b. gathering information;

c. listing and considering options;

d. considering advantages and disadvantages of options;

e. choosing and implementing a solution; and

f. developing criteria for judging its effectiveness.

Science

Earth and Space Sciences

Indicator

1. Explain that air surrounds us, takes up space, moves around us as wind, and may be measured using barometric pressure.

2. Identify how water exists in the air in different forms (e.g., in clouds, fog, rain, snow and hail).

3. Investigate how water changes from one state to another (e.g., freezing, melting, condensation, evaporation).

4. Describe weather by measurable quantities such as temperature, wind direction, wind speed, precipitation, and barometric pressure.

5. Record local weather information on a calendar or map and describe changes over a period of time (e.g., barometric pressure, temperature, precipitation symbols, cloud conditions).

6. Trace how weather patterns generally move from west to east in the United States.

7. Describe the weather which accompanies cumulus, cumulonimbus, cirrus and stratus clouds.

8. Describe how wind, water and ice shape and reshape Earth’s land surface by eroding rock and soil in some areas and depositing them in other areas producing characteristic landforms (e.g., dunes, deltas, glacial moraines).

9. Identify and describe how freezing, thawing and plant growth reshape the land surface by causing the weathering of rock.

10. Describe evidence of changes on Earth’s surface in terms of slow processes (e.g., erosion, weathering, mountain building, deposition) and rapid processes (e.g. volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, landslides).

Life Sciences

Indicator

1. Compare the life cycles of different plants including germination, maturity, reproduction and death.

2. Relate plant structures to their specific functions (e.g., growth, survival and reproduction)

3. Classify common plants according to their characteristics (e.g., tree leaves, flowers, seeds, roots, stems).

4. Observe and explore that fossils provide evidence about plants that lived long ago and the nature of the environment at that time.

5. Describe how organisms interact with one another in various ways (e.g., many plants depend on animals for carrying pollen or dispersing seeds).

Physical Sciences

Indicator

1. Identify characteristics of a simple physical change (e.g., heating or cooling can change water from one state to another and the change is reversible).

2. Identify characteristics of a simple chemical change. When a new material is made by combining two or more materials, it has chemical properties that are different from the original materials (e.g., burning paper, vinegar and baking soda).

3. Describe objects by the properties of the materials from which they are made and that these properties can be used to separate or sort a group of objects (e.g., paper, glass, plastic, metal).

4. Explain that matter has different states (e.g., solid, liquid and gas) and that each state has distinct physical properties.

5. Compare ways the temperature of an object can be changed (e.g., rubbing, heating, bending of metal).

Science

Science and Technology

Indicator

1. Explain how technology from different areas (e.g., transportation, communication, nutrition, healthcare, agriculture, entertainment, manufacturing) has improved human lives.

2. Investigate how technology and inventions change to meet peoples’ needs and wants.

3. Describe, illustrate and evaluate the design process used to solve a problem.

Scientific Inquiry

Indicator

1. Select the appropriate tools and use relevant safety procedures to measure and record length, weight, volume, temperature, and area in metric and English units.

2. Analyze a series of events and/or simple daily or seasonal cycles, describe the patterns and infer the next likely occurrence.

3. Develop, design and conduct safe, simple investigations or experiments to answer questions.

4. Explain the importance of keeping conditions the same in an experiment.

5. Describe how comparisons may not be fair when some conditions are not kept the same between experiments.

6. Formulate instructions and communicate data in a manner that allows others to understand and repeat an investigation or experiment.

Scientific Ways of Knowing

Indicator

1. Differentiate fact from opinion and explain that scientists do not rely on claims or conclusions unless they are backed by observations that can be confirmed.

2. Record the results and data from an investigation and make a reasonable explanation.

3. Explain discrepancies in an investigation using evidence to support findings.

4. Explain why keeping records of observations and investigations is important.

Parents’ Guide

Fourth Grade

Ohio Academic Content

English Language Arts

Acquisition of Vocabulary

Reading Process: Concepts of Print, Comprehension Strategies and Self-Monitoring Strategies

English Language Arts

Reading Applications: Informational, Technical and Persuasive Text

Reading Applications: Literary Text

Writing Processes

Indicators continued on next page

English Language Arts

Writing Applications

Writing Conventions

English Language Arts

Research

Communication: Oral and Visual

Mathematics

Number, Number Sense and Operations

Mathematics

Measurement

Geometry and Spatial Sense

Patterns, Functions and Algebra

Mathematics

Data Analysis and Probability

Social Studies

History

People in Societies

Geography

Indicators continued on next page

Social Studies

Economics

Government

Social Studies

Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities

Social Studies Skills and Methods

Science

Earth and Space Sciences

Life Sciences

Physical Sciences

Science

Science and Technology

Scientific Inquiry

Scientific Ways of Knowing