By the end of the school year, all students should be able to:
■ Read print-based and electronic literary texts silently on a daily basis.
■ Set personal reading goals and reflect on changes in reading patterns.
■ Recognize how authors use literary devices, such as simile and metaphor. Simile is the direct comparison of two different things; metaphor is an indirect comparison or reference to how different things are alike.
■ Evaluate content by identifying important and unimportant details, themes across works, and different perspectives (such as cultural, ethnic, and historical).
■ Use organizational structures such as compare/contrast, cause/effect, and chronological order for expository writing.
■ Produce imaginative stories and personal narratives that show insight, logical progression, organization, and effective language.
■ Produce a variety of original nonfiction writing, such as school reports.
■ Recognize the perspectives of others, distinguishing among fact, opinion, and exaggeration.
■ Ask clarifying questions, summarize, and explain a line of reasoning.
■ Review own writing to edit for grade-level spelling, punctuation, and consistency in verb tense.
Learning at Home:
The following strategies can be done in the families’ native languages as well as in English.
Ask your child to make a list of books to read. Have your child check off books as he or she finishes reading them and keep adding new ones. We’d like each fourth grader to read at least 25 books this year, but this is a list that should never end.
Start a family book club. Choose a book that you, your child, and other members of the family will read. Set a time to talk about the book together.
Discuss the news of the day. Pick one important story in the news and talk about what it means to your neighborhood and your family.
Explore the many books, programs, exhibits, and other resources for children offered all year by the New York Public Library, nypl.org; the Brooklyn Public Library, www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org; and the Queens Library, www.queenslibrary.org.
Make visits to your local library a weekly ritual.