4th grade English Language Arts
20 units matched to the New York State Learning Standards. Kids see this subject as “Reading & Writing”.
Focus areas
- Reading: theme and main idea, point of view, primary and secondary sources
- Poems and plays: stanzas, rhythm, meter, dialogue and stage directions
- Writing: organized paragraphs, research and listing sources
- Language: figurative language, roots and affixes, grammar and spelling
Units
Unit 1
Reading Detectives
Reading short original stories and articles, then finding the main idea and key details, making inferences from clues, working out word meanings and choosing the best summary.
Learning standard: 4R1; 4R2; 4R3; 4R4 · main idea, details, inferences, word meanings and summaries
Unit 2
Text Features
Using the parts of a nonfiction book to find information: reading a table of contents and index, knowing what glossaries, captions, labels and timelines are for, and choosing headings.
Learning standard: 4R5; 4R7 · headings, glossaries, maps and indexes
Unit 3
Figurative Language
Spotting similes, metaphors, personification, onomatopoeia and alliteration (plus hyperbole at the stretch level), and explaining what figurative phrases really mean.
Learning standard: 4L5; 4R4 · similes, metaphors and idioms
Unit 4
Point of View
Telling first-person stories (I, me, we) from third-person stories (he, she, they), finding pronoun clues, and noticing when dialogue uses “I” in a third-person story.
Learning standard: 4R6 · first- and third-person narration
Unit 5
Parts of Speech
Naming the job each word does in a sentence, with a focus on Grade 4's pronouns, adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions. Easier levels stick to nouns, verbs, adjectives and pronouns.
Learning standard: 4L1 · pronouns, adverbs and other parts of speech
Unit 6
Super Sentences
Joining sentences with and, but, or and so; spotting and fixing fragments and run-ons; and choosing verbs that agree with the subject and match the tense.
Learning standard: 4L1 · compound sentences, fragments and run-ons
Unit 7
Word Builders
Using word parts to work out meanings: prefixes like re- and mis-, suffixes like -able and -ment, finding the base word, and (at the stretch level) roots such as port and tele.
Learning standard: 4RF3; 4L4 · prefixes, suffixes and roots
Unit 8
Sound-Alikes
Choosing between words that sound alike (there/their/they're, to/too/two, its/it's) and using context to tell which meaning of a word like “bark” or “bow” is meant.
Learning standard: 4L4; 4L5 · homophones and homographs
Unit 9
Paragraph Power
Choosing topic and concluding sentences, finding the sentence that doesn't belong, using transition words, identifying cause and effect, and putting sentences in order.
Learning standard: 4W2 · topic sentences, details and transitions
Unit 10
Grammar Gears
Choosing who, which, that and whose, using have, has and had with the right verb form, telling questions from commands, and using my, your, their, this and these.
Learning standard: 4L1 · relative pronouns and verb forms
Unit 11
Media and Sources
Children practice naming the target audience and purpose of a message, spotting techniques like close-ups and “hurry” words, telling facts from opinions, searching with keywords and judging whether a source is reliable.
Learning standard: 4W6; 4W7; 4R7 · searching, judging sources and reading the purpose of media messages
Unit 12
Spelling Rules
Children practice US spelling rules for adding endings (doubling, dropping e, changing y to i), plurals and common tricky words.
Learning standard: 4L2 · spelling words correctly using rules for endings, plurals and common words
Unit 13
Firsthand or Secondhand?
Children practice telling firsthand accounts (diaries, letters, interviews) from secondhand ones (textbooks, reports, biographies) and what each kind shows best.
Learning standard: 4R6 · comparing a primary and a secondary source on the same event
Unit 14
Clues in Texts
Understanding hyperlinks, bold and italic type, labels and captions, telling who is narrating, spotting personification, and tracing causes and effects.
Learning standard: 4R3 · cause and effect, order and features that explain what happens and why
Unit 15
Listen, Speak & Read Aloud
Good listening and speaking habits (taking turns, asking questions, speaking clearly) and reading aloud with pauses at punctuation, stress on key words and a voice that rises or falls with the meaning.
Learning standard: 4SL1; 4SL4; 4RF4 · listening well, speaking clearly and reading aloud with expression
Unit 16
Listening & Talking Together
Practices listening for key ideas, taking turns, asking open-ended questions, giving reasons and using rich words and linking words in conversation.
Learning standard: 4SL1; 4SL3 · taking turns, asking good questions and giving reasons in a discussion
Unit 17
Revise & Polish
Practices adding sensory details, choosing stronger words, revising to make writing clearer, using feedback and presenting final work neatly with words and images.
Learning standard: 4W3; 4L3; 4L6 · vivid details, precise words and revising unclear writing
Unit 18
Poems and Plays
Your child names the parts of poems and plays (verse, stanza, rhythm, meter, cast, scene, dialogue, stage directions) and explains how they differ from stories.
Learning standard: 4R5 · the parts of poems and plays: verse, rhythm, meter, characters, setting, dialogue and stage directions
Unit 19
Arguments, Evidence and Responses
Your child picks strong claims, reasons and evidence, sees how authors support claims, answers questions with evidence from a text, and chooses creative responses such as a poem, play or artwork.
Learning standard: 4R8; 4W1; 4W4; 4W5 · how claims are supported, writing arguments with reasons and evidence, creative responses and drawing evidence from texts
Unit 20
Genres and Connections
Your child names genres (myth, legend, folktale, tall tale, historical and science fiction, biography, opinion piece) from their features and connects texts to other texts, cultural perspectives, eras and their own lives.
Learning standard: 4R9 · recognizing genres and connecting texts to other texts, ideas, cultures, eras and personal experiences
Ready to try Gradelings?
Curriculum-matched practice for Kindergarten to Grade 9 in British Columbia, Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and Nunavut, and in Washington, Oregon, California, New York, Texas, Maine, Minnesota, Alaska, Alabama, Arizona and Arkansas, with kind hints, learning games and no ads. Subscribe now, or try everything free for 30 days with no card.