4th grade Science: how to help at home
What your child learns in 4th grade science in the Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards, and simple things to try at home.
Focus areas this year
- Weathering and erosion, Earth's systems and water, energy resources, magnets and inherited traits
- Science and engineering practices: making models and comparing solutions
- How science connects to people and communities in Minnesota and beyond
Easy ways to practice science at home
- Try a kitchen experiment, such as what dissolves in water and what floats or sinks.
- Keep a simple weather or moon log for a month.
- Ask “What do you think will happen?” and then test it.
- Visit a park, beach or creek and look for living things and their habitats.
What each unit covers
Wind, Water & Ice
How wind, water and ice break rock down (weathering) and carry it away (erosion), slowly changing the shape of the land, and how plants and windbreaks protect soil.
Pushes, Pulls & Forces
Forces as pushes and pulls, contact and non-contact forces (gravity, magnetism, static electricity), friction, how bigger forces change motion more, and helmets and seat belts as safety devices.
Magnet Inventions
Practices using what magnets do to solve simple design problems, such as a latch or a sorter, by setting criteria and constraints and running fair tests that change one thing at a time.
Traits & Variation
Practices how plants and animals inherit traits from their parents, how traits vary within a family, and how the environment can change traits like size or health.
Earth's Systems & Water
Practices how Earth's land, water, air and living things interact, how much of Earth's water is salty, fresh or frozen, and how communities protect water, using Minnesota's lakes and rivers as examples.
Energy Resources
Practices how energy and fuels come from natural resources like wind, sunlight, moving water, coal, oil and gas, how using them affects the environment, and how communities choose energy, including Minnesota's wind farms.
Rock Layers & Erosion
Practices how water, ice, wind and plants weather and erode rock, and how rock layers and fossils show how a landscape changed, with examples from Minnesota's river valleys and the North Shore.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Beginning
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Approaching
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practicing the tricky parts.
- Meeting
- Has it! Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Exceeding
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the Minnesota report card guide.
Common questions
Try a kitchen experiment, such as what dissolves in water and what floats or sinks. Keep a simple weather or moon log for a month. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
The Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards 4th grade science units include Wind, Water & Ice, Pushes, Pulls & Forces, Magnet Inventions, Traits & Variation, Earth's Systems & Water, Energy Resources.
Free printable 4th grade science practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.