Grade 4 ELA B.E.S.T. Standards

Communicating Through Writing

Communicating Through Writing

Demonstrate legible cursive writing skills.

Handwriting: Demonstrate legible cursive writing skills.

Write personal or fictional narratives using a logical sequence of events and demonstrating an effective use of techniques such as descriptions and transitional words and phrases.

Narrative Writing: Write personal or fictional narratives using a logical sequence of events and demonstrating an effective use of techniques such as descriptions and transitional words and phrases.

Write to make a claim supporting a perspective with logical reasons, using evidence from multiple sources, elaboration, and an organizational structure with transitions.

Argumentative Writing: Write to make a claim supporting a perspective with logical reasons, using evidence from multiple sources, elaboration, and an organizational structure with transitions.

Write expository texts about a topic, using multiple sources, elaboration, and an organizational structure with transitions.

Expository Writing: Write expository texts about a topic, using multiple sources, elaboration, and an organizational structure with transitions.

Improve writing by planning, revising, and editing, with guidance and support from adults and feedback from peers.

Improving Writing: Improve writing by planning, revising, and editing, with guidance and support from adults and feedback from peers.

Communicating Orally

Communicating Orally

Present information orally, in a logical sequence, using nonverbal cues, appropriate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Oral Presentation: Present information orally, in a logical sequence, using nonverbal cues, appropriate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Following Conventions

Following Conventions

Follow the rules of standard English grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling appropriate to grade level.

Conventions: Follow the rules of standard English grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling appropriate to grade level.

Researching Researching and Using Information

Researching

Conduct research to answer a question, organizing information about the topic, using multiple valid sources.

Researching and Using Information: Conduct research to answer a question, organizing information about the topic and using multiple valid sources.

Creating and Collaborating

Creating and Collaborating

Arrange multimedia elements to create emphasis in oral or written tasks.

Multimedia: Arrange multimedia elements to create emphasis in oral or written tasks.

Use digital writing tools individually or collaboratively to plan, draft, and revise writing.

Technology in Communication: Use digital writing tools individually or collaboratively to plan, draft, and revise writing.

Learning and Applying Foundational Reading Skills

Learning and Applying Foundational Reading Skills

Use knowledge of grade-level phonics and word-analysis skills to decode words.

Phonics and Word Analysis: Use knowledge of grade-level phonics and word-analysis skills to decode words.

Apply knowledge of all letter-sound correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology to read and write unfamiliar single-syllable and multisyllabic words in and out of context.

Apply knowledge of all letter-sound correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology to read and write unfamiliar single-syllable and multisyllabic words in and out of context.

Read grade-level texts with accuracy, automaticity, and appropriate prosody or expression.

Fluency: Read grade-level texts with accuracy, automaticity, and appropriate prosody or expression.

Reading Prose and Poetry

Reading Prose and Poetry

Explain how setting, events, conflict, and character development contribute to the plot in a literary text.

Literary Elements: Explain how setting, events, conflict, and character development contribute to the plot in a literary text.

Explain a stated or implied theme and how it develops, using details, in a literary text.

Theme: Explain a stated or implied theme and how it develops, using details, in a literary text.

Identify the narrator's point of view and explain the difference between a narrator's point of view and character perspective in a literary text.

Perspective and Point of View: Identify the narrator’s point of view and explain the difference between a narrator’s point of view and character perspective in a literary text.

Explain how rhyme and structure create meaning in a poem.

Poetry: Explain how rhyme and structure create meaning in a poem.

Reading Informational Text

Reading Informational Text

Explain how text features contribute to the meaning and identify the text structures of problem/solution, sequence, and description in texts.

Structure: Explain how text features contribute to the meaning and identify the text structures of problem/solution, sequence, and description in texts.

Explain how relevant details support the central idea, implied or explicit.

Central Idea: Explain how relevant details support the central idea, implied or explicit.

Explain an author's perspective toward a topic in an informational text.

Purpose and Perspective: Explain an author’s perspective toward a topic in an informational text.

Explain an author's claim and the reasons and evidence used to support the claim.

Argument: Explain an author’s claim and the reasons and evidence used to support the claim.

Reading Across Genres

Reading Across Genres

Explain how figurative language contributes to meaning in text(s).

Interpreting Figurative Language: Explain how figurative language contributes to meaning in text(s).

Summarize a text to enhance comprehension.

Paraphrasing and Summarizing: Summarize a text to enhance comprehension.

Include plot and theme for a literary text.

Include plot and theme for a literary text.

Include the central idea and relevant details for an informational text.

Include the central idea and relevant details for an informational text.

Compare and contrast accounts of the same event using primary and/or secondary sources.

Comparative Reading: Compare and contrast accounts of the same event using primary and/or secondary sources.

Finding Meaning

Finding Meaning

Use grade-level academic vocabulary appropriately in speaking and writing.

Academic Vocabulary: Use grade-level academic vocabulary appropriately in speaking and writing.

Apply knowledge of common Greek and Latin roots, base words, and affixes to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words in grade-level content.

Morphology: Apply knowledge of common Greek and Latin roots, base words, and affixes to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words in grade-level content.

Use context clues, figurative language, word relationships, reference materials, and/or background knowledge to determine the meaning of multiple-meaning and unknown words and phrases, appropriate to grade level.

Context and Connotation: Use context clues, figurative language, word relationships, reference materials, and/or background knowledge to determine the meaning of multiple-meaning and unknown words and phrases, appropriate to grade level.

Cite evidence to explain and justify reasoning.

Read and comprehend grade-level complex texts proficiently.

Make inferences to support comprehension.

Use appropriate collaborative techniques and active listening skills when engaging in discussions in a variety of situations.

Use the accepted rules governing a specific format to create quality work.

Use appropriate voice and tone when speaking or writing.

Reading

Appropriate prosody refers to pausing patterns during oral reading that reflect the punctuation and meaning of a text. See Sample Oral Reading Fluency Rubrics for prosody.

See Context Clues and Word Relationships.

Students will produce cursive writing that can be consistently read by others.

At this level of reading, a student who is decoding at the phoneme level (i.e., “e-n-t-er-tai-n”) may decode a given text, but will struggle with fluency and comprehension. As such, phonics instruction should move toward decoding at the syllabication and morpheme level. For example, when a 4th grader encounters the word “entertain” in text, we want him or her to segment by syllable (i.e., “enter-tain”) or by morphological structure (i.e., “enter-tain”).

The term perspective means “a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something.”

Foundational Skills

See Conventions Progression by Grade Level for more information.

See Writing Types and Elaborative Techniques.

Use principal modals to indicate the mood of a verb.

Use appositives, main clauses, and subordinate clauses.

Use subject-verb agreement with intervening clauses and phrases.

Vocabulary

Produce complete sentences, recognizing and correcting inappropriate fragments and run-ons.

See Writing Types and Elaborative Techniques.

Introduce the terms primary sources and secondary sources.

Vocabulary

Communication

Reading

Use conjunctions.

Instruction for this benchmark should include text read-alouds and think-alouds aimed at building and activating background knowledge. Review of words learned in this way is critical to building background knowledge and related vocabulary. Texts read aloud can be two grade levels higher than student reading level.

Use verbals including gerunds, infinitives, and participial phrases.

Use conjunctions correctly to join words and phrases in a sentence.

Figurative language for the purposes of this benchmark refers to metaphor, simile, alliteration, personification, hyperbole, and idiom. Other examples can be used in instruction.

See Writing Types.

The term perspective means “a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something.” The term point of view is used when referring to the person of the narrator. This is to prevent confusion and conflation.

Communication

Grade-level academic vocabulary consists of words that are likely to appear across subject areas for the current grade level and beyond, vital to comprehension, critical for academic discussions and writing, and usually require explicit instruction.

Skills to be mastered at this grade level are as follows:

See Common Greek and Latin Roots 3-5 and Affixes.

See Fluency Norms for grade-level norms. Norms are expressed as words correct per minute (WCPM), a measure that combines accuracy with rate.

Skills to be implemented but not yet mastered are as follows:

Students were introduced to dialogue in 3rd grade. Although it is not mentioned specifically in this benchmark, students should continue to practice the technique and receive instruction in it. Dialogue is included for mastery in the 5th grade benchmark.

While the benchmark does require that students consult multiple sources, there is no requirement that they use every source they consult. Part of the skill in researching is discernment—being able to tell which information is relevant and which sources are trustworthy enough to include.

Multimedia elements may include, but are not limited to, drawings, pictures, artifacts, and audio or digital representation. At this grade level, students are using more than one element. The elements may be of the same type (for example, two pictures or a picture and an audio recording). The elements should relate directly to the task and emphasize a point made within the task, perhaps by showing examples or data to emphasize a point. The elements should be smoothly integrated.

Use pronouns correctly with regard to case, number, and person, correcting for vague pronoun reference.

See Elementary Figurative Language.

See 4.R.3.1 and Elementary Figurative Language.

Grade-level texts, for the purposes of fluency, are those within the grade band on quantitative text complexity measures and appropriate in content and qualitative measures.

Nonverbal cues appropriate to this grade level are posture, tone, expressive delivery, focus on the audience, and facial expression. Clear pronunciation should be interpreted to mean an understanding and application of phonics rules and sight words as well as care taken in delivery. A student’s speech impediment should not be considered as impeding clear pronunciation.

Most grade-level texts are appropriate for this benchmark.

For further guidance, see the Elementary Oral Communication Rubric.

K-12 ELA Expectations

Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in tense and number.

An explanation of how the theme develops should include how characters respond to situations and how the speaker reflects upon a topic in a literary text.

Foundational Skills

Write cursive letters.

Write personal or fictional narratives using a logical sequence of events, appropriate details, transitional words and an ending.

Write a claim about a topic using evidence from a source with transitions.

Write an expository text about a topic, using a source, providing an introduction, facts and a conclusion with transitions.

Improve writing as needed by planning, revising and editing, with guidance, support and modeling from adults and feedback from peers.

Express information in a logical sequence, using nonverbal cues, using the students mode of communication.

Follow the rules of standard English grammar, punctuation, capitalization and spelling. Identify and use prepositions and prepositional phrases. Maintain consistent verb tense within a paragraph.

Participate in research to answer a question, organizing information about the topic, using provided valid sources.

Use one or more multimedia elements to create emphasis in oral or written tasks.

Use digital writing tools individually or collaboratively to draft and revise writing with support from adults.

Apply knowledge of letter-sound correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology to read and form familiar single-syllable and multisyllabic words in context.

Read grade-level texts, at the student’s ability level, with accuracy and expression using the student’s mode of communication.

Show how setting, events, conflict and character development relate to the plot in a literary text.

Identify a stated theme and how it develops, using details, in a literary text.

Identify the narrators point of view and character perspective in a literary text.

Identify repeated words, rhyme or phrases that create meaning in a poem.

Identify the text structures of problem/solution, sequence, description and how they contribute meaning in texts.

Identify relevant details that support an explicit central idea.

Explain an author's perspective toward a topic in an informational text.

Identify an author's claim by selecting evidence and a reason used to support the claim.

Identify examples of when figurative language is used to contribute to meaning in text(s).

Identify the plot and theme for a literary text using the student's mode of communication.

Identify the central idea and relevant details for an informational text using the student's mode of communication.

Compare a primary and secondary source on the same event.

Identify and use grade-level academic vocabulary appropriately in communication, using the student's mode of communication.

Identify and use common Greek and Latin roots, base words, and affixes to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words in grade-level content at the student’s ability level.

Identify and use picture clues, context clues, word relationships, reference materials and/or background knowledge to determine the meaning of multiple-meaning and unknown words and phrases in appropriate to grade-level content at the student’s ability level with guidance and support.

Reading Informational Text

Creating and Collaborating

Researching

Communicating Orally

Communicating Through Writing

Finding Meaning

Communication

Reading

Foundational Skills

Reading Across Genres

Reading Prose and Poetry

Vocabulary

Following Conventions

Learning and Applying Foundational Reading Skills

English language learners communicate information, ideas and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of Language Arts.

English language learners communicate information, ideas and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of Mathematics.

English language learners communicate information, ideas and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of Science.

English language learners communicate for social and instructional purposes within the school setting.

English language learners communicate information, ideas and concepts necessary for academic success in the content area of Social Studies.

Cite evidence to explain and justify reasoning.

Read and comprehend grade-level complex texts proficiently.

Make inferences to support comprehension.

Use appropriate collaborative techniques and active listening skills when engaging in discussions in a variety of situations.

Use the accepted rules governing a specific format to create quality work.

Use appropriate voice and tone when speaking or writing.