Welcome to 4th Grade!!
My name is Mrs. Karen Mullins and it is my pleasure to be the fourth grade teacher here at Ambrose Catholic Academy. This is my 14th year here at the school. During my tenure at Ambrose I have taught Pre-Kindergarten, 1st grade, 2nd grade, and 4th grade.
Fourth grade is an amazing grade level. It is a year of much personal and academic growth. The children work as both individuals and as part of a group. Working cooperatively, they push one another to express themselves as they explore and learn creatively, enhancing their knowledge. The children's maturity grows. They learn to foster friendships, listen to one another, and work with everyone.
Here is our year at a glance:
- NYS tests given in Math, ELA, and Science beginning in April with test prep taking place all year
- Math- multiplication, division, problem solving multi-step problems, solving equations and inequalities
- ELA- verbs and verb tense, synonyms, antonyms, homophones, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, suffixes, prefixes, conjunctions, prepositions
- Reading- for comprehension and both text to text and text to self connections, making inferences, developing fluency, identifying genres and points of view
- Social Studies- New York State
- Science- Earth Science, Physical Science, and Life Science
- Writing- develop essay writing, write in a variety of styles (chronologically, cause/effect, compare/contrast, persuasively), exhibit personal voice
- Religion- the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes, God is our Loving Father, Jesus is our example, sin, the Holy Spirit and the Sacraments, God's creation
Currently we are:
- working on place value to the millions and comparing numbers to the millions place
- studying God's creation and how it relates to and impacts our everyday lives
- reading for comprehension while also sequencing events
- identifying causes and effects in context
- comparing and contrasting characters, events, and stories
- writing descriptively with a minimum of two paragraphs
- applying sentence mechanics we have been taught
- writing using graphic organizers to formulate and organize ideas
- studying New York's landforms and geographic features
- learning about the differences and similarities between plants and animals
- learning about both plant and animal cells
All lessons are taught using a variety of different teaching methods such as games, manipulatives, role play, small and partner groups, artistic expression, note-taking, computer research, classroom projects, academic learning centers, and differentiated instruction. We also take time each day to sit and read novels together.