School Skills: Fourth Grade Milestones
In fourth grade, your kid is reaching the upper reaches of the primary/elementary school system. They will start to show more and more signs of independence and be able to complete more complex homework by themselves. It can sometimes be hard to know what to expect or what they ‘should’ know after their fourth year at around 9-11 years of age.* By the end of the fourth grade, your child should be able to do the following tasks in each area.
Listening
Listen to and understand information.
Form opinions based on what they hear.
Listen for specific reasons, such as to learn, enjoy, or convince.
Speaking
Use words correctly in conversation.
Use language for many reasons, like asking questions, arguing, and joking.
Understand some figurative language, like "This classroom is a zoo!"
Take part in group discussions.
Give clear directions to others.
Summarize ideas in their own words.
Organize information so it is clear.
Give clear speeches.
Reading
Read for specific reasons.
Read grade-level books smoothly and with few mistakes.
Use what they know to understand new material.
Follow written directions.
Take brief notes.
Link what they learn in one subject to other subjects.
Learn meanings of new words by looking at word origins, synonyms, and other meanings.
Use reference materials, like a dictionary.
Talk about the author's reason for writing a story and the writing style.
Read and understand different types of writing, like fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
Make inferences from texts, using clues in the story and personal knowledge.
Paraphrase what they read.
Writing
Write stories and explanations, with multiple paragraphs on the same topic.
Develop a plan for writing that includes a beginning, middle, and end.
Organize writing around a main idea.
Edit final copies for grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Grammar & Punctuation
Comprehends and uses ‘ask’.
Comprehends ‘because’ consistently.
Understand the differences between definitely, probably, and possibly.
Creates ‘much’ with mass nouns.
Comprehends ‘if/though’.
Uses pronouns to refer to elements outside immediate sentence.
Uses –er for instrument (eraser).
Social Skills
Sustains abstract topics in conversation.
Begins to use figurative language (idioms/metaphors/similes).
Suggestions for Parents:
Keep your child reading.
Find books and magazines that interest your child. Get them a book on their favourite subjects.
Ask your child what they think about what they hear or read.
Connect what they read to events in their life. E.g., they play soccer, then find reading material about soccer.
Help your child connect what they read and hear at school, home, and other events.
Talk out loud as you help your child read about and solve problems. Homework at the kitchen table is a great time to do this or on the drive back from school.
Help your child recognize spelling patterns. For example, point out the beginnings and endings of words, like "pre-" or "–ed."
Get your child to write letters, keep a diary, and write stories.
Encourage them to explore the wide world of literature.
*As the age at which children can start or end certain grades varies wildly from country to country, this guide is written with general achievements in mind, so has tried to use as broad age ranges as possible. Please check with your kindergarten or school for more detailed local information and guidelines.
Please note the above information is general in nature and is not intended as professional medical advice. Please seek an appointment with a registered speech-language pathologist if you are at all worried about your child's development.
References:
ASHA (2009). Your Child’s Communication: Fourth Grade. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. https://www.asha.org/public/speech/development/fourthgrade/
Paul, R., Norbury, C., & Gosse, C. (2018). Language Disorders from Infancy through Adolescence: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing, and Communicating (5th ed.). Elsevier.
Roseberry-McKibbin, C., Hegde, M. N., & Tellis, G. M. (2024). An Advanced Review of Speech-language Pathology.
Suggested Resources
FREEBIE Nifty Nature: The Water Cycle Reading Comprehension
Informational text reading comprehension and multi-choice question activities to check understanding. Practices more advanced reading concepts around finding main ideas and details.
FREEBIE Castles & Creatures: The Fortress Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension for more advanced readers. Includes multi-choice questions, sequencing tasks, true/false questions and writing prompts.
FREEBIE Detective Dave: Social Inferencing
Helps students to practice those more abstract figurative language concepts, like social inferencing, by following the adventures of the detective.
FREEBIE The Write Sounds: Extended Code /ae/ Sounds (ea, ay, ai, a-e)
A game show-themed activity set for students to practice their more advanced phonics and spelling skills. Practice important abilities like blending, segmenting, and picking sound with audio.
FREEBIE Investigator Ivan: Recognising Emotions
Follow the adventures of Ivan as he navigates the world of social skills. Help students practice recognising different emotions and how others may be feeling.