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Fourth-graders build on their earlier discoveries in the three main areas of life science, earth science, and physical science. In life science, students learn more about how scientists classify plants and animals by their characteristics (for example, vertebrates and invertebrates), and examine in greater depth the ways that living organisms depend on one another, and their environment, for survival. They also study plant and animal life cycles; and different types of ecosystems, their changes, and how we can protect them. In some states, fourth-graders also have lessons on the human body and how its different systems work together. In earth science, grandchildren explore the layers of the Earth and how shifts in major land masses can lead to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. Students also review and build on earlier lessons about rocks and minerals, fossils, weather, and the planets. In physical science, students study the properties of energy and matter, focusing on electricity, magnetism, sound, and light. Throughout the year, fourth-graders take part in experiments that introduce them to the scientific process. They make predictions; conduct trials to prove or disprove those predictions; collect data through observation and measurement; interpret and graph their findings; and draw conclusions.
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Too Early for Sex Ed? In some states, schools are required to teach a unit on HIV/AIDS in the fourth grade. Instruction includes information about how the disease is transmitted, as well as some methods of prevention. Some parents and educators worry that fourth grade is too early to introduce these topics. Health experts concede that in surveys, most fourth-graders say they are not interested in sex, or lessons about it, but also argue that, for students who are interested, this unit can be valuable. In some communities, parents are allowed to excuse their children from these typically brief classroom lessons.
• As fourth-graders study animal behaviors and adaptations, they learn about migration. Kids can journey into the fascinating world of monarch butterfly travel with Deborah Underwood’s
Mexico or Bust!: Migration Patterns (Raintree, 2007).
• Encourage your grandchildren’s curiosity about the night sky with Dana Meachen Rau and Denise Shea's
Spots of Lights: A Book About Stars (Picture Window, 2002). The colorful illustrations and simple text explain the birth of stars, constellations, and galaxies.
• Fourth-graders study the planet Earth and what it's made of. You can take your grandchildren on a virtual voyage to the center of the Earth with this
slide show from CNN.
Rock Groups. Learning how scientists classify objects is a big part of the fourth-grade curriculum. Take your grandchildren on a rock-collecting adventure. Pick out about 10 different rocks, then ask the kids to classify them by shape, size, or color.
Thermal Power. You can help your grandchildren conduct this simple experiment in thermal energy: Take two jars, one large and one small, and fill each with warm tap water. Then put two ice cubes into each jar. Ask the children in which jar they think the ice cubes will melt faster, then observe together. After the experiment, ask them why they think the speeds were different. (The ice should melt faster in the larger jar. As ice melts, it causes the water around it to become colder. The smaller jar has less water, so it becomes colder faster than the water in the larger jar. Since the speed that ice melts is dependent on the temperature of the water around it, the ice in the larger jar should melt faster.)
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