Georgia Professional Standards for 4th Grade
READING, WRITING, & LANGUAGE ARTS
ELA4C1
ELA4C1 The student demonstrates understanding and control of the rules of the
English language, realizing that usage involves the appropriate application
of conventions and grammar in both written and spoken formats. The student
a. Recognizes the subject-predicate relationship in sentences.
b. Uses and identifies four basic parts of speech (adjective, noun, verb,
adverb).
c. Uses and identifies correct mechanics (end marks, commas for series,
capitalization), correct usage (subject and verb agreement in a simple
sentence), and correct sentence structure (elimination of sentence fragments).
d. Uses and identifies words or word parts from other languages that have
been adopted into the English language.
e. Writes legibly in cursive, leaving space between letters in a word and
between words in a sentence.
f. Uses knowledge of letter sounds, word parts, word segmentation, and
syllabication to monitor and correct spelling.
g. Spells most commonly used homophones correctly (there, they’re, their;
two, too, to).
h. Varies the sentence structure by kind (declarative, interrogative,
imperative, and exclamatory sentences and functional fragments), order, and
complexity (simple, compound).
ELA4LSV1
ELA4LSV1 The student participates in student-to-teacher, student-to-student,
and group verbal interactions. The student
a. Initiates new topics in addition to responding to adult-initiated topics.
b. Asks relevant questions.
c. Responds to questions with appropriate information.
d. Uses language cues to indicate different levels of certainty or
hypothesizing (e.g., “What if. . .”; “Very likely. . .”; “I’m unsure
whether. . .”).
e. Confirms understanding by paraphrasing the adult’s directions or
suggestions.
f. Displays appropriate turn-taking behaviors.
g. Actively solicits another person’s comments or opinions.
h. Offers own opinion forcefully without domineering.
i. Responds appropriately to comments and questions.
j. Volunteers contributions and responds when directly solicited by teacher
or discussion leader.
k. Gives reasons in support of opinions expressed.
l. Clarifies, illustrates, or expands on a response when asked to do so; asks
classmates for similar expansions.
ELA4LSV2
ELA4LSV2 The student listens to and views various forms of text and media in
order to gather and share information, persuade others, and express and
understand ideas.
Critical Component: When responding to visual and oral texts and media (e.g.,
television, radio, film productions, and electronic media), the student:
a. Demonstrates an awareness of the presence of the media in the daily lives
of most people.
b. Evaluates the role of the media in focusing attention and in forming an
opinion.
c. Judges the extent to which the media provides a source of entertainment as
well as a source of information.
Critical Component: When delivering or responding to presentations, the
student:
a. Shapes information to achieve a particular purpose and to appeal to the
interests and background knowledge of audience members.
b. Uses notes, multimedia, or other memory aids to structure the presentation.
c. Engages the audience with appropriate verbal cues and eye contact.
d. Projects a sense of individuality and personality in selecting and
organizing content and in delivery.
e. Shapes content and organization according to criteria for importance and
impact rather than according to availability of information in resource
materials.
ELA4R1
ELA4R1 The student demonstrates comprehension and shows evidence of a
warranted and responsible explanation of a variety of literary and
informational texts.
Critical Component: For literary texts, the student identifies the
characteristics of various genres and produces evidence of reading that:
a.Relates theme in works of fiction to personal experience.
b. Identifies and analyzes the elements of plot, character, and setting in
stories read, written, viewed, or performed.
c. Identifies the speaker of a poem or story.
d. Identifies sensory details and figurative language.
e. Identifies and shows the relevance of foreshadowing clues.
f. Makes judgments and inferences about setting, characters, and events and
supports them with elaborating and convincing evidence from the text.
g. Identifies similarities and differences between the characters or events
and theme in a literary work and the actual experiences in an author’s life.
h. Identifies themes and lessons in folktales, tall tales, and fables.
i. Identifies rhyme and rhythm, repetition, similes, and sensory images in
poems.
Critical Component: For informational texts, the student reads and
comprehends in order to develop understanding and expertise and produces
evidence of reading that:
a. Locates facts that answer the reader’s questions.
b. Identifies and uses knowledge of common textual features (e.g.,
paragraphs, topic sentences, concluding sentences, glossary).
c. Identifies and uses knowledge of common graphic features (e.g., charts,
maps, diagrams, illustrations).
d. Identifies and uses knowledge of common organizational structures (e.g.,
chronological order, cause and effect).
e. Distinguishes cause from effect in context.
f. Summarizes main ideas and supporting details.
g. Makes perceptive and well-developed connections.
h. Distinguishes fact from opinion or fiction.
ELA4R2
ELA4R2 The student consistently reads at least twenty-five books or book
equivalents (approximately 1,000,000 words) each year. The materials should
include traditional and contemporary literature (both fiction and non-
fiction) as well as magazines, newspapers, textbooks, and electronic
material. Such reading should represent a diverse collection of material from
at least three different literary forms and from at least five different
writer
ELA4R3
ELA4R3 The student understands and acquires new vocabulary and uses it
correctly in reading and writing. The student
a. Reads a variety of texts and incorporates new words into oral and written
language.
b. Determines the meaning of unknown words using their context.
c. Identifies the meaning of common root words to determine the meaning of
unfamiliar words.
d. Determines meanings of words and alternate word choices using a dictionary
or thesaurus.
e. Identifies the meaning of common prefixes (e.g., un-, re-, dis-).
f. Identifies the meaning of common idioms and figurative phrases.
g. Identifies playful uses of language (e.g., puns, jokes, palindromes).
h. Recognizes and uses words with multiple meanings (e.g., sentence, school,
hard) and determines which meaning is intended from the context of the
sentence.
i. Identifies and applies the meaning of the terms antonym, synonym, and
homophone.
ELA4R4
ELA4R4 The student reads aloud, accurately (in the range of 95%), familiar
material in a variety of genres, in a way that makes meaning clear to
listeners. The student
a. Uses letter-sound knowledge to decode written English and uses a range of
cueing systems (e.g., phonics and context clues) to determine pronunciation
and meaning.
b. Uses self-correction when subsequent reading indicates an earlier miscue
(self-monitoring and self-correcting strategies).
c. Reads with a rhythm, flow, and meter that sounds like everyday speech
(prosody).
ELA4W1
ELA4W1 The student produces writing that establishes an appropriate
organizational structure, sets a context and engages the reader, maintains a
coherent focus throughout, and signals a satisfying closure. The student
a. Selects a focus, an organizational structure, and a point of view based on
purpose, genre expectations, audience, length, and format requirements.
b. Writes texts of a length appropriate to address the topic or tell the
story.
c. Uses traditional structures for conveying information (e.g., chronological
order, cause and effect, similarity and difference, and posing and answering
a question).
d. Uses appropriate structures to ensure coherence (e.g., transition
elements).
ELA4W2
ELA4W2 The student demonstrates competence in a variety of genres.
Critical Component: The student produces a narrative that:
a. Engages the reader by establishing a context, creating a speaker’s voice,
and otherwise developing reader interest.
b. Establishes a plot, setting, and conflict, and/or the significance of
events.
c. Creates an organizing structure.
d. Includes sensory details and concrete language to develop plot and
character.
e. Excludes extraneous details and inconsistencies.
f. Develops complex characters through actions describing the motivation of
characters and character conversation.
g. Uses a range of appropriate narrative strategies such as dialogue,
tension, or suspense.
h. Provides a sense of closure to the writing.
Critical Component: The student produces informational writing (e.g., report,
procedures, correspondence) that:
a. Engages the reader by establishing a context, creating a speaker’s voice,
and otherwise developing reader interest.
b. Frames a central question about an issue or situation.
c. Creates an organizing structure appropriate to a specific purpose,
audience, and context.
d. Includes appropriate facts and details.
e. Excludes extraneous details and inappropriate information.
f. Uses a range of appropriate strategies, such as providing facts and
details, describing or analyzing the subject, and narrating a relevant
anecdote.
g. Draws from more than one source of information such as speakers, books,
newspapers, and online materials.
h. Provides a sense of closure to the writing.
Critical Component: The student produces a response to literature that:
a. Engages the reader by establishing a context, creating a speaker’s voice,
and otherwise developing reader interest.
b. Advances a judgment that is interpretive, evaluative, or reflective.
c. Supports judgments through references to the text, other works, authors,
or non-print media, or references to personal knowledge.
d. Demonstrates an understanding of the literary work (e.g., a summary that
contains the main idea and most significant details of the reading selection).
e. Excludes extraneous details and inappropriate information.
f. Provides a sense of closure to the writing.
Critical Component: The student produces a persuasive essay that:
a. Engages the reader by establishing a context, creating a speaker’s voice,
and otherwise developing reader interest.
b. States a clear position.
c. Supports a position with relevant evidence.
d. Excludes extraneous details and inappropriate information.
e. Creates an organizing structure appropriate to a specific purpose,
audience, and context.
f. Provides a sense of closure to the writing.
ELA4W3
ELA4W3 The student uses research and technology to support writing. The
student
a. Acknowledges information from sources.
b. Locates information in reference texts by using organizational features
(i.e. prefaces, appendices, index, glossary, and table of contents).
c. Uses various reference materials (i.e. dictionary, thesaurus,
encyclopedia, electronic information, almanac, atlas, magazines, newspapers,
and key words).
d. Demonstrates basic keyboarding skills and familiarity with computer
terminology (e.g., software, memory, disk drive, hard drive)
ELA4W4
ELA4W4. The student consistently uses a writing process to develop, revise,
and evaluate writing. The student
a. Plans and drafts independently and resourcefully.
b. Revises selected drafts to improve coherence and progression by adding,
deleting, consolidating, and rearranging text.
c. Edits to correct errors in spelling, punctuation, etc.
MATH
M4A1
M4A1 Students will represent and interpret mathematical relationships in
quantitative expressions.
a. Understand and apply patterns and rules to describe relationships and
solve problems.
b. Represent unknowns using symbols, such as and ∆.
c. Write and evaluate mathematical expressions using symbols and different
values.
M4D1
M4D1 Students will gather, organize, and display data according to the
situation and will compare related features.
a. Represent data in bar, line, and pictographs.
b. Investigate the features and tendencies of graphs.
c. Compare different graphical representations for a given set of data.
d. Identify missing information and duplications in data.
M4G1
M4G1 Students will define and identify the characteristics of geometric
figures through examination and construction.
a. Examine and compare angles in order to classify and identify triangles by
their angles.
b. Describe parallel and perpendicular lines in plane geometric figures.
c. Examine and classify quadrilaterals (including parallelograms, squares,
rectangles, trapezoids, and rhombi).
d. Compare and contrast the relationships among quadrilaterals.
M4G2
M4G2 Students will understand fundamental solid figures.
a. Compare and contrast a cube and a rectangular prism in terms of the number
and shape of their faces, edges, and vertices.
b. Describe parallel and perpendicular lines and planes in connection with
rectangular prisms.
c. Construct/collect models for solid geometric figures (cubes, prisms,
cylinders, etc.)
M4G3
M4G3 Students will use the coordinate system.
a. Understand and apply ordered pairs in the first quadrant of the coordinate
system.
b. Locate a point in the first quadrant in the coordinate plane and name the
ordered pair.
c. Graph ordered pairs in the first quadrant.
M4M1
Students will understand the concept of weight and how to measure weight.
a. Use standard and metric units to measure the weight of objects.
b. Know units used to measure weight (gram, kilogram, ounce, pound, and ton).
c. Compare one unit to another within a single system of measurement.
M4M2
M4M2 Students will understand the concept of angle and how to measure angles.
a. Use tools, such as a protractor or angle ruler, and other methods, such as
paper folding or drawing a diagonal in a square, to measure angles.
b. Understand the meaning and measure of a half rotation (180°) and a full
rotation (360°).
M4N1
M4N1 Students will further develop their understanding of how whole numbers
are represented in the base-ten numeration system.
a. Identify place value names and places from hundredths through one million.
b. Equate a number’s word name, its standard form, and its expanded form.
M4N2
M4N2 Students will understand and apply the concept of rounding numbers.
a. Round numbers to the nearest ten, hundred, or thousand.
b. Describe situations in which rounding numbers would be appropriate and
determine whether to round to the nearest ten, hundred, or thousand.
c. Understand the meaning of rounding a decimal to the nearest whole number.
d. Represent the results of computation as a rounded number when appropriate
and estimate a sum or difference by rounding numbers.
M4N3
M4N3 Students will solve problems involving multiplication of 2-3 digit
numbers by 1-2 digit numbers.
M4N4
M4N4 Students will further develop their understanding of division of whole
numbers and divide in problem-solving situations without calculators.
a. Know the division facts with understanding and fluency.
b. Solve problems involving division by a 2-digit number (including those
that generate a remainder).
c. Understand the relationship between dividend, divisor, quotient, and
remainder.
d. Understand and explain the effect on the quotient of multiplying or
dividing both the divisor and dividend by the same number (2050 ÷ 50 yields
the same answer as 205 ÷ 5).
M4N5
M4N5 Students will further develop their understanding of the meaning of
decimals and use them in computations.
a. Understand decimals are a part of the base-ten system.
b. Understand the relative size of numbers and order two digit decimals.
c. Add and subtract both one and two digit decimals.
d. Model multiplication and division of decimals by whole numbers.
e. Multiply and divide both one and two digit decimals by whole numbers.
M4N6
M4N6 Students will further develop their understanding of the meaning of
common fractions and use them in computations.
a. Understand representations of simple equivalent fractions.
b. Add and subtract fractions and mixed numbers with common denominators.
(Denominators should not exceed twelve.)
c. Convert and use mixed numbers and improper fractions interchangeably.
M4N7
M4N7 Students will explain and use properties of the four arithmetic
operations to solve and check problems.
a. Describe situations in which the four operations may be used and the
relationships among them.
b. Compute using the order of operations, including parentheses.
c. Compute using the commutative, associative, and distributive properties.
d. Use mental math and estimation strategies to compute.
M4P1
M4P1 Students will solve problems (using appropriate technology).
a.Build new mathematical knowledge through problem solving.
b.Solve problems that arise in mathematics and in other contexts.
c.Apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to solve problems.
d.Monitor and reflect on the process of mathematical problem solving.
M4P2
M4P2 Students will reason and evaluate mathematical arguments.
a.Recognize reasoning and proof as fundamental aspects of mathematics.
b.Make and investigate mathematical conjectures.
c.Develop and evaluate mathematical arguments and proofs.
d.Select and use various types of reasoning and methods of proof.
M4P3
M4P3 Students will communicate mathematically.
a.Organize and consolidate their mathematical thinking through communication.
b.Communicate their mathematical thinking coherently and clearly to peers,
teachers, and others.
c.Analyze and evaluate the mathematical thinking and strategies of others.
d.Use the language of mathematics to express mathematical ideas precisely.
M4P4
M4P4 Students will make connections among mathematical ideas and to other
disciplines.
a.Recognize and use connections among mathematical ideas.
b.Understand how mathematical ideas interconnect and build on one another to
produce a coherent whole.
c.Recognize and apply mathematics in contexts outside of mathematics.
M4P5
M4P5 Students will represent mathematics in multiple ways.
a.Create and use representations to organize, record, and communicate
mathematical ideas.
b.Select, apply, and translate among mathematical representations to solve
problems.
c.Use representations to model and interpret physical, social, and
mathematical phenomena.
SCIENCE
S4CS1
S4CS1 Students will be aware of the importance of curiosity, honesty,
openness, and skepticism in science and will exhibit these traits in their
own efforts to understand how the world works.
a. Keep records of investigations and observations and do not alter the
records later.
b. Carefully distinguish observations from ideas and speculation about those
observations.
c. Offer reasons for findings and consider reasons suggested by others.
d. Take responsibility for understanding the importance of being safety
conscious.
S4CS2
S4CS2 Students will have the computation and estimation skills necessary for
analyzing data and following scientific explanations.
a. Add, subtract, multiply, and divide whole numbers mentally, on paper, and
with a calculator.
b. Use fractions and decimals, and translate between decimals and commonly
encountered fractions – halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, tenths, and
hundredths (but not sixths, sevenths, and so on) – in scientific calculations.
c. Judge whether measurements and computations of quantities, such as length,
area, volume, weight, or time, are reasonable answers to scientific problems
by comparing them to typical values.
S4CS3
S4CS3 Students will use tools and instruments for observing, measuring, and
manipulating objects in scientific activities utilizing safe laboratory
procedures.
a. Choose appropriate common materials for making simple mechanical
constructions and repairing things.
b. Measure and mix dry and liquid materials in prescribed amounts, exercising
reasonable safety.
c. Use computers, cameras and recording devices for capturing information.
d. Identify and practice accepted safety procedures in manipulating science
materials and equipment.
S4CS4
S4CS4 Students will use ideas of system, model, change, and scale in
exploring scientific and technological matters.
a. Observe and describe how parts influence one another in things with many
parts.
b. Use geometric figures, number sequences, graphs, diagrams, sketches,
number lines, maps, and stories to represent corresponding features of
objects, events, and processes in the real world. Identify ways in which the
representations do not match their original counterparts.
c. Identify patterns of change in things—such as steady, repetitive, or
irregular change—using records, tables, or graphs of measurements where
appropriate.
S4CS5
S4CS5 Students will communicate scientific ideas and activities clearly.
a. Write instructions that others can follow in carrying out a scientific
procedure.
b. Make sketches to aid in explaining scientific procedures or ideas.
c. Use numerical data in describing and comparing objects and events.
d. Locate scientific information in reference books, back issues of
newspapers and magazines, CD-ROMs, and computer databases.
S4CS6
S4CS6 Students will question scientific claims and arguments effectively.
a. Support statements with facts found in books, articles, and databases, and
identify the sources used.
b. Identify when comparisons might not be fair because some conditions are
different.
S4CS7
S4CS7 Students will be familiar with the character of scientific knowledge
and how it is achieved.
Students will recognize that:
a. Similar scientific investigations seldom produce exactly the same results,
which may differ due to unexpected differences in whatever is being
investigated, unrecognized differences in the methods or circumstances of the
investigation, or observational uncertainties.
b. Some scientific knowledge is very old and yet is still applicable today.
S4CS8
S4CS8 Students will understand important features of the process of
scientific inquiry.
Students will apply the following to inquiry learning practices:
a. Scientific investigations may take many different forms, including
observing what things are like or what is happening somewhere, collecting
specimens for analysis, and doing experiments.
b. Clear and active communication is an essential part of doing science. It
enables scientists to inform others about their work, expose their ideas to
criticism by other scientists, and stay informed about scientific discoveries
around the world.
c. Scientists use technology to increase their power to observe things and to
measure and compare things accurately.
d. Science involves many different kinds of work and engages men and women of
all ages and backgrounds.
S4E1
S4E1 Students will compare and contrast the physical attributes of stars,
star patterns, and planets.
a. Recognize the physical attributes of stars in the night sky such as
number, size, color and patterns.
b. Compare the similarities and differences of planets to the stars in
appearance, position, and number in the night sky.
c. Explain why the pattern of stars in a constellation stays the same, but a
planet can be seen in different locations at different times.
d. Identify how technology is used to observe distant objects in the sky.
S4E2
S4E2 Students will model the position and motion of the earth in the solar
system and will explain the role of relative position and motion in
determining sequence of the phases of the moon.
a. Explain the day/night cycle of the earth using a model.
b. Explain the sequence of the phases of the moon.
c. Demonstrate the revolution of the earth around the sun and the earth’s
tilt to explain the seasonal changes.
d. Demonstrate the relative size and order from the sun of the planets in the
solar system.
S4E3
S4E3 Students will differentiate between the states of water and how they
relate to the water cycle and weather.
a. Demonstrate how water changes states from solid (ice) to liquid (water) to
gas (water vapor/steam) and changes from gas to liquid to solid.
b. Identify the temperatures at which water becomes a solid and at which
water becomes a gas.
c. Investigate how clouds are formed.
d. Explain the water cycle (evaporation, condensation, and precipitation).
e. Investigate different forms of precipitation and sky conditions (rain,
snow, sleet, hail, clouds, and fog).
S4E4
S4E4 Students will analyze weather charts/maps and collect weather data to
predict weather events and infer patterns and seasonal changes.
a. Identify weather instruments and explain how each is used in gathering
weather data and making forecasts (thermometer, rain gauge, barometer, wind
vane, anemometer).
b. Using a weather map, identify the fronts, temperature, and precipitation
and use the information to interpret the weather conditions.
c. Use observations and records of weather conditions to predict weather
patterns throughout the year.
d. Differentiate between weather and climate.
S4L1
S4L1 Students will describe the roles of organisms and the flow of energy
within an ecosystem.
a. Identify the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers in a community.
b. Demonstrate the flow of energy through a food web/food chain beginning
with sunlight and including producers, consumers, and decomposers.
c. Predict how changes in the environment would affect a community
(ecosystem) of organisms.
d. Predict effects on a population if some of the plants or animals in the
community are scarce or if there are too many.
S4L2
S4L2 Students will identify factors that affect the survival or extinction of
organisms such as adaptation, variation of behaviors (hibernation), and
external features (camouflage and protection).
a. Identify external features of organisms that allow them to survive or
reproduce better than organisms that do not have these features (for example:
camouflage, use of hibernation, protection, etc.).
b. Identify factors that may have led to the extinction of some organisms.
S4P1
S4P1 Students will investigate the nature of light using tools such as
mirrors, lenses, and prisms.
a. Identify materials that are transparent, opaque, and translucent.
b. Investigate the reflection of light using a mirror and a light source.
c. Identify the physical attributes of a convex lens, a concave lens, and a
prism and where each is used.
S4P2
S4P2 Students will demonstrate how sound is produced by vibrating objects and
how sound can be varied by changing the rate of vibration.
a. Investigate how sound is produced.
b. Recognize the conditions that cause pitch to vary.
S4P3
S4P3 Students will demonstrate the relationship between the application of a
force and the resulting change in position and motion on an object.
a. Identify simple machines and explain their uses (lever, pulley, wedge,
inclined plane, screw, wheel and axle).
b. Using different size objects, observe how force affects speed and motion.
c. Explain what happens to the speed or direction of an object when a greater
force than the initial one is applied.
d. Demonstrate the effect of gravitational force on the motion of an object.
Teacher note: The use of mathematical formulas is not recommended in S4P3.
Fourth grade students should carry out investigations to provide a foundation
of concrete experience for the abstract understandings of physical science in
upper grades.
SOCIAL STUDIES
SS4CG1
SS4CG1 The student will describe the meaning of
a. Natural rights as found in the Declaration of Independence (the right to
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness).
b. "We the people" from the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution as a reflection
of consent of the governed or popular sovereignty.
c. The federal system of government in the U.S.
SS4CG2
SS4CG2 The student will explain the importance of freedom of expression as
written in the First Amendment to the U. S. Constitution.
SS4CG3
SS4CG3 The student will describe the functions of government.
a. Explain the process for making and enforcing laws.
b. Explain managing conflicts and protecting rights.
c. Describe providing for the defense of the nation.
d. Explain limiting the power of people in authority.
e. Explain the fiscal responsibility of government.
SS4CG4
SS4CG4 The student will explain the importance of Americans sharing certain
central democratic beliefs and principles, both personal and civic.
a. Explain the necessity of respecting the rights of others and promoting the
common good.
b. Explain the necessity of obeying reasonable laws/rules voluntarily, and
explain why it is important for citizens in a democratic society to
participate in public (civic) life (staying informed, voting, volunteering,
communicating with public officials).
SS4CG5
SS4CG5 The student will name positive character traits of key historic
figures and government leaders (honesty, patriotism, courage,
trustworthiness).
SS4E1
SS4E1 The student will use the basic economic concepts of trade, opportunity
cost, specialization, voluntary exchange, productivity, and price incentives
to illustrate historical events.
a. Describe opportunity costs and their elationship to decision-making across
time (such as decisions to send expeditions to the New World).
b. Explain how price incentives affect people's behavior and choices (such as
colonial decisions about what crops to grow and products to produce).
c. Describe how specialization improves standards of living (such as how
specific economies in the three colonial regions developed).
d. Explain how voluntary exchange helps both buyers and sellers (such as
prehistoric and colonial trade in North America).
e. Describe how trade promotes economic activity (such as how trade
activities in the early nation were managed differently under the Articles of
Confederation and the Constitution).
f. Give examples of technological advancements and their impact on business
productivity during the development of the United States.
SS4E2
SS4E2 The student will identify the elements of a personal budget and explain
why personal spending and saving decisions are important.
SS4G1
SS4G1 The student will be able to locate important physical and man-made
features in the United States.
a. Locate major physical features of the United States; include the Atlantic
Coastal Plain, Great Plains, Continental Divide, the Great Basin, Death
Valley, Gulf of Mexico, St. Lawrence River, and the Great Lakes.
b. Locate major man-made features; include New York City, NY; Boston, MA;
Philadelphia, PA; and the Erie Canal.
SS4G2
SS4G2 The student will describe how physical systems affect human systems.
a. Explain why each of the native American groups (SS4H1a) occupied the areas
they did, with emphasis on why some developed permanent villages and others
did not.
b. Describe how the early explorers (SS4H2a) adapted, or failed to adapt, to
the various physical environments in which they traveled.
c. Explain how the physical geography of each colony helped determine
economic activities practiced therein.
d. Explain how each force (American and British) attempted to use the
physical geography of each battle site to its benefit (SS4H4c).
e. Describe physical barriers that hindered and physical gateways that
benefited territorial expansion from 1801 to 1861 (SS4H6a).
SS4H1
SS4H1 The student will describe how early Native American cultures developed
in North America.
a. Locate where the American Indians settled with emphasis on Arctic (Inuit),
Northwest (Kwakiutl), Plateau (Nez Perce), Southwest (Hopi), Plains (Pawnee),
and Southeastern (Seminole).
b. Describe how the American Indians used their environment to obtain food,
clothing, and shelter.
SS4H2
SS4H2 The student will describe European exploration in North America.
a. Describe the reasons for, obstacles to, and accomplishments of the
Spanish, French, and English explorations of John Cabot, Vasco Nunez Balboa,
Juan Ponce de Leon, Christopher Columbus, Henry Hudson, and Jacques Cartier.
b. Describe examples of cooperation and conflict between Europeans and Native
Americans.
SS4H3
SS4H3 The student will explain the factors that shaped British colonial
America.
a. Compare and contrast life in the New England, Mid-Atlantic, and Southern
colonies.
b. Describe colonial life in America as experienced by various people,
including large landowners, farmers, artisans, women, indentured servants,
slaves, and Native Americans.
SS4H4
SS4H4 The student will explain the causes, events, and results of the
American Revolution.
a. Trace the events that shaped the revolutionary movement in America,
including the French and Indian War, British Imperial Policy that led to the
1765 Stamp Act, the slogan “no taxation without representation,” the
activities of the Sons of Liberty, and the Boston Tea Party.
b. Explain the writing of the Declaration of Independence; include who wrote
it, how it was written, why it was necessary, and how it was a response to
tyranny and the abuse of power.
c. Describe the major events of the Revolution and explain the factors
leading to American victory and British defeat; include the Battles of
Lexington and Concord and Yorktown.
d. Describe key individuals in the American Revolution with emphasis on King
George III, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Benedict
Arnold, Patrick Henry, and John Adams.
SS4H5
SS4H5 The student will analyze the challenges faced by the new nation.
a. Identify the weaknesses of the government established by the Articles of
Confederation.
b. Identify the major leaders of the Constitutional Convention (James Madison
and Benjamin Franklin) and describe the major issues they debated, including
the rights of states, the Great Compromise, and slavery.
c. Identify the three branches of the U. S. government as outlined by the
Constitution, describe what they do, how they relate to each other checks and
balances and separation of power), and how they relate to the states.
d. Identify and explain the rights in the Bill of Rights, describe how the
Bill of Rights places limits on the power of government, and explain the
reasons for its inclusion in the Constitution in 1791.
e. Describe the causes of the War of 1812; include burning of the Capitol and
the White House.
SS4H6
SS4H6 The student will explain westward expansion of America between 1801 and
1861.
a. Describe territorial expansion with emphasis on the Louisiana Purchase,
the Lewis and Clark expedition, and the acquisitions of Texas (the Alamo and
independence), Oregon (Oregon Trail), and California (Gold Rush and the
development of mining towns).
b. Describe the impact of the steamboat, the steam locomotive, and the
telegraph on life in America.
SS4H7
SS4H7 The student will examine the main ideas of the abolitionist and
suffrage movements.
a. Discuss biographies of Harriet Tubman and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
b. Explain the significance of Sojourner Truth’s address ("Ain’t I a Woman?"
1851) to the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention.