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Indiana Standards

Indiana 4th Grade ELA Standards

All 30 Indiana English language arts standards for 4th grade, each explained in plain English. The official wording is in Indiana Department of Education's document, linked at the end of this page.

30 standards

Reading Foundations

3 standards
4.RF.1
Use the six main syllable patterns to read unfamiliar words, like splitting compete into com and pete.
4.RF.2
Read unfamiliar long words in a text accurately by using letter sounds, syllable patterns and word parts like roots, prefixes and suffixes, as in unbelievable.
4.RF.3
Read fourth-grade or harder books aloud with smooth pacing, few mistakes, and expression that shows they follow the meaning.

Reading Comprehension

13 standards
4.RC.1
Use details and examples from a text to explain both what it states directly and what can be inferred from it, like why a character seems nervous.
4.RC.2
Retell in their own words or sum up the key events of a story, myth, legend or novel, then name its theme and give text evidence for that reading.
4.RC.3
Use specific details from a story or play to describe a character, place or event in depth and how it shapes the plot, like a storm that strands the heroes.
4.RC.4
Compare the points of view from which different stories are told, including an I narrator telling his own story versus a narrator outside it.
4.RC.5
Say in one sentence what an informational text is about, explain which key details support that idea, and summarize the text in your own words.
4.RC.6
Use text features like charts, tables, graphs, headings, subheadings and bold type to find information and understand a text.
4.RC.7
Describe how a text or part of one is organized, like in time order, by problem and solution, comparison, steps, cause and effect, or description.
4.RC.8
Separate facts from opinions, and explain which reasons and evidence an author offers to back a claim, like an article arguing for longer recess.
4.RC.9
Pull together facts from two texts about one topic to show what they know about it, like two articles about tornadoes.
4.RC.10
Use clues from nearby words, phrases, sentences and paragraphs and text features like charts, headings and bold type to figure out unknown words.
4.RC.11
Identify how words are related, including trickier homographs and homonyms, synonyms, antonyms and words with several meanings, like lead the metal and lead the way.
4.RC.12
Use word parts like prefixes, suffixes and Greek and Latin roots, plus known words and patterns, to work out what a word means, like telephone.
4.RC.13
Figure out how words and phrases add meaning to stories and poems, including similes, metaphors and exaggeration, like as quiet as a mouse.

Writing

7 standards
4.W.1
Write opinion pieces for a chosen audience that state a clear view, support it with facts from sources, group related ideas, link reasons with words, and conclude.
4.W.2
Write informative pieces with a clear opening, topic-sentence paragraphs, facts and examples from sources, linking words, visuals, fitting vocabulary and a conclusion.
4.W.3
Write stories that set the scene, unfold events in paragraphs with transitions, use dialogue and sensory details to show characters, and end in a fitting way.
4.W.4
Draft by choosing and organizing ideas for the topic, purpose and genre, revise with reference tools, edit for conventions, and use technology to collaborate and publish.
4.W.5
Research a focused question, like the history of a local landmark, find sources efficiently, judge how reliable they are, summarize with credit, and present it.
4.W.6
Write with pronouns like who and myself, progressive tenses like was running, helping verbs like must, consistent tenses, prepositions, and varied sentences.
4.W.7
Capitalize magazine, artwork, song and group names, use apostrophes, quotation marks and commas for dialogue and compound sentences, and spell words using known patterns.

Communication and Collaboration

7 standards
4.CC.1
Join in fourth-grade discussions with a partner, a group or the teacher, building on what classmates say and explaining their own thinking clearly, like in a book club.
4.CC.2
Ask and answer pointed questions to clear up or learn more about what was shared, and add comments that connect to classmates’ remarks.
4.CC.3
Summarize the key ideas and supporting evidence from a read-aloud or from information shared through visuals, numbers or speech.
4.CC.4
Pick out the evidence a speaker gives to back up each point and use it, like citing a fact from a guest talk in their own response.
4.CC.5
Report on a topic or tell a story with a strong opening and closing, clear structure, and facts and details that back the main ideas, speaking clearly at a steady pace.
4.CC.6
Give spoken presentations that stay focused, using multimedia like slides or video to develop main ideas and keep the audience interested.
4.CC.7
Spot claims in print, pictures and multimedia, and identify the evidence used to support them, like in an ad for a sports drink.

The official Indiana documents

The plain-English lines on this page are EMStudio's own explanations of Indiana's standards, not the official wording, which Indiana Department of Education publishes in the documents above. Codes and strand names identify each standard.