Pennsylvania Standards
Pennsylvania 4th Grade ELA Standards
All 56 Pennsylvania English language arts standards for 4th grade, each explained in plain English. The official wording is in Pennsylvania Department of Education's document, linked at the end of this page.
56 standards
Foundational Skills
2 standardsCC.1.1.4.D
Say the main sound of each consonant, know the long and short sounds of a, e, i, o and u, and read common sight words like the, of and you.
CC.1.1.4.E
Read fourth-grade texts purposefully with understanding, practice reading aloud for accuracy, pace and expression, and use context to check words, rereading as needed.
Reading Informational Text
12 standardsCC.1.2.4.A
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.
CC.1.2.4.B
Point to details and examples in a nonfiction text to show what it says outright and to back up inferences drawn from it.
CC.1.2.4.C
Using specific details from a nonfiction text, explain events, steps, ideas or concepts in it, including what happened and why.
CC.1.2.4.D
Tell how two accounts of the same event or topic from different points of view are alike and different, like a diary entry and a news article.
CC.1.2.4.E
Use how a nonfiction text is organized, like time order, comparison, cause and effect, or problem and solution, to make sense of its information.
CC.1.2.4.F
Work out what words and phrases mean in fourth-grade nonfiction, including figurative ones, like a river described as a lifeline.
CC.1.2.4.G
Make sense of charts, graphs, timelines and animations in a text or online source, and explain how they help readers understand the text around them.
CC.1.2.4.H
Explain how an author backs up each point in an informational text with reasons and evidence, such as a fact or a statistic.
CC.1.2.4.I
Combine facts from two texts on one topic, like two articles about hurricanes, to explain the topic well.
CC.1.2.4.J
Learn and use fourth-grade words accurately, including words for precise actions and feelings and core topic words, like endangered in a text on wildlife.
CC.1.2.4.K
Choose among strategies like context, Greek and Latin roots or a glossary to work out unknown or multiple-meaning words in fourth-grade nonfiction.
CC.1.2.4.L
Read fourth-grade nonfiction, like biographies and science texts, independently and with real understanding.
Reading Literature
11 standardsCC.1.3.4.A
Use details from a story, play or poem to figure out its theme, and give a short summary of the whole text.
CC.1.3.4.B
Quote or point to fitting details in a story to back up what it says directly and what can be inferred, like why a character lied.
CC.1.3.4.C
Give a detailed description of one character, setting or event in a story or play, using specific details like what a character says and does.
CC.1.3.4.D
Compare and contrast how two narrators or characters tell the same event or topic, like the wolf’s version and a pig’s version of one tale.
CC.1.3.4.E
Explain how poems, plays and prose differ, and use terms like verse, rhythm, stage directions and dialogue when discussing or writing about them.
CC.1.3.4.F
Figure out word and phrase meanings in fourth-grade stories and poems, including similes and metaphors, like as busy as a bee.
CC.1.3.4.G
Connect a story or play to a film, audio or stage version of it, pointing out where each version follows the text’s descriptions and stage directions.
CC.1.3.4.H
Compare and contrast how stories from different cultures treat shared themes, topics and event patterns, like a good hero battling evil.
CC.1.3.4.I
Pick the best tool, like nearby sentences, word roots such as photo or a dictionary, to figure out unfamiliar or multiple-meaning words in fourth-grade stories.
CC.1.3.4.J
Pick up and accurately use fourth-grade words from stories, including exact words for actions, emotions and states of being, like stammered, furious and exhausted.
CC.1.3.4.K
Read fourth-grade novels and short stories independently and understand them fully.
Writing
24 standardsCC.1.4.4.A
Write an informative piece that introduces a topic, groups related facts and definitions, links them with words like also, and closes with a final sentence.
CC.1.4.4.B
Introduce the topic of an informative piece clearly in the opening, so readers know right away what they will learn.
CC.1.4.4.C
Build the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotes and examples, and add pictures or multimedia when they help readers understand.
CC.1.4.4.D
Sort related facts into paragraphs and sections, link ideas with words like also and another, add headings when they help, and end with a conclusion.
CC.1.4.4.E
Explain a topic with exact words and the subject’s own vocabulary, like orbit and gravity in a report on the planets.
CC.1.4.4.F
Use fourth-grade grammar, capitalization, punctuation and spelling correctly in informative writing, like a comma before but in a compound sentence.
CC.1.4.4.G
Write opinion pieces about topics or texts, like whether a novel’s main character made the right choice.
CC.1.4.4.H
Begin an opinion piece by presenting the topic and stating a clear position on it, like schools should start later.
CC.1.4.4.I
Give reasons for the opinion and back each one with facts and details, like sleep studies showing tired students learn less.
CC.1.4.4.J
Organize an opinion piece by grouping related ideas to fit the purpose, arranging them in logical order, and ending with a conclusion tied to the opinion.
CC.1.4.4.K
Choose exact words to make an argument clear and strong, like essential instead of good when stating why a rule matters.
CC.1.4.4.L
Follow fourth-grade grammar, capitalization, punctuation and spelling rules in opinion pieces, like using their, there and they’re correctly.
CC.1.4.4.M
Write real or made-up stories that develop events and experiences fully, like a first day at a new school.
CC.1.4.4.N
Help readers get their bearings at the start of a story by setting up the situation and introducing who tells it and who is in it.
CC.1.4.4.O
Develop story events with dialogue and description that show how characters react, and use concrete words and sensory details, like the smell of smoke.
CC.1.4.4.P
Order story events so they flow naturally, guide readers with varied transitions like meanwhile, and end with a conclusion that fits what happened.
CC.1.4.4.Q
Pick exact words to show story events clearly, like trudged or sprinted instead of went, so readers see what happens.
CC.1.4.4.R
Use correct fourth-grade grammar, capitals, punctuation and spelling in stories, like progressive verbs such as was running.
CC.1.4.4.S
Back up their writing about stories and nonfiction with evidence from the text, applying fourth-grade reading skills to analysis, reflection and research.
CC.1.4.4.T
With feedback from classmates and adults, make their writing stronger by planning, revising and editing, like reworking a weak opening.
CC.1.4.4.U
With some help, use technology and the internet to create, publish and share writing with others, and type at least one page in one sitting.
CC.1.4.4.V
Do a short research project that looks into different sides of a topic, such as a state’s history, land and people, to build knowledge about it.
CC.1.4.4.W
Pull facts from memory, books and websites, take notes, sort them into categories, and list where they came from.
CC.1.4.4.X
Write regularly, from a report built over several days to a journal entry finished in one class, for different subjects, purposes and readers.
Speaking and Listening
7 standardsCC.1.5.4.A
Join many kinds of discussions on fourth-grade topics and texts, connecting their comments to others’ ideas and explaining their own clearly.
CC.1.5.4.B
Restate in your own words part of a text read aloud or information from a video, a chart or a speaker.
CC.1.5.4.C
Pick out the reasons and evidence a speaker gives to support each point, such as the facts behind a classmate’s case for a longer recess.
CC.1.5.4.D
Give an organized talk, story or account of an experience, backing main ideas or themes with fitting facts and details, and speak clearly at a good volume and pace.
CC.1.5.4.E
Tell when a situation calls for formal English, like a class presentation, and when casual talk is fine, like chatting with friends.
CC.1.5.4.F
Add an audio recording or a visual display, such as a poster or slide, to a presentation when it helps develop the main ideas.
CC.1.5.4.G
Use fourth-grade grammar correctly when speaking, like relative pronouns such as who and which and helping verbs such as can and must.
The official Pennsylvania documents
- Pennsylvania Core Standards for English Language Arts and Mathematics · adopted February 2014 · since March 2014
The plain-English lines on this page are EMStudio's own explanations of Pennsylvania's standards, not the official wording, which Pennsylvania Department of Education publishes in the documents above. Codes and strand names identify each standard.