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4th Grade Take-Home Practice

Long multiplication, division, fraction operations, decimals, angles and essays with evidence.

Ages 9–10

What this year is really about

Grade 4 asks children to hold several steps in their head at once — in maths, in reading, and in writing. Everything this year rewards a plan and punishes guessing.

Twenty-five to thirty minutes. If maths is going badly, test the times tables before anything else: nine times out of ten that's the actual problem.

📚 22 topics⏱️ 30 min a day🖨️ No printing needed

🎒 All 22 take-homes 🗓️ The weekly rotation ✅ End-of-year checklist ⬇️ Download the PDF

A week that doesn't become a second school

30 minutes a day, one strand at a time. Skipping a day is fine — skipping the same strand every week is what causes gaps.

Monday
Multiplication & division
Four multi-digit problems, estimate first each time.
Tuesday
Reading
Non-fiction page, name the text structure, one summary sentence.
Wednesday
Fractions & decimals
Three problems using a drawing or a number line.
Thursday
Writing
One paragraph with a quoted piece of evidence in it.
Friday
Science, maps or a project
One experiment, map task, or twenty minutes of project work.

Take it off the screen

The whole 4th Grade pack as a PDF — every topic, every check, every activity, with tick boxes and a date line so you can see what you have actually run. Free, no signup, and it works offline once it's saved.

Or just one subject

📖 Reading

Decoding, fluency, and understanding what was actually said.

4 topics this year

Theme, motive and deeper inference
How non-fiction is organised
Greek and Latin roots
Summarising without retelling

✏️ Writing

Getting a thought out of the head and onto the page so a stranger understands it.

3 topics this year

Writing with evidence from a text
Researching and taking notes in your own words
Sentence variety and grammar that carries meaning

🔢 Math

Number sense first, then the procedures that ride on top of it.

8 topics this year

Multi-digit multiplication
Division with remainders
Factors, multiples and prime numbers
Adding and subtracting fractions
Multiplying a fraction by a whole number
Decimals — tenths and hundredths
Angles, lines and symmetry
Unit conversion and measurement problems

🔬 Science

Noticing, predicting, testing — and being willing to be wrong out loud.

3 topics this year

Energy transfer and simple circuits
Erosion, rocks and reading the landscape
Waves, and how information travels

🌍 Social Studies

Maps, communities, history, and why people who were there disagree.

2 topics this year

Regions, states and physical geography
How government works and what citizens do

🧭 Study & Life Skills

Attention, organisation, and the habits that decide whether the rest lands.

2 topics this year

Taking notes that are actually useful
Breaking a big project into days

Every 4th Grade topic, and what to do about it

Run the two-minute check first. If it passes, move on — you have just saved an evening. If it doesn't, the take-home underneath it is the fix.

0 of 22 done

📖 Reading
Theme, motive and deeper inference
Can do: States what a story is really about beyond the plot, and explains why characters act as they do.
Why it matters
Grade 4 comprehension questions move from what happened to why it matters. Plot-only readers start losing marks despite reading perfectly.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Summarises the plot when asked for the theme, and explains behaviour only by what the character said.
⏱️ Two-minute check
After a story: "What's the message underneath this? What did the character want that they didn't say?"
Solid looks like: A theme stated as an idea, not an event, with evidence.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
What's It Really About?
⏱️ 15 minutesAny story, film or episode
1Ask for the plot in one sentence. Get it out of the way.
2Then: "What is it really about?" Push past the first answer.
3Find a moment where a character wanted something they didn't say out loud.
4Ask what the author wants the reader to think about.
5Do it with a film too — the same skill, and much less resistance.
If it's too hard
Offer three possible themes and have them choose plus justify.
If it's too easy
Compare the themes of two books and say which handled it better.
Say this
"That's what happened. What's it *about*? What idea is the author chewing on?"
Reading practice
📖 Reading
How non-fiction is organised
Can do: Spots cause-and-effect, compare-and-contrast, sequence and problem-solution structures, and uses headings and diagrams.
Why it matters
Knowing the structure means knowing where the answer will be. It is the difference between reading a textbook and searching one.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Reads non-fiction start to finish like a story, ignoring headings, captions and diagrams entirely.
⏱️ Two-minute check
Show a non-fiction page. "How is this organised? What does the diagram add that the text doesn't?"
Solid looks like: Names a structure, and finds something in the diagram not stated in the words.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Preview Before You Read
⏱️ 15 minutesA non-fiction book, article or textbook page
1Before reading a word, do a two-minute tour: title, headings, pictures, captions, bold words.
2Predict what the section will tell you and what structure it uses.
3Read it and check the prediction.
4Turn each heading into a question, then answer it from the text.
5Explain what the diagram or table added — there is almost always something.
If it's too hard
One page, headings only.
If it's too easy
Turn the whole section into an outline with the structure labelled.
Say this
"Tour it before you read it. Headings, pictures, bold words — what's this page going to tell you?"
Reading practice
📖 Reading
Greek and Latin roots
Can do: Uses roots — port, dict, scrib, aqua, geo, tele, bio — to unlock unfamiliar words.
Why it matters
Well over half of academic English comes from these roots. Learning twenty roots is worth learning a thousand words.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Vocabulary growth stalls because every subject-specific word is memorised in isolation.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"What do transport, portable and export have in common? So what does port mean?"
Solid looks like: Spots the shared root and gets to carry.
10 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Root of the Week
⏱️ 10 minutesPaper for a wall list
1Pick one root and write it big on the wall list with its meaning.
2Brainstorm every word containing it, and check each meaning fits.
3Hunt for it in a real text this week — science and geography are full of them.
4Invent a plausible new word from the root and define it.
5Review the whole list on Fridays, out loud, fast.
If it's too hard
Roots that are visible in easy words: tele, bio, aqua.
If it's too easy
Combine two roots — telescope, biography — and work out the meaning from the parts alone.
Say this
"You already know three words with that bit in. What do they all have in common?"
Reading practice
📖 Reading
Summarising without retelling
Can do: Reduces a chapter or article to a few sentences, keeping only what matters.
Why it matters
Summarising is the highest-value study skill there is, and it's what revision, note-taking and essay planning all depend on later.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
The "summary" is nearly as long as the original, or it's the first thing they remember rather than the most important.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Summarise that chapter in three sentences."
Solid looks like: Three sentences covering the whole chapter, not just the opening.
10 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Twenty Word Limit
⏱️ 10 minutesA chapter or articlePaper
1Read it, then close it. Summarising with the text open is copying.
2Write a summary with a hard limit of twenty words. Count them.
3Cut it to ten. The cutting is the thinking.
4Compare with the original: what got lost, and did it matter?
5Do it verbally in the car for a film or a school day, too.
If it's too hard
One paragraph, twenty words.
If it's too easy
Summarise two sources on the same topic and note where they differ.
Say this
"Twenty words, no more. What has to go? If you can cut it and still understand, cut it."
Reading practice
✏️ Writing
Writing with evidence from a text
Can do: Makes a claim and supports it with a quotation or specific detail, then explains the link.
Why it matters
Claim, evidence, explanation is the shape of nearly all school writing from here to graduation. Grade 4 is when it starts being marked.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Quotes something and stops, assuming the quote makes the point by itself.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Was the character brave? Say yes or no, quote the book, then explain why the quote proves it."
Solid looks like: All three parts present, especially the explanation.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Because, For Example, This Shows
⏱️ 20 minutesA book they've readPaper
1Write the claim in one sentence.
2Find the quote. Copy it exactly, in quotation marks.
3Use the sentence stem: "This shows that…" and finish it.
4Check the explanation says something the quote doesn't literally say.
5Do a second paragraph with a different piece of evidence for the same claim.
If it's too hard
You provide the quote, they write the explanation.
If it's too easy
Two pieces of evidence, one of which slightly complicates the claim.
Say this
"The quote doesn't explain itself. Why does that line prove your point?"
Writing practice
✏️ Writing
Researching and taking notes in your own words
Can do: Finds information from two sources, notes it in their own words, and says where it came from.
Why it matters
It's where plagiarism habits are set. Note-taking in their own words is also a comprehension check that copying entirely bypasses.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Copies sentences straight off the page or screen, often without understanding them.
⏱️ Two-minute check
Read them a fact. "Now write it down without using my words."
Solid looks like: Same meaning, different wording.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Close the Tab
⏱️ 20 minutesTwo sourcesPaperA device
1Read one paragraph, then close the book or the tab.
2Write what they remember, in their own words. Closing it is the whole trick.
3Reopen and check for accuracy — not for wording.
4Note the source next to each fact: title and author, that's enough at nine.
5Compare the two sources and find one thing they disagree on.
If it's too hard
One source, three facts.
If it's too easy
Three sources, and note where each fact came from so the paragraph can be traced.
Say this
"Close it first. If you can't say it without looking, you haven't understood it yet."
Writing practice
✏️ Writing
Sentence variety and grammar that carries meaning
Can do: Mixes short and long sentences, uses conjunctions and commas correctly, and avoids run-ons.
Why it matters
Rhythm is what makes writing readable, and by Grade 4 mechanics are directly marked. Both improve fastest by reading work aloud.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Every sentence is the same length and starts the same way, joined by an endless chain of "and".
⏱️ Two-minute check
Take their last piece and count the words in each sentence.
Solid looks like: A real spread — some under eight words, some over fifteen — and varied openers.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Sentence Surgery
⏱️ 15 minutesA draft they wroteColoured pencils
1Number the words in each sentence in the margin.
2Find two long sentences and split one. Find two short ones and join them with a conjunction.
3Underline the first three words of each sentence and change any repeats.
4Add one deliberately very short sentence for effect. Like this.
5Read the before and after aloud and ask which sounds better.
If it's too hard
Just split the longest sentence into two.
If it's too easy
Start a sentence with a subordinate clause: "Although it was raining, …"
Say this
"Read it out loud. Did every sentence sound the same? Break one up."
Writing practice
🔢 Math
Multi-digit multiplication
Can do: Multiplies 3-digit by 1-digit and 2-digit by 2-digit, and can explain the partial products.
Why it matters
It's where place value and times tables combine. A child who can only follow the steps breaks the moment there's a zero or a carry.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Forgets to shift the second row, or writes the carried digit and then adds it in the wrong column.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Work out 34 × 26 and 205 × 7." Then: "What does the second row of the first one mean?"
Solid looks like: Both correct, and they know row two is 20 × 34 rather than 2 × 34.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Area Model First
⏱️ 20 minutesPaperRuler
1Draw a rectangle split into four boxes: 30 and 4 along the top, 20 and 6 down the side.
2Fill each box with its product: 600, 80, 180, 24.
3Add them up. That's the answer, and every step is visible.
4Now do the same sum in the column method and match each written step to a box.
5Estimate first every time — 34 × 26 is roughly 30 × 25, about 750.
If it's too hard
2-digit by 1-digit with the area model only.
If it's too easy
3-digit by 2-digit, and a problem with a zero in the middle: 305 × 24.
Say this
"That row isn't 2 × 34 — it's 20 × 34. That's why the zero goes there."
Math practice
🔢 Math
Division with remainders
Can do: Divides up to four digits by one digit, and interprets what the remainder means in context.
Why it matters
The interpretation is the real skill: 27 children in groups of 4 needs 7 groups, not 6 remainder 3, and knowing which is which is comprehension, not arithmetic.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Writes "6 r 3" as the answer to a question about how many buses are needed.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"27 children, 4 per car. How many cars?" Then: "27 sweets shared by 4. How many each?"
Solid looks like: 7 cars and 6 sweets each — two different answers from the same division.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
What Do We Do With the Leftovers?
⏱️ 20 minutesCounters or coinsPaper
1Do the division with objects first so the remainder is physically sitting there.
2Ask the same numbers in three different stories: cars, sharing, and money.
3Decide each time: round up, ignore it, or express it as a fraction.
4Then do the written method and check against the objects.
5Always multiply back to check: 6 × 4 + 3 = 27.
If it's too hard
Two-digit divided by one digit with counters.
If it's too easy
Four digits by one, with a zero in the quotient — 4,208 ÷ 4.
Say this
"You've got three left over. In this story, does that mean another bus, or nothing at all?"
Math practice
🔢 Math
Factors, multiples and prime numbers
Can do: Lists factors of a number, knows what makes a number prime, and finds common multiples.
Why it matters
It's the vocabulary that fractions in Grade 5 and 6 are built from — simplifying and common denominators are both factor problems in disguise.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Confuses factors with multiples, and calls 1 or 9 prime.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"List all the factors of 24. Is 9 prime? Why not?"
Solid looks like: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24 — and 9 rejected because 3 × 3 works.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Rectangle Factor Hunt
⏱️ 15 minutesSquared paperCounters
1Give them 24 counters. Build every rectangle possible: 1×24, 2×12, 3×8, 4×6.
2Each rectangle's sides are a factor pair. Write them down in order.
3Try 7 counters. Only one rectangle exists — that's what prime means, made visible.
4Sort the numbers 1 to 20 into prime and composite using rectangles.
5Play factor bingo, or a fizz-buzz style game with multiples.
If it's too hard
Numbers under 20 with counters.
If it's too easy
Prime factorisation as a factor tree, which sets up simplifying fractions perfectly.
Say this
"How many different rectangles can you build with these? Each one gives you a factor pair."
Math practice
🔢 Math
Adding and subtracting fractions
Can do: Adds and subtracts fractions with the same denominator, and with related denominators like halves and quarters.
Why it matters
The commonest error in all of school maths lives here: adding the bottoms. It comes from never seeing what a denominator actually is.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
1/4 + 1/4 = 2/8. The child is adding two whole numbers because nothing has told them not to.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"1/4 + 1/4? And 3/4 − 1/2?"
Solid looks like: 1/2 (or 2/4) and 1/4, with the denominators left alone.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Fraction Strips Add Up
⏱️ 20 minutesPaper strips folded into halves, quarters, eighthsPencil
1Lay two quarter-strips end to end. Ask what the total looks like against the half-strip.
2Say the rule they can see: the pieces stay the same size, we just have more of them.
3Ask what 1/4 + 1/2 needs — swap the half for two quarters, physically.
4Now write the sums numerically, matching each step to a strip.
5Use a real one: half a cup plus a quarter cup while cooking.
If it's too hard
Same denominator only, with strips every time.
If it's too easy
Mixed numbers: 1 3/4 + 1/2, and subtraction that crosses a whole.
Say this
"The bottom number tells you the size of the piece. The pieces didn't get smaller — so why would the bottom change?"
Math practice
🔢 Math
Multiplying a fraction by a whole number
Can do: Works out 3 × 2/5 and understands it as repeated addition of a fraction.
Why it matters
It's the gentle entry to fraction multiplication, and it destroys the myth that multiplying always makes things bigger.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Multiplies top and bottom by 3, or freezes because the answer is bigger than one.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"What is 4 × 3/8?" Then: "Is the answer bigger or smaller than 1?"
Solid looks like: 12/8 or 1 1/2, and they know it exceeds one.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Four Lots of Three Eighths
⏱️ 15 minutesFraction strips or a number linePaper
1Write it as repeated addition first: 3/8 + 3/8 + 3/8 + 3/8.
2Jump it along a number line in eighths and see where you land.
3Notice the pattern: only the top multiplies.
4Convert the improper answer to a mixed number using the strips.
5Do a real one: a recipe needs 2/3 cup and you're making it three times.
If it's too hard
2 × a unit fraction, on a number line.
If it's too easy
A word problem where the answer must be converted to a mixed number to make sense.
Say this
"Four lots of three-eighths. Count them along the line — where do you land?"
Math practice
🔢 Math
Decimals — tenths and hundredths
Can do: Reads, writes, compares and orders decimals, and links 0.5 to 1/2 and 0.25 to 1/4.
Why it matters
Decimals are place value extended right of the point. Children who don't see the connection to fractions treat them as an unrelated second system.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Thinks 0.45 is bigger than 0.7 because 45 is bigger than 7 — the classic longer-is-bigger error.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Which is bigger, 0.45 or 0.7? Write 3/4 as a decimal."
Solid looks like: 0.7 with a reason about tenths, and 0.75.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Money Makes Decimals Obvious
⏱️ 15 minutesCoinsA hundred grid drawn on paperA ruler
1Shade a hundred grid: 0.7 is seventy squares, 0.45 is forty-five. The comparison becomes visible.
2Use money: 0.7 of a dollar is 70 cents, 0.45 is 45 cents. Which would you rather have?
3Line decimals up by the point, filling gaps with zeros: 0.70 versus 0.45.
4Find decimals on a ruler in millimetres.
5Convert between the three forms: 1/4, 0.25, 25%.
If it's too hard
Tenths only, with money.
If it's too easy
Order five decimals with different numbers of places, and place them on a number line.
Say this
"Would you rather have 70 cents or 45 cents? Same question — which decimal is bigger?"
Math practice
🔢 Math
Angles, lines and symmetry
Can do: Measures angles with a protractor, classifies them, and finds lines of symmetry.
Why it matters
It's the first properly measured geometry, and the protractor is one of the few tools children reliably misread for years.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Reads the wrong scale on the protractor, giving 130° for a clearly acute angle.
⏱️ Two-minute check
Draw a 45° angle. "Measure this. Is it acute, right, or obtuse?"
Solid looks like: Roughly 45° from the correct scale, and named acute.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Angle Hunt
⏱️ 15 minutesA protractorPaperA corner of paper as a right-angle checker
1Teach the check first: is it bigger or smaller than a right angle? That alone kills the wrong-scale error.
2Estimate every angle before measuring it.
3Hunt for angles in the house — door corners, scissors, roof lines — and measure five.
4Fold shapes to find lines of symmetry and mark them.
5Draw a shape with exactly two lines of symmetry as a challenge.
If it's too hard
Classify angles by eye against a paper corner, no protractor.
If it's too easy
Angles on a straight line and in a triangle summing to 180°.
Say this
"Before you read the number — is it bigger or smaller than a corner? Now which scale makes sense?"
Math practice
🔢 Math
Unit conversion and measurement problems
Can do: Converts between units — cm and m, g and kg, minutes and hours — and uses them in problems.
Why it matters
Conversion is multiplicative reasoning applied to the real world, and it's the source of a large share of lost marks in tests.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Divides when they should multiply, ending up with 3 km = 3,000,000 m or 0.003 m.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"How many grams in 2.5 kg? How many minutes in 3.5 hours?"
Solid looks like: 2500 g and 210 minutes.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Bigger or Smaller Number?
⏱️ 15 minutesKitchen scalesA measuring jugA tape measure
1Teach the sanity check first: going to a smaller unit always means a bigger number.
2Weigh and measure real things and record them in two units each.
3Convert a recipe from kilograms to grams and cook it.
4Do a mixed set on paper, saying "bigger or smaller?" out loud before each one.
5Add times: how many minutes in the school day, in a week of screen time.
If it's too hard
One conversion type at a time with real objects.
If it's too easy
Two-step problems where units must be converted before the sum can be done.
Say this
"Grams are smaller than kilograms. So will the number get bigger or smaller?"
Math practice
🔬 Science
Energy transfer and simple circuits
Can do: Traces energy from source to effect, and builds a complete circuit that lights a bulb.
Why it matters
Energy is the idea that ties all of science together, and circuits make an invisible thing testable in ten minutes.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Thinks energy is used up rather than transferred, and can't say why a broken circuit doesn't work.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Where does the energy in your food originally come from? Why won't this bulb light?"
Solid looks like: Back to the sun, and a broken loop identified.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Make It Light
⏱️ 20 minutesA batteryA small bulb or LEDTwo wiresFoil and tape work in a pinch
1Give them the parts with no instructions and let them work out the loop.
2Once it lights, break it in one place and ask why it stopped.
3Test materials in the gap — coin, paper, key, rubber — and sort into conductors and insulators.
4Add a second bulb and see what happens to the brightness.
5Trace the energy chain aloud: chemical in the battery, electrical in the wire, light and heat at the bulb.
If it's too hard
One bulb, one battery, with you holding the wires.
If it's too easy
Build a switch out of a paperclip, or compare two bulbs in series and in parallel.
Say this
"The energy didn't vanish. Where did it go? Feel the bulb."
Science activities
🔬 Science
Erosion, rocks and reading the landscape
Can do: Explains how water, ice and wind change land over time, and what fossils and rock layers tell us.
Why it matters
It's the first time children reason about timescales far beyond a human life, and the evidence is visible on any walk.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Assumes landscapes have always looked as they do, and that fossils are just old bones with no meaning about layers.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"How did that valley get there? If a fossil is in a lower rock layer, is it older or younger?"
Solid looks like: Water or ice over a long time, and older.
25 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Erosion in a Tray
⏱️ 25 minutesA tray of soil or sandA jug of waterStones and grass or moss
1Build a slope of soil in the tray and pour water slowly down it. Watch the channels form.
2Rebuild it, plant grass or moss on the slope, and pour the same water.
3Compare how much soil moved. That's exactly why deforestation causes landslides.
4Layer sand, soil and gravel in a jar with water and let it settle — that's sedimentary rock forming.
5On a walk, find one thing water has clearly shaped.
If it's too hard
One pour, one observation, one sentence.
If it's too easy
Vary the slope angle and measure the sediment moved each time as a fair test.
Say this
"Same water, different slope. Which one lost more soil — and what does that tell farmers?"
Science practice
🔬 Science
Waves, and how information travels
Can do: Describes waves by amplitude and wavelength, and explains how sound and light carry information.
Why it matters
It links physics to everything a child uses daily — wifi, phones, headphones — and makes an abstract idea concrete.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
No mental model for how a message gets from one place to another without something physical crossing the gap.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"How does your voice get to Grandma's phone? What's actually travelling?"
Solid looks like: Some chain: vibration to electrical signal to radio wave and back.
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Rope Waves and String Phones
⏱️ 20 minutesA skipping ropeTwo cups and a long stringA bowl of water
1Shake a rope and make waves. Show amplitude by shaking harder, wavelength by shaking faster.
2Drop a stone in water and watch circles spread — the water doesn't travel, the wave does.
3Build a string telephone and talk through it. Feel the string vibrating.
4Test what breaks it: slack string, touching the string, going round a corner.
5Invent a code — long and short pulls — and send a message. That's digital signalling.
If it's too hard
Just the rope and the water bowl.
If it's too easy
Send a full word in a two-symbol code and time how long the message takes.
Say this
"The water isn't moving across the bowl — watch a leaf. So what is moving?"
Science practice
🌍 Social Studies
Regions, states and physical geography
Can do: Locates regions, describes their physical features, and links them to economy and settlement.
Why it matters
Geography that connects landscape to livelihood is memorable; geography as a list of capitals is not.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Can label a map but can't say why one region grows wheat and another mines coal.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Why is farming different in the mountains than on the plains?"
Solid looks like: Land, soil, climate or water named as the cause.
25 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Region Trading Cards
⏱️ 25 minutesCard or paperAn atlas or a map site
1Make a card per region: landscape, climate, main industry, biggest city, one surprising fact.
2Research two regions and fill in the cards.
3Compare them: what does geography explain about the difference?
4Add a "why people live here" line to each.
5Play a comparison game — which region would be best for a wind farm, a port, a ski resort?
If it's too hard
One region, three facts.
If it's too easy
Argue for where a new factory should go, using the cards as evidence.
Say this
"Why there? What does that landscape let people do that another one doesn't?"
Social studies
🌍 Social Studies
How government works and what citizens do
Can do: Names the branches of government, what each does, and how an ordinary person can influence a decision.
Why it matters
Civics is at its most concrete when it's local. Understanding that decisions are made by identifiable people is genuinely empowering.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Government is a vague single blob, and there's no sense that anybody can affect it.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"Who makes the laws, who enforces them, and who decides what they mean?"
Solid looks like: The three functions correctly separated.
30 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Write a Real Letter
⏱️ 30 minutesPaper or emailThe name of your local representative
1Find something they'd genuinely change locally — a crossing, a park, a bin.
2Work out which level of government is responsible. That research is the lesson.
3Write a short letter: what, why it matters, what they want done.
4Send it for real. A real reply changes how a child sees the whole system.
5Talk about what else citizens can do: vote, petition, attend a meeting, campaign.
If it's too hard
Draft the letter verbally and you write it.
If it's too easy
Research how a bill actually becomes law and map their issue onto that process.
Say this
"Who actually decides that — the council, the state, or the country? Let's find out before we write."
Social studies practice
🧭 Study & Life Skills
Taking notes that are actually useful
Can do: Records key points in short phrases with structure, not full sentences copied verbatim.
Why it matters
Note-taking is thinking on paper. Copying is transcription and teaches nothing — the difference decides how much of a lesson survives.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Writes every word the teacher says until they fall behind, then stops entirely.
⏱️ Two-minute check
Read a paragraph aloud. "Take notes." Then check whether they can rebuild the meaning from them a day later.
Solid looks like: Phrases with some structure, and the meaning recoverable tomorrow.
15 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Two Column Notes
⏱️ 15 minutesPaperPen
1Fold the page: narrow left column for questions, wide right for notes.
2Take notes on the right in phrases, using dashes, arrows and abbreviations.
3Afterwards, write a question in the left column that each note answers.
4Cover the right side and answer their own questions from memory.
5Add a two-sentence summary at the bottom.
If it's too hard
Notes on a two-minute video with three key points.
If it's too easy
Notes from a live conversation or a documentary, at speed.
Say this
"Don't write what I said — write what it means. Short phrases, not sentences."
Real-world challenges
🧭 Study & Life Skills
Breaking a big project into days
Can do: Takes a two-week assignment and plans backwards into daily steps.
Why it matters
Projects are where organisation is graded for the first time. The night-before panic is a planning failure, not a laziness one.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Nothing happens for twelve days and then everything happens badly on the thirteenth.
⏱️ Two-minute check
Give a project with a two-week deadline. "What will you do tomorrow?"
Solid looks like: A specific first step, not "start it".
20 minutesDone this week
Do this at home
Plan It Backwards
⏱️ 20 minutesA calendar or a drawn gridSticky notes
1Write the deadline on the calendar first, then work backwards.
2List every task the project needs — research, notes, draft, checking, presenting.
3Estimate each task in minutes, then add half again, because everything takes longer.
4Place each task on a specific day, leaving the last two days empty on purpose.
5Tick off tasks as they're done and check the plan every few days.
If it's too hard
Split a single homework into three chunks over three days.
If it's too easy
They plan the project and then track how far off their time estimates were.
Say this
"What's the very first small step, and which day is it happening?"
Real-world challenges

When to ask for help instead of practising harder

Home practice fixes most gaps. These are the ones where a conversation with the teacher — or an assessment — is worth more than another month of trying. Raising them early is not an overreaction; waiting a year rarely helps.

Times tables still not automatic — this makes almost all Grade 4 maths disproportionately hard.
Cannot summarise a chapter or say what a non-fiction page was about.
Written work is still a single paragraph with no evidence or structure.
Adds denominators when adding fractions, and it doesn't shift after direct teaching with strips.
Homework routinely takes far longer than intended, or projects are always a last-night crisis — tell the teacher.

By the end of 4th Grade

Tick these off through the year. Anything still open in the spring is exactly what the summer is for.

Multiplies 2-digit by 2-digit and explains the partial products.
Divides four digits by one and interprets remainders in context.
Adds and subtracts fractions with like and related denominators.
Compares decimals to hundredths and links them to fractions.
Measures angles with a protractor and finds lines of symmetry.
Converts between metric units without inverting the operation.
Summarises a chapter in three sentences.
Writes claim, evidence and explanation in a paragraph.
Plans a two-week project backwards into daily steps.

Want the written practice as well?

Everything on this page is free and needs nothing printed. If you also want worksheets to work through, the 4th Grade packs cover the same topics on paper.

4th Grade Packs

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5th Grade

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Frequently Asked Questions

What topics does a 4th Grade child cover?

22 across 6 strands: Reading (4), Writing (3), Math (8), Science (3), Social Studies (2), Study & Life Skills (2). Every topic on this page names the skill, why it matters, what struggling with it looks like, a two-minute check, and one activity you can run at home tonight.

How much home practice does a 4th Grade child actually need?

About 30 minutes a day at ages 9–10 — and it works better split into two short goes than done as one long session. Twenty-five to thirty minutes. If maths is going badly, test the times tables before anything else: nine times out of ten that's the actual problem.

How do I know which 4th Grade topic to work on?

Run the two-minute check on each topic rather than guessing. It tells you what a solid answer looks like, so you can tell in a couple of minutes whether a topic needs work or is already done. Start with whichever check fails, not with the first topic on the page.

Can I download or print the 4th Grade take-homes?

Yes — there is a free PDF on this page. Download the full 4th Grade pack (all 22 topics with their checks, activities and tick boxes), the one-page two-minute check sheet, or a single subject on its own. No signup, and the activities themselves still only need things a normal home already has.

When should I be worried rather than just practising?

There is a "when to ask for help" section on this page listing the specific signs that mean a conversation with the teacher is worth more than more home practice. Those are the ones to act on early — waiting a year rarely helps.

4th Grade Take-Home Practice

🗓️ A week that doesn't become a second school

Take it off the screen

Every 4th Grade topic, and what to do about it

Theme, motive and deeper inference

What's It Really About?

How non-fiction is organised

Preview Before You Read

Greek and Latin roots

Root of the Week

Summarising without retelling

Twenty Word Limit

Writing with evidence from a text

Because, For Example, This Shows

Researching and taking notes in your own words

Close the Tab

Sentence variety and grammar that carries meaning

Sentence Surgery

Multi-digit multiplication

Area Model First

Division with remainders

What Do We Do With the Leftovers?

Factors, multiples and prime numbers

Rectangle Factor Hunt

Adding and subtracting fractions

Fraction Strips Add Up

Multiplying a fraction by a whole number

Four Lots of Three Eighths

Decimals — tenths and hundredths

Money Makes Decimals Obvious

Angles, lines and symmetry

Angle Hunt

Unit conversion and measurement problems

Bigger or Smaller Number?

Energy transfer and simple circuits

Make It Light

Erosion, rocks and reading the landscape

Erosion in a Tray

Waves, and how information travels

Rope Waves and String Phones

Regions, states and physical geography

Region Trading Cards

How government works and what citizens do

Write a Real Letter

Taking notes that are actually useful

Two Column Notes

Breaking a big project into days

Plan It Backwards

🚩 When to ask for help instead of practising harder

✅ By the end of 4th Grade