The 4th Grader feels, “I am here. The world is there.” The transition from early childhood is complete; the transition into puberty has not yet begun.

An underlying theme in 4th Grade lessons is that of grounding the children, making them feel at home in time and space. The study of local geography and of the human being in relation to the animal kingdom and the natural world addresses the child’s newly arising inner questions: Who am I? Where am I?

In arithmetic, the children review the four processes (multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction), arithmetic facts, and measurement before the whole is divided into pieces during the study of fractions. From musical notation, instrumental music, and singing in rounds to learning to make braided and knotted patterns in their form drawings, beauty and artistry continue to engage the student as they learn through work and play.

Their Language Arts lessons unfold through the use of stories, which in 4th Grade can include stories from indigenous populations, as well as, mythology. The children are introduced to the Norse gods and goddesses, a pantheon whose fiery passion, wily cleverness, and shining self-sacrifice mirrors their own. The stories of the Norse people are tales full of rich imagery that spring from the Norse people’s close relationship to the natural world. Here the children encounter epic struggles between opposite forces, extremes in conflicts, and a wealth of humor and wisdom. The stories speak particularly well to the growing nine to ten year old as they pass out of early childhood into the middle childhood that is often as conflicted as the weather of the northern lands. 4th Grade is indeed a year of extremes, from a creation story born of ice and fire to the comparison of a mouse and a cow. The children are asked to travel between these extremes and find the balancing points in each subject.