Grade 4-5 Intermediate Academic Program
English / Language Arts (ELA) programming builds upon the strength of the early primary program with the understanding that children still benefit from direct reading instruction. Two common ELA experiences are the common units at each grade level: Because of Winn Dixie and Holes at grade 4 and 5, respectively. The units are part of the grades 4-12 common unit sequence and are designed by Bangor teachers in alignment with state and national learning standards. ELA instruction includes reading across genres for a variety of purposes, including an emphasis on informational literacy. Students also receive sequential writing instruction in Write Traits, a nationally-known curriculum.
Mathematics
instruction picks up on the momentum the students' PreK-3 experience, following a carefully-designed scope and sequence initiated
with the 2004 adoption of the updated Addison-Wesley Scott Foresman
series. Implemented with a
backward-planning design and in alignment with state and national math
standards, the series employs a "spiral concept" design which
reinforces previously-learned concepts in each new lesson, thus
accomplishing introduction and ongoing review simultaneously. Student achievement in math has risen to new levels since the adoption of the series and remains an area of great strength for Bangor students in relation to other Maine students.
Science instruction at the intermediate level is accomplished with a series of carefully selected and implemented inquiry-based units, two of which (Ecosystems / grade 4 and Oceans / grade 5) were developed entirely by Bangor teachers. Two other units at each grade level (Motion & Design and The Solar System in grade 4 and Mixtures & Solutions and Magnetism & Electricity in grade 5) round out the intermediate science experience that requires students to hypothesize, collaborate, design, observe, test, and conclude--all important content and process underpinnings for developing scientific minds. It is the belief of the Bangor School Department that engaging all students in scientific inquiry at the early levels of schooling prepares them for success in higher level science and across content areas.
Social Studies content includes the study of the regions of the United States in grade 4, including an in-depth, multi-resource exploration of Maine. The Maine unit, like the study of regions, asks students to understand the relationship between the people and the land and make connections to economics and culture. In grade 5, students study United States History, beginning with explorers, progressing through colonization and the rise of the nation. These experiences ask students to explore history in a more abstract sense in preparation for targeted, in-depth study in at the middle level. At both levels, mapping and geography skills complement and enrich the thematic study.
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