Fourth Grade Social Studies Content Standards

Students develop an understanding of society and the ability to describe the past through the eyes and experiences of those who were there.

Students develop an understanding of the history of the world’s many cultures.

Students see the connection between ideas and behavior, between the values and ideals that people hold and the ethical consequences of those beliefs in order to foster the kind of mutual respect, patience, and civic courage required in our increasingly independent world.

Students differentiate past, present and future time. They seek and evaluate evidence, use resources to distinguish bias in text, compare and contrast historical information, interpret the historical record and construct their own historical narratives.

Fourth grade students are expected to:

• Geography
  • Learn about California as a region and as a part of the world
  • Use the coordinate grid system of latitude and longitude
  • Distinguish between the equator, the prime meridian, and the hemispheres
  • Identify the reasons for the growth of towns in relation to landforms
  • Describe how communities in California use natural resources
• California Indians
  • Describe the life and interactions of Californians from California Indians to the Spanish mission and Mexican rancho periods
    • Identify the geographic distribution, economic activities, and adaptation of the physical environment of the California Indians
    • Identify the land and sea routes to California, noting the physical barriers
    • Examine the Spanish exploration and colonization of California, including the daily lives of the native and non-native people occupying the presidios, missions, ranchos, and pueblos
    • Learn the effects of the Mexican War on California’s boundaries, and the resulting Mexican land grants and ranchos
• California History 1847 to 1850
  • Explain the establishment of California from the Bear Flag Republic, through the Mexican-American War, the Gold Rush, and California’s statehood
    • Recognize the location of Mexican and other settlements in California (i.e. Ft. Ross and Sutter’s Fort)
    • Compare the routes people traveled to California
    • Study the effect of the Gold Rush on settlements’ daily life, politics, and physical environment
    • Recognize the diverse composition of migration to California between 1850 and 1900, including conflicts among groups
    • Investigate the lives of men and women who helped build early California
    • Learn how California became a state and compare its government to Spanish and Mexican periods
• Industry
  • Explain how California became an agricultural and industrial power since the 1850’s
    • Discuss the stories of early California (i.e. Pony Express, Overland Mail Service, Western Union, the Transcontinental Railroad)
    • Explain how the Gold Rush transformed the economy of California (i.e. the products, changes in towns, economic conflicts) between diverse groups of people
    • Discuss rapid American immigration and settlement (i.e. Gold Rush)
• Government
  • Understand local, state, and federal governments as described in the U.S. Constitution
    • Discuss the similarities and differences among federal, state and local governments
    • Discuss the purpose of the State and Federal Constitution and the relationship between the two
    • Discuss the components of California’s governance structure

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