Why should the learning stop when the kids leave the classroom? Here are some simple things you and your fourth grader can do at home to build academic skills in reading, math, science, and history.

Write a Story Together
Using the basic format of one of the stories you read, write a story together with your child. You write the first few lines or paragraph, have your child write the second few lines or paragraph, and so on. This could be a long-term project that gives you a look at your child's understanding of story sequence and word meanings; it also encourages the child to write creatively. Save these stories so you and your child can look at them together at a later time.

Add Up a Story
Make up story problems around math facts such as 12+12-6x1/2. For example, 12 elephants were joined by 12 zebras, but 3 elephants and 3 zebras decided to go off on their own to take a nap. How many were then left? But because there wasn't enough grass to eat, half of them went to another part of the savanna. Now how many were left? It doesn't matter how silly the stories are.

Sky Gazing
Observe the sky together. Ask, "Where will you find the sun in the early morning? At noon? In the evening? What can we learn from the different kinds of clouds we see?"

Talk About It
Children in intermediate grades will notice and ask about the problems that they see around them: homelessness, drugs, conflict. It is good to talk about these issues. Ask your child whether he or she is discussing such topics in school. Does your child have unanswered questions?

Reprinted from 101 Educational Conversations with Your Fourth Grader by Vito Perrone.
Copyright 1994 by Chelsea House Publishers, a division of Main Line Book Co. All rights reserved.