Class 4 English
Develop stronger English skills through 30 lessons covering advanced grammar, tenses, clauses, vocabulary, reading comprehension, inference, letters, diary writing and imaginative storytelling.
🧩 Nouns, Pronouns & Describing Words
Differentiating Concrete and Abstract Ideas
A concrete noun names something we can experience through our senses. An abstract noun names an idea, quality, feeling or state.
Abstract: honesty, happiness, courage, kindness, fear
We can see or touch a flower, but we cannot physically touch kindness.
book, bravery, joy, apple, friendship
Naming Groups with Collective Words
A collective noun is a word used to name a group of people, animals or things.
a class of students
a flock of birds
a herd of cattle
a bunch of grapes
A ______ of players
A ______ of birds
Understanding Reflexive and Possessive Forms
Reflexive pronouns refer back to the subject of a sentence. Possessive pronouns show ownership.
I made it myself.
She prepared herself.
They helped themselves.
Possessive:
This pencil is mine.
That bag is hers.
The books are theirs.
Riya completed the work by ______.
This book belongs to me. It is ______.
Selecting Appropriate Determiners
Determiners come before nouns and help us understand which noun, how many, or how much we mean.
those flowers
some water
many students
few pencils
each child
There are ______ apples in the basket.
I need ______ water.
Making Detailed Comparisons with Adjectives
Adjectives can compare people, animals, places and things using positive, comparative and superlative forms.
beautiful → more beautiful → most beautiful
good → better → best
bad → worse → worst
This is the most interesting story in the book.
good → ______ → ______
interesting → ______ → ______
⚡ Verbs & Tenses
Distinguishing Transitive and Intransitive Actions
A transitive verb has an object receiving the action. An intransitive verb does not require an object to complete its basic meaning.
Riya opened the door.
Aman kicked the ball.
Intransitive:
The baby slept.
The birds flew.
Rahul carried the bag.
The baby cried.
Expressing Ability, Permission and Possibility
Modal verbs such as can, could, may and might can express meanings such as ability, permission and possibility.
Past ability: She could read when she was young.
Permission: May I come in?
Possibility: It might rain later.
______ I use your pencil?
Birds ______ fly.
Connecting Past Actions to the Present
The present perfect tense can describe a past action that has a connection with the present.
Pattern
has/have + past participle
She has lost her pencil.
They have visited the museum.
Riya ______ ______ her work. (finish)
Describing an Earlier Past Event
The past perfect tense can show that one past action was completed before another past event.
Pattern
had + past participle
Riya had finished her work before dinner.
The children ______ ______ before the rain started. (leave)
Talking About Actions Continuing in the Future
The future continuous tense describes an action that will be in progress at a particular time in the future.
Pattern
will be + verb-ing
They will be travelling tomorrow.
She will be reading at 8 p.m.
Tomorrow morning, we ______ ______ ______. (travel)
Maintaining Correct Tense Across Sentences
When events happen in the same time period, writers should normally keep the tense consistent unless there is a reason to change the time.
Riya entered the room. She opened her bag and took out a book.
Riya entered the room. She opens her bag and took out a book.
Aman walked to the park and plays football.
Classifying Adverbs by Function
Adverbs can provide different kinds of information about actions. They may tell us how, when, where or how often something happens.
Time: We arrived yesterday.
Place: Come here.
Frequency: I often read.
He always finishes his work.
🔗 Phrases, Clauses & Sentences
Building Meaning with Prepositional Phrases
A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition and gives extra information about place, time, direction or another relationship.
after lunch
near the school
across the road
We played after school.
The children waited near the gate.
Connecting Longer Ideas with Linking Words
Linking words help connect ideas and show relationships such as reason, result, contrast, sequence and addition.
therefore — shows a result
however — introduces a contrast
also — adds information
then — shows sequence
The task was difficult. However, we completed it.
I carried an umbrella ______ it was raining.
Combining Ideas into Compound Sentences
A compound sentence joins two independent ideas, often with a coordinating conjunction such as and, but, or or so.
Riya finished her homework, and she read a story.
It was getting late, so we went home.
Aman was hungry. He ate a sandwich.
Discovering Main and Supporting Clauses
A main clause can stand alone as a complete sentence. A supporting or dependent clause adds information but may not express a complete thought by itself.
Supporting: because it was raining
Complete sentence:
We stayed inside because it was raining.
Riya smiled because she was happy.
Reporting Another Person’s Words
Direct speech gives someone’s exact words. Reported speech tells the reader what someone said without always repeating the exact wording.
Reported: Riya said that she was tired.
Reported: Aman said that he liked football.
Neha said, “I am happy.”
Changing the Focus of a Basic Sentence
A sentence can sometimes be changed so that the receiver of an action becomes the main focus. This introduces the basic idea of active and passive voice.
Passive: The door was opened by Riya.
Passive: The meal was cooked by the chef.
Mastering Commas and Apostrophes
Commas and apostrophes perform different jobs in writing.
Commas
Commas can separate items in a list.
Apostrophes
Apostrophes can show possession or missing letters in contractions.
Aman’s bicycle
do not → don’t
cannot → can’t
I bought pencils books crayons and paper.
This is Rahuls bag.
📚 Vocabulary Development
Discovering Meanings Through Root Words
A root or base word carries the central meaning of a word. Recognising it can help us understand related words.
care → careful, careless, caring
play → player, playful, replay
helpful → ______
careless → ______
Extending Vocabulary with Advanced Affixes
Prefixes and suffixes are called affixes. Adding them can change the meaning or grammatical form of a base word.
mis- + understand = misunderstand
im- + possible = impossible
care + -less = careless
enjoy + -ment = enjoyment
dis + honest = ______
hope + less = ______
Understanding Everyday English Idioms
An idiom is an expression whose overall meaning may be different from the literal meanings of its individual words.
under the weather — feeling unwell
break the ice — make people feel more comfortable
once in a blue moon — very rarely
“The test was a piece of cake.”
Inferring Vocabulary Meaning from Surrounding Text
When we meet an unfamiliar word, surrounding sentences may provide clues that help us infer its meaning.
The surrounding information suggests that arid means very dry.
What might timid mean?
📖 Reading & Interpretation
Analysing Information in Reading Passages
Reading analysis goes beyond recognising words. It involves identifying important information, relationships, reasons and results.
Students at Green Valley School created a small garden behind their classrooms. They planted flowers and vegetables. Each group was given a different task. Some students watered the plants, while others removed weeds. After several weeks, the garden became green and colourful.
2. What did the students plant?
3. Why were students given different tasks?
4. What happened after several weeks?
Finding Theme and Supporting Details
The theme is an important underlying message or idea that a reader can understand from a text. Supporting details provide evidence that helps develop that idea.
Possible theme: Perseverance helps us improve.
Drawing Conclusions from Textual Clues
Sometimes a writer does not state everything directly. Readers combine clues from the text with logical thinking to draw a conclusion.
Conclusion: It was probably raining outside.
What event was probably taking place?
✍️ Writing & Composition
Developing a Narrative Paragraph
A narrative paragraph tells about an event or experience. It usually presents events in a clear order.
A Strong Narrative Can Include
- Who was involved
- Where and when it happened
- What happened first
- What happened next
- How the event ended
Yesterday morning, I went into our garden to water the plants. While walking near the flowers, I noticed a tiny bird on the ground. It seemed unable to fly. I called my father, and together we placed it in a safe spot away from our cat. After some time, the bird spread its wings and flew away.
Comparing Formal and Informal Letters
The language and structure of a letter depend on its purpose and reader.
Formal Letter
A formal letter is written for an official or serious purpose. It uses polite, clear and respectful language.
Informal Letter
An informal letter is written to someone we know personally, such as a friend or relative.
Informal: Dear Riya, How are you? I wanted to tell you…
1. Your best friend?
2. Your school principal?
Recording Experiences in a Diary
A diary entry records personal experiences, thoughts and feelings. It is usually written from the writer’s point of view.
A Diary Entry May Include
- Date or day
- Important events
- Personal thoughts
- Feelings and reactions
Dear Diary,
Today was an exciting day at school. Our class took part in a science activity. My group built a small model, and it worked successfully. I felt proud when our teacher appreciated our teamwork. I hope we do more activities like this soon.
Creating an Imaginative Short Story
An imaginative story allows a writer to create characters, places, problems and events using creativity.
Plan Your Story
- Characters: Who is in the story?
- Setting: Where and when does it happen?
- Problem: What challenge occurs?
- Events: What happens next?
- Solution: How is the problem solved?
- Ending: How does the story finish?
One afternoon, Tara was helping her grandfather clean an old room. Behind a large wooden cupboard, she discovered a tiny blue door. Curious, she opened it and saw a glowing path leading into a strange garden.
The flowers in the garden could speak, and a frightened rabbit told Tara that their magical fountain had stopped flowing. Without the fountain, the plants were beginning to fade.
Tara followed a trail of silver stones and found a fallen branch blocking the stream that supplied the fountain. With the help of the animals, she moved the branch. Water rushed through the stream again, and the garden became bright and colourful.
When Tara returned through the blue door, only a few minutes had passed. She smiled whenever she remembered her secret adventure.
“When I opened the old box, a bright light filled the room…”