In order to help students look beyond the plot for relevant messages, themes and morals, many districts encourage fourth-graders to explore why an author has written a text. Have students write a letter from the author to a publisher pitching the book the class has just completed. Students should pretend the book has not yet been written and write a persuasive essay selling the idea of the book. Pretending the book is unwritten helps students focus on the main idea and relevance of the text.
Challenge your students to write a list of book club-style discussion questions. This encourages a student to think critically about what he's read and meets fourth-grade district standards for generating questions related to texts. Offer your class several topics to choose from, then divide the class into groups according to each student's preferred topic. This maximizes interest in the assignment. Have each group write a set of four or five questions relating to the book and discuss the answers. Try adding a competitive element by having the class vote on the questions. Offer the winning group a homework pass or extra credit points as a reward.
Making predictions from text strengthens a fourth-grader's understanding of the materials by helping him find the deeper meaning in what he is reading. Have each student choose a favorite character to make predictions about. Offer the choice of writing an epilogue centering around what happens to that character, or writing a letter from that character to another character describing what has happened since the book ended. Concentrating on one character helps your fourth-grader focus his thinking on important elements for one person instead of becoming overwhelmed by multiple choices.
Help your fourth-graders visualize important scenes and meet the standards for identifying important elements in a text, by sketching ideas for a set. Creating a set forces your students to choose the most important elements of the setting since it is impossible to draw as many elements as an author can describe. It also adds a concrete, visual element for visual learners and the act of drawing helps kinesthetic ones internalize the context of the story.