Grade Level Curriculum Guides

Third Grade

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It is our goal to teach students to read and write for enjoyment and knowledge in order to satisfy their curiosity about the world in which they live.  Children will take part in activities designed to help them meet the expectations of third grade.  The following skills and abilities will be developed during the school year:

ORAL COMMUNICATION

·         Listen for appreciation and information.

·         Begin to listen critically.

·         Avoid interrupting and giving the speaker undivided attention.

·         Ability to follow oral sequential instructions appropriately.

·         Participate in group discussions appropriately.

·         Knows how to ask appropriate questions for clarification.

READING

·         Utilize phonics and structural analysis.

·         Use compound words, contractions, and suffixes.

·         Interpret drawings, illustrations, charts, and graphs.

·         Respond to literature both verbally and in written form.

·         Predict outcomes, compare, summarize, and make inferences while reading.

·         Make generalizations and summaries regarding literature.

·         Use and interpret figurative language and point of view.

·         Identify and utilize capitalization, punctuation, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, and articles.

·         Use and interpret mood and tone.

·         Begin to distinguish between fact and opinion.

·         Intensive use of a dictionary, glossary, and thesaurus.

·         Use reading strategies through context

·         clues, synonyms, and antonyms.

·         Identify the elements of a story, i.e., character, setting, plot, theme, and mood.

·         Identify the author=s purpose in writing.

WRITING

·         Write for a specific purpose using appropriate punctuation and grammar.

·         Write creative stories, reports, poems, and letters.

·         Create a paragraph of at least five sentences related to a main idea.

·         Participate in journal writing.

·         Use appropriate spelling.

·         Learn to revise, edit, and evaluate their own work.

·         Begin to use cursive (script) writing.
 

SOCIAL STUDIES

In the third grade social studies program, students explore communities around the world.  Communities are studied using five perspectives: social/cultural, political, economic, geographic, and historic. The concepts focused upon in this area include:
 

SOCIAL

·         Every member of any community is a unique individual.

·         Families exist in all communities though they may differ in type and organization.

·         The things a person learns as a member of a society make up a person=s culture.

·         People of similar culture groups often live together in a community.

·         Communities in any nation have social/cultural similarities and differences due to many factors.

POLITICAL

·         In schools, students have rights, rules, and responsibilities.

·         People in all communities develop rules and laws to govern and protect community members.

·         People in communities can plan, organize, and make decisions for common good.

·         Community members may disagree about issues involving the common good.

·         Citizenship includes an awareness of the symbols of a nation as well as the patriotic celebrations.

ECONOMICS

·         Families in all communities have needs and wants.

·         Family interdependence is necessary to meet the needs and wants of family members.

·         People must make economic choices due to unlimited wants and needs and limited resources.

·         People in all communities are producers and consumers of goods and services.

·         Many factors influence people=s needs, wants, and ways of meeting them.

GEOGRAPHY

·         Places can be shown on maps and globes.

·         Communities around the world differ from one another in physical features.

·         Environmental and geographic factors influence the life style in a community.

·         The development of a community is influenced by environmental and geographic factors.

·         People adapt to and/or change their environment.
 

HISTORY

·         Communities change over time.

·         Communities of the future will be different.

MATHEMATICS

·         By the end of third grade, your child will be exposed to the following concepts:

·         Understanding the operations of addition and subtraction up to and including four digit numbers.

·         Reading and writing numbers, identifying the place value in a number.

·         Telling time to the minute.

·         Counting amounts of money including dollars and coins.

·         Interpreting graphs and charts.

·         Drawing conclusions from data.

·         Understanding the concept of probability.

·         Estimating and measuring lengths using metric and standard units.

·         Understanding the operation of addition and multiplication and their relationship.

·         Using the relationship between division and multiplication.

·         Developing an understanding of fractions.

·         Using critical thinking skills and logical reasoning to solve problems using a variety of strategies.

·         Using a calculator.

·         Determination by estimating if answers to problems are logical.

·         Identification and classification of geometric figures. 
 

SCIENCE

Third grade science instruction includes exposure to the following concepts:

·         Demonstrate an increase in scientific literacy.

·         Apply inquiry skills including mathematical and language arts skills systematically and with ease to solve problems.

·         Develop positive science attitudes.

·         Understand that living things, including plants and animals, live and thrive when they meet their needs.

·         Recognize that living things are dependent on each other.

·         Realize that objects and events have distinctive properties.

·         Understand that properties of an object can be changed by an interaction in which the object is involved.

·         Realize that each kind of living thing produces offspring.

·         Recognize that living things are affected by and affect the environment.

·         Understand systems, energy, and interactions.

·         Understand that energy and material can be transferred through an ecosystem.

·         Recognize and learn the importance of incorporating activities that promote a healthy life style.

·         The ESP Science Kits are used to enhance the science curriculum in third grade.