THIRD GRADE

Mrs. Diggle, Mrs. Garcia & Mrs. Messier

Third grade is an important year for developing many life-long learning skills. Students are exploring, discovering, researching, communicating, organizing, reading, writing, and explaining their ideas.

In science, third graders explore many exciting topics through project based learning. Students are challenged to solve problems, think critically, and make connections in their world. Areas of investigation include:

• Using the Design Process
• Earth’s resources & changes to Earth’s surface
• How water powers the water cycle
• Weather patterns and measurement of weather
• Simple & compound machines and how they make life easier
• Life cycles & adaptations of living things
• Interactions of ecosystems

    

   

  Health is Wealth! 

  Areas of study in health include: 

• Nutrition
• Character Education
• Personal Health & Safety
• Growth & Development
• Social & Emotional Health
• Disease & Health Conditions
• Health Services & Careers
• Medicines, Alcohol & Drugs

Reading

In third grade, the children will be participating in a Reading Workshop Program to give them the opportunity to strengthen and hone their reading skills.  The students will be working with a variety of genres at their reading levels.  The program will incorporate the following units of study:

• Building a Reading Life
• Reading to Learn
• Mystery Foundations
• Character Studies
• Research

Reading focus skills include:

• Story Structure
• Identifying topic, main idea and details
• Character analysis and comparisons
• Summarizing
• Making inferences
• Analyzing stories (comprehension questions)
• Cause & effect
• Identifying the theme of a story
• Author’s point of view

Writing

We begin the year in third grade reinforcing the construction of a single, well-written paragraph.  An emphasis is placed on an interesting topic sentence and a strong closing.  We will be working on composing three paragraphs with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion by the end of third grade.  Throughout the year, we will be focusing on the following styles of writing:

• Narrative Writing
• Persuasive Writing
• Explanatory/Informational Writing
• Opinion Writing
• Research Based Writing

In our study of mathematics, the students will engage with the standards and practices in new ways.  Our lessons begin with problem-based situations and then build to more abstract problems.  All along the way, students use multiple models, manipulatives, quick pictures and symbols to build mathematical understanding.  As we concentrate on mathematics we will focus on the following areas:

• Addition and Subtraction Within 1,000
• Represent and Interpret Data
• Understand Multiplication
• Multiplication Facts and Strategies
• Use Multiplication Facts
• Understand Division
• Division Facts and Strategies
• Understand Fractions
• Compare Fractions
• Time, Length, Liquid Volume
• Perimeter and Area
• Two-Dimensional Shapes

In social studies the students will be learning about intriguing people, exciting places, and fascinating events that make social studies relevant to their lives.  They will gain a global perspective through our use of map skills. They will also learn the social studies themes and skills they need to become informed, participating citizens who consider diverse points-of-view, use critical thinking skills, and are active in their communities.  They will do this through the study of the following units:

• Map and Globe Skills
• Community and Geography
• America’s Early Communities
• People Move from Place to Place
• Community Government
• Making Economic Choices
• Celebrating People and Cultures
• The State of New Jersey