Third Grade Curriculum
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Communications
Skills:
In third grade students use a
variety of reading strategies to construct meaning for text.
They continue to read many types of texts and distinguish
between fact and opinion and note and chart details. Students
interpret poetry and infer main ideas, lessons or morals
in a variety of stories. Third graders write a variety of
poems and stories and support their ideas with references
to their reading. They develop, research listening and speaking
skills.
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Mathematics:
Multiplication and division are
introduced in Grade 3 through the use of models. Addition
and subtraction are mastered. A physical understanding of
fractions is developed and students explore number patterns,
area and perimeter.
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Social
Studies:
Students compare and contrast
their communities with those of other lands. Relationships
between geography, culture, environment and community traits
are examined
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Science:
An investigation of the interdependence
of plants and animals including food webs, pollination,
and seed dispersal is conducted. Students develop an understanding
of cycles in nature such as day/night, seasons and earth/moon
movements. The three basic types of rocks and their formation
are studied as well as soil types. Other topics investigated
include the properties of light and electricity. Science
process skills (measuring, predicting, interpreting, etc.)
and science equipment manipulative skills are emphasized.
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Health:
Students will be aware of the
important health risks for their age groups and will comprehend
some of the major influences on their own health, epecially
including the role of their own behaviors in regard to eating
healthful snack foods, foods prepared by healthful methods,
and foods containing important nutrients. Also, students
will be able to healthfully direct their own personal behavior
in regard to the use of bicycle helmets, exercising caution
as a pedestrian or bike rider, and refusing to be involved
in substance abuse.
Students will be able to demonstrate means of managing their
own behaviors in regard to impulsiveness, conveying acceptance
versus hostility, dealing with strong feelings, arguing,
and adapting to changing relationships and friendships.
Students will be able to state rational counter-arguments
to pressure to use drugs, alcohol or tobacco, explain the
dangers of various substances, and evaluate the reliability
of health information sources. They will be able to provide
first aid for choking victims, describe patterns of normal
development associated with puberty, and analyze advertising
for health-related products.
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Physical
Education:
Students will be able to name
the benefits of personal fitness, describe and demonstrate
activities that enhance health-related fitness, demonstrate
a variety of flexibility, strength and endurance exercises,
demonstrate the ability to use the appropriate intensity
and state the guidelines for developing cardiovascular fitness,
understand basic nutrition and fitness concepts, and demonstrate
an appropriate level of personal fitness.
Students will demonstrate a wide variety of manipulative
skills that reflect a refined mastery of ball-handling skills,
display the behaviors needed for cooperative and other non-traditional
games, practice acceptable social behaviors and create jump
rope routines. Students will develop and refine abilities
to demonstrate a variety of motor skills, develop and refine
their ability to demonstrate safe, balance and weight transfer
skills, perform mixer and couple dances and create dance
and gymnastic routines.
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Computer
Education:
Computer utilization with an integrated
approach is expanded, along with keyboarding, logic and
problem-solving strategies. Students will use the computer
as a tool through applications such as word processing,
database management and telecomputing. Students will explore
and understand the impact of computer technology on society
and individuals.
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Music:
Students learn to sing melodic
lines that include accidentals (sharps, flats), sing with
accompaniment, sing individually and in groups, write simple
rhythmic patterns, and analyze tone color (timbre). They
learn to recognize different periods of music and composers,
sing in two-part harmony, read simple music scores using
melodic and percussive instruments, use instruments to create
sound effects, demonstrate musical moods, use key signatures,
identify electronically-produced sounds and identify dultures
through music.
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Visual
Arts:
Students express ideas, images
and feelings and become more aware of their physical environment.
At this level, students begin to understand art concepts
of line, texture, color, shape and form. Skills taught include
visual perception, creative solutions, manual dexterity,
recognition of order and communication with others.
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Media Education:
3-5 students review and refine
the competencies developed in the primary grades and develop
new competencies in the use of materials and equipment and
produce simple nonprint materials. Opportunities are provided
for more independent and small-group research activities
integrated with classroom content and instruction. |
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