Academics ~ Third Grade

Third Grade Curriculum

The third grade program strives to build upon the solid skill base of the primary program while progressing with more complex tasks in all academic areas in this intermediate program. The emphasis is placed upon fostering independence, organizational skills, time management and responsibility.  Problem solving and critical thinking skills are a part of the lessons taught through cooperative learning.  The teaching of moral values and high character standards is integrated into the curriculum.

READING
The reading program's foundation is provided through the use of a basal reading series and novel study.  Reading skills are introduced and maintained through the use of various workbooks and extensions. Selected novels represent a variety of genres and are studied to provide examples of the use of dialogue, similes, personification, themes, humor, foreshadowing, flash-backs, mood, setting, and characterization.  Both auditory and reading comprehension skills are developed through vocabulary activities, remembering details/facts, recognizing the main idea, sequencing information, predicting out-comes and drawing conclusions.  The Accelerated Reader Program encourages the students to read beyond the required books and develop a love for reading.

LANGUAGE ARTS
The third grade English series provides the necessary grammar skills in addition to the basic paragraph structure and the various genres for writing. Students begin by working on sentence structure and learning how to expand their sentences by adding adjectives, adverbs, and correct use of capitalization and punctuation. Writing exercises are designed to complement each grammar unit. The spelling and vocabulary series help to enrich the word base. Students have their own dictionary and thesaurus to allow for quick reference during their assignments. Daily language practice activities reinforce the English curriculum, while journal writing enhances creativity. Additional practice is made possible through a weekly writing lab. Cursive handwriting is an integral part of all written activities.

MATH
The third grade math program provides students with continuous review and incremental development. Students have an opportunity to build a solid foundation in mathematics.  Problem solving and critical thinking skills are a part of every lesson.  A cooperative learning approach is used in third grade math. Enrichment activities, class projects, and manipulatives are used to strengthen learning and enhance the program. Additional lab time is scheduled to reinforce a variety of math applications.

SCIENCE
The science curriculum includes hands on approach and is divided into four basic strands:  Physical Science, Earth and Space Science, Life Science, and Science Technology.  The third grade investigates electrical systems, objects in the sky, life cycles, and how to design structures.  Third grade students are in the lab two hours per week.  The lab includes a variety of animals for the students to observe and study.

SOCIAL STUDIES
The third grade program focuses on the United States and explores each of five distinct regions. The five themes of geography provide an instructional framework for the program.  Those themes are Regions, Human/Environment Interactions, Location, Place, and Movement.  The curriculum provides enrichment activities such as videos, worksheet exercises, as well as map and geography skills. Research and additional practice of these skills takes place during a scheduled lab period.

ENRICHMENT SCHEDULE
In third grade the enrichment classes rotate every 5 days.  This allows for continuity and creativity in these classes.  The students have the enrichments Visual Arts, Technology, Music and Spanish approximately three times per trimester.

VISUAL ARTS
The visual arts curriculum in third grade explores the study of themes in art, artists, art media and techniques, and the chronology and history of art.  Students develop skills to understand and appreciate artwork as they participate in hands on art activities.

TECHNOLOGY
By third grade, email is used for communication with peers, family, and teachers.  Designated Internet sites are used for research of curriculum based projects, and word processing is expanded to include graphics. Students learn how to save information to their permanent networked folders so work can be initiated in the room and continued in the lab. Simple curriculum connected webquests are introduced.  Graphics are imported from storage devices into KidPix3 documents.  Skills from prior years are reviewed and reinforced and Powerpoint is introduced. Keyboarding practice continues.

PERFORMING ARTS
Third Grade music is based on Orff-Schulwerk methodology, incorporating speech, singing, movement, and instrument playing. The emphasis in each class is the active participation of each child. Students will build upon the skills that have been taught in previous years. In addition they will learn the note names of the treble clef, learn all of the note and rest values, demonstrate music reading skills, explore the music and lives of various famous composers gaining an appreciation of classical music.

SPANISH
Third grade students broaden their Spanish to include more spoken and written language as they continue the second part of the program started in second grade. Initial sounds and cognates a re taught as a tool in learning common Spanish words.  New and more advanced vocabulary is also taught, while continually building on knowledge gained in previous years. The program of study is flexible to allow for different levels of competency.

LIBRARY
Beginning in third grade, students are eligible to participate in the Sunshine State Program. This program introduces students to a wide-range of recent fiction writing. They also study library arrangement and usage of research materials. Students learn to use a variety of techniques to locate reading and reference books in the Library Catalog. By comparing reference tools such as encyclopedias, books and Internet sources, students become familiar with a number of tools for research. Students also read a book on an assigned genre each month. The short review of the books increases the students’ awareness of the elements of a story such as character, setting or plot.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION
In 3^rd grade, students develop a comprehension of strategies, etiquette, rules, and sportsmanship in a variety of team sports. Start up games and fitness continues to enhance cardiovascular strength, muscular strength, and endurance.

RELIGION
The curriculum and chapel services are rooted in the Episcopal faith. As part of the curriculum, the students are introduced to Christian Values, as well as the Sacred Stories of the Bible through a variety of activities.  Emphasis on how God wants us to treat each other with kindness, love, and respect, is a recurring theme throughout the year.  The whole school attends chapel services twice a week.

FIELD TRIPS/RESOURCE SPEAKERS
The curriculum is enhanced through a variety of field trips and special activities.  Among these days are Grandparent’s Day, Blessing of the Pets, Spirit Day, assembly performances, Patriot Games, and a States Luncheon. The students participate in an Outreach Program, Kids and Canines, which provides an opportunity to serve the local community.

St. Mary's Episcopal Day School
2101 South Hubert Avenue
Tampa, Florida 33629
(813) 258-5508
Fax: (813) 258-5603

 

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