Third grade
The third grade program extends the concepts and skills learned at earlier levels and inspires each student to explore her own abilities in depth. Students are increasingly able to use the tools that they have developed to extend their own learning, e.g., reading to learn instead of learning to read. We emphasize independence in work habits and in thought, cooperative learning, problem solving and approaching problems from multiple perspectives. Students work individually and in small and large groups.
Language Arts
The language arts program is an invitation for students to experience success using quality literature and meaning-based strategies to explore reading and writing. We use a wide variety of leveled, age appropriate chapter books, most of which are integrated into our social studies program. Many of these books also serve as anchors for our social studies investigations. We focus on developing decoding, spelling, vocabulary, reading fluency, and comprehension skills. Through guided reading, independent reading, evaluating books, responding to literature, literature extension activities, and the writing process, each individual is encouraged to investigate the imaginative and interpretive aspects of writing and become an independent reader.
We use the 6 + 1 Traits of Writing as a method for looking at the main characteristics of writing (ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions and presentation). This trait-based model captures the qualities of what good writing looks like and also provides a common vocabulary for talking about writing.
Word study refers to the process of learning everything about words, including their spelling, meaning, pronunciation, and relationship with other words (Moats, 2000). Word study accompanies the rich experiences students already have with literature in the classroom. By 3rd grade, students have "cracked the code" and are ready to learn more about word structure as an aid to decoding and spelling.
The spelling curriculum is Scholastic Spelling by Moats and Foorman. Through the program's direct instruction, children learn 3,000 words - and even more important - they master the principles, patterns, and rules that help them spell thousands more (Foorman, 2004). The third grade spelling curriculum also focuses on teaching the most common prefixes and suffixes in the English language. Each week, students work with a designated prefix or suffix.
Activities are also drawn from a variety of resources including Words Their Way, Words Their Way: Word Sorts for Within Word Pattern Spellers, and Word Matters. Emphasis is placed on actively involving students through word sorting, games and other engaging activities.
Keyboarding is introduced at the third grade level. AlphaSmart and Writer keyboards are used during writing workshops and for word processing on and off campus.
Mathematics
The third grade mathematics program addresses the school's mathematics benchmarks and is organized into a number of content strands geared to developing problem solving strategies and mathematical concepts. We use a variety of materials and activities with an emphasis on moving from concrete experiences (manipulatives, hands-on work) to symbolic arithmetic statements. The following content areas are emphasized in the third grade:
Number Sense
Numeration (whole numbers, integers, fractions, and introduction to decimals)
Whole number computation
Problem solving, applications, and reasoning
Geometry
Measurement
Patterns and functions
Introductory algebra
Probability, Statistics, and Data Analysis
Social Studies
Students are actively involved both collaboratively and independently while exploring meaningful thematic units integrated with language arts and science. Our focus is on continuity and change. Starting with our classroom community and the ways we want our community to be (inclusion, study of stereotypes, differences in family structures), we expand our area of study to San Francisco, from the time Native Americans (Ohlone) inhabited this land to today's San Francisco and its many cultures. Field trips are especially important to this curriculum.
Class Meetings
Weekly class meetings and periodic "check-in" meetings focus on the development of communication and problem solving skills in a group context and assist in building a classroom community.
Homework
Third grade homework provides additional practice of the concepts we study in class and helps students develop a sense of responsibility. There are usually three homework assignments including mathematics, language arts or social studies, and silent reading. We expect students to spend no more than forty-five minutes on homework Monday through Thursday.
