Grade 3

Religion

Students in Third Grade learn about virtues in the Blest Are We series. Students learn about how God calls us to faith and how Jesus is with us. Students attend Mass every other Wednesday and on all Holy Days. During this time, students are nourishing their faith with prayer and the sacraments. Throughout the year students take part in preparing liturgies for daily Mass and for a Parish-wide, Sunday Mass.

Language Arts and Literature

The CAFÉ Reading framework provides students in Third Grade the strategies to improve comprehension, accuracy, fluency, and extend vocabulary. The students use Daily 5, which fosters literacy independence by first building stamina in silent reading and progresses into writing and word building activities. It allows for individualized attention in small groups and one-on-one. Students also complete novel studies as a class within this framework, which allows for understanding of literary terms and greater comprehension.

Third grade students build their writings skills by studying narrative and informational writing. The students use Step Up to Writing to help learn and develop their writing voice.

Vocabulary and grammar skills are enhanced through daily grammar practice as well as working with the grammar program Voyages through English. The Zaner-Bloser spelling and vocabulary programs allow for practice with spelling, word origins, prefixes, suffixes, and word meanings.

Mathematics

In Third Grade, students use the Go Math program for a hands-on approach to math. Students continue to build on the foundational skills learned previously. They begin to solve problems using multiplication and division, while understanding place value so that they can do multi-digit arithmetic. Students are introduced to fractions and learn the concept of area.

Social Studies

Third Graders learn about community and state and national branches of government. They learn about the California Native Ohlone Indians. They are able to identify map elements and can understand geographic terms.

Science

As a class, students in Third Grade participate in the school-wide Science Fair. They use the scientific method to help prepare their project. In addition, students learn about mammals, bats and insects, fish, sharks, sea mammals. They learn the difference among solids, liquids, and gasses. Much of their focus is on life science, astronomy, and space.

Physical Education

In Third Grade, students work on refinement of basic stability, locomotor and manipulative skills. Students begin to show and interest in skill development. Instruction includes refinement of the activities and concepts introduced in second grade. Students participate in P.E. three times a week for 30 minutes.

Spanish

Students in Third Grade participate in Spanish class twice a week.

Music

Third Grade students master reading standard music notation and begin reading the letter names of notes to indicate pitch in treble clef. They study the components of the staff, measures, and time signatures, and learn to draw notes and rests that appropriately complete measures in simple time signatures.

Technology

Our technology is integrated at the classroom level and part of the curriculum. Third grade students may use the iPads to work on vocabulary, practice their Spanish pronunciation, or work on Math problems, among other activities. Third grade students are assigned their own iPad for use during the school year. Each iPad includes a keyboard.