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Literacy
Students entering third grade are moving from the process of learning to read to reading to learn. Students are supported in this effort in several ways. Teachers model reading skills and concepts through whole class read aloud. This gives the children the opportunity to see and hear what good readers do. Taking a metacognative approach, the teacher explains what he or she is thinking and models comprehension strategies such as connecting, picturing, wondering (questioning), noticing, guessing (predicting) and figuring out (inferring/synthesizing). The teacher also models pre-reading tasks and what goes into a book selection. Students are also given direct reading instruction in small groups that are focused to the child’s needs based on the teacher’s assessment. These groups are dynamic and change as the child’s reading progresses through out the year. During this small group time children may be working on decoding, comprehension skills or fluency. Students spend time working on the qualities of a “just right book.” Book selection is an important part of a reader’s life and time is dedicated to providing the skills students need to see if a book meets their interests and reading level.
The third grade-writing program is based on the belief that children write best when they write about what they know. Time is spent examining the craft of writing and then applying those lessons to their own writing. Third graders keep a writer’s notebook and this becomes the foundation for writing in various genres. Students are taught about the power of being a good observer and how these observations become entries into their writer’s notebook. Using these small observations students expand their writing into published works that may take the form a poem, non-fiction article or personal narrative. Grammar, punctuation and spelling are contextualized in the student’s writing as well as explicitly taught. Through the use of word study, children are introduced to common spelling patterns, root words and inflections.
Mathematics
The third grade math curriculum is integrated with the study of the five boroughs, through various projects and New York City landmarks. Students solidify addition and subtraction by using a variety of strategies and models to represent their thinking in efficient, accurate and flexible ways. When approaching a math problem, students are expected to interpret the information and then devise and carry out a plan to solve it. Students are expected to organize and label their work and communicate their thinking both verbally and in writing. When approaching a math problem, students are expected to use a number of cognitive strategies.
Additionally, students solidify multiplication and make connections to division and fractions. The semester includes data analysis, measurement and geometry. Units of study culminate with projects that have real-world applications. These are dovetailed with the students’ studies in multi-grade subjects such as Wellness, Spanish, Science, Art and Music. Students are expected to organize and label their work and communicate their thinking verbally and in writing.
Performing Arts: Dance
The theme of My City is integrated into many of the dance lessons. Students begin the year immersed in their own choreography, working on solo and small group projects inspired by New York City. They become familiar with all elements of the craft including space, time, energy, and body. Students share their choreography with one another, and learn how to revise their own work using others' constructive and positive feedback. Students also learn how to self-assess by viewing their own dances on videotape. Throughout the entire process the children reflect during class discussions, in their individual Dance journals, and via their digital portfolios. Along with the challenging choreographic work, students continue to build on their dance technique skills through the warm-up, stretch, and traveling sequences.
Second semester of third grade brings about more challenging technique and repertory. Students learn to truly make use of their muscle memory as movement phrases become longer and more complex. They are encouraged to be risk-takers with their movement. Finally the students come together as a full grade to perform in a concert tied to their studies of My City. They learn and practice intricate repertory, with the end result being teamwork, self-confidence, knowledge of performance etiquette, and pride in their dancing abilities. The preparation for and participation in the concert are wonderful learning experiences for all of the children.
Performing Arts: Music
In third grade music, the children review simple rhythmic patterns, which include the quarter note, quarter rest, whole note, and half note. This is accomplished through singing games, play parties, and the creation of a generic city using drums and un-pitched percussion. They also work with rhythmic speech patterns (ostinati), dramatic play and creative movement as an exploration of city life. In addition, the children study early New York music brought to us from eastern European immigrants and the music of “Tin Pan Alley” composers Irving Berlin, George M. Cohen and George Gershwin. The semester ends with music from the American Broadway Theatre.
Students begin the semester with an introduction to the soprano recorder focusing on correct blowing technique, sitting posture and fingering technique for B, A, and G. As fluency improves, reading from the five line staff becomes the focus. The third graders work on mastering sophisticated repertoire related to the theme of New York City and the Harlem Renaissance Jazz Explosion. They also learn songs which reflect the multi-ethnic flavor of the city, such as “Tongo” from the Philippines, “Biddy Biddy” from Jamaica, “Che Che” from Africa and “Corre Corre” from the Dominican Republic. This includes accompanying the songs using Orff instruments: xylophones, glockenspiels, metallophones and a variety of small percussion instruments. The work throughout the year culminates in a concert, which helps to develop the children’s performance skills and provides a review of correct performance etiquette.
Science
Through the dynamic process of learning-by-doing third grade scientists learn how New York’s unique geology has shaped the City and its environs. They gather evidence, ask questions, make predictions, explore patterns, and communicate their ideas. The students begin with a brief activity about mapping mountain shapes and then explore the many ways that nature weathers and breaks down the Earth’s surface by simulating the actions of water, wind and ice. They also investigate the effects of acid rain on limestone. After exploring rock characteristics by collecting and classifying rocks and crystals, students investigate how fossils can teach us about the ancient past of the New York metropolitan area.
During our unit on Lego robotics, the students further develop their skills in computer programming. Working alone or in small groups, they map out a combined human and robotic dance. After drawing the map of the dances, the movements are broken down into programmable steps and then performed for their classmates. In the final months of the school year, the students study the world of birds, both year-round residents of New York City and species that migrate from distant places. The students learn to identify and classify birds while exploring evolution through a study of animal classification, behavior, habitats and adaptation.
Social Emotional Learning
Building upon prior experiences with community, the lessons in the Third Grade explore a student’s awareness of self beyond one’s neighborhood to the five boroughs of New York City. Working in large and small groups, the children also work towards using “I- Statements” to express how one feels, demonstrating an interest in the perspective of others, discussing how family and classroom rules help a community of people get along, and becoming increasingly aware of one’s personal responsibility and resulting consequences. Working in large and small groups, the children also work towards demonstrating an interest in the perspective of others, becoming increasingly aware of one’s personal responsibility and aware of the various leadership qualities that are within every child.
The Social and Emotional Learning Liaison (SEL) is a part of the Child Study Team (CST) that is a multidisciplinary team responsible for supporting the academic, social emotional, and physical well being at The School. The SEL is expected to support teachers in a variety of ways to make sure that students learn to the best of their ability and to help students work towards getting along with their classmates and teachers. In general, the SEL's responsibilities are concerned with how the students are learning, feeling, and behaving in the school environment.
Spanish Language/Literacy
Students begin the semester in Spanish by writing letters to a children’s library in Cusco, Peru describing themselves and their city. While we study New York in Third Grade, we also look at South American cities in Spanish class. South America is the cultural emphasis in third grade. Countries and flags are identified and capital cities are compared to New York. Students use oral and written communication to integrate skills and vocabulary that relate to physical description, geographic location, and transportation. Activities range from visual or verbal to kinesthetic or musical, appealing to many different learners.
The third graders use the “My City” theme to talk about and write a simple book about different kinds of transportation in Spanish. They practice the sounds and letter names of the Spanish alphabet. Students create riddles about themselves using clues about their physical and personality traits – they also use this vocabulary to discuss others. As part of the poetry unit, students use listening, oral, and written skills to express, appreciate, and create poems in Spanish while expanding their vocabulary and reinforcing some grammar skills.
Visual Arts
In the art studio the third graders develop their technical skills and explore the expressive qualities of a variety of two and three-dimensional media. Students begin the year in visual art with an exploration in clay to reacquaint themselves with its unique malleable qualities. Students learn about slab as a useful form for clay construction and practice attaching techniques. The unit culminates in making a functional earthenware mug with attention to form, design and craftsmanship. This unit corresponds with the third grade study of geology in science. From there students turn to two-dimensional materials with an exploration in printmaking. The third graders create their own collagraph plates of textured materials, which are printed in a variety of colors. The prints are used to create collages based on a favorite place in New York City in conjunction with the grade-wide study of the five boroughs. From collage, the students dive into paint and hone their color-mixing skills in an abstract design painting. Students use these skills to create a three-panel series of narrative paintings based on each student’s personal writing.
In the second half of the year the third graders work with drawing materials such as pressed and vine charcoal as they work from observation to create gesture drawings of animate and inanimate objects. Students return to three-dimensional materials with a complex paper maché sculpture of an immigrant based on their immigrant interviews and writing. Throughout the year students examine and discuss artworks by adult artists such as Jacob Lawrence, Joseph Stella and Helen Frankenthaler whose themes, techniques and/or subject matter relate to the third grade curriculum.
Wellness
Students learn fundamental skills that transfer to various activities. They begin with “mini” games to utilize their skills. Students work independently, in pairs and in small groups. They begin to assess themselves on their own personal growth as well as give feedback during partner activities. Students work on kicking, dribbling both with feet and hands, passing, receiving and shooting. They also work on hand-eye coordination.
The students continue to focus on movement education. They develop fundamental skills and rules to transfer into a game setting. Specifically, the students have developed individual skills related to jump rope, soccer, volleyball, baseball/softball, and track and field events. The students continue to work on positive effective communication strategies and concentrate on working as a group or team.
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