We are going to have  a great year in 3rd Grade!

Welcome to the 3rd Grade!

We are going to have a great year in 3rd Grade. This year we will continue to work on language arts and math concepts, but we will also put an important emphasis on the content areas of science and social studies.  We want our students to learn technical vocabulary for these subjects and incorporate what they know about writing and grammar into these subjects.  We especially want to emphasize mastery of the basic math facts in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.  We will be using technology across the curriculum to prepare our students for the 21st century world of work.

Third Grade Expectations

Reading and Language Arts

Listening
The student is attentive while directions and instruction are being given.  The student also demonstrates respectful listening behaviors during classroom discussions and student sharing times.

Speaking
The student participates in class discussions and makes thoughtful comments that are pertinent to the current topic.  The student does not interrupt or blurt out of turn but raises his or her hand and waits to be recognized.

Reading
The student reads grade level texts fluently and with expression.  The student is further able to answer comprehension questions about the content of the text.

Writing and Comprehension
The student uses the rules of grammar (punctuation, capitalization, spelling, etc.) to compose meaningful text on a particular topic or in response to a specific question.

Spelling
The student demonstrates spelling skills by his or her performance on weekly quizzes and by the incorporation of correct spelling in their writing compositions.

Effort
The student has good attendance and demonstrates a positive attitude about the subject matter.  The student takes pride in the quality and appearance of his or her work.

Mathematics

Computation
The student accurately performs basic operations (algorithms) to solve problems.  By the end of the third grade, students will memorize addition and subtraction facts to 20, and multiplication and division facts to 12.  They will demonstrate mastery on a timed test.

Problem Solving
The student is able to analyze a story problem or a real-life problem and determine what steps and operations are needed to solve the problem.

Effort
The student has good attendance and demonstrates a positive attitude about the subject matter.  The student takes pride in the quality and appearance of his or her work.  The student has memorized the basic facts of addition and subtraction and is working on memorizing the multiplication facts.

I would appreciate it if all parents would make their e-mail address available  so that we can communicate any important information to parents in a prudent manner.  I am looking forward to this school year with great anticipation.  Thanks for your support.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Olcott