Mrs. Douglas

The language arts program at third grade includes the basic components of language:  reading, writing, listening, and speaking.  These interactive processes are tools the students can use to construct meaning through an integration of prior knowledge and information from others.  The language processes develop simultaneously and are mutually enhancing.

Third Grade emphasizes:

• Word recognition and fluency
• Comprehending, interpreting, and reflecting on what is read
• Summarizing and retelling texts
• Distinguishing between fiction and nonfiction
• Use of appropriate reference materials
• Drawing conclusions from information in maps, charts, graphs and diagrams
• Showing interest and enjoyment in reading
• Writing legibly in cursive, spacing letters, words and sentences appropriately
• Applying spelling skills in all written work
• Clearly expressing ideas verbally and through the written word
• Develop the written products that convey a sense of completeness
• Applying knowledge of punctuation and grammar
• Using parts of speech to enhance the meaning in finished writing
• Increasing vocabulary through use of context clues, prefixes and suffixes
• Using the writing process from rough draft to publication

Through in-depth concept development and skill building, the Hudson City School District mathematics program has four major goals:  to emphasize depth in mathematical thinking, to engage children in meaningful mathematics problems, for students to become fluent in the language of mathematics and to be able to communicate their ideas mathematically, and for mathematics literacy for all students.

In third grade, these goals are accomplished by emphasizing the following "big ideas" in mathematics:

• Creating a math "culture" in the classroom
• Counting by groups (skip counting - crossing the bridge from additive thinking to multiplicative thinking)
• Working on mastery of math facts (using strategies and number sense to figure out the facts which are not yet mastered)
• Keeping track of whole/part information in problem solving
• Understanding the magnitude of numbers (embedding an understanding of place value in problem solving)
• Explaining solutions and solution paths
• Developing multiple solution strategies and flexibility in problem solving
• Developing strategies for self-checking for errors
• Using landmark numbers to solve problems (10's, 50's, 100's)
• Building on numbers they know to solve more difficult problems (introduction to cluster problems)
• Developing mental computation strategies that make sense
• Counting, classifying and representing data
• Describing and comparing 2D and 3D geometric shapes
• Measurement
• Introduction to fractions

The primary purpose of social studies in the prekindergarten through high school social studies program is to help young people understand, through the study of the past and present, what it means to be a responsible participant in society.

We model our course of study from the State of Ohio Content Standards. "Effective social studies integrate history, geography, economics, political science, and other social sciences and humanities. Specifically, social studies:

• Helps students develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for themselves and for the common good;
• Prepares students for their role as citizens and decision makers in a diverse, democratic society;
• Enables students to learn about significant people, places, events and issues in the past in order to understand the present;
• Fosters students' ability to act responsibly and become successful problem solvers in an interdependent world of limited resources.

(Ohio Department of Education, Academic Content Standards, 2003)

The local community of Hudson serves as the focal point to begin to understand how the community has changed over time and to make comparisons with communities in other places. The study of local history comes alive through the use of artifacts and documents. The students also learn how communities are governed and how the local economy is organized.

In the first two units, Citizenship and Geography, students have an opportunity to review and build upon concepts presented in first and second grade. Students explore the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen within the school community, the community of Hudson, and throughout the United States. The words civility, dignity, compassion, compromise, and volunteerism are introduced in this unit, but spiraled throughout the year's study. In the geography unit, students are introduced to the five themes of geography. Students use the globe, photographs, grids, and various maps to explore the world around them.

In the largest unit, Hudson Past, students are introduced to the great community of Hudson, Ohio. They trace the journey of our community from 1799 by founder David Hudson through the merger of Hudson Village and Hudson Township. Students use true historical documents, photos, artifacts, and a teacher-created text to revisit Hudson's rich past. Economics and government are introduced in order to establish the foundation for Hudson Present.

The Hudson Present unit allows students to explore the community up to this moment and compare it to other cities in Ohio, the United States, and the world. Students explore the role of citizenship, economics, culture, and government in our community. Students also discover the impact of competition, volunteerism, and order and security through a student-designed project. Students then meet Hudson's Sister City of Landsberg, Germany and make comparisons. Students will then compare Hudson to Cleveland, San Antonio, and Beijing, China through teacher created magazines in the areas of geography, transportation, economics, culture, and government. The third grade units are rich in history, starting right here in Hudson!



The science program in Hudson City Schools focuses on 3 domains of science throughout our K-12 curriculum:  life science, earth science and physical science.  Students need an understanding of basic scientific concepts and methods in order to assess the scientific issues that will shape their lives.  Children also need to have a solid grounding in the concepts and process skills used in scientific inquiry so they will be able to solve problems encountered in other areas of study and in dealings with the everyday world.

Children are fascinated by the world and enjoy opportunities to explore it.  They can best acquire science concepts and skills by means of an inquiry-based, hands-on, minds-on approach that focuses on the processes and techniques of discovery.  Hand-on science also helps to develop positive attitudes towards science, and enhances mathematical, social, artistic, and language skills.  A variety of nonfiction reading will be used with each science unit to develop students' ability to read and comprehend nonfiction.  Several of these units have received support from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Third grade unit titles include:

WEATHER - In this unit students build on the properties of air concepts learning in the first grade unit when they are introduced to the various factors that together make up weather conditions and to the variety of instruments used to measure those factors.  In this unit, students become junior meteorologists as they study the concepts of air temperature and pressure, barometric changes, wind direction and strength, temperature changes, changes in water, humidity, cloud classification, and precipitation.

PLANT GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT - In this unit, students experience the complete life cycle of a plant in a very short time and learn that they cycle includes germination, growth, development of specialized parts and even death, with the promise of new life in a seed.  Students also learn about the interdependence of insects and plants.  Throughout the unit, students are encouraged to make frequent observations of their plants using as much sensory information as possible and continue to record these observations in writing and drawing.  Students also quantify their observations by taking frequent measurements and recording these on growth graphs.

MEASUREMENT - In this unit, students learn the importance of a standard unit of measure and develop an understanding for the metric system.  Scientists use metric measurement when conducting scientific experiments.  Students will explore four investigations, each designed to emphasize a particular type of metric measurement - length, mass, temperature, and volume.

ANIMAL STUDIES - In this unit, students explore the relationship between an animal and its habitat.  The structures and behaviors of two animals, the crayfish and bess beetle will be observed.  Students will study the life cycles of these animals and compare their life cycles to a variety of different animals and plants.  Students will use the scientific methods to study and describe animals according to their body characteristics, and will explore how organisms use body structures for survival.