Curriculum and Expectations

CURRICULUM and EXPECTATIONS;

Reading:

Students will be engaged in various reading activities this year. Leander ISD uses iStation for reading assessments. This provides accurate and detailed feedback so that I can more effectively address your child's reading needs in small group instruction. Per district expectations, the class will spend thirty minutes on iStation each week.

My favorite part of the day is Read Aloud. I may read a short picture book that aligns with the lesson, but as often as I can, I also make time for intentionally chosen chapter books with important themes, fun and engaging storylines, and relatable characters/character development in a variety of genres, including classics.

All read-alouds let me model fluency and talk about comprehension strategies, but the longer chapter books have the added value of helping young readers grow in other valuable ways, Students build stamina by having to really listen. They have to visualize to understand without many pictures. And their focus and memory skills are strengthened by having to follow and remember the details of the storyline over many days or even weeks.

These are important reading and life skills!

Writing:

Most of the writing we do in third grade is still by hand, so it's important that students write legibly and properly. They'll continue using manuscript (print) for the majority of the year but will also learn cursive.

In addition to innumerable informal opportunities to write, your child will produce some impressive "published" pieces, working through the writing process (pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, publishing) and learning about different genres (personal narrative, informational, opinion/persuasive).

We will have weekly spelling tests with lists sent home each week in the newsletter.

Students will have numerous opportunities throughout the week to practice their words,

including on Spelling City

Language Arts District Links:

• Language Arts: Transfer Goals

• 3rd Grade Language Arts: Year at a Glance

1st Nine Weeks Focus:

Appreciating Characters through Reading & Writing Workshop

Tell it Like a Story: The Study of Narrative Nonfiction Including Biographies

2nd Nine Weeks Focus:

Cultivating Curiosity: The Study of Informational Text

Overcoming Challenges: A Study Across Genres

3rd Nine Weeks Focus:

Changing the World: The Study of Author’s Perspective

Author’s Purpose and Craft: The Study of Poetry and Fiction

4th Nine Weeks Focus:

Oral Traditions and Traditional Literature

Lights, Camera, Action: A Study of the Elements of Drama