2012-2013 Syllabus for Third Grade     Term 3

Teacher: Pamela Kissel

                                                                      Reading

Objectives: This is a general overview of what the teacher will teach and what the student is expected to master.

1. The student will use word recognition and vocabulary (word meaning) skills to communicate.

1a. The student will use word recognition skills for multi-syllabic words.

1) Continue to use knowledge of vowel digraphs, diphthongs, and r-controlled letter-sound correspondences to decode unknown words.

2) Continue to use common spelling patterns to make new words (e.g., make, take, lake, cake, etc.).

3) Use inflectional endings (e.g., -s, -es, -ed, or -ing) to produce and analyze new words.

4) Create and analyze complex compound words (e.g., sky + scraper = skyscraper).

5) Create and use complex contractions (e.g., will + not = won’t) correctly.

6) Read 300 to 400 high frequency and/or irregularly spelled words in connected text. (A third grader should read between 100 and 115 words correctly per minute in connected text by the end of third grade.)

1b. The student will use syllabication types (e.g., open, closed, r-controlled, vowel team, vowel-consonant + e, consonant + le) to decode words.

1c. The student will manipulate and analyze root words and affixes (e.g., un-, re-, mis-, pre-, dis-, in-, im-, ir-, -s, - es, -ed,- ing, -y, -ly, -er, -est, –ful, -less, -able, -ness, -ish) to analyze words.

1d. The student will develop and apply knowledge of words and word meanings to communicate.

1) Generate words into categories.

2) Determine relationships among words organized in categories.

1e. The student will identify and use synonyms, antonyms, and homonyms.

1f. The student will use context to determine the meanings of unfamiliar or multiple meaning words.

1g. The student will use context to determine the simple figurative meanings (e.g., simile, metaphor, and personification) of words.

h. The student will use reference materials to determine the meaning or pronunciation of unknown words (e.g., elementary dictionary, glossary, thesaurus, electronic dictionary, teacher or peer as a resource). [Note: These reference materials are not available during the administration of state tests.]

2. The student will apply strategies and skills to comprehend, respond to, interpret, or evaluate a variety of texts of increasing length, difficulty, and complexity.

2a. The student will use text features, parts of a book, text structures, and genres to analyze text.

1) Text features – titles, headings, captions, illustrations, graphs, charts, diagrams, etc.

2) Parts of a book – title page, table of contents, glossary, index, etc.

3) Text structures – sequential order, description, simple cause and effect, simple procedure, etc.

4) Genres – Fiction, nonfiction, and poetry

2b. The student will analyze texts in order to identify, understand, infer, or synthesize information.

1) Answer and generate questions about purposes for reading.

2) Answer literal and inferential questions about main characters, setting, plot, and theme.

3) Answer literal and inferential questions about characters' actions, motives, traits, and emotions.

4) Identify the stated main idea of a narrative text or the topic of an informational text.

5) Arrange in sequential order a listing of events found in narrative and/or informational text.

6) Identify cause and effect as stated in text.

7) Identify simple fact and opinion.

8) Synthesize information stated in the text with prior knowledge and experience to draw a conclusion.

9) Predict an outcome based on information stated in text and confirm or revise the prediction based upon subsequent text.

10) Use key words in text to justify prediction(s).

11) Identify important themes from texts and examine from more than one point of view.

2c. The student will recognize or generate an appropriate summary or paraphrase of the events or ideas in text, citing text-based evidence.

1) Retell a story orally and in writing including characters, setting, problem, important events, and resolution.

2) Write summaries that contain the main ideas of the reading selection and the most significant details.

2d. The student will analyze, interpret, compare, or respond to increasingly complex literary text, literary nonfiction, and informational text, citing text-based evidence.

1) Interpret text through moving, drawing, speaking, acting, or singing.

2) Make connections between self and characters, events, and information in text or among texts.

3) Compose visual images based upon text.

Assessments: Major tests will be given at the end of each mastered objective. Tests will count 60%, activities will count 35 %. (Activities cannot be retested.) The Content by Term test (Common Term Assessment) will be given at the end of the term and will count for 5% of the grade. If a student is absent they will have 10 days to make up the test.  Make up test will be given on Thursday mornings from 8:10-8:40.

Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework is given nightly and will be due upon arrival the following day. Spelling words and newsletter is attached in the planner to assist in homework assignments.

Course Requirements: Students are expected to participate in class and complete all class and homework assignments. Homework and project directions are included in the daily assignment planner.

Reteaching and Retesting:  Our goal is for each student to achieve mastery.

 A student who fails a test will be offered an opportunity for re-teaching and retesting within 10 days by the classroom teacher.  In that instance the teacher will send home a written notice.  Communication will take place between the teacher and the parent as to the re-teaching times and the date of the retest.  The student must attend the re-teaching sessions to be eligible to retest.  The higher grade of the two tests will be placed in the grading program in the computer. In accordance with our BPS District Re-teach/Re-test policy, a parent and/or student may initiate a request to the teacher for any test to be retaken (failing or not failing).  The parent should write a note to the teacher, preferably in the student planner or a note attached to the student planner requesting that the specific test be given again to the student.  The teacher will then notify the parent of the re-teaching assignment to be completed AT HOME by the student under the direction and assistance of the parent, the date the assignment is due to the teacher, and the date of the retest.  The assignment will be reviewed by the teacher prior to administering the retest to the student.

Re-testing requests must be made within 10 days of receiving the test grade. In addition, Activity Grades are NOT eligible for retesting under the current District policy.  Report card grades are final grades for the nine week term.  Those grades are not eligible for a retest as they are not within the 10 day time frame.

Reteaching will begin promptly at 8:10 on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings.   Students must attend both days of reteaching in order to retest. Retests are given on Thursday mornings at 8:10.  Students will retest and receive the higher of the two grades.  Students will be allowed to retest within 10 days of receiving his or her test grade provided they attend both reteaching sessions.  Common Term Tests will not be retested. 

Additional Comments: Please help your child be responsible and sign the planner daily.  Read with your child daily.

Math

Objectives: This is a general overview of what the teacher will teach and what the student is expected to master.

1 Understand and represent number relationships among numbers and the four basic operations. Compute fluently and make reasonable estimates.

1d Identify and model representations of fractions (halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths, and eighths).

1h2 Recall multiplication facts (0 thru 12).

4 Measure and explain the measurable attributes of objects, units, systems, and processes.

4a Develop and use methods to find perimeter of polygons and to solve problems involving perimeter.

4b Estimate and measure length using fractional parts to the nearest ½ inch in the English system.

4c Measure capacity, weight/mass, and length in both English and metric systems of measurement.

2 Explain, analyze, and generate patterns, relationships, and functions using algebraic symbols.

2a2 Create, describe, and extend growing and repeating patterns with physical materials and symbols including numbers.(multiplication/division)

2b2 Determine the value of missing quantities or variables within equations or number sentences, and justify the process used. (multiplication/division)

5 Interpret and analyze data. Explore basic concepts of probability.

5a Compare data and interpret quantities represented on tables and different types of graphs (line plots, pictographs, and bar graphs), make predictions, and solve problems based on the information.

5b Analyze, predict, and model the number of different combinations of two or more objects and relate to multiplication.

Assessments: Major tests will be given at the end of each mastered objective. Test will count 60%. Activities will count 35 %.( Activities cannot be retested.) The Content by Term test (Common Term Assessment) will be given at the end of the term and will count for 5% of the grade. If a student is absent they will have 10 days to make up the test.  Make up test will be given on Thursday mornings from 8:10-8:30.   

Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework is given nightly and will be due upon arrival the following day. 

Course Requirements: Students are expected to participate in class and complete all class and homework assignments. Homework and project directions are included in the daily planner.

Reteaching and Retesting: see above  

Additional Comments: Please help your child be responsible and sign the planner daily.  Read with your child daily.

Language/Writing

Objectives: This is a general overview of what the teacher will teach and what the student is expected to master.

3. The student will express, communicate, or evaluate ideas effectively.

3a. The student will use an appropriate composing process (e.g., planning, drafting, revising, editing and publishing/sharing) to compose or edit. . [Note: Editing will be tested under competency four.]

1) Planning

• Use a variety of graphic organizers (e.g., Venn diagrams, bubble maps, story maps, simple outlines, etc.) to generate and organize ideas.

2) Drafting

• Transfer thoughts from graphic organizers and simple outlines into paragraphs.

3) Revising

• Revise paragraphs for organization, to add details, and to clarify ideas.

4) Editing

• Edit paragraphs using a general rubric (e.g., grammar usage, punctuation, and sentence structure).

• Edit for correct capitalization, punctuation, spelling and word usage.

5) Publishing/Sharing

• Publish writing formally and informally using a variety of media.

3b. The student will compose descriptive text using specific details and vivid language.

3c. The student will compose narrative text with a clear beginning, middle, and end.

3d. The student will compose informational text and at least three supporting details.

1. Reports

2. Letters, thank you notes, invitations

3. Functional texts (e.g., labels, directions, shopping lists)

3e. The student will compose a simple persuasive text.

3f. The student will generate questions and use multiple sources to locate answers.

4. The student will use Standard English to communicate.

4a. The student will use Standard English grammar to compose or edit.

1) Nouns (e.g., singular, plural [including irregular forms], common, proper, possessive)

2) Verbs, helping verbs and irregular verbs

3) Verb tense (conjugation and purpose for past, present, and future)

4) Subject-verb agreement

5) Articles and coordinating conjunctions

6) Adjectives (e.g., possessive, comparative, superlative)

7) Prepositions

8) Pronouns (e.g., subject pronouns, singular pronouns, plural pronouns, singular possessive pronouns, and plural possessive pronouns)

9) Pronoun-antecedent agreement (number and gender)

10) Adverbs (avoiding double negatives)

11) Interjections

4b. The student will use Standard English mechanics to compose or edit.

1) End punctuation (e.g., period, question mark, exclamation mark, comma)

2) Periods in common abbreviations (e.g., titles of address, days of the week, months of the year)

3) Commas (e.g., dates, series, addresses, greetings, closings, quotations)

4) Quotation marks (e.g., quotations, titles of poems)

5) Underlining/ Italics (titles of books and movies)

6) Apostrophes (e.g., contractions; possessives)

7) Colons (in notation of time)

8) Capitalization (e.g., first word in a sentence, proper nouns, days of the week, months of the year, holidays, titles, initials, the pronoun “I”)

9) Spell words commonly found in third grade level text.

10) Write legibly.

4c. The student will use correct and varied sentence structures.

1) Analyze sentences to determine purpose (e.g., declarative, interrogative, exclamatory, imperative).

2) Compose simple sentences with compound subjects and/or compound predicates; compound sentences.

3) Avoid sentence fragments and run-on sentences.

Assessments: Major tests will be given at the end of each mastered objective. English will count 40%, Writing will count 30%, and Spelling will count 25 % of the language arts grade. The Content by Term test (Common Term Assessment) will be given at the end of the term and will count for 5% of the grade. If a student is absent they will have 10 days to make up the test.  Make up test will be given on Thursday mornings from 8:10-8:40.   

Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework is given nightly and will be due upon arrival the following day.  Spelling words and newsletter is attached in the planner to assist in homework assignments.

Course Requirements: Students are expected to participate in class and complete all class and homework assignments. Homework and project directions are included in the daily assignment planner.

Reteaching and Retesting:  see above

Additional Comments: Please help your child be responsible and sign the planner daily.

Science

Objectives: This is a general overview of what the teacher will teach and what the student is expected to master.

Apply concepts involved in a scientific investigation.

a Identify questions and predict outcomes that can be examined through scientific investigations.

b Describe familiar objects and events using the senses to collect qualitative (e.g., color,

size, shape) information.

c Select and use simple tools (e.g., rulers, thermometers, scales, hand lenses,

microscopes, calculators, balances, clocks) to gather information.

c1 Length, to the nearest half of an inch, foot, yard, centimeter, and meter

c2 Capacity and weight/mass, in English and metric systems

c3 Time, to the nearest minute

c4 Temperature, to the nearest degree

d Draw conclusions and communicate the results of an investigation.

e Communicate data by creating diagrams, charts, tables, and graphs.

f Ask questions and seek answers to explain why different results sometimes occur in repeated investigations.

3 Describe the characteristics, structures, life cycles, and environments of organisms.

c Investigate the relationships between the basic needs of different organisms and discern how adaptations enable an organism to survive in a particular environment.

e Recall that organisms can survive only when in environments (deserts, tundra, forests, grasslands, taigas, wetlands) in which their needs are met and interpret the

interdependency of plants and animals within a food chain, including producer, consumer,

e (cont.) decomposer, herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, predator, and prey.

f Recognize that cells vary greatly in size, structure, and function, and that some cells and

tiny organisms can be seen only with a microscope.

4 Develop an understanding of the properties of Earth materials, objects in the sky, and changes in Earth and sky.

a Recall that soil is made up of various materials (weathered rock, minerals, plant and animal remains, living organisms.)

b Compare and contrast changes in the Earth’s surface that are due to slow processes

(erosion, weathering, mountain building) and rapid processes (landslides, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, floods, asteroid collisions).

g Explain how fossil records are used to learn about the past, identify characteristics of

selected fossils, and describe why they may be found in many places.

Assessments: Major tests will be given at the end of each mastered objective. Common Term Assessment will be given at the end of the term and will count for 1 test grade. Tests count

60 % and activities count 40 %.( Activities cannot be retested.) If a student is absent they will have 10 days to make up the test.  Make up test will be given on Thursday mornings from 8:10-8:40.

Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework is to be completed nightly and due the next morning upon classroom arrival, if assigned.

Course Requirements: Students are expected to participate in class and complete all class and homework assignments. Homework and project directions are included in the daily assignment planner.

Reteaching and Retesting:  see above

Additional Comments: Please help your child be responsible and sign the planner daily.  Read with your child daily.

Social Studies

Objectives: This is a general overview of what the teacher will teach and what the student is expected to master.

1. Understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the government at the local level.

2. Understand the interdependence of people, places, and environment that make up the local community.

 3. Understand the historical circumstances and conditions of civil human rights struggles in local communities.  

4. Understand basic economic concepts and their effects on our community. 

5. Understand how the diversity of people and customs affects the local community.

Assessments: Major tests will be given at the end of each mastered objective. Tests count

60 % and activities count 40 %.( Activities cannot be retested.)  If a student is absent, they will have 10 days to make up the test.  Make up test will be given on Thursday mornings from 8:10-8:40. 

Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework is to be completed nightly and due the next morning upon classroom arrival, if assigned.

Course Requirements: Students are expected to participate in class and complete all class and homework assignments. Homework and project directions are included in the daily assignment planner.

Reteaching and Retesting:  see above

Additional Comments: Please help your child be responsible and sign the planner daily.