Selinsgrove Area Intermediate School

Third Grade

Mrs. Beth Snyder -----------Classroom #117

Welcome to my Web page!!!

THIRD GRADE OVERVIEW- These are some of the things we do in my class:

READING:    

• We read and discuss five themes in our reading series. Each theme has five stories. We learn reading and writing skills throughout these themes, along with vocabulary word studies and reading strategies. Our spelling list for the week is based on the story we are reading.
• During reading time the children participate in both large and small groups. We may read the stories together and/or individually, as well as with a partner. We discuss all the stories together as a large group. The children and I meet in small groups for review and skill work.
• After each story, a comprehension test is given. The comprehension test includes the vocabulary used in that story as well as the skills and strategies we learned.
• Most of the skills and strategies learned during Reading time will be continuously reviewed throughout the year in preparation for PSSA testing.
• Another part of my reading program is Reading / Writing Workshop. During this time students may work with a partner or in groups. They work on reading and writing skills, while some students meet with the teacher. In Reading Workshop, the children get to choose the reading books they want to read. We love to read in Room 117!!!

ENGLISH:

• Although highly integrated with our reading and writing program, English skills are evaluated separately on the report card.
• Throughout this year we study different types of sentences, subjects and predicates, and parts of speech: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs.
• Most of the projects we do this year require a writing component. These components are evaluated on sentence structure, capital letters, punctuation, etc. and contribute toward the report card grade.

WRITING :

• We use our writing skills in all subject areas throughout the day.
• During our Writing class, we work on a variety of pieces, portfolio, seasonal and holiday writing, as well as personal experience sharing.
• The portfolio requirements for Third Grade are a narrative, informational, and a persuasive writing piece.

   

SPELLING:

• As mentioned previously, our spelling program is based on our reading series.
• For each story, there is a list of spelling words consisting of vocabulary words from the story. The remaining words are words using the phonetic pattern we are studying for that story.
• The children will also be responsible for writing sentences made up of the current and past spelling words.

MATH:

• In preparation for the PSSA testing, we will be working on math skills and strategies throughout the school day. We will work on 'problems of the day.' journal writing, computer programs, and skill-builder activities.
• Our formal math program begins with a review of addition and subtraction facts while learning new strategies. We continue using these skills while adding and subtracting two- and three- digit numbers.
• We work on recognition of large numbers along with estimating and rounding.
• After learning about time, we work on scheduling skills and elapsed time.
• We learn about money and making change.
• We  learn measuring skills.
• Multiplication and division facts are the core elements of our math series.

SOCIAL STUDIES:

• We learn all about communities during the year through four themes. These themes are 1.) Learning About Communities, 2.) Different Kinds of Places, 3.) Communities Yesterday and Today, and 4.) People and Citizenship.
• At the beginning of the year, we learn all about maps, globes, and map skills. We continue to use these skills throughout the entire year.
• The children are responsible for several projects throughout the year. All projects are announced in advance and count toward a report card grade.

SCIENCE

• Our science program focuses on observation, investigation, and communication skills.
• The three major areas we study are life sciences, earth sciences, and physical science.
• The children will be learning about animals, our Earth and solar system, rocks and minerals, simple machines and how things move.
• There will be several fun projects assigned throughout the year. All projects are announced in advance and count toward a report card grade.

Olympic Scavenger Hunt:

Please send any e-mails to: bsnyder@seal-pa.org