Third Grade California Learning Standards
Third Grade California Learning Standards
Third Grade California Learning Standards
Select a subject to review its standards, organized into teacher-friendly learning categories.
44 standards in English Language Arts
English Language Arts
Plan reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language instruction from the Grade 3 expectations below.
44 standards organized into 6 learning categories
Language
6 standardsStandard: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking. a. Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences. b. Form and use regular and irregular plural nouns. c. Use abstract nouns (e.g., childhood). d. Form and use regular and irregular verbs. e. Form and use the simple (e.g., I walked; I walk; I will walk) verb tenses. f. Ensure subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement.* g. Form and use comparative and superlative adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified. h. Use coordinating and subordinating conjunctions. i. Produce simple, compound, and complex sentences. j. Write legibly in cursive or joined italics, allowing margins and correct spacing between letters in a word and words in a sentence. CA k. Use reciprocal pronouns correctly. CA Footnote: Beginning in grade 3, skills and understandings that are particularly likely to require continued attention in higher grades as they are applied to increasingly sophisticated writing and speaking are marked with an asterisk (*).
Standard: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. a. Capitalize appropriate words in titles. b. Use commas in addresses. c. Use commas and quotation marks in dialogue. d. Form and use possessives. e. Use conventional spelling for high-frequency and other studied words and for adding suffixes to base words (e.g., sitting, smiled, cries, happiness). f. Use spelling patterns and generalizations (e.g., word families, position-based spellings, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts) in writing words. g. Consult reference materials, including beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and correct spellings.
Standard: Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening. a. Choose words and phrases for effect.* b. Recognize and observe differences between the conventions of spoken and written standard English. Footnote: Beginning in grade 3, skills and understandings that are particularly likely to require continued attention in higher grades as they are applied to increasingly sophisticated writing and speaking are marked with an asterisk (*).
Standard: Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies. a. Use sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase. b. Determine the meaning of the new word formed when a known affix is added to a known word (e.g., agreeable/disagreeable, comfortable/uncomfortable, care/careless, heat/preheat). c. Use a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., company, companion). d. Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries, both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases in all content areas. CA
Standard: Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings. a. Distinguish the literal and non-literal meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps). b. Identify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful). c. Distinguish shades of meaning among related words that describe states of mind or degrees of certainty (e.g., knew, believed, suspected, heard, wondered).
Standard: Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).
Reading: Foundational Skills
2 standardsStandard: Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words both in isolation and in text. CA a. Identify and know the meaning of the most common prefixes and derivational suffixes. b. Decode words with common Latin suffixes. c. Decode multisyllable words. d. Read grade-appropriate irregularly spelled words.
Standard: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension. a. Read on-level text with purpose and understanding. b. Read on-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings. c. Use context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Reading: Informational Text
10 standardsStandard: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
Standard: By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 2-3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Standard: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
Standard: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.
Standard: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area. (See grade 3 Language standards 4-6 for additional expectations.) CA
Standard: Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.
Standard: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text.
Standard: Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
Standard: Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).
Standard: Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
Reading: Literature
10 standardsStandard: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
Standard: By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, at the high end of the grades 2-3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Standard: Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
Standard: Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
Standard: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language. (See grade 3 Language standards 4-6 for additional expectations.) CA
Standard: Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
Standard: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
Standard: Explain how specific aspects of a text's illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
Standard: (Not applicable to literature)
Standard: Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the same or similar characters (e.g., in books from a series).
Speaking and Listening
6 standardsStandard: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and+E601 texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly. a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion. b. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). c. Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others. d. Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.
Standard: Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Standard: Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail.
Standard: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. a. Plan and deliver an informative/explanatory presentation on a topic that: organizes ideas around major points of information, follows a logical sequence, includes supporting details, uses clear and specific vocabulary, and provides a strong conclusion. CA
Standard: Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays when appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.
Standard: Speak in complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification. (See grade 3 Language standards 1 and 3 for specific expectations.)
Writing
10 standardsStandard: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. a. Introduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons. b. Provide reasons that support the opinion. c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons. d. Provide a concluding statement or section.
Standard: Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Standard: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. a. Introduce a topic and group related information together; include illustrations when useful to aiding comprehension. b. Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and details. c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information. d. Provide a concluding statement or section.
Standard: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences. a. Establish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally. b. Use dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to situations. c. Use temporal words and phrases to signal event order. d. Provide a sense of closure.
Standard: With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and purpose. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1-3 above.)
Standard: With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing. (Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1-3 up to and including grade 3.)
Standard: With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to interact and collaborate with others.
Standard: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.
Standard: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories.
Standard: (Begins in grade 4)
Math
Use the Grade 3 mathematics domains to connect conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, and problem solving.
33 standards organized into 5 learning categories
Geometry
2 standardsCluster: Reason with shapes and their attributes. Standard: Understand that shapes in different categories (e.g., rhombuses, rectangles, and others) may share attributes (e.g., having four sides), and that the shared attributes can define a larger category (e.g., quadrilaterals). Recognize rhombuses, rectangles, and squares as examples of quadrilaterals, and draw examples of quadrilaterals that do not belong to any of these subcategories.
Cluster: Reason with shapes and their attributes. Standard: Partition shapes into parts with equal areas. Express the area of each part as a unit fraction of the whole. For example, partition a shape into 4 parts with equal area, and describe the area of each part as 1/4 of the area of the shape.
Measurement and Data
12 standardsCluster: Solve problems involving measurement and estimation of intervals of time, liquid volumes, and masses of objects. Standard: Tell and write time to the nearest minute and measure time intervals in minutes. Solve word problems involving addition and subtraction of time intervals in minutes, e.g., by representing the problem on a number line diagram.
Cluster: Solve problems involving measurement and estimation of intervals of time, liquid volumes, and masses of objects. Standard: Measure and estimate liquid volumes and masses of objects using standard units of grams (g), kilograms (kg), and liters (l). Add, subtract, multiply, or divide to solve one-step word problems involving masses or volumes that are given in the same units, e.g., by using drawings (such as a beaker with a measurement scale) to represent the problem. Footnote: Excludes compound units such as cm^3 and finding the geometric volume of a container. Excludes multiplicative comparison problems (problems involving notions of "times as much"; see Glossary, Table 2).
Cluster: Represent and interpret data. Standard: Draw a scaled picture graph and a scaled bar graph to represent a data set with several categories. Solve one- and two-step "how many more" and "how many less" problems using information presented in scaled bar graphs. For example, draw a bar graph in which each square in the bar graph might represent 5 pets.
Cluster: Represent and interpret data. Standard: Generate measurement data by measuring lengths using rulers marked with halves and fourths of an inch. Show the data by making a line plot, where the horizontal scale is marked off in appropriate units-whole numbers, halves, or quarters.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Recognize area as an attribute of plane figures and understand concepts of area measurement. A square with side length 1 unit, called "a unit square," is said to have "one square unit" of area, and can be used to measure area.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Recognize area as an attribute of plane figures and understand concepts of area measurement. A plane figure which can be covered without gaps or overlaps by n unit squares is said to have an area of n square units.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Measure areas by counting unit squares (square cm, square m, square in, square ft, and improvised units).
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Relate area to the operations of multiplication and addition. Find the area of a rectangle with whole-number side lengths by tiling it, and show that the area is the same as would be found by multiplying the side lengths.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Relate area to the operations of multiplication and addition. Multiply side lengths to find areas of rectangles with whole-number side lengths in the context of solving real-world and mathematical problems, and represent whole-number products as rectangular areas in mathematical reasoning.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Relate area to the operations of multiplication and addition. Use tiling to show in a concrete case that the area of a rectangle with whole-number side lengths a and b + c is the sum of a × b and a × c. Use area models to represent the distributive property in mathematical reasoning.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and to addition. Standard: Relate area to the operations of multiplication and addition. Recognize area as additive. Find areas of rectilinear figures by decomposing them into non-overlapping rectangles and adding the areas of the non-overlapping parts, applying this technique to solve real-world problems.
Cluster: Geometric measurement: recognize perimeter as an attribute of plane figures and distinguish between linear and area measures. Standard: Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving perimeters of polygons, including finding the perimeter given the side lengths, finding an unknown side length, and exhibiting rectangles with the same perimeter and different areas or with the same area and different perimeters.
Number and Operations in Base Ten
3 standardsCluster: Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic. Standard: Use place value understanding to round whole numbers to the nearest 10 or 100. Footnote: A range of algorithms may be used.
Cluster: Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic. Standard: Fluently add and subtract within 1000 using strategies and algorithms based on place value, properties of operations, and/or the relationship between addition and subtraction.
Cluster: Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic. Standard: Multiply one-digit whole numbers by multiples of 10 in the range 10-90 (e.g., 9 × 80, 5 × 60) using strategies based on place value and properties of operations.
Number and Operations-Fractions
7 standardsCluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Understand a fraction 1/b as the quantity formed by 1 part when a whole is partitioned into b equal parts; understand a fraction a/b as the quantity formed by a parts of size 1/b. Footnote: Grade 3 expectations in this domain are limited to fractions with denominators 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8.
Cluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Understand a fraction as a number on the number line; represent fractions on a number line diagram. Represent a fraction 1/b on a number line diagram by defining the interval from 0 to 1 as the whole and partitioning it into b equal parts. Recognize that each part has size 1/b and that the endpoint of the part based at 0 locates the number 1/b on the number line.
Cluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Understand a fraction as a number on the number line; represent fractions on a number line diagram. Represent a fraction a/b on a number line diagram by marking off a lengths 1/b from 0. Recognize that the resulting interval has size a/b and that its endpoint locates the number a/b on the number line.
Cluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Explain equivalence of fractions in special cases, and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Understand two fractions as equivalent (equal) if they are the same size, or the same point on a number line.
Cluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Explain equivalence of fractions in special cases, and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3). Explain why the fractions are equivalent, e.g., by using a visual fraction model.
Cluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Explain equivalence of fractions in special cases, and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Express whole numbers as fractions, and recognize fractions that are equivalent to whole numbers. Examples: Express 3 in the form 3 = 3/1; recognize that 6/1 = 6; locate 4/4 and 1 at the same point of a number line diagram.
Cluster: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. Standard: Explain equivalence of fractions in special cases, and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Compare two fractions with the same numerator or the same denominator by reasoning about their size. Recognize that comparisons are valid only when the two fractions refer to the same whole. Record the results of comparisons with the symbols >, =, or <, and justify the conclusions, e.g., by using a visual fraction model.
Operations and Algebraic Thinking
9 standardsCluster: Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division. Standard: Interpret products of whole numbers, e.g., interpret 5 × 7 as the total number of objects in 5 groups of 7 objects each. For example, describe a context in which a total number of objects can be expressed as 5 × 7.
Cluster: Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division. Standard: Interpret whole-number quotients of whole numbers, e.g., interpret 56 ÷ 8 as the number of objects in each share when 56 objects are partitioned equally into 8 shares, or as a number of shares when 56 objects are partitioned into equal shares of 8 objects each. For example, describe a context in which a number of shares or a number of groups can be expressed as 56÷8.
Cluster: Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division. Standard: Use multiplication and division within 100 to solve word problems in situations involving equal groups, arrays, and measurement quantities, e.g., by using drawings and equations with a symbol for the unknown number to represent the problem. Footnote: See Glossary, Table 2.
Cluster: Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division. Standard: Determine the unknown whole number in a multiplication or division equation relating three whole numbers. For example, determine the unknown number that makes the equation true in each of the equations 8 × ? = 48, 5 = ? ÷ 3, 6 × 6 = ?.
Cluster: Understand properties of multiplication and the relationship between multiplication and division. Standard: Apply properties of operations as strategies to multiply and divide. Examples: If 6 × 4 = 24 is known, then 4 × 6 = 24 is also known. (Commutative property of multiplication.) 3 × 5 × 2 can be found by 3 × 5 = 15, then 15 × 2 = 30, or by 5 × 2 = 10, then 3 × 10 = 30. (Associative property of multiplication.) Knowing that 8 × 5 = 40 and 8 × 2 = 16, one can find 8 × 7 as 8 × (5 + 2) = (8 × 5) + (8 × 2) = 40 + 16 = 56. (Distributive property.) Footnote: Students need not use formal terms for these properties.
Cluster: Understand properties of multiplication and the relationship between multiplication and division. Standard: Understand division as an unknown-factor problem. For example, find 32 ÷ 8 by finding the number that makes 32 when multiplied by 8.
Cluster: Multiply and divide within 100. Standard: Fluently multiply and divide within 100, using strategies such as the relationship between multiplication and division (e.g., knowing that 8 × 5 = 40, one knows 40 ÷ 5 = 8) or properties of operations. By the end of Grade 3, know from memory all products of two one-digit numbers.
Cluster: Solve problems involving the four operations, and identify and explain patterns in arithmetic. Standard: Solve two-step word problems using the four operations. Represent these problems using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. Assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies including rounding. Footnote: This standard is limited to problems posed with whole numbers and having whole-number answers; students should know how to perform operations in the conventional order when there are no parentheses to specify a particular order (Order of Operations).
Standard: Identify arithmetic patterns (including patterns in the addition table or multiplication table), and explain them using properties of operations. For example, observe that 4 times a number is always even, and explain why 4 times a number can be decomposed into two equal addends.
Science
Explore Grade 3 performance expectations and the ideas that support three-dimensional science learning.
18 standards organized into 15 learning categories
ETS1.A: Defining and Delimiting Engineering Problems
1 standardTitle: 3-5-ETS1 Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science Performance Expectation: Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost. Disciplinary Core Idea(s): ETS1.A: Defining and Delimiting Engineering Problems Possible solutions to a problem are limited by available materials and resources (constraints). The success of a designed solution is determined by considering the desired features of a solution (criteria). Different proposals for solutions can be compared on the basis of how well each one meets the specified criteria for success or how well each takes the constraints into account. Science & Engineering Practices: Asking Questions and Defining Problems Define a simple design problem that can be solved through the development of an object, tool, process, or system and includes several criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost. Crosscutting Concepts: Influence of Engineering, Technology, and Science on Society and the Natural World People's needs and wants change over time, as do their demands for new and improved technologies. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle V Decisions affecting resources and natural systems are based on a wide range of considerations and decision-making processes. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy W.5.7: Conduct short research projects that use several sources to build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic. W.5.8: Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources. W.5.9.a,b: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. 3.OA.1-4: Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division. 3.OA.5-6: Understand properties of multiplication and the relationship between multiplication and division. 3.OA.7: Multiply and divide within 100. 3.OA.8-9: Solve problems involving the four operations, and identify and explain patterns in arithmetic. 4.OA.1-3: Use the four operations with whole numbers to solve problems. 4.OA.4: Gain familiarity with factors and multiples. 4.OA.5: Generate and analyze patterns. 5.OA.1-2.1: Write and interpret numerical expressions. 5.OA.3: Analyze patterns and relationships. DCI Connections: Connections to 3-5-ETS1.A: Defining and Delimiting Engineering Problems include: Fourth Grade: 4-PS3-4 Articulation across grade-bands: K-2.ETS1.A; MS.ETS1.A; MS.ETS1.B
ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions
1 standardTitle: 3-5-ETS1 Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science Performance Expectation: Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem. Disciplinary Core Idea(s): ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions Research on a problem should be carried out before beginning to design a solution. Testing a solution involves investigating how well it performs under a range of likely conditions. At whatever stage, communicating with peers about proposed solutions is an important part of the design process, and shared ideas can lead to improved designs. Science & Engineering Practices: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions Generate and compare multiple solutions to a problem based on how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the design problem. Crosscutting Concepts: Influence of Engineering, Technology, and Science on Society and the Natural World Engineers improve existing technologies or develop new ones to increase their benefits, decrease known risks, and meet societal demands. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle V Decisions affecting resources and natural systems are based on a wide range of considerations and decision-making processes. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.5.1: Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. RI.5.7: Draw on information from multiple print or digital sources, demonstrating the ability to locate an answer to a question quickly or to solve a problem efficiently. RI.5.9: Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. 3.OA.1-4: Represent and solve problems involving multiplication and division. 3.OA.5-6: Understand properties of multiplication and the relationship between multiplication and division. 3.OA.7: Multiply and divide within 100. 3.OA.8-9: Solve problems involving the four operations, and identify and explain patterns in arithmetic. 4.OA.1-3: Use the four operations with whole numbers to solve problems. 4.OA.4: Gain familiarity with factors and multiples. 4.OA.5: Generate and analyze patterns. 5.OA.1-2.1: Write and interpret numerical expressions. 5.OA.3: Analyze patterns and relationships. DCI Connections: Connections to 3-5-ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions Problems include: Fourth Grade: 4-ESS3-2 Articulation across grade-bands: K-2.ETS1.A; K-2.ETS1.B; K-2.ETS1.C; MS.ETS1.B; MS.ETS1.C
ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions, ETS1.C: Optimizing the Design Solution
1 standardTitle: 3-5-ETS1 Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science Performance Expectation: Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved. Disciplinary Core Idea(s): ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions Tests are often designed to identify failure points or difficulties, which suggest the elements of the design that need to be improved. ETS1.C: Optimizing the Design Solution Different solutions need to be tested in order to determine which of them best solves the problem, given the criteria and the constraints. Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Plan and conduct an investigation collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence, using fair tests in which variables are controlled and the number of trials considered. Crosscutting Concepts: N/A California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle V Decisions affecting resources and natural systems are based on a wide range of considerations and decision-making processes. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy W.5.7: Conduct short research projects that use several sources to build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic. W.5.8: Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; summarize or paraphrase information in notes and finished work, and provide a list of sources. W.5.9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. DCI Connections: Connections to 3-5-ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions Problems include: Fourth Grade: 4-ESS3-2 Connections to K-2-ETS1.C: Optimizing the Design Solution include: Fourth Grade: 4-PS4-3 Articulation across grade-bands: K-2.ETS1.A; K-2.ETS1.C; MS.ETS1.B; MS.ETS1.C
ESS2.D: Weather and Climate
2 standardsTitle: 3-ESS2 Earth's Systems Performance Expectation: Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season. [Clarification Statement: Examples of data could include average temperature, precipitation, and wind direction.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment of graphical displays is limited to pictographs and bar graphs. Assessment does not include climate change.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): ESS2.D: Weather and Climate Scientists record patterns of the weather across different times and areas so that they can make predictions about what kind of weather might happen next. Science & Engineering Practices: Analyzing and Interpreting Data Represent data in tables and various graphical displays (bar graphs and pictographs) to reveal patterns that indicate relationships. Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns of change can be used to make predictions. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. 3.MD.2: Measure and estimate liquid volumes and masses of objects using standard units of grams (g), kilograms (kg), and liters (l). Add, subtract, multiply, or divide to solve one-step word problems involving masses or volumes that are given in the same units, e.g., by using drawings (such as a beaker with a measurement scale) to represent the problem. 3.MD.3: Draw a scaled picture graph and a scaled bar graph to represent a data set with several categories. Solve one- and two-step "how many more" and "how many less" problems using information presented in bar graphs. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: K.ESS2.D; 4.ESS2.A; 5.ESS2.A; MS.ESS2.C; MS.ESS2.D
Title: 3-ESS2 Earth's Systems Performance Expectation: Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world. Disciplinary Core Idea(s): ESS2.D: Weather and Climate Climate describes a range of an area's typical weather conditions and the extent to which those conditions vary over years. Science & Engineering Practices: Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information Obtain and combine information from books and other reliable media to explain phenomena. Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns of change can be used to make predictions. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.9: Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic. W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: MS.ESS2.C; MS.ESS2.D
ESS3.B: Natural Hazards
1 standardTitle: 3-ESS3 Earth and Human Activity Performance Expectation: Make a claim about the merit of a design solution that reduces the impacts of a weather-related hazard.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of design solutions to weather-related hazards could include barriers to prevent flooding, wind resistant roofs, and lightning rods.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): ESS3.B: Natural Hazards A variety of natural hazards result from natural processes. Humans cannot eliminate natural hazards but can take steps to reduce their impacts. (Note: This Disciplinary Core Idea is also addressed by 4-ESS3-2.) Science & Engineering Practices: Engaging in Argument from Evidence Make a claim about the merit of a solution to a problem by citing relevant evidence about how it meets the criteria and constraints of the problem. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified, tested, and used to explain change. Connections to Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science: Influence of Engineering, Technology, and Science on Society and the Natural World Engineers improve existing technologies or develop new ones to increase their benefits (e.g., better artificial limbs), decrease known risks (e.g., seatbelts in cars), and meet societal demands (e.g., cell phones). Connections to Nature of Science: Science is a Human Endeavor Science affects everyday life. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy W.3.1.a-d: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. W.3.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: K.ESS3.B; K.ETS1.A; 4.ESS3.B; 4.ETS1.A; MS.ESS3.B
LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms
1 standardTitle: 3-LS1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes Performance Expectation: Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death. [Clarification Statement: Changes organisms go through during their life form a pattern.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment of plant life cycles is limited to those of flowering plants. Assessment does not include details of human reproduction.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms Reproduction is essential to the continued existence of every kind of organism. Plants and animals have unique and diverse life cycles. Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop models to describe phenomena. Connections to Nature of Science: Scientific Knowledge is Based on Empirical Evidence Science findings are based on recognizing patterns. Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns of change can be used to make predictions. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle III Natural systems proceed through cycles that humans depend upon, benefit from, and can alter. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.7: Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur). SL.3.5: Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays when appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. 3.NBT.1-3: Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic. 3.NF.1-3: Develop understanding of fractions as numbers. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: MS.LS1.B
LS2.D: Social Interactions and Group Behavior
1 standardTitle: 3-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics Performance Expectation: Construct an argument that some animals form groups that help members survive. Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS2.D: Social Interactions and Group Behavior Being part of a group helps animals obtain food, defend themselves, and cope with changes. Groups may serve different functions and vary dramatically in size (Note: Moved from K-2). Science & Engineering Practices: Engaging in Argument from Evidence Construct an argument with evidence, data, and/or a model. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified and used to explain change. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.1.a-d: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. 3.NBT.1-3: Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 1.LS1.B; MS.LS2.A
LS3.A: Inheritance of Traits, LS3.B: Variation of Traits
2 standardsTitle: 3-LS3 Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits Performance Expectation: Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms. [Clarification Statement: Patterns are the similarities and differences in traits shared between offspring and their parents, or among siblings. Emphasis is on organisms other than humans.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include genetic mechanisms of inheritance and prediction of traits. Assessment is limited to non-human examples.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS3.A: Inheritance of Traits Many characteristics of organisms are inherited from their parents. LS3.B: Variation of Traits Different organisms vary in how they look and function because they have different inherited information. Science & Engineering Practices: Analyzing and Interpreting Data Analyze and interpret data to make sense of phenomena using logical reasoning. Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Similarities and differences in patterns can be used to sort and classify natural phenomena. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.2: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.2.a-d: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. SL.3.4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. a. Plan and deliver an informative/explanatory presentation on a topic that: organizes ideas around major points of information, follows a logical sequence, includes supporting details, uses clear and specific vocabulary, and provides a strong conclusion. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. 3.MD.4: Generate measurement data by measuring lengths using rulers marked with halves and fourths of an inch. Show the data by making a line plot, where the horizontal scale is marked off in appropriate units-whole numbers, halves, or quarters. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 1.LS3.A; 1.LS3.B; MS.LS3.A; MS.LS3.B
Title: 3-LS3 Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits Performance Expectation: Use evidence to support the explanation that traits can be influenced by the environment. [Clarification Statement: Examples of the environment affecting a trait could include normally tall plants grown with insufficient water are stunted; and, a pet dog that is given too much food and little exercise may become overweight.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS3.A: Inheritance of Traits Other characteristics result from individuals' interactions with the environment, which can range from diet to learning. Many characteristics involve both inheritance and environment. LS3.B: Variation of Traits The environment also affects the traits that an organism develops. Science & Engineering Practices: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions Use evidence (e.g., observations, patterns) to support an explanation. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified and used to explain change. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.2: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.2.a-d: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. SL.3.4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. a. Plan and deliver an informative/explanatory presentation on a topic that: organizes ideas around major points of information, follows a logical sequence, includes supporting details, uses clear and specific vocabulary, and provides a strong conclusion. Mathematics MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. 3.MD.4: Generate measurement data by measuring lengths using rulers marked with halves and fourths of an inch. Show the data by making a line plot, where the horizontal scale is marked off in appropriate units-whole numbers, halves, or quarters. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: MS.LS1.B
LS4.A: Evidence of Common Ancestry and Diversity
1 standardTitle: 3-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity Performance Expectation: Analyze and interpret data from fossils to provide evidence of the organisms and the environments in which they lived long ago. [Clarification Statement: Examples of data could include type, size, and distributions of fossil organisms. Examples of fossils and environments could include marine fossils found on dry land, tropical plant fossils found in Arctic areas, and fossils of extinct organisms.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include identification of specific fossils or present plants and animals. Assessment is limited to major fossil types and relative ages.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS4.A: Evidence of Common Ancestry and Diversity Some kinds of plants and animals that once lived on Earth are no longer found anywhere. (Note: moved from K-2) Fossils provide evidence about the types of organisms that lived long ago and also about the nature of their environments. Science & Engineering Practices: Analyzing and Interpreting Data Analyze and interpret data to make sense of phenomena using logical reasoning. Crosscutting Concepts: Scale, Proportion, and Quantity Observable phenomena exist from very short to very long time periods. Connections to Nature of Science: Scientific Knowledge Assumes an Order and Consistency in Natural Systems Science assumes consistent patterns in natural systems. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1.a-d: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.2.a-d: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. W.3.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. 3.MD.4: Generate measurement data by measuring lengths using rulers marked with halves and fourths of an inch. Show the data by making a line plot, where the horizontal scale is marked off in appropriate units-whole numbers, halves, or quarters. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 4.ESS1.C; MS.LS2.A; MS.LS4.A; MS.ESS1.C; MS.ESS2.B
LS4.B: Natural Selection
1 standardTitle: 3-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity Performance Expectation: Use evidence to construct an explanation for how the variations in characteristics among individuals of the same species may provide advantages in surviving, finding mates, and reproducing. [Clarification Statement: Examples of cause and effect relationships could be plants that have larger thorns than other plants may be less likely to be eaten by predators; and, animals that have better camouflage coloration than other animals may be more likely to survive and therefore more likely to leave offspring.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS4.B: Natural Selection Sometimes the differences in characteristics between individuals of the same species provide advantages in surviving, finding mates, and reproducing. Science & Engineering Practices: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions Use evidence (e.g., observations, patterns) to construct an explanation. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified and used to explain change. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1.a-d: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.2.a-d: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. SL.3.4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. a. Plan and deliver an informative/explanatory presentation on a topic that: organizes ideas around major points of information, follows a logical sequence, includes supporting details, uses clear and specific vocabulary, and provides a strong conclusion. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. 3.MD.3: Draw a scaled picture graph and a scaled bar graph to represent a data set with several categories. Solve one- and two-step "how many more" and "how many less" problems using information presented in scaled bar graphs. For example, draw a bar graph in which each square in the bar graph might represent 5 pets. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: 3.LS4.C Articulation across grade-levels: MS.LS2.A; MS.LS3.B; MS.LS4.B
LS4.C: Adaptation
1 standardTitle: 3-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity Performance Expectation: Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all. [Clarification Statement: Examples of evidence could include needs and characteristics of the organisms and habitats involved. The organisms and their habitat make up a system in which the parts depend on each other.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS4.C: Adaptation For any particular environment, some kinds of organisms survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all. Science & Engineering Practices: Engaging in Argument from Evidence Construct an argument with evidence. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified and used to explain change. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1.a-d: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.2.a-d: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. W.3.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. SL.3.4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. a. Plan and deliver an informative/explanatory presentation on a topic that: organizes ideas around major points of information, follows a logical sequence, includes supporting details, uses clear and specific vocabulary, and provides a strong conclusion. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. 3.MD.3: Draw a scaled picture graph and a scaled bar graph to represent a data set with several categories. Solve one- and two-step "how many more" and "how many less" problems using information presented in scaled bar graphs. For example, draw a bar graph in which each square in the bar graph might represent 5 pets. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: 3.ESS2.D Articulation across grade-levels: K.ESS3.A; 2.LS2.A; 2.LS4.D; MS.LS2.A; MS.LS4.B; MS.LS4.C; MS.ESS1.C
LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans
1 standardTitle: 3-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity Performance Expectation: Make a claim about the merit of a solution to a problem caused when the environment changes and the types of plants and animals that live there may change.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of environmental changes could include changes in land characteristics, water distribution, temperature, food, and other organisms.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to a single environmental change. Assessment does not include the greenhouse effect or climate change.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans Populations live in a variety of habitats, and change in those habitats affects the organisms living there. Science & Engineering Practices: Engaging in Argument from Evidence Make a claim about the merit of a solution to a problem by citing relevant evidence about how it meets the criteria and constraints of the problem. Crosscutting Concepts: Systems and System Models A system can be described in terms of its components and their interactions. Connections to Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science: Interdependence of Science, Engineering, and Technology Knowledge of relevant scientific concepts and research findings is important in engineering. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1.a-d: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.2.a-d: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. W.3.1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. W.3.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. SL.3.4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. a. Plan and deliver an informative/explanatory presentation on a topic that: organizes ideas around major points of information, follows a logical sequence, includes supporting details, uses clear and specific vocabulary, and provides a strong conclusion. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: 3.ESS3.B Articulation across grade-levels: K.ESS3.A; K.ETS1.A; 2.LS2.A; 2.LS4.D; 4.ESS3.B; 4.ETS1.A; MS.LS2.A; MS.LS2.C; MS.LS4.C; MS.ESS1.C; MS.ESS3.C
PS2.A: Forces and Motion, PS2.B: Types of Interactions
1 standardTitle: 3-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions Performance Expectation: Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence of the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on the motion of an object. [Clarification Statement: Examples could include an unbalanced force on one side of a ball can make it start moving; and, balanced forces pushing on a box from both sides will not produce any motion at all.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to one variable at a time: number, size, or direction of forces. Assessment does not include quantitative force size, only qualitative and relative. Assessment is limited to gravity being addressed as a force that pulls objects down.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): PS2.A: Forces and Motion Each force acts on one particular object and has both strength and a direction. An object at rest typically has multiple forces acting on it, but they add to give zero net force on the object. Forces that do not sum to zero can cause changes in the object's speed or direction of motion. (Boundary: Qualitative and conceptual, but not quantitative addition of forces are used at this level.) PS2.B: Types of Interactions Objects in contact exert forces on each other. Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Plan and conduct an investigation collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence, using fair tests in which variables are controlled and the number of trials considered. Connections to Nature of Science: Scientific Investigations Use a Variety of Methods Science investigations use a variety of methods, tools, and techniques. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. W.3.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic. W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.5: Use appropriate tools strategically. 3.MD.2: Measure and estimate liquid volumes and masses of objects using standard units of grams (g), kilograms (kg), and liters (l). Add, subtract, multiply, or divide to solve one-step word problems involving masses or volumes that are given in the same units, e.g., by using drawings (such as a beaker with a measurement scale) to represent the problem. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: K.PS2.A; K.PS2.B; K.PS3.C; 5.PS2.B; MS.PS2.A; MS.ESS1.B; MS.ESS2.C
PS2.A: Forces and Motion
1 standardTitle: 3-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions Performance Expectation: Make observations and/or measurements of an object's motion to provide evidence that a pattern can be used to predict future motion. [Clarification Statement: Examples of motion with a predictable pattern could include a child swinging in a swing, a ball rolling back and forth in a bowl, and two children on a see-saw.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include technical terms such as period and frequency.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): PS2.A: Forces and Motion The patterns of an object's motion in various situations can be observed and measured; when that past motion exhibits a regular pattern, future motion can be predicted from it. (Boundary: Technical terms, such as magnitude, velocity, momentum, and vector quantity, are not introduced at this level, but the concept that some quantities need both size and direction to be described is developed.) Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Make observations and/or measurements to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence for an explanation of a phenomenon or test a design solution. Connections to Nature of Science: Science Knowledge is Based on Empirical Evidence Science findings are based on recognizing patterns. Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns Patterns of change can be used to make predictions. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy W.3.7: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic. W.3.8: Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: 1.ESS1.A; 4.PS4.A; MS.PS2.A; MS.ESS1.B
PS2.B: Types of Interactions
2 standardsTitle: 3-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions Performance Expectation: Ask questions to determine cause and effect relationships of electric or magnetic interactions between two objects not in contact with each other. [Clarification Statement: Examples of an electric force could include the force on hair from an electrically charged balloon and the electrical forces between a charged rod and pieces of paper; examples of a magnetic force could include the force between two permanent magnets, the force between an electromagnet and steel paperclips, and the force exerted by one magnet versus the force exerted by two magnets. Examples of cause and effect relationships could include how the distance between objects affects strength of the force and how the orientation of magnets affects the direction of the magnetic force.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to forces produced by objects that can be manipulated by students, and electrical interactions are limited to static electricity.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): PS2.B: Types of Interactions Electric, and magnetic forces between a pair of objects do not require that the objects be in contact. The sizes of the forces in each situation depend on the properties of the objects and their distances apart and, for forces between two magnets, on their orientation relative to each other. Science & Engineering Practices: Asking Questions and Defining Problems Ask questions that can be investigated based on patterns such as cause and effect relationships. Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified, tested, and used to explain change. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: ELA/Literacy RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. RI.3.8: Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence). SL.3.3: Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail. DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: MS.PS2.B
Title: 3-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions Performance Expectation: Define a simple design problem that can be solved by applying scientific ideas about magnets.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of problems could include constructing a latch to keep a door shut and creating a device to keep two moving objects from touching each other.] Disciplinary Core Idea(s): PS2.B: Types of Interactions Electric, and magnetic forces between a pair of objects do not require that the objects be in contact. The sizes of the forces in each situation depend on the properties of the objects and their distances apart and, for forces between two magnets, on their orientation relative to each other. Science & Engineering Practices: Asking Questions and Defining Problems Define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool. Crosscutting Concepts: Connections to Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science: Interdependence of Science, Engineering, and Technology Scientific discoveries about the natural world can often lead to new and improved technologies, which are developed through the Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science process. California Environmental Principles and Concepts: N/A California Common Core State Standards Connections: N/A DCI Connections: Connections to other DCIs in third grade: N/A Articulation across grade-levels: K.ETS1.A; 4.ETS1.A; MS.PS2.B
History
Connect Grade 3 history-social science content with inquiry, evidence, civic understanding, and disciplinary literacy.
24 standards organized into 5 learning categories
History-Social Science Standard 3.1
3 standardsStandard: Students describe the physical and human geography and use maps, tables, graphs, photographs, and charts to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.1 Students describe the physical and human geography and use maps, tables, graphs, photographs, and charts to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context. Standard: Identify geographical features in their local region (e.g., deserts, mountains, valleys, hills, coastal areas, oceans, lakes).
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.1 Students describe the physical and human geography and use maps, tables, graphs, photographs, and charts to organize information about people, places, and environments in a spatial context. Standard: Trace the ways in which people have used the resources of the local region and modified the physical environment (e.g., a dam constructed upstream changed a river or coastline).
History-Social Science Standard 3.2
5 standardsStandard: Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.2 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past. Standard: Describe national identities, religious beliefs, customs, and various folklore traditions.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.2 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past. Standard: Discuss the ways in which physical geography, including climate, influenced how the local Indian nations adapted to their natural environment (e.g., how they obtained food, clothing, tools).
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.2 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past. Standard: Describe the economy and systems of government, particularly those with tribal constitutions, and their relationship to federal and state governments.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.2 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past. Standard: Discuss the interaction of new settlers with the already established Indians of the region.
History-Social Science Standard 3.3
4 standardsStandard: Students draw from historical and community resources to organize the sequence of local historical events and describe how each period of settlement left its mark on the land.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.3 Students draw from historical and community resources to organize the sequence of local historical events and describe how each period of settlement left its mark on the land. Standard: Research the explorers who visited here, the newcomers who settled here, and the people who continue to come to the region, including their cultural and religious traditions and contributions.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.3 Students draw from historical and community resources to organize the sequence of local historical events and describe how each period of settlement left its mark on the land. Standard: Describe the economies established by settlers and their influence on the present-day economy, with emphasis on the importance of private property and entrepreneurship.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.3 Students draw from historical and community resources to organize the sequence of local historical events and describe how each period of settlement left its mark on the land. Standard: Trace why their community was established, how individuals and families contributed to its founding and development, and how the community has changed over time, drawing on maps, photographs, oral histories, letters, newspapers, and other primary sources.
History-Social Science Standard 3.4
7 standardsStandard: Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Standard: Determine the reasons for rules, laws, and the U.S. Constitution; the role of citizenship in the promotion of rules and laws; and the consequences for people who violate rules and laws.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Standard: Discuss the importance of public virtue and the role of citizens, including how to participate in a classroom, in the community, and in civic life.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Standard: Know the histories of important local and national landmarks, symbols, and essential documents that create a sense of community among citizens and exemplify cherished ideals (e.g., the U.S. flag, the bald eagle, the Statue of Liberty, the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Capitol).
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Standard: Understand the three branches of government, with an emphasis on local government.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Standard: Describe the ways in which California, the other states, and sovereign American Indian tribes contribute to the making of our nation and participate in the federal system of government.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Standard: Describe the lives of American heroes who took risks to secure our freedoms (e.g., Anne Hutchinson, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King, Jr.).
History-Social Science Standard 3.5
5 standardsStandard: Students demonstrate basic economic reasoning skills and an understanding of the economy of the local region.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.5 Students demonstrate basic economic reasoning skills and an understanding of the economy of the local region. Standard: Describe the ways in which local producers have used and are using natural resources, human resources, and capital resources to produce goods and services in the past and the present.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.5 Students demonstrate basic economic reasoning skills and an understanding of the economy of the local region. Standard: Understand that some goods are made locally, some elsewhere in the United States, and some abroad.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.5 Students demonstrate basic economic reasoning skills and an understanding of the economy of the local region. Standard: Understand that individual economic choices involve trade-offs and the evaluation of benefits and costs.
Overarching Standard: HSS-3.5 Students demonstrate basic economic reasoning skills and an understanding of the economy of the local region. Standard: Discuss the relationship of students' "work" in school and their personal human capital.
Arts
Review Grade 3 expectations across artistic processes and disciplines to support creation, performance, response, and connection.
64 standards organized into 5 learning categories
Dance
11 standardsEnduring Understanding: Choreographers use a variety of sources as inspiration and transform concepts and ideas into movement for artistic expression. Essential Question(s): Where do choreographers get ideas for dances? Process Component(s): Explore Performance Standard(s): a. Experiment with a variety of self-identified stimuli (e.g., music/sound, text, objects, images, notation, observed dance, experiences) for movement. b. Explore a given movement problem. Select and demonstrate a solution.
Enduring Understanding: As dance is experienced, all personal experiences, knowledge, and contexts are integrated and synthesized to interpret meaning. Essential Question(s): How does dance deepen our understanding of ourselves, other knowledge, and events around us? Process Component(s): Synthesize Performance Standard(s): a. Compare the relationships expressed in a dance to relationships with others. Explain how they are the same or different. b. Ask and research a question about a key aspect of a dance that communicates a perspective about an issue or event. Explore the key aspect through movement. Share movements and describe how the movements help to remember or discover new qualities in these key aspects.
Enduring Understanding: Dance literacy includes deep knowledge and perspectives about societal, cultural, historical, and community contexts. Essential Question(s): How does knowing about societal, cultural, historical and community experiences expand dance literacy? Process Component(s): Relate Performance Standard(s): Find a relationship between movement in a dance from a culture, society, or community and the culture from which the dance is derived. Explain what the movements communicate about key aspects of the culture, society, or community.
Enduring Understanding: The elements of dance, dance structures, and choreographic devices serve as both a foundation and a departure point for choreographers. Essential Question(s): What influences choice-making in creating choreography? Process Component(s): Plan Performance Standard(s): a. Identify and experiment with choreographic devices to create simple movement patterns and dance structures. b. Develop a dance phrase that expresses and communicates an idea or feeling. Discuss the effect of the movement choices.
Enduring Understanding: Choreographers analyze, evaluate, refine, and document their work to communicate meaning Essential Question(s): How do choreographers use self-reflection, feedback from others, and documentation to improve the quality of their work? Process Component(s): Revise Performance Standard(s): Revise movement choices in response to feedback to improve a short dance study. Describe and document the differences the changes made in the movements.
Enduring Understanding: Space, time, and energy are basic elements of dance. Essential Question(s): How do dancers work with space, time and energy to communicate artistic expression? Process Component(s): Express Performance Standard(s): a. Judge spaces as distance traveled and use space three dimensionally Demonstrate shapes with positive and negative space. Perform movement sequences in and through space with intentionality and focus. b. Fulfill specified duration of time with improvised locomotor and non-locomotor movements. Differentiate between "in time" and "out of time" to music. Perform movements that are the same or of a different time orientation to accompaniment. Use metric and kinesthetic phrasing. c. Change use of energy and dynamics by modifying movements and applying specific characteristics to heighten the effect of their intent.
Enduring Understanding: Dancers use the mind-body connection and develop the body as an instrument for artistry and artistic expression. Essential Question(s): What must a dancer do to prepare the mind and body for artistic expression? Process Component(s): Embody Performance Standard(s): a. Replicate body shapes, movement characteristics, and movement patterns in a dance sequence with awareness of body alignment and core support. b. Adjust body-use to coordinate with a partner or other dancers to safely change levels, directions, and pathway designs. c. Recall movement sequences with a partner or in group dance activities. Apply constructive feedback from teacher and self-check to improve dance skills.
Enduring Understanding: Dance performance is an interaction between performer, production elements, and audience that heightens and amplifies artistic expression. Essential Question(s): How does a dancer heighten artistry in a public performance? Process Component(s): Present Performance Standard(s): a. Identify the main areas of a performance space using production terminology (e.g., stage right, stage left, center stage, upstage, and downstage). b. Explore production elements for a dance performed for an audience in a designated specific performance space.
Enduring Understanding: Dance is perceived and analyzed to comprehend its meaning. Essential Question(s): How is a dance understood? Process Component(s): Analyze Performance Standard(s): a. Find a movement pattern that creates a movement phrase in a dance work. b. Demonstrate and explain how one dance genre is similar to and different from another, or how one cultural movement practice is similar to and different from another.
Enduring Understanding: Dance is interpreted by considering intent, meaning, and artistic expression as communicated through the use of the body, elements of dance, dance technique, dance structure, and context. Essential Question(s): How is dance interpreted? Process Component(s): Interpret Performance Standard(s): Select specific context cues from movement. Explain how they relate to the main idea of the dance using basic dance terminology.
Enduring Understanding: Criteria for evaluating dance vary across genres, styles, and cultures Essential Question(s): What criteria are used to evaluate dance? Process Component(s): Critique Performance Standard(s): Select dance movements from specific genres, styles, or cultures. Identify characteristic movements from these dances and describe in basic dance terminology ways in which they are similar and different.
Media Arts
11 standardsEnduring Understanding: : Media artworks synthesize meaning and form cultural experience. Essential Question(s): How do we relate knowledge and experiences to understanding and making media artworks? How do we learn about and create meaning through producing media artworks? Process Component(s): Synthesize Performance Standard(s): a. Use personal and external resources, such as interests, information, and models, to create media artworks. b. Identify and show how media artworks form meanings, situations, and/or culture, such as popular media.
Enduring Understanding: Media artworks and ideas are better understood and produced by relating them to their purposes, values, and various contexts. Essential Question(s): How does media arts relate to its various contexts, purposes, and values? How does investigating these relationships inform and deepen the media artist's understanding and work? Process Component(s): Relate Performance Standard(s): a. Identify how media artworks and ideas relate to everyday life and culture and can influence values and online behavior. b. Examine and interact appropriately with media arts tools and environments, considering safety, rules, and fairness.
Enduring Understanding: Media arts ideas, works, and processes are shaped by the imagination, creative processes, and by experiences, both within and outside of the arts. Essential Question(s): How do media artists generate ideas? How can ideas for media arts productions be formed and developed to be effective and original? Process Component(s): Conceive Performance Standard(s): Develop multiple ideas for media artworks using a variety of tools, methods and/or materials.
Enduring Understanding: Media artists plan, organize, and develop creative ideas and models into process structures that can effectively realize the artistic idea. Essential Question(s): How do media artists organize and develop ideas and models into process structures to achieve the desired end product? Process Component(s): Develop Performance Standard(s): Form, share, and test ideas, plans, and/or models to prepare for media arts productions.
Enduring Understanding: The forming, integration, and refinement of aesthetic components, principles, and processes creates purpose, meaning, and artistic quality in media artworks. Essential Question(s): What is required to produce a media artwork that conveys purpose, meaning, and artistic quality? How do media artists refine their work? Process Component(s): Construct Performance Standard(s): a. Construct and order various content into unified, purposeful media arts productions, describing and applying a defined set of aesthetic principles, such as movement and force. b. Practice and analyze how the emphasis of elements alters effect and purpose in refining and completing media artworks.
Enduring Understanding: Media artists integrate various forms and contents to develop complex, unified artworks. Essential Question(s): How are complex media arts experiences constructed? Process Component(s): Integrate Performance Standard(s): Practice combining varied academic, arts, and media forms and content, such as animation, music, and dance, into unified media artworks.
Enduring Understanding: Media artists require a range of skills and abilities to creatively solve problems within and through media arts productions. Essential Question(s): What skills are required for creating effective media artworks and how are they improved? How are creativity and innovation developed within and through media arts productions? How do media artists use various tools and techniques? Process Component(s): Practice Performance Standard(s): a. Exhibit developing ability in a variety of artistic, design, technical, and organizational roles, such as making compositional decisions, manipulating tools, and group planning, in media arts productions. b. Exhibit basic creative skills, such as standard use of tools, to invent new content and solutions within and through media arts productions.
Enduring Understanding: Media artists purposefully present, share, and distribute media artworks for various contexts. Essential Question(s): How does time, place, audience, and context affect presenting or performing choices for media artworks? Process Component(s): Present Performance Standard(s): Identify and describe the presentation conditions, audience, and results of presenting media artworks.
Enduring Understanding: Identifying the qualities and characteristics of media artworks improves one's artistic appreciation and production. Essential Question(s): How do we 'read' media artworks and discern their relational components? How do media artworks function to convey meaning and manage audience experience? Process Component(s): Perceive Performance Standard(s): a. Identify and describe how messages are created by components in media artworks. b. Identify and describe how various forms, methods, and styles in media artworks manage audience experience.
Enduring Understanding: Interpretation and appreciation require consideration of the intent, form, and context of the media and artwork. Essential Question(s): How do people relate to and interpret media artworks? Process Component(s): Interpret Performance Standard(s): Determine the purposes and meanings of media artworks while describing their context.
Enduring Understanding: Skillful evaluation and critique are critical components of experiencing, appreciating, and producing media artworks. Essential Question(s): How and why do media artists value and judge media artworks? When and how should we evaluate and critique media artworks to improve them? Process Component(s): Evaluate Performance Standard(s): Identify basic criteria for and evaluate media artworks and production processes, considering possible improvements and their context.
Music
15 standardsEnduring Understanding: Musicians connect their personal interests, experiences, ideas, and knowledge to creating, performing, and responding. Essential Question(s): How do musicians make meaningful connections to creating, performing, and responding? Process Component(s): Synthesize Performance Standard(s): Identify and demonstrate how personal interests, experiences, and ideas relate to creating, performing, and responding to music.
Enduring Understanding: Musicians connect societal, cultural, and historical contexts when creating, performing, and responding. Essential Question(s): How do musicians make meaningful connections to societal, cultural, and historical contexts when creating, performing, and responding? Process Component(s): Relate Performance Standard(s): Identify and demonstrate connections between music and societal, cultural, and historical contexts.
Enduring Understanding: The creative ideas, concepts, and feelings that influence musicians' work emerge from a variety of sources. Essential Question(s): How do musicians generate creative ideas? Process Component(s): Imagine Performance Standard(s): a. Improvise rhythmic and melodic ideas and describe connection to specific purpose and context (such as personal and social). b. Generate musical ideas (such as rhythms and melodies) within a given tonality and/or meter.
Enduring Understanding: Musicians' creative choices are influenced by their expertise, context, and expressive intent Essential Question(s): How do musicians make creative decisions? Process Component(s): Plan & Make Performance Standard(s): a. Demonstrate selected musical ideas for a simple improvisation or composition to express intent and describe connection to a specific purpose and context. b. Use standard and/or iconic notation and/or recording technology to document personal rhythmic and melodic musical ideas.
Enduring Understanding: 3.1 Musicians evaluate, and refine their work through openness to new ideas, persistence, and the application of appropriate criteria. Essential Question(s): How do musicians improve the quality of their creative work? Process Component(s): Evaluate and Refine Performance Standard(s): Evaluate, refine, and document revisions to personal musical ideas, applying teacher-provided and collaboratively developed criteria and feedback.
Enduring Understanding: 3.2 Musicians' presentation of creative work is the culmination of a process of creation and communication. Essential Question(s): When is creative work ready to share? Process Component(s): Present Performance Standard(s): Present the final version of personal created music to others and describe connection to expressive intent.
Enduring Understanding: 4.1 Performers' interest in and knowledge of musical works, understanding of their own technical skill, and the context for a performance influence the selection of repertoire. Essential Question(s): How do performers select repertoire? Process Component(s): Select Performance Standard(s): Demonstrate and explain how the selection of music to perform is influenced by personal interest, knowledge, purpose, and context.
Enduring Understanding: 4.2 Analyzing creators' context and how they manipulate elements of music provides insight into their intent and informs performance. Essential Question(s): How does understanding the structure and context of musical works inform performance? Process Component(s): Analyze Performance Standard(s): a. Demonstrate understanding of the structure in music selected from a variety of cultures for performance. b. When analyzing selected music, read and perform rhythmic patterns and melodic phrases using iconic and standard notation. c. Describe how context (such as personal and social) can inform a performance.
Enduring Understanding: 4.3 Performers make interpretive decisions based on their understanding of context and expressive intent. Essential Question(s): How do performers interpret musical works? Process Component(s): Interpret Performance Standard(s): Demonstrate and describe how intent is conveyed through expressive qualities (such as voice quality, dynamics and tempo).
Enduring Understanding: To express their musical ideas, musicians analyze, evaluate, and refine their performance over time through openness to new ideas, persistence, and the application of appropriate criteria. Essential Question(s): How do musicians improve the quality of their performance? Process Component(s): Rehearse, Evaluate, and Refine Performance Standard(s): a. Apply teacher provided and collaboratively developed criteria and feedback to evaluate accuracy of ensemble performances. b. Rehearse to refine technical accuracy, expressive qualities, and identified performance challenges.
Enduring Understanding: Musicians judge performance based on criteria that vary across time, place, and cultures. The context and how a work is presented influence audience response. Essential Question(s): When is a performance judged ready to present? How do context and the manner in which musical work is presented influence audience response? Process Component(s): Present Performance Standard(s): a. Perform music for a specific purpose with expression and technical accuracy. b. Demonstrate performance decorum and audience etiquette appropriate for the context and venue.
Enduring Understanding: 7.1 Individuals' selection of musical works is influenced by their interests, experiences, understandings, and purposes. Essential Question(s): How do individuals choose music to experience? Process Component(s): Select Performance Standard(s): Demonstrate and describe how selected music connects to and is influenced by specific interests, experiences, or purposes.
Enduring Understanding: 7.2 Response to music is informed by analyzing context (social, cultural, and historical) and how creators and performers manipulate the elements of music. Essential Question(s): How do individuals choose music to experience? Process Component(s): Analyze Performance Standard(s): Demonstrate and describe how a response to music can be informed by the structure, the use of the elements of music, and context (such as personal and social).
Enduring Understanding: Through their use of elements and structures of music, creators and performers provide clues to their expressive intent. Essential Question(s): How do we discern the musical creators' and performers' expressive intent? Process Component(s): Interpret Performance Standard(s): Demonstrate and describe how expressive qualities (such as dynamics, tempo, and timbre) are used in performers' personal interpretations to reflect creators' expressive intent.
Enduring Understanding: The personal evaluation of musical work(s) and performance(s) is informed by analysis, interpretation, and established criteria. Essential Question(s): How do we judge the quality of musical work(s) and performance(s)? Process Component(s): Evaluate Performance Standard(s): Evaluate musical works and performances, applying established criteria, and describe appropriateness to the context.
Theatre
12 standardsEnduring Understanding: Theatre artists allow awareness of interrelationships between self and others to influence and inform their work. Essential Question(s): What happens when theatre artists foster understanding between self and others through critical awareness, social responsibility, and the exploration of empathy? Process Component(s): Empathize Performance Standard(s): Use personal experiences and knowledge to make connections to community and culture in a drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: 11.1 Theatre artists understand and can communicate through their creative process as they analyze the way the world may be understood. Essential Question(s): What happens when theatre artists allow an understanding of themselves and the world to inform perceptions about theatre and the purpose of their work? Process Component(s): Interrelate Performance Standard(s): a. Identify connections to community, social issues and other content areas in drama/theatre work. b. Identify responsible practices for creating and adapting drama/theatre works.
Enduring Understanding: 11.2 Theatre artists critically inquire into the ways others have thought about and created drama processes and productions to inform their own work. Essential Question(s): In what ways can research into theatre histories, theories, literature, and performances alter the way a drama process or production is understood? Process Component(s): Research Performance Standard(s): a. Explore how stories are adapted from literature to drama/theatre work. b. Examine how artists have historically presented the same stories using different art forms, genres, or drama/theatre conventions.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists rely on intuition, curiosity, culture, and critical inquiry. Essential Question(s): What happens when theatre artists use their culture, imaginations and/or learned theatre skills while engaging in creative exploration and inquiry? Process Component(s): Envision,Conceptualize Performance Standard(s): a. Create roles, imagined worlds, and improvised stories in a drama/theatre work.b. Collaborate to determine how characters might move and speak to support the story and given circumstances in drama/theatre work.c. Imagine and articulate ideas for costumes, props and sets for the environment and characters in a drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists work to discover different ways of communicating meaning. Essential Question(s): How, when, and why do theatre artists' choices change? Process Component(s): Develop Performance Standard(s): a. Participate in methods of investigation to devise original ideas for a drama/theatre work. b. Compare ideas with peers and make revisions that will enhance and deepen group drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists refine their work and practice their craft through rehearsal. Essential Question(s): How do theatre artists transform and edit their initial ideas? Process Component(s): Rehearse Performance Standard(s): a. Collaborate with peers to revise, refine, and adapt ideas to fit the given parameters of a drama/theatre work. b. Participate and contribute to physical and vocal exploration in an improvised or scripted drama/theatre work. c. Refine design choices and technical theatre elements to support a devised or scripted drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists make strong choices to effectively convey meaning. Essential Question(s): Why are strong choices essential to interpreting a drama or theatre piece? Process Component(s): Select Performance Standard(s): a. Apply the elements of dramatic structure to a story and create a drama/theatre work. b. Explore how movement and voice are incorporated into drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists develop personal processes and skills for a performance or design. Essential Question(s): What can I do to fully prepare a performance or technical design? Process Component(s): Prepare Performance Standard(s): a. Participate in a variety of physical, vocal, and cognitive exercises that can be used in a group setting for drama/theatre work. b. Identify the basic technical theatre elements that can be used in drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists share and present stories, ideas, and envisioned worlds to explore the human experience in diverse cultures. Essential Question(s): What happens when theatre artists and audiences share a creative experience? Process Component(s): Share, Present Performance Standard(s): Share small-group drama/theatre work, with peers as audience.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists reflect to understand the impact of drama processes and theatre experiences. Essential Question(s): How do theatre artists comprehend the essence of drama processes and theatre experiences? Process Component(s): Reflect Performance Standard(s): Understand and discuss why artistic choices are made in a drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists' interpretations of drama/theatre work are influenced by personal experiences, culture, and aesthetics. Essential Question(s): How can the same work of art communicate different messages to different people? Process Component(s): Interpret Performance Standard(s): a. Consider multiple personal experiences when participating in or observing a drama/theatre work. b. Consider multiple ways to develop a character using physical characteristics and prop or costume design choices that reflect cultural perspectives in drama/theatre work. c. Examine how connections are made between oneself and a character's emotions in drama/theatre work.
Enduring Understanding: Theatre artists apply criteria to understand, explore, and assess drama and theatre work. Essential Question(s): How do analysis and synthesis impact the theatre artist's process and audience's perspectives? Process Component(s): Evaluate Performance Standard(s): a. Understand how and why groups evaluate drama/theatre work. b. Evaluate and analyze problems and situations in a drama/theatre work from an audience perspective. c. Consider and analyze technical theatre elements from multiple drama/theatre works.
Visual Arts
15 standardsEnduring Understanding: Through artmaking, people make meaning by investigating and developing awareness of perceptions, knowledge, and experiences. Essential Question(s): How does engaging in creating art enrich people's lives? How does making art attune people to their surroundings? How do people contribute to awareness and understanding of their lives and the lives of their communities through artmaking? Process Component(s): Synthesize Performance Standard(s): Develop a work of art based on observations of surroundings.
Enduring Understanding: People develop ideas and understandings of society, culture, and history through their interactions with and analysis of art. Essential Question(s): How does art help us understand the lives of people of different times, places, and cultures? How is art used to impact the views of a society? How does art preserve aspects of life? Process Component(s): Relate Performance Standard(s): Recognize that responses to art change depending on knowledge of the time and place in which it was made.
Enduring Understanding: 1.1 Creativity and innovative thinking are essential life skills that can be developed. Essential Question(s): What conditions, attitudes, and behaviors support creativity and innovative thinking? What factors prevent or encourage people to take creative risks? How does collaboration expand the creative process? Process Component(s): Imagine, Plan, Make Performance Standard(s): Elaborate on an imaginative idea.
Enduring Understanding: 1.2 Artists and designers shape artistic investigations, following or breaking with traditions in pursuit of creative artmaking goals. Essential Question(s): How does knowing the contexts, histories, and traditions of art forms help us create works of art and design? Why do artists follow or break from established traditions? How do artists determine what resources and criteria are needed to formulate artistic Process Component(s): Imagine, Plan, Make Performance Standard(s): Apply knowledge of available resources, tools, and technologies to investigate personal ideas through the art-making process.
Enduring Understanding: 2.1 Artists and designers experiment with forms, structures, materials, concepts, media, and art-making approaches. Essential Question(s): How do artists work? How do artists and designers determine whether a particular direction in their work is effective? How do artists and designers learn from trial and error? Process Component(s): Investigate Performance Standard(s): Create personally satisfying artwork using a variety of artistic processes and materials.
Enduring Understanding: 2.2 Artists and designers balance experimentation and safety, freedom and responsibility while developing and creating artworks. Essential Question(s): How do artists and designers care for and maintain materials, tools, and equipment? Why is it important for safety and health to understand and follow correct procedures in handling materials, tools, and equipment? What responsibilities come with the free Process Component(s): Investigate Performance Standard(s): Demonstrate an understanding of the safe and proficient use of materials, tools, and equipment for a variety of artistic processes.
Enduring Understanding: 2.3 People create and interact with objects, places, and design that define, shape, enhance, and empower their lives. Essential Question(s): How do objects, places, and design shape lives and communities? How do artists and designers determine goals for designing or redesigning objects, places, or systems? How do artists and designers create works of art or design that communicate effectively? Process Component(s): Investigate Performance Standard(s): Individually or collaboratively construct representations, diagrams, or maps of places that are part of everyday life.
Enduring Understanding: Artists and designers develop excellence through practice and constructive critique to reflect on, revise, and refine work over time. Essential Question(s): What role does persistence play in revising, refining, and developing work? How do artists grow and become accomplished in art forms? How does collaboratively reflecting on a work help us experience it more completely? Process Component(s): Reflect, Refine, Revise Performance Standard(s): Discuss, reflect, and add details to enhance an artwork's emerging meaning.
Enduring Understanding: Artists and other presenters consider various techniques, methods, venues, and criteria when analyzing, selecting, and curating objects artifacts, and artworks for preservation and presentation. Essential Question(s): How are artworks cared for and by whom? What criteria, methods, and processes are used to select work for preservation or presentation? Why do people value objects, artifacts, and artworks, and select them for presentation? Process Component(s): Select, Analyze Performance Standard(s): Investigate and discuss possibilities and limitations of spaces, including electronic, for exhibiting artwork.
Enduring Understanding: Artists, curators and others consider a variety of factors and methods including evolving technologies when preparing and refining artwork for display and or when deciding if and how to preserve and protect it. Essential Question(s): What methods, processes and criteria are considered when preparing artwork for presentation, preservation, portfolio, or collection? How does assessing choices for presentation affect its meaning to the viewer? Process Component(s): Prepare Performance Standard(s): Identify exhibit space and prepare works of art, including artists' statements, for presentation.
Enduring Understanding: Objects, artifacts, and artworks collected, preserved, or presented either by artists, museums, or other venues communicate meaning and a record of social, cultural, and political experiences resulting in the cultivating of appreciation and understanding. Essential Question(s): What is an art museum? How does the presenting and sharing of objects, artifacts, and artworks influence and shape ideas, beliefs, and experiences? How do objects, artifacts, and artworks that are collected, preserved, or presented, cultivate appreciation Process Component(s): Present Performance Standard(s): Investigate and explain how and where different cultures record and illustrate stories and history of life through art.
Enduring Understanding: 7.1 Individual aesthetic and empathetic awareness developed through engagement with art can lead to understanding and appreciation of self, others, the natural world, and constructed environments. Essential Question(s): How do life experiences influence the way you relate to art? How does learning about art impact how we perceive the world? What can we learn from our responses to art? Process Component(s): Perceive Performance Standard(s): Speculate about processes an artist uses to create a work of art.
Enduring Understanding: 7.2 Visual imagery influences understanding of and responses to the world. Essential Question(s): What is an image? Where and how do we encounter images in our world? How do images influence our views of the world? Process Component(s): Perceive, Analyze Performance Standard(s): Determine messages communicated by an image.
Enduring Understanding: People gain insights into meanings of artworks by engaging in the process of art criticism. Essential Question(s): What is the value of engaging in the process of art criticism? How can the viewer "read" a work of art as text? How does knowing and using visual arts vocabularies help us understand and interpret works of art? Process Component(s): Interpret Performance Standard(s): Interpret art by analyzing use of media to create subject matter, characteristics of form, and mood.
Enduring Understanding: People evaluate art based on various criteria. Essential Question(s): How does one determine criteria to evaluate a work of art? How and why might criteria vary? How is a personal preference different from an evaluation? Process Component(s): Evaluate Performance Standard(s): Evaluate an artwork based on given criteria.
Health
Use these Grade 3 health expectations to support accurate information, healthy choices, communication, and student well-being.
40 standards organized into 3 learning categories
Growth and Development
10 standardsStandard: Describe the cycle of birth, growth, aging, and death in living things.
Standard: Recognize that there are individual differences in growth and development.
Standard: Identify major internal and external body parts and their functions.
Standard: Explain how individual behaviors and one's family and school influence growth and development.
Standard: Identify parents, guardians, and trusted adults with whom one can discuss the cycle of birth, growth, aging, and death in living things.
Standard: Demonstrate how to communicate with parents, guardians, and trusted adults about growth and development.
Standard: Identify how to show respect for individual differences.
Standard: Examine why a variety of behaviors promote healthy growth and development.
Standard: Determine behaviors that promote healthy growth and development.
Standard: Encourage peers to show respect for others regardless of differences in growth and development.
Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
14 standardsStandard: Describe examples of healthy social behaviors (e.g., helping others, being respectful of others, cooperation, consideration).
Standard: Describe the importance of assuming responsibility within the family and community.
Standard: Explain the benefits of having positive relationships with family and friends.
Standard: Discuss the importance of setting (and ways to set) personal boundaries for privacy, safety, and expression of emotions.
Standard: Describe internal and external factors that affect friendships and family relationships.
Standard: Access trusted adults at home, at school, and in the community who can help with mental, emotional, and social health concerns.
Standard: Demonstrate how to communicate directly, respectfully, and assertively regarding personal boundaries.
Standard: Describe effective strategies to cope with changes within the family.
Standard: Evaluate situations in which a trusted adult should be asked for help.
Standard: Make a plan to help at home and show responsibility as a family member.
Standard: Evaluate effective strategies to cope with fear, stress, anger, loss, and grief in oneself and others.
Standard: Promote a positive and respectful school environment.
Standard: Object appropriately to teasing of peers and family members that is based on personal characteristics.
Standard: Demonstrate the ability to support and respect people with differences.
Personal and Community Health
16 standardsStandard: Examine the difference between communicable and non-communicable diseases.
Standard: Describe how bacteria and viruses affect the body.
Standard: Identify positive health practices that reduce illness and disease.
Standard: Identify life-threatening conditions (e.g., heart attacks, asthma attacks, poisoning).
Standard: Describe how a healthy environment is essential to personal and community health.
Standard: Discuss how reducing, recycling, and reusing products make for a healthier environment.
Standard: Identify how culture, family, friends, and media influence positive health practices.
Standard: Recognize individuals who can assist with health-related issues and potentially life-threatening health conditions (e.g., asthma episodes or seizures).
Standard: Describe how to access help when feeling threatened.
Standard: Demonstrate refusal skills to avoid the spread of disease.
Standard: Use a decision-making process to reduce the risk of communicable disease or illness.
Standard: Set a short-term goal for positive health practices.
Standard: Evaluate ways to prevent the transmission of communicable diseases.
Standard: Demonstrate ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle at home, at school, and in the community.
Standard: Support others in making positive health choices.
Standard: Encourage others to promote a healthy environment.
Computer Science
Support computational thinking, responsible technology use, collaboration, and age-appropriate problem solving.
23 standards organized into 5 learning categories
Algorithms & Programming
10 standardsStandard: Compare and refine multiple algorithms for the same task and determine which is the most appropriate. Descriptive Statement: Different algorithms can achieve the same result, though sometimes one algorithm might be more appropriate for a specific solution. Students examine different ways to solve the same task and decide which would be the better solution for the specific scenario. For example, students could use a map and create multiple algorithms to model the early land and sea routes to and from European settlements in California. They could then compare and refine their algorithms to reflect faster travel times, shorter distances, or avoid specific characteristics, such as mountains, deserts, ocean currents, and wind patterns. (HSS.4.2.2) Alternatively, students could identify multiple algorithms for decomposing a fraction into a sum of fractions with the same denominator and record each decomposition with an equation (e.g., 2 1/8 = 1 + 1 + 1/8 = 8/8 + 8/8 + 1/8). Students could then select the most efficient algorithm (e.g., fewest number of steps). (CA CCSS for Mathematics 4.NF.3b) Additionally, students could compare algorithms that describe how to get ready for school and modify them for supporting different goals including having time to care for a pet, being able to talk with a friend before classes start, or taking a longer route to school to accompany a younger sibling to their school first. Students could then write an opinion piece, justifying with reasons their selected algorithm is most appropriate. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.1, W.4.1, W.5.1)
Standard: Create programs that use variables to store and modify data. Descriptive Statement: Variables are used to store and modify data. Students use variables in programs they create. At this level, students may need guidance in identifying when to create variables (i.e., performing the abstraction). For example, students could create a game to represent predators and prey in an ecosystem. They could declare a "score" variable, assign it to 0 at the start of the game, and add 1 (increment) the score each time the predator captures its prey. They could also declare a second "numberOfLives" variable, assign it to 3 at the start of the game, and subtract 1 (decrement) each time a prey is captured. They could program the game to end when "numberOfLives" equals 0. (CA NGSS: 5-LS2-1) (CA CCSS for Mathematics 5.OA.3) Alternatively, when students create programs to draw regular polygons, they could use variables to store the line size, line color, and/or side length. Students can extend learning by creatively combining a variety of polygons to create digital artwork, comparing and contrasting this to another work of art made by the use of different art tools and media, such as watercolor or tempera paints. (CA CCSS for Mathematics 3.G.1) (VAPA Visual Arts 3.1.4)
Standard: Create programs that include events, loops, and conditionals. Descriptive Statement: Control structures specify the order (sequence) in which instructions are executed within a program and can be combined to support the creation of more complex programs. Events allow portions of a program to run based on a specific action. Conditionals allow for the execution of a portion of code in a program when a certain condition is true. Loops allow for the repetition of a sequence of code multiple times. For example, students could program an interactive map of the United States of America. They could use events to initiate a question when the user clicks on a state and conditionals to check whether the user input is correct. They could use loops to repeat the question until the user answers correctly or to control the length of a "congratulations" scenario that plays after a correct answer. (HSS.5.9) Alternatively, students could write a math fluency game that asks products of two one-digit numbers and then uses a conditional to check whether or not the answer that was entered is correct. They could use a loop to repeatedly ask another question. They could use events to allow the user to click on a green button to play again or a red button to end the game. (CA CCSS for Mathematics 3.OA.7) Additionally, students could create a program as a role-playing game based on a literary work. Loops could be used to animate a character's movement. When reaching a decision point in the story, an event could initiate the user to type a response. A conditional could change the setting or have the story play out differently based on the user input. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy RL.5.3)
Standard: Decompose problems into smaller, manageable tasks which may themselves be decomposed. Descriptive Statement: Decomposition is the act of breaking down tasks into simpler tasks. This manages complexity in the problem solving and program development process. For example, students could create an animation to represent a story they have written. Students write a story and then break it down into different scenes. For each scene, they would select a background, place characters, and program actions in that scene. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.3, W.4.3, W.5.3) Alternatively, students could create a program to allow classmates to present data collected in an experiment. For example, if students collected rain gauge data once per week for 3 months, students could break down the program tasks: 1) ask the user to input 12 weeks' worth of data, 2) process the data (e.g., add the first four entries to calculate the rain amount for month 1, convert to metric system measurements), and 3) direct the creation or resizing of objects (e.g., one rectangular chart bar for each month) to represent the total number of rainfall for that month. (CA NGSS: 3-ETS-1-2) (CA CCSS for Mathematics 3.MD.2)
Standard: Create programs by incorporating smaller portions of existing programs, to develop something new or add more advanced features. Descriptive Statement: Programs can be broken down into smaller parts, which can be incorporated into new or existing programs. Students incorporate predefined functions into their original designs. At this level, students do not need to understand all of the underlying implementation details of the abstractions that they use. For example, students could use code from a ping pong animation to make a ball bounce in a new basketball game. They could also incorporate code from a single-player basketball game to create a two-player game with slightly different rules. Alternatively, students could remix an animated story and add their own conclusion and/or additional dialogue. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.3.B, W.3.3.D, W.4.3.B, W.4.3.E, W.5.3.B, W.5.3.E) Additionally, when creating a game that occurs on the moon or planets, students could incorporate and modify code that simulates gravity on Earth. They could modify the strength of the gravitational force based on the mass of the planet or moon. (CA NGSS: 5-PS2-1)
Standard: Use an iterative process to plan and develop a program by considering the perspectives and preferences of others. Descriptive Statement: Planning is an important part of the iterative process of program development. Students gain a basic understanding of the importance and process of planning before beginning to write code for a program. They plan the development of a program by outlining key features, time and resource constraints, and user expectations. Students should document the plan as, for example, a storyboard, flowchart, pseudocode, or story map. For example, students could collaborate with a partner to plan and develop a program that graphs a function. They could iteratively modify the program based on feedback from diverse users, such as students who are color blind and may have trouble differentiating lines on a graph based on the color. (CA CCSS for Mathematics 5.G.1, 5.G.2) Alternatively, students could plan as a team to develop a program to display experimental data. They could implement the program in stages, generating basic displays first and then soliciting feedback from others on how easy it is to interpret (e.g., are labels clear and readable?, are lines thick enough?, are titles understandable?). Students could iteratively improve their display to make it more readable and to better support the communication of the finding of the experiment. (NGSS.3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3)
Standard: Observe intellectual property rights and give appropriate attribution when creating, remixing, or combining programs. Descriptive Statement: Intellectual property rights can vary by country, but copyright laws give the creator of a work a set of rights and prevents others from copying the work and using it in ways that they may not like. Students consider common licenses that place limitations or restrictions on the use of others' work, such as images and music downloaded from the Internet. When incorporating the work of others, students attribute the work. At this level, students could give attribution by including credits or links directly in their programs, code comments, or separate project pages. For example, when making a program to model the life cycle of a butterfly, students could modify and reuse an existing program that describes the life cycle of a frog. Based on their research, students could identify and use Creative Commons-licensed or public domain images and sounds of caterpillars and butterflies. Students give attribution by properly citing the source of the original piece as necessary. (CA NGSS: 3-LS-1-1) (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.8, W.4.8, W.5.8) Alternatively, when creating a program explaining the structure of the United States goverment, students find Creative Commons-licensed or public domain images to represent the three branches of government and attribute ownership of the images appropriately. If students find and incorporate an audio file of a group playing part of the national anthem, they appropriately give attribution on the project page. (HSS.3.4.4)
Standard: Test and debug a program or algorithm to ensure it accomplishes the intended task. Descriptive Statement: Programs do not always run properly. Students need to understand how to test and make necessary corrections to their programs to ensure they run properly. Students successfully identify and fix errors in (debug) their programs and programs created by others. Debugging strategies at this level may include testing to determine the first place the solution is in error and fixing accordingly, leaving "breadcrumbs" in a program, and soliciting assistance from peers and online resources. For example, when students are developing a program to control the movement of a robot in a confined space, students test various inputs that control movement of the robot to make sure it behaves as intended (e.g., if an input would cause the robot to move past a wall of the confined space, it should not move at all). (CA NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-3) Additionally, students could test and debug an algorithm by tracing the inputs and outputs on a whiteboard. When noticing "bugs" (errors), students could identify what was supposed to happen and step through the algorithm to locate and then correct the error.
Standard: Perform different roles when collaborating with peers during the design, implementation, and review stages of program development. Descriptive Statement: Collaborative computing is the process of creating computational artifacts by working in pairs or on teams. It involves asking for the contributions and feedback of others. Effective collaboration can often lead to better outcomes than working independently. With teacher guidance, students take turns in different roles during program development, such as driver, navigator, notetaker, facilitator, and debugger, as they design and implement their program. For example, while taking on different roles during program development, students could create and maintain a journal about their experiences working collaboratively. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.10, W.4.10, W.5.10) (CA NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-2)
Standard: Describe choices made during program development using code comments, presentations, and demonstrations. Descriptive Statement: People communicate about their code to help others understand and use their programs. Explaining one's design choices gives others a better understanding of one's work. Students may explain their step-by-step process of creating a program in a presentation or demonstration of their personal code journals. They describe how comments within code organize thought and process during the develpment of the program. For example, students could describe the decision to have the score in a game flash when it can be rounded to 100 by writing a comment in the code. (CA CCSS for Mathematics 3.NBT.1) Alternatively, students could present their overall program development experience and justify choices made by using storyboards, annotated images, videos, and/or journal entries. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy SL.3.4, SL.4.4, SL.5.4, SL.3.5, SL.4.5, SL.5.5) (CA NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-1, 3.5-ETS1-2, 3.5-ETS1-3)
Computing Systems
3 standardsStandard: Describe how computing devices connect to other components to form a system. Descriptive Statement: Computing devices often depend on other devices or components. Students describe physical and wireless connections to other components, including both input devices (e.g., keyboards, sensors, remote controls, microphones) and output devices (e.g., 3D printers, monitors, speakers). For example, students could describe the relationship among the heart, lungs, muscles, blood, and oxygen during physical activity and then compare this to how a mouse, keyboard, printer, and desktop computer connect and interact to allow for input, processing, and output. (P.E.3.4.7) Alternatively, when describing how light reflected from objects enters the eye and is then transferred to the brain to construct a visual image, students could compare this to a computing system that uses programming to construct a visual image when data is transferred and constructed/reconstructed through a keyboard, camera, or other components. (CA NGSS: 4-PS4-2)
Standard: Demonstrate how computer hardware and software work together as a system to accomplish tasks. Descriptive Statement: Hardware and software are both needed to accomplish tasks with a computing device. Students create a model to illustrate ways in which hardware and software work as a system. Students could draw a model on paper or in a drawing program, program an animation to demonstrate it, or demonstrate it by acting this out in some way. At this level, a model should only include the basic elements of a computer system, such as input, output, processor, sensors, and storage. For example, students could create a diagram or flow chart to indicate how a keyboard, desktop computer, monitor, and word processing software interact with each other. The keyboard (hardware) detects a key press, which the operating system and word processing application (software) displays as a new character that has been inserted into the document and is visible through the monitor (hardware). Students could also create a model by acting out the interactions of these different hardware and software components. Alternatively, when describing that animals and people receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brain, and respond to the information in different ways, students could compare this to the interaction of how the information traveling through a computer from mouse to processor are similar to signals sent through the nervous system telling our brain about the world around us to prompt responses. (CA NGSS: 4-LS1-2)
Standard: Determine potential solutions to solve simple hardware and software problems using common troubleshooting strategies. Descriptive Statement: Although computing systems vary, common troubleshooting strategies can be used across many different systems. Students use troubleshooting strategies to identify problems that could include a device not responding, lacking power, lacking a network connection, an app crashing, not playing sounds, or password entry not working. Students use and develop various solutions to address these problems. Solutions may include rebooting the device, checking for power, checking network availability, opening and closing an app, making sure speakers are turned on or headphones are plugged in, and making sure that the caps lock key is not on. For example, students could prepare for and participate in a collaborative discussion in which they identify and list computing system problems and then describe common successful fixes. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy SL.3.1, SL.4.1, SL.5.1) Alternatively, students could write informative/explanatory texts, create a poster, or use another medium of communication to examine common troubleshooting strategies and convey these ideas and information clearly. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.2, W.4.2, W.5.2)
Data & Analysis
3 standardsStandard: Explain that the amount of space required to store data differs based on the type of data and/or level of detail. Descriptive Statement: All saved data requires space to store it, whether locally or not (e.g., on the cloud). Music, images, video, and text require different amounts of storage. Video will often require more storage and different format than music or images alone because video combines both. The level of detail represented by that data also affects storage requirements. For instance, two pictures of the same object can require different amounts of storage based upon their resolution, and a high-resolution photo could require more storage than a low-resolution video. Students select appropriate storage for their data. For example, students could create an image using a standard drawing app. They could save the image in different formats (e.g., .png, .jpg, .pdf) and compare file sizes. They should also notice that different file sizes can result in differences in quality or resolution (e.g., some pictures could be more pixelated while some could be sharper). Alternatively, in an unplugged activity, students could represent images by coloring in squares within a large grid. They could model how a larger grid requires more storage but also represents a clearer image (i.e., higher resolution).
Standard: Organize and present collected data visually to highlight relationships and support a claim. Descriptive Statement: Raw data has little meaning on its own. Data is often sorted or grouped to provide additional clarity. Organizing data can make interpreting and communicating it to others easier. Data points can be clustered by a number of commonalities. The same data could be manipulated in different ways to emphasize particular aspects or parts of the data set. For example, students could create and administer electronic surveys to their classmates. Possible topics could include favorite books, family heritage, and after school activities. Students could then create digital displays of the data they have collected such as column histogram charts showing the percent of respondents in each grade who selected a particular favorite book. Finally, students could make quantitative statements supported by the data such as which books are more appealing to specific ages of students. As an extension, students could write an opinion piece stating a claim and supporting it with evidence from the data they collected. (CA CCSS for Mathematics 3.MD.3, 4.MD.4, 5.MD.2) (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.1, W.4.1, W.5.1) Alternatively, students could represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe weather experienced in the last several years. They could select the type of graphical display based on the specific data represented (e.g., daily high/low temperatures on a scatter plot, average temperatures for a month across years in a column chart). Students could then make a claim about expected weather in future months based on the data. (CA NGSS: 3-ESS2-1)
Standard: Use data to highlight and/or propose relationships, predict outcomes, or communicate ideas. Descriptive Statement: The accuracy of data analysis is related to how the data is represented. Inferences or predictions based on data are less likely to be accurate if the data is insufficient, incomplete, or inaccurate or if the data is incorrect in some way. Additionally, people select aspects and subsets of data to be transformed, organized, and categorized. Students should be able to refer to data when communicating an idea, in order to highlight and/or propose relationships, predict outcomes, highlight different views and/or communicate insights and ideas. For example, students can be provided a scenario in which they are city managers who have a specific amount of funds to improve a city in California. Students can collect data of a city concerning land use, vegetation, wildlife, climate, population density, services and transportation (HSS.4.1.5) to determine and present what area needs to be focused on to improve a problem. Students can compare their data and planned use of funds with peers, clearly communicating or predict outcomes based on data collected. (CA CCCS for ELA/Literacy SL.3.1, SL.4.1, SL.5.1) Alternatively, students could record the temperature at noon each day to show that temperatures are higher in certain months of the year. If temperatures are not recorded on non-school days or are recorded incorrectly, the data would be incomplete and ideas being communicated could be inaccurate. Students may also record the day of the week on which the data was collected, but this would have no relevance to whether temperatures are higher or lower. In order to have sufficient and accurate data on which to communicate the idea, students might use data provided by a governmental weather agency. (CA NGSS: 3-ESS2-1)
Impacts of Computing
4 standardsStandard: Discuss computing technologies that have changed the world, and express how those technologies influence, and are influenced by, cultural practices. Descriptive Statement: New computing technologies are created and existing technologies are modified for many reasons, including to increase their benefits, decrease their risks, and meet societal needs. Students, with guidance from their teacher, discuss topics that relate to the history of computing technologies and changes in the world due to these technologies. Topics could be based on current news content, such as robotics, wireless Internet, mobile computing devices, GPS systems, wearable computing, and how social media has influenced social and political changes. For example, students could conduct research in computing technologies that impact daily life such as self-driving cars. They engage in a collaborative discussion describing impacts of these advancements (e.g., self-driving cars could reduce crashes and decrease traffic, but there is a cost barrier to purchasing them). (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.7, W.4.7, W.5.7, SL.3.1, SL.4.1, SL.5.1) Alternatively, students could discuss how technological advancements affected the entertainment industry and then compare and contrast the impacts on audiences. For instance, people with access to high-speed Internet may be able to choose to utilize streaming media (which may cost less than traditional media options), but those in rural areas may not have the same access and be able to reap those benefits. (VAPA Theatre Arts 4.3.2, 4.4.2)
Standard: Propose ways to improve the accessibility and usability of technology products for the diverse needs and wants of users. Descriptive Statement: The development and modification of computing technology is driven by people's needs and wants and can affect groups differently. Students anticipate the needs and wants of diverse end users and propose ways to improve access and usability of technology, with consideration of potential perspectives of users with different backgrounds, ability levels, points of view, and disabilities. For example, students could research a wide variety of disabilities that would limit the use of traditional computational tools for the creation of multimedia artifacts, including digital images, songs, and videos. Students could then brainstorm and propose new software that would allow students that are limited by the disabilities to create similar artifacts in new ways (e.g., graphical display of music for the deaf, the sonification of images for visually impaired students, voice input for those that are unable to use traditional input like the mouse and the keyboard). (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.7, W.4.7, W.5.7) Alternatively, as they anticipate unique user needs, students may consider using both speech and text to convey information in a game. They may also wish to vary the types of programs they create, knowing that not everyone shares their own tastes. (CA NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3)
Standard: Seek and explain the impact of diverse perspectives for the purpose of improving computational artifacts. Descriptive Statement: Computing technologies enable global collaboration and sharing of ideas. Students solicit feedback from a diverse group of users and creators and explain how this input improves their computational artifacts. For example, students could seek feedback from classmates via user surveys, in order to create an idea and then make a claim as to how to improve the overall structure and function of their computational artifact. Using the feedback students could write an opinion piece supporting their claim. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.1, W.4.1, W.5.1) Alternatively, with guidance from their teacher, students could use video conferencing tools, shared documents, or other online collaborative spaces, such as blogs, wikis, forums, or website comments, to gather and synthesize feedback from individuals and groups about programming projects. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy SL.3.1, SL.4.1, SL.5.1)
Standard: Describe reasons creators might limit the use of their work. Descriptive Statement: Ethical complications arise from the opportunities provided by computing. With the ease of sending and receiving copies of media on the Internet, in formats such as video, photos, and music, students consider the opportunities for unauthorized use, such as online piracy and disregard of copyrights. The license of a downloaded image or audio file may restrict modification, require attribution, or prohibit use entirely. For example, students could take part in a collaborative discussion regarding reasons why musicians who sell their songs in digital format choose to license their work so that they can earn money for their creative efforts. If others share the songs without paying for them, the musicians do not benefit financially and may struggle to produce music in the future. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy SL.3.1, SL.4.1, SL.5.1) Alternatively, students could review the rights and reproduction guidelines for digital artifacts on a publicly accessible media source. They could then state an opinion with reasons they believe these guidelines are in place. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy W.3.1, W.4.1, W.5.1)
Networks & the Internet
3 standardsStandard: Model how information is broken down into smaller pieces, transmitted as packets through multiple devices over networks and the Internet, and reassembled at the destination. Descriptive Statement: Information is sent and received over physical or wireless paths. It is broken down into smaller pieces called packets, which are sent independently and reassembled at the destination. Students demonstrate their understanding of this flow of information by, for instance, drawing a model of the way packets are transmitted, programming an animation to show how packets are transmitted, or demonstrating this through an unplugged activity in which they physically act this out. For example, students could design a structure using building blocks or other materials with the intention of re-engineering it in another location, just as early Americans did after the intercontinental railroad was constructed in the 1850s (HSS.4.4.1, 4.4.2). Students could deconstruct the designed structure, place materials into specific containers (or plastic bags/brown paper bags/etc.), and develop instructions on how to recreate the structure once each container arrives at its intended destination. (CA NGSS: 3-5-ETS1) For example, students could cut up a map of the United States by state lines. Students could then place the states in envelopes and transmit the "packets" through a physical network, represented by multiple students spreading out in arms reach of at least two others. At the destination, the student who receives the packets resassembles the individual states back into a map of the United States. (HSS 5.9) Alternatively, students could perform a similar activity with a diatonic scale, cutting the scale into individual notes. Each note, in order, should be placed into a numbered envelope based on its location on the scale. These envelopes can be transmitted across the network of students and reassembled at the destination. (VAPA Music 4.1.2)
Standard: Describe physical and digital security measures for protecting personal information. Descriptive Statement: Personal information can be protected physically and digitally. Cybersecurity is the protection from unauthorized use of electronic data, or the measures taken to achieve this. Students identify what personal information is and the reasons for protecting it. Students describe physical and digital approaches for protecting personal information such as using strong passwords and biometric scanners. For example, students could engage in a collaborative discussion orally or in writing regarding topics that relate to personal cybersecurity issues. Discussion topics could be based on current events related to cybersecurity or topics that are applicable to students, such as the necessity of backing up data to guard against loss, how to create strong passwords and the importance of not sharing passwords, or why we should keep operating systems updated and use anti-virus software to protect data and systems. Students could also discuss physical measures that can be used to protect data including biometric scanners, locked doors, and physical backups. (CA CCSS for ELA/Literacy SL.3.1, SL.4.1, SL.5.1)
Standard: Create patterns to protect information from unauthorized access. Descriptive Statement: Encryption is the process of converting information or data into a code, especially to prevent unauthorized access. At this level, students use patterns as a code for encryption, to protect information. Patterns should be decodable to the party for whom the message is intended, but difficult or impossible for those with unauthorized access. For example, students could create encrypted messages via flashing a flashlight in Morse code. Other students could decode this established language even if it wasn't meant for them. To model the idea of protecting data, students should create their own variations on or changes to Morse code. This ensures that when a member of that group flashes a message only other members of their group can decode it, even if other students in the room can see it. (CA NGSS: 4-PS4-3) Alternatively, students could engage in a CS Unplugged activity that models public key encryption: One student puts a paper containing a written secret in a box, locks it with a padlock, and hands the box to a second student. Student 2 puts on a second padlock and hands it back. Student 1 removes her lock and hands the box to student 2 again. Student 2 removes his lock, opens the box, and has access to the secret that student 1 sent him. Because the box always contained at least one lock while in transit, an outside party never had the opportunity to see the message and it is protected.
ELD
Use the Grade 3 English Language Development standards alongside content instruction to strengthen interaction, interpretation, and expression.
63 standards organized into 2 learning categories
Part I: Interacting in Meaningful Ways
39 standardsStandard: Contribute to class, group, and partner discussions, including sustained dialogue, by following turn-taking rules, asking relevant questions, affirming others, adding relevant information, building on responses, and providing useful feedback.
Standard: Contribute to conversations and express ideas by asking and answering yes-no and wh- questions and responding using short phrases.
Standard: Contribute to class, group, and partner discussions, including sustained dialogue, by following turn-taking rules, asking relevant questions, affirming others, and adding relevant information.
Standard: Write longer and more detailed literary and informational texts (e.g., an explanatory text on how flashlights work) collaboratively (e.g., joint construction of texts with an adult or with peers) and independently using appropriate text organization and growing understanding of register.
Standard: Write longer literary and informational texts (e.g., an explanatory text on how flashlights work) collaboratively (e.g., joint construction of texts with an adult or with peers) and sometimes independently.
Standard: Write longer literary and informational texts (e.g., an explanatory text on how flashlights work) collaboratively (e.g., joint construction of texts with an adult or with peers) and with increasing independence using appropriate text organization.
Standard: Paraphrase texts and recount experiences using increasingly detailed complete sentences and key words from notes or graphic organizers.
Standard: Paraphrase texts and recount experiences using key words from notes or graphic organizers.
Standard: Paraphrase texts and recount experiences using complete sentences and key words from notes or graphic organizers.
Standard: Support opinions or persuade others by providing good reasons and detailed textual evidence (e.g., specific events or graphics from text) or relevant background knowledge about the content.
Standard: Support opinions by providing good reasons and some textual evidence or relevant background knowledge (e.g., referring to textual evidence or knowledge of content).
Standard: Support opinions by providing good reasons and increasingly detailed textual evidence (e.g., providing examples from the text) or relevant background knowledge about the content.
Standard: Use a wide variety of general academic and domain-specific words, synonyms, antonyms, and non-literal language to create an effect, precision, and shades of meaning while speaking and writing.
Standard: Use a select number of general academic and domain-specific words to add detail (e.g., adding the word dangerous to describe a place, using the word habitat when describing animal behavior) while speaking and writing.
Standard: Use a growing number of general academic and domain-specific words in order to add detail, create an effect (e.g., using the word suddenly to signal a change), or create shades of meaning (e.g., scurry versus dash) while speaking and writing.
Standard: Collaborate with peers on joint writing projects of a variety of longer informational and literary texts, using technology where appropriate for publishing, graphics, and the like.
Standard: Collaborate with peers on joint writing projects of short informational and literary texts, using technology where appropriate for publishing, graphics, and the like.
Standard: Collaborate with peers on joint writing projects of longer informational and literary texts, using technology where appropriate for publishing, graphics, and the like.
Standard: Offer opinions and negotiate with others in conversations using a variety of learned phrases (e.g., That's a good idea, but . . .), as well as open responses in order to gain and/or hold the floor, provide counterarguments, elaborate on an idea, and the like.
Standard: Offer opinions and negotiate with others in conversations using basic learned phrases (e.g., I think . . .), as well as open responses in order to gain and/or hold the floor.
Standard: Offer opinions and negotiate with others in conversations using an expanded set of learned phrases (e.g., I agree with X, and . . .), as well as open responses in order to gain and/or hold the floor, provide counter arguments, and the like.
Standard: Adjust language choices according to purpose e.g., persuading, entertaining), task, and audience (e.g., peer-to-peer versus peer-to-teacher), with light support from peers or adults.
Standard: Recognize that language choices (e.g., vocabulary) vary according to social setting (e.g., playground versus classroom), with substantial support from peers or adults.
Standard: Adjust language choices (e.g., vocabulary, use of dialogue, and the like) according to purpose (e.g., persuading, entertaining), social setting, and audience (e.g., peers versus adults), with moderate support from peers or adults.
Standard: Demonstrate active listening to read-alouds and oral presentations by asking and answering detailed questions, with minimal prompting and light support.
Standard: Demonstrate active listening to read-alouds and oral presentations by asking and answering basic questions, with prompting and substantial support.
Standard: Demonstrate active listening to read-alouds and oral presentations by asking and answering detailed questions, with occasional prompting and moderate support.
Standard: Describe ideas, phenomena (e.g., volcanic eruptions), and text elements (e.g., central message, character traits, major events) using key details based on understanding of a variety of grade-level texts and viewing of multimedia, with light support.
Standard: Describe ideas, phenomena (e.g., insect metamorphosis), and text elements (e.g., main idea, characters, setting) based on understanding of a select set of grade-level texts and viewing of multimedia, with substantial support.
Standard: Describe ideas, phenomena (e.g., how cows digest food), and text elements (e.g., main idea, characters, events) in greater detail based on understanding of a variety of grade-level texts and viewing of multimedia, with moderate support.
Standard: Describe how well writers or speakers use specific language resources to support an opinion or present an idea (e.g., whether the vocabulary or phrasing used to provide evidence is strong enough), with light support.
Standard: Describe the language writers or speakers use to support an opinion or present an idea (e.g., by identifying the phrases or words in the text that provide evidence), with prompting and substantial support.
Standard: Describe the specific language writers or speakers use to present or support an idea (e.g., the specific vocabulary or phrasing used to provide evidence), with prompting and moderate support.
Standard: Distinguish how multiple different words with similar meanings (e.g., pleased versus happy versus ecstatic, heard versus knew versus believed) produce shades of meaning and different effects on the audience.
Standard: Distinguish how different words produce different effects on the audience (e.g., describing a character as happy versus sad).
Standard: Distinguish how different words with similar meanings (e.g., describing a character as happy versus ecstatic) produce shades of meaning and different effects on the audience.
Standard: Plan and deliver longer oral presentations on a variety of topics and content areas (e.g., retelling a story, explaining a science process or historical event, and the like).
Standard: Plan and deliver very brief oral presentations (e.g., retelling a story, describing an animal, and the like).
Standard: Plan and deliver brief oral presentations on a variety of topics and content areas (e.g., retelling a story, explaining a science process, and the like).
Part II: Learning About How English Works
24 standardsStandard: Apply understanding of how different text types are organized to express ideas (e.g., how a story is organized sequentially with predictable stages versus how opinion/arguments are structured logically, grouping related ideas) to comprehending texts and writing cohesive texts.
Standard: Apply understanding of how different text types are organized to express ideas (e.g., how a story is organized sequentially) to comprehending texts and writing basic texts.
Standard: Apply understanding of how different text types are organized to express ideas (e.g., how a story is organized sequentially with predictable stages) to comprehending texts and writing texts with increasing cohesion.
Standard: Apply increasing understanding of language resources that refer the reader back or forward in text (e.g., how pronouns or synonyms refer back to nouns in text) to comprehending and writing cohesive texts.
Standard: Apply basic understanding of language resources that refer the reader back or forward in text (e.g., how pronouns refer back to nouns in text) to comprehending texts and writing basic texts.
Standard: Apply growing understanding of language resources that refer the reader back or forward in text (e.g., how pronouns refer back to nouns in text) to comprehending texts and writing texts with increasing cohesion.
Standard: Apply increasing understanding of how ideas, events, or reasons are linked throughout a text using an increasing variety of connecting and transitional words or phrases (e.g., for example, afterward, first/next/last) to comprehending texts and writing cohesive texts.
Standard: Apply basic understanding of how ideas, events, or reasons are linked throughout a text using everyday connecting words or phrases (e.g., then, next) to comprehending texts and writing basic texts.
Standard: Apply growing understanding of how ideas, events, or reasons are linked throughout a text using a variety of connecting words or phrases (e.g., at the beginning/ end, first/next) to comprehending texts and writing texts with increasing cohesion.
Standard: Using verbs and verb phrases Use a variety of verb types (e.g., doing, saying, being/having, thinking/feeling) and verb tense appropriate to the text type and discipline to convey time (e.g., simple present for a science description, simple future to predict).
Standard: Use frequently used verbs, different verb types (e.g., doing, saying, being/having, thinking/feeling), and verb tenses appropriate to the text type and discipline to convey time (e.g., simple past for recounting an experience).
Standard: Use a growing number of verb types (e.g., doing, saying, being/having, thinking/ (e.g., doing, saying, being/having, thinking/feeling) and verb tenses appropriate to the text type and discipline to convey time (e.g., simple past for retelling, simple present for a science description).
Standard: Expand noun phrases in a variety of ways (e.g., adding comparative/ superlative adjectives to noun phrases, simple clause embedding) in order to enrich the meaning of sentences and add details about ideas, people, things, and the like.
Standard: Expand noun phrases in simple ways (e.g., adding an adjective to a noun) in order to enrich the meaning of sentences and add details about ideas, people, things, and the like.
Standard: Expand noun phrases in a growing number of ways (e.g., adding comparative/superlative adjectives to nouns) in order to enrich the meaning of sentences and add details about ideas, people, things, and the like.
Standard: Expand sentences with adverbials (e.g., adverbs, adverb phrases, prepositional phrases) to provide details (e.g., time, manner, place, cause, and the like) about a range of familiar and new activities or processes (e.g., They worked quietly all night in their room).
Standard: Expand sentences with adverbials (e.g., adverbs, adverb phrases, prepositional phrases) to provide details (e.g., time, manner, place, cause, and the like) about a familiar activity or process (e.g., They walked to the soccer field).
Standard: Expand sentences with adverbials (e.g., adverbs, adverb phrases, prepositional phrases) to provide details (e.g., time, manner, place, cause, and the like) about a familiar or new activity or process (e.g., They worked quietly; they ran across the soccer field).
Standard: Combine clauses in a wide variety of ways (e.g., creating compound and complex sentences) to make connections between and join ideas, for example, to express cause/effect (e.g., The deer ran because the mountain lion approached them), to make a concession (e.g., She studied all night even though she wasn't feeling well), or to link two ideas that happen at the same time (e.g., The cubs played while their mother hunted).
Standard: Combine clauses in a few basic ways to make connections between and join ideas (e.g., creating compound sentences using and, but, so).
Standard: Combine clauses in an increasing variety of ways (e.g., creating compound and complex sentences) to make connections between and join ideas, for example, to express cause/effect (e.g., The deer ran because the mountain lion came) or to make a concession (e.g., She studied all night even though she wasn't feeling well).
Standard: Condense clauses in a variety of ways (e.g., through embedded clauses and other condensing as in, It's a plant. It's green and red. It's found in the tropical rain forest. ? It's a green and red plant that's found in the tropical rain forest) to create precise and detailed sentences.
Standard: Condense clauses in simple ways (e.g., changing: It's green. ? It's red. It's green and red) to create precise and detailed sentences.
Standard: Condense clauses in a growing number of ways (e.g., through embedded clauses as in, It's a plant. It's found in the rain forest. ? It's a green and red plant that's found in the tropical rain forest) to create precise and detailed sentences.
Physical Education
Plan inclusive Grade 3 movement experiences that build motor skills, fitness knowledge, confidence, and responsible participation.
57 standards organized into 15 learning categories
Overarching Grade 3 Expectations
5 standardsStandard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities.
Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities.
Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance.
Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance.
Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity.
Movement Concepts
2 standardsOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Chase, ?ee, and move away from others in a constantly changing environment.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: Describe how changing speed and changing direction can allow one person to move away from another.
Manipulative Skills
13 standardsOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Throw and catch an object with a partner, increasing the distance from the partner and maintaining an accurate throw that can be easily caught.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Kick a ball to a stationary partner, using the inside of the foot.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Strike a ball continuously upward, using a paddle or racket.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Hand-dribble a ball continuously while moving around obstacles.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Foot-dribble a ball continuously while traveling and changing direction.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Balance while traveling and manipulating an object on a ground-level balance beam.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Catch, while traveling, an object thrown by a stationary partner.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Roll a ball for accuracy toward a target.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Throw a ball, using the overhand movement pattern with increasing accuracy.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: Explain and demonstrate the correct hand position when catching a ball above the head, below the waist, near the middle of the body, and away from the body.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: Explain the difference between throwing to a stationary partner and throwing to a moving partner.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: Identify the key elements for increasing accuracy in rolling a ball and throwing a ball.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: Identify the differences between dribbling a ball (with the hand and the foot, separately) while moving forward and when changing direction.
Rhythmic Skills
3 standardsOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Perform a line dance, a circle dance, and a folk dance with a partner.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: De?ne the terms folk dance, line dance, and circle dance.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of movement concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activities. Standard: Compare and contrast folk dances, line dances, and circle dances.
Body Management
3 standardsOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Perform an inverted balance (tripod) by evenly distributing weight on body parts.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Perform a forward roll.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Perform a straddle roll.
Locomotor Movement
1 standardOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate the motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities. Standard: Jump continuously a forward-turning rope and a backward-turning rope.
Fitness Concepts
8 standardsOverarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Demonstrate warm-up and cool-down exercises.
Overarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Demonstrate how to lift and carry objects correctly.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Identify the body's normal reactions to moderate to vigorous physical activity.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: List and de?ne the components of physical ?tness.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Explain the purpose of warming up before physical activity and cooling down after physical activity.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Recognize that the body will adapt to increased workloads.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Explain that ?uid needs are linked to energy expenditure.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Discuss the need for oxygen and fuel to be available during ongoing muscle contraction so that heat and waste products are removed.
Aerobic Capacity
3 standardsOverarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Participate three to four days each week, for increasing periods of time, in continuous moderate to vigorous physical activities that require sustained movement of the large- muscle groups to increase breathing and heart rate.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Describe the relationship between the heart, lungs, muscles, blood, and oxygen during physical activity.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Describe and record the changes in heart rate before, during, and after physical activity.
Muscular Strength/Endurance
7 standardsOverarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Perform increasing numbers of each: abdominal curl-ups, oblique curl-ups on each side, modi?ed push-ups or traditional push-ups with hands on a bench, forward lunges, side lunges, and triceps push-ups from a chair.
Overarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Climb a vertical pole or rope.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Identify which muscles are used in performing muscular endurance activities.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Name and locate the major muscles of the body.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Describe and demonstrate how to relieve a muscle cramp.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Describe the role of muscle strength and proper lifting in the prevention of back injuries.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Explain that a stronger heart muscle can pump more blood with each beat.
Flexibility
3 standardsOverarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Hold for an increasing period of time basic stretches for hips, shoulders, hamstrings, quadriceps, triceps, biceps, back, and neck.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Identify ?exibility exercises that are not safe for the joints and should be avoided.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Explain why a particular stretch is appropriate preparation for a particular physical activity.
Body Composition
2 standardsOverarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Sustain continuous movement for increasing periods of time while participating in moderate to vigorous physical activity.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate knowledge of physical fitness concepts, principles, and strategies to improve health and performance. Standard: Differentiate the body's ability to consume calories and burn fat during periods of inactivity and during long periods of moderate physical activity.
Assessment
1 standardOverarching Standard: Students assess and maintain a level of physical fitness to improve health and performance. Standard: Measure and record improvement in individual fitness activities.
Self-Responsibility
3 standardsOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity. Standard: 5.1 Set a personal goal to improve a motor skill and work toward that goal in nonschool time.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity. Standard: Collect data and record progress toward mastery of a motor skill.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity. Standard: List the bene?ts of following and the risks of not following safety procedures and rules associated with physical activity.
Social Interaction
2 standardsOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity. Standard: Use appropriate cues for movement and positive words of encouragement while coaching others in physical activities.
Overarching Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity. Standard: Demonstrate respect for individual differences in physical abilities.
Group Dynamics
1 standardOverarching Standard: Students demonstrate and utilize knowledge of psychological and sociological concepts, principles, and strategies that apply to the learning and performance of physical activity. Standard: Work in pairs or small groups to achieve an agreed-upon goal.
Third Grade Literature Books
Literature for Third Grade Learning
Literature for Third Grade Learning
This teacher-focused collection includes titles identified in the source list for Grade 2, Grade 3, or Grade 4. Some selections also extend beyond this adjacent-grade window.
- Grade 2
- Grade 3
- Grade 4
125 titles shown
A Comb of Wishes
Book description and connections
Set against the backdrop of Caribbean folklore, Lisa Stringfellow's spellbinding middle grade debut tells of a grieving girl and a vengeful mermaid
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
A Land of Books: Dreams of Young Mexihcah Word Painters
Book description and connections
A young Aztec girl tells her little brother how their parents create beautiful painted manuscripts, or codices. She explains to him how paper is made from local plants and how the long paper is folded into a book. Her parents and others paint the codices to tell the story of their people's way of life, documenting their history, science, tributes, and sacred rituals.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Not specified
A Library
Book description and connections
In this lyrical picture book, world-renowned poet, New York Times bestselling author, and Coretta Scott King Honor winner Nikki Giovanni and fine artist Erin Robinson craft an ode to the magic of a library as a place not only for knowledge but also for imagination, exploration, and escape.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies
A River's Gifts: The Mighty Elwha River Reborn
Book description and connections
Discover how changes to the Elwha River harmed the ecosystem but through persistence, cooperation, and advocacy it was renewed and restored.
- Culture
- Native American
- Topics
- American History, Earth Science, Life Science (Biology)
All Are Neighbors
Book description and connections
Moving to a new place can be hard, but when your neighbors welcome you with open arms, there are so many things to discover and celebrate.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
Amelia Bedelia
Book description and connections
A literal-minded housekeeper follows her employer's instructions exactly as written, with hilariously mixed-up results.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Idioms, Multiple-meaning words
Be A Bridge
Book description and connections
Rhyming verse describes different ways in which readers can be a bridge, from welcoming a new student and listening respectfully when someone else is talking to standing up to a bully and comforting a classmate who is upset.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
Because of Winn-Dixie
Book description and connections
A lonely girl adopts a stray dog who helps her build a new community of friends in her small Florida town.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Community, Belonging
Blast Off!: How Mary Sherman Morgan Fueled America Into Space
Book description and connections
Chronicles the life of the first female rocket scientist who, chosen to create the fuel to launch a rocket carrying America's first satellite, broke gender barriers and overcame many challenges to succeed.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Physical Science (Chemistry and Physics)
Bok's Giant Leap: One Moon Rock's Journey Through Time and Space
Book description and connections
Based on a speech Neil Armstrong gave upon receiving the moon rock he named Bok, this unique picture book tells the story of how the Earth and the Moon came to be. Includes facts about the Earth and the Moon.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Built by Animals: Meet the Creatures Who Inspire Our Homes and Cities
Book description and connections
From the bee's honeycomb shape that strengthens structures to termites' that build their nests with natural air con, these creatures did it first! And, at the end of the book, find out who wins big at the Animal Builder Awards! Will it be the prairie dog, the peacock, the beaver, or the firefly?
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Life Science (Biology)
Can I Be Your Dog?
Book description and connections
A heart-tugging dog adoption story told through letters from a dog as he seeks a forever home! It also showcases many different styles of letter writing, making it appealing to parents and teachers looking to teach the lost art of written communication.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- English-Language Arts/General, Global Social Issues
Caves
Book description and connections
A masterful exploration of one of nature's most curious ecosystems, Caves is a magical journey into subterranean wonders.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Earth Science
Cece Rios and the King of Fears
Book description and connections
Cece and her sister Juana must journey into the stronghold of Devil's Alley to challenge the criatura king El Cucuy. Cece Rios thought saving her sister would be the end of her adventures in the world of criaturas. But part of Juana's soul is still trapped in Devil's Alley. As Cece tries to find a way to get it back using her new curandera abilities, Juana takes her fate in her own hands and sets off alone, intent on restoring her soul and getting revenge on El Sombrerón.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Not specified
Charlotte's Web
Book description and connections
A barn spider named Charlotte spins words into her web to save a pig named Wilbur from the fate of the smokehouse.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Friendship, Life cycles, Loss
Choosing Brave: How Mamie Till-Mobley and Emmett Till Sparked the Civil Rights Movement
Book description and connections
An informational picture book about Mamie Till Mobley, the mother of Emmett Till, beautifully tells a wrenching story. The repeated refrain, “It was the braver thing,” underscores Mamie Till Mobley’s lifelong inclination to do the thing that was often more frightening, more difficult.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- American History
Cornbread & Poppy
Book description and connections
Cornbread LOVES planning. Poppy does not. Cornbread ADORES preparing. Poppy does not. Cornbread IS ready for winter. Poppy...is not. But Cornbread and Poppy are the best of friends, so when Poppy is left without any food for the long winter, Cornbread volunteers to help her out. Their search leads them up, up, up Holler Mountain, where these mice might find a new friend...and an old one.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Cress Watercress
Book description and connections
When Papa doesn't return from a nocturnal honey-gathering expedition, Cress holds out hope, but her mother assumes the worst. It’s a dangerous world for rabbits, after all. Mama moves what’s left of the Watercress family to the basement unit of the Broken Arms, a run-down apartment oak with a suspect owl landlord, a nosy mouse super, a rowdy family of squirrels, and a pair of songbirds who broadcast everyone’s business. Can a dead tree full of annoying neighbors, and no Papa, ever be home?
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Eden's Everdark
Book description and connections
Twelve-year-old Eden is mourning the loss of her mother when she and her father make their first visit to Safina Island, off the coast of Georgia, to meet her maternal relatives. Once there, she accidentally slips into an alternate magical world inhabited by eerie, mystical creatures from her dead mother’s sketchbook. The complex narrative portrays multifaceted characters as it weaves together history, magic, and grief.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Not specified
Emmy Noether: The Most Important Mathematician You've Never Heard Of
Book description and connections
Emmy Noether is not pretty, quiet or good at housework — all the things a girl of her time is expected to be. What she is, though, is brilliant at math. And when she grows up, she skirts the rules to first study math at a university and then teach it. She also helps to solve of the most pressing mathematical and physics problems of the day. And though she doesn't get much credit during her lifetime, her discoveries continue to influence how we understand the world today.
- Culture
- Western European
- Topics
- English-Language Arts/General, Global Historical Events and Figures, International Studies/World History, Mathematics, Physical Science (Chemistry and Physics), Women’s Studies
Endlessly Ever After
Book description and connections
In this rhyming mash-up of many fairy tales, the reader is invited to follow Rosie down the many possible paths which may lead to a sleeping maiden, a hungry wolf, a girl locked in a tower, or a goose that lays golden eggs--but with some luck, and some smart choices, Rosie may save herself and her fellow fairy tale characters.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Eyes That Speak to the Stars
Book description and connections
A young boy comes to recognize his own power and ability to change the future. When a friend at school creates a hurtful drawing, the boy turns to his family for comfort. He realizes that his eyes rise to the skies and speak to the stars, shine like sunlit rays, and glimpse trails of light from those who came before fact, his eyes are like his father's, his agong's, and his little brother's, and they are visionary. Inspired by the men in his family, he recognizes his own power and strength from within.
- Culture
- South Asian
- Topics
- Not specified
Freddie vs. The Family Curse
Book description and connections
In this thrilling and hilarious middle grade adventure, a young Filipino-American boy must team up with his ancestor to break the curse that's haunted their family for generations… or be trapped in an amulet forever.
- Culture
- Filipino/Filipino American
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
Frindle
Book description and connections
A fifth grader invents a new word for pen and sets off a chain of events that spreads it across the country.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- How language and word meaning develop
Frizzy
Book description and connections
Marlene loves three things: books, her cool Tía Ruby and hanging out with her best friend Camila. But according to her mother, Paola, the only thing she needs to focus on is school and "growing up." That means straightening her hair every weekend so she could have "presentable", "good hair".
- Culture
- Black/African American, Latino/Latino American, Multicultural
- Topics
- Not specified
Frog and Toad Are Friends
Book description and connections
Five gentle stories follow two best friends, Frog and Toad, through the small adventures and everyday comforts of friendship.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Friendship, Early chapter reading
Gigi and Ojiji
Book description and connections
Gigi can wait for her Japanese grandpa move in. Gigi plans lots of things to do with him, like playing tag, reading books, and teaching Roscoe, the family dog, new tricks. But her plans don't work out quite the way she hoped. And her grandpa doesn't seem to like Roscoe. Will Gigi find a way to connect with her Ojiji?
- Culture
- Japanese/Japanese American
- Topics
- Not specified
Growing Pangs
Book description and connections
Eleven-year-old Katie navigates life as a homeschooler, forms a better understanding of the OCD she experiences, and learns that growing apart from friends is sometimes part of growing up.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
Harvest Days: Giving Thanks Around the World
Book description and connections
Explore harvest festivals from around the globe! Lyrical, rhyming text and lush, detailed artwork from Italian artist Martina Peluso immerse young readers in some of the most ancient traditions in the world.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, International Studies/World History, Lifestyles Around the World, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
Have You Ever Seen a Flower?
Book description and connections
This enchanting picture book explores the relationship between childhood and nature. In this simple yet profound story, one child experiences a flower with all five senses--from its color to its fragrance to the entire universe it evokes--revealing how a single flower can expand one's perspective in incredible ways.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Life Science (Biology)
How to Find What You're Not Looking For
Book description and connections
Middle schooler Ariel Goldberg must find her own voice and define her own beliefs after her big sister elopes with a young man from India following the Supreme Court decision that strikes down laws banning interracial marriage.
- Culture
- Jewish/Jewish American
- Topics
- Not specified
How to Wear a Sari
Book description and connections
When a little girl tires of being treated like she's too little, she sets out to prove to her family that she can do anything she puts her mind to — including putting on a colorful, twinkly, silky sari. Sure, they're long and unwieldy--but that only means her family will be even more impressed when she puts it on all by herself.
- Culture
- East Indian/East Indian American, South Asian
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, International Studies/World History, Lifestyles Around the World, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
Hundred Years of Happiness
Book description and connections
This book showcases the love between grandparents and grandchildren, the challenges of memory loss, and the joy that sweet reminders of a faraway home can bring.
- Culture
- Vietnamese/Vietnamese American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, International Studies/World History, Lifestyles Around the World, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
I Am One: A Book of Action
Book description and connections
One seed to start a garden, one note to start a melody, one brick to start breaking down walls: Every movement and moment of change starts with purpose, with intention, with one. With me. With you.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Global Social Institutions, Global Social Issues, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
I Am Ruby Bridges
Book description and connections
When Ruby Bridges was six years old, she became the first African American student to integrate an elementary school in the South. Told in the perspective of her six year old self and based on the pivotal events that happened in 1960, Ruby tells her story like never before. Embracing her name and learning that even at six years old she was able to pave the path for future generations, this is a story full of hope, innocence, and courage.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- American History
I Forgive Alex: A Simple Story About Understanding
Book description and connections
Alex's enthusiasm and energy can sometimes be a challenge for his classmates. He loves to play ball on the playground with his friends, but when his rambunctious behavior inadvertently upsets one of the other students, he finds himself at odds with the whole class. In a story that sees the perspective of both sides, Alex learns quickly that the right thing to do is say he's sorry, leaving it up to his friend to find the compassion and empathy to accept it.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
In the Beautiful Country
Book description and connections
Anna can’t wait to move to the beautiful country—the Chinese name for America. Although she’s only ever known life in Taiwan, she can’t help but brag about the move to her family and friends. But the beautiful country isn’t anything like Anna pictured. Her family can only afford a cramped apartment, she’s bullied at school, and she struggles to understand a new language. On top of that, the restaurant that her parents poured their savings into is barely staying afloat. The version of America that Anna is experiencing is nothing like she imagined. How will she be able to make the beautiful country her home?
- Culture
- South Asian
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
Island of the Blue Dolphins
Book description and connections
Stranded alone on a Pacific island for years, Karana must find food, shelter, and courage to survive.
- Culture
- Native American (Nicoleño)
- Topics
- Survival, Perseverance, California history
James and the Giant Peach
Book description and connections
An orphaned boy escapes his cruel aunts inside a giant peach, traveling the world with a crew of oversized insect friends.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Perseverance, Found family
Jennifer Chan is not alone
Book description and connections
Being the new kid is never easy, and it can be especially hard at a new school with mean, popular kids. Chinese American Jennifer Chan moves in across the street from Korean American Mallory Moss in small-town Norwell, Florida. Jennifer, full of self-confidence, has a strong belief in aliens, and Mallory can tell that she's going to have trouble fitting in at their predominantly white middle school. As wild rumors spread about Jennifer, Mallory finds herself stuck between becoming friends with her or sticking with the queen bees of their seventh-grade class.
- Culture
- Chinese/Chinese American
- Topics
- Not specified
Josie Dances
Book description and connections
Josie dreams of dancing at next summer's powwow. But first she needs many special things: a dress, a shawl, a cape, leggings, moccasins, and, perhaps most important of all, her spirit name. To gather all these essential pieces, she calls on her mom, her aunty, her kookum, and Grandma Greatwalker. They have the skills to prepare Josie for her powwow debut.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- Dance, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Lifestyles Around the World, Physical Fitness, Women’s Studies
Junie B. Jones (series)
Book description and connections
A spirited, opinionated kindergartner-turned-first-grader narrates the everyday ups and downs of school in her own irrepressible voice.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Voice, School life
Just Harriet
Book description and connections
Harriet Wermer is unhappy about having to spend the summer with her grandmother until she discovers a mystery involving her dad when he was a boy living on the island.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Just Like Grandma
Book description and connections
Becca watches her grandma create, play, and dance--and she knows that she wants to be just like Grandma. Becca loves spending time with Grandma. Every time Becca says, "Let me try," Grandma shows her how to make something beautiful. Whether they are beading moccasins, dancing like the most beautiful butterflies, or practicing basketball together, Becca knows that, more than anything, she wants to be just like Grandma. And as the two share their favorite activities, Becca discovers something surprising about Grandma.
- Culture
- Native American
- Topics
- Not specified
Justice Is...: A Guide for Young Truth Seekers
Book description and connections
In clear and simple language, Preet Bharara, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, explains what justice is and what it takes to achieve it for even the youngest readers. Drawing on examples of historic justice seekers whose deeds best demonstrate those attributes by asking hard questions, keeping an open mind, defending the truth, and using their voices and their bodies to fight injustice such as Ida B. Wells, John Lewis, Malala Yousafzai, and many others, this timely book is perfect for exploring the concept of justice.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, Global Historical Events and Figures, Global Social Issues, Government and Politics, Law and Legal Studies
Kapaemahu
Book description and connections
Native Hawaiian legend about how four extraordinary individuals of dual male and female spirit, or Mahu, brought healing arts from Tahiti to Hawaii.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American, Pacific Islander
- Topics
- Gender/Sexuality
Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun's Thanksgiving Story
Book description and connections
"The Thanksgiving story that most Americans know celebrates the Pilgrims. But without members of the Wampanoag tribe who already lived on the land where the settled, the Pilgrims would never have made it through their first winter. And without Weeâchumun (corn), the Native people wouldn't have helped. An important picture book honoring both the history and tradition that surrounds the story of the first Thanksgiving."
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Life Science (Biology), Personal and Community Health
Kind Like Marsha: Learning from LGBTQ+ Leaders
Book description and connections
Kind Like Marsha celebrates 14 amazing and inspirational LGBTQ+ people throughout history. Fan favorites like Harvey Milk, Sylvia Rivera, and Audre Lorde are joined by the likes of Leonardo da Vinci, Frida Kahlo, and more in this striking collection. With a focus on a positive personality attribute of each of the historical figures, readers will be encouraged to be brave like the Ugandan activist fighting for LGBTQ+ rights against all odds and to be kind like Marsha P. Johnson who took care of her trans community on the New York City streets.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Global Historical Events and Figures, Gender/Sexuality
Kindergarten: Where Kindness Matters Every Day
Book description and connections
Leo, a quiet kid who is not ready for his first day of kindergarten, ends up having a great day when he makes a kindness pledge and discovers he knows a lot about being kind to others.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
Latinitas: Celebrating 40 Big Dreamers
Book description and connections
Discover how 40 influential Latinas became the women we celebrate today! In this collection of short biographies from all over Latin America and across the United States, Juliet Menéndez explores the first small steps that set the Latinitas off on their journeys.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- American History, Global Historical Events and Figures
Listen to the Language of the Trees: A Story of How Forests Communicate Underground
Book description and connections
This captivating book explores the real connection and communication that runs underground between trees in the forest. The well-researched details about trees' own social network will help readers see that the natural world's survival depends on staying connected and helping others—just like us!
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Earth Science, Life Science (Biology)
Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion
Book description and connections
From the moment Evelyn Glennie heard her first note, music held her heart. She played the piano by ear at age eight, and the clarinet by age ten. But soon, the nerves in her ears began to deteriorate, and Evelyn was told that, as a deaf girl, she could never be a musician. What sounds Evelyn couldn't hear with her ears, though, she could feel resonate through her body as if she, herself, were a drum. And the music she created was extraordinary. Evelyn Glennie had learned how to listen in a new way. And soon, the world was listening too.
- Culture
- Western European
- Topics
- English-Language Arts/General, Music, Women’s Studies
Look, Grandma! Ni, Elisi!
Book description and connections
Bo wants to find the perfect container to show off his traditional marbles for the Cherokee National Holiday in this exploration of volume and capacity.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Mathematics, Measurement & Geometry (Geometry), Number Sense
Love in the Library
Book description and connections
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Tama is sent to live in a War Relocation Center in the desert. Trying not to think of the life she once had, she works in the camp's tiny library… And she isn't the only one. George waits each morning by the door, his arms piled with books checked out the day before. As their friendship grows, Tama wonders: Can anyone possibly read so much? Is she the reason George comes to the library every day?
- Culture
- Japanese/Japanese American
- Topics
- American History, War
Luli and the Language of Tea
Book description and connections
When five-year-old Luli joins her new English as a Second Language class, the playroom is quiet. Luli can speak English, neither can anyone else. That's when she has a brilliant idea to host a tea party and bring them all together.
- Culture
- Chinese/Chinese American, Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Immigration/Migration, Lifestyles Around the World
Magic Tree House (series)
Book description and connections
Siblings Jack and Annie discover a magic tree house that whisks them to different times and places in history.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Historical settings, Research connections
Magnolia Flower
Book description and connections
Born to parents who fled slavery and the Trail of Tears, Magnolia Flower is a girl with a vibrant spirit. Not to be deterred by rigid ways of the world, she longs to connect with others, who too long for freedom. She finds this in a young man of letters who her father disapproves of. In her quest to be free, Magnolia must make a choice and set off on a journey that will prove just how brave one can be when leading with one's heart.
- Culture
- Black/African American, Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Women’s Studies
Maizy Chen's Last Chance
Book description and connections
Eleven-year-old Maizy Chen visits her estranged grandparents, who own and run a Chinese restaurant in Last Chance, Minnesota; as her visit lengthens, she makes unexpected discoveries about her family's history and herself.
- Culture
- Chinese/Chinese American
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle
Book description and connections
For one little girl, there's no place she rather be than sitting between Mama and Mommy. So when Mommy goes away on a work trip, it's tricky to find a good place at the table. As the days go by, Mama brings her to the library, they watch movies, and all of them talk on the phone, but she still misses Mommy as deep as the ocean and as high as an astronaut up in the stars. As they pass by a beautiful garden, the girl gets an idea . . . but when Mommy finally comes home, it takes a minute to shake off the empty feeling she felt all week before leaning in for a kiss.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health, Women’s Studies, Gender/Sexuality
Moonflower
Book description and connections
The spirit realm is where they have their one and only friend, Wolf, and where they’re excited to experience an infinite number of adventures. But when the realm is threatened, it’s up to Moon to save the spirit world. With the help of celestial beings and guardians, Moon battles monsters and shadows, and through their journey, they begin to learn that a magical adventure of love and acceptance awaits them in the world of the living, too.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Mental, Emotional, and Social Health, Psychology/Sociology, Gender/Sexuality
Mr. Popper's Penguins
Book description and connections
A house painter's gift of a penguin multiplies into a dozen, turning his ordinary home into a chaotic, delightful zoo.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Humor, Responsibility
Nate the Great
Book description and connections
A deadpan boy detective who loves pancakes solves the case of his friend's missing painting.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Inference, Mystery-genre conventions
New From Here
Book description and connections
When the coronavirus hits Hong Kong, ten-year-old Knox Wei-Evans's mom makes the last-minute decision to move him and his siblings back to California, where they think they will be safe. Suddenly, Knox has two days to prepare for an international move--and for leaving his dad, who has to stay for work. As racism skyrockets during COVID-19, Knox tries to stand up to hate, while finding his place in his new country. Can you belong if you're feared; can you protect if you're new? And how do you keep a family together when you're oceans apart? Sometimes when the world is spinning out of control, the best way to get through it is to embrace our own lovable uniqueness.
- Culture
- Chinese/Chinese American
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
No Truth Without Ruth: The Life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Book description and connections
Ruth Bader Ginsburg may be one of the most respected women in the United States, but her recognition is nothing short of hard-won. For years before becoming a justice of the Supreme Court, Ruth had to fight the notion that being female meant that she was less smart, less qualified, and less worthy of attention than her male counterparts. Throughout college, law school, and her work life, she faced discrimination, because she was a woman.
- Culture
- Jewish/Jewish American
- Topics
- English-Language Arts/General, Global Historical Events and Figures, Government and Politics, Law and Legal Studies, Women’s Studies
Not My Idea: A Book about Whiteness
Book description and connections
In this call to action, a young white child catches news fragments of a police officer shooting an unarmed black man. They witness their family members' discomfort, avoidance, and eventual dismissal of the shooting (and the resulting protests) while claiming, "We don't see color." The child's confusion leads them to the library for answers about the history of racism in the United States. Ultimately, they vocalize feelings of frustration to their parent. Told in second person to an assumed white audience, the text intersperses firm declarations that the structure of whiteness oppresses people of color with gentle reassurances that growth and change are possible—when bolstered by honesty and accountability.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- American History
On the Trapline
Book description and connections
A boy and Moshom, his grandpa, take a trip together to visit a place of great meaning to Moshom. A trapline is where people hunt and live off the land, and it was where Moshom grew up. As they embark on their northern journey, the child repeatedly asks his grandfather, "Is this your trapline?" Along the way, the boy finds himself imagining what life was like two generations ago -- a life that appears to be both different from and similar to his life now.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Lifestyles Around the World, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
One Boy Watching
Book description and connections
The experience of a long school bus ride is seen through the eyes of a rural boy who is the first student to board on his route. “One boy. Waiting. For two bright headlights. Bus Number Four. Three big steps up. From his seat he watches the view out the window, seeing trees, deer, cars, sunflowers, and an infinite sky. Eventually 48 kids arrive at school, and later in the day they get back on the bus for the trip home. Everything is described numerically, as this observant child, who has light skin and black hair, contemplates the landscape of his daily routine. Vibrant colors and a childlike sensibility infuse the introspective text with an upbeat energy.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment
Book description and connections
When Parker Curry came face-to-face with Amy Sherald's transcendent portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama... She saw dynamic self-assurance. She saw truth and beauty. She saw a queen. But most importantly, Parker saw Her hopes. Her dreams, Her power. Her promise. Herself.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Visual Arts
Patchwork
Book description and connections
In profound, uplifting verse and sumptuous artwork, beloved creators Matt de la Peña and Corinna Luyken explore the endless possibilities each child contains: A young dancer may grow into a computer coder; a basketball player might become a poet; a class clown may one day serve as an inspiring teacher; and today's quiet empath might be tomorrow's great leader. Here's a profound and uplifting new classic with an empowering message for readers of all ages: Your story is still being written.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
Polar Bear
Book description and connections
As spring approaches in the Arctic, a mother polar bear and her two cubs tentatively emerge from hibernation to explore the changing landscape. When it is time, she takes her cubs on a forty-mile journey, back to their home on the ice. Along the way, she fends off wolves, hunts for food, and swims miles and miles.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Earth Science, Life Science (Biology)
Powwow Day
Book description and connections
Because she has been very ill and weak, River cannot join in the dancing at this year's tribal powwow, she can only watch from the sidelines as her sisters and cousins dance the celebration--but as the drum beats she finds the faith to believe that she will recover and dance again.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- Dance, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health, Personal and Community Health, Religion/Spirituality
Ramona Quimby, Age 8
Book description and connections
Ramona navigates the ordinary triumphs and embarrassments of third grade, her family's finances, and growing up the 'pest' of the family.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Family, School life
Riley Reynolds Slays the Play
Book description and connections
It's one hour until the curtain goes up, and nonbinary fourth-grader Riley and their classmates just had a disastrous dress rehearsal. How can they fix everything in time? Riley and their classmates find out that there are many ways to solve a problem, especially when the clock is ticking and fun is on the line!
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Theatre, Gender/Sexuality
Sanctuary: Kip Tiernan and Rosie's Place, the Nation's First Shelter for Women
Book description and connections
Relates the story of social activist Kip Tiernan and her efforts to open Rosie's Place, the nation's first homeless shelter for women, in Boston.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Women’s Studies
Sarah, Plain and Tall
Book description and connections
A mail-order bride from Maine comes to the prairie and slowly becomes part of a widower's family.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Family, Westward expansion
Saturday at the Food Pantry
Book description and connections
Molly and her mom don't always have enough food, so one Saturday they visit their local food pantry. Molly's happy to get food to eat until she sees her classmate Caitlin, who's embarrassed to be at the food pantry. Can Molly help Caitlin realize that everyone needs help sometimes?
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Global Social Issues, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health, Personal and Community Health
Seen and Unseen: What Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adams's Photographs Reveal about the Japanese American Incarceration
Book description and connections
Legendary photographers Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adams all photographed the Japanese American incarceration, but with different approaches-and different results. This nonfiction picture book for middle grade readers examines the Japanese-American incarceration-and the complexity of documenting it-through the work of these three photographers.
- Culture
- Japanese/Japanese American
- Topics
- American History, Visual Arts, War
Sewing the Rainbow: A Story about Gilbert Baker
Book description and connections
"Gilbert Baker always knew he wanted a life full of color and sparkle. In his small, gray, flat Kansas hometown, he helped his grandma sew and created his own art whenever he could. It wasn't easy; life tried over and over again to make Gilbert conform. But his sparkle always shone through. He dreamed of someday going somewhere as vibrant and colorful as he was. Set against the backdrop of San Francisco during the gay rights movement of the 1970s, Gilberta's story unfolds just like the flag he created: in a riot of color, joy, and pride. Today the flag is everywhere, even in the small town where Gilbert grew up!"
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, Visual Arts, Gender/Sexuality
Sharice's Big Voice: A Native Kid Becomes a Congresswoman
Book description and connections
When Sharice David's was young, she never thought she be in Congress. And she never thought she be one of the first Native American women in Congress. During her campaign, she heard from a lot of doubters. They said she couldn't win because of how she looked, who she loved, and where she came from.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Government and Politics, Law and Legal Studies, Women’s Studies, Gender/Sexuality
She Persisted in Science: Brilliant Women Who Made a Difference
Book description and connections
This book features women scientists who didn't listen to those who told them — and who used their smarts, their skills and their persistence to discover, invent, create and explain.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Global Historical Events and Figures, Women’s Studies
Shine On, Luz Véliz!
Book description and connections
Eleven-year-old injured soccer player Luz has a hard enough time reframing her identity as a computer programmer, but when her Guatemalan half-sister moves in, she learns what it truly means to start over.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
Small Town Pride
Book description and connections
Jake is just starting to enjoy life as his school’s first openly gay kid. While his family and friends are accepting and supportive, the same can’t be said about everyone in their small town of Barton Springs, Ohio. When Jake’s dad hangs a comically large pride flag in their front yard in an overblown show of love, the mayor begins to receive complaints. A few people are even concerned the flag will lead to something truly outlandish: a pride parade. Except Jake doesn’t think that’s a ridiculous idea. Why can’t they hold a pride festival in Barton Springs? The problem is, Jake knows he’ll have to get approval from the town council, and the mayor won’t be on his side. And as Jake and his friends try to find a way to bring Pride to Barton Springs, it seems suspicious that the mayor’s son, Brett, suddenly wants to spend time with Jake. But someone that cute couldn’t possibly be in league with his mayoral mother, could he?
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Gender/Sexuality
Solimar: The Sword of the Monarchs
Book description and connections
On the brink of her Quinceanera, and her official coronation, Princess Solimar is given a magical gift that sets her life on a new path.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Not specified
Still Dreaming
Book description and connections
In the first children's book to describe the long-forgotten chapter of US history known as Mexican Repatriation, a boy and his family leave their beloved home to avoid being separated by the government. Faced with the prospect of being separated from each other, a young boy and his family make the difficult decision to leave their home and begin a journey filled with uncertainty. On the road, they meet other people like them. Families with deep roots tied to the land. Others that helped build the railroads. Some were shop owners and factory workers. Each with similar hopes and dreams.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- American History, Immigration/Migration
Still This Love Goes On
Book description and connections
Based on Sainte-Marie's song of the same name, Still This Love Goes On combines Flett's breathtaking art with vivid lyrics to craft a stunning portrait of a Cree worldview. At the heart of this picture book is a gentle message about missing our loved ones, and the promise of seeing each other again.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Lifestyles Around the World, Music, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
Stone Fox
Book description and connections
A boy and his loyal dog enter a punishing dogsled race to save his grandfather's farm.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Perseverance, Inference
Swim Team
Book description and connections
Middle-schooler Bree and her hard-working dad make the move from Brooklyn to Palmetto Shores, FL, where she discovers that swim-team culture is huge. The problem: Bree can’t swim.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Physical Fitness
Swoop and Soar: How Science Rescued Two Osprey Orphans and Found Them A New Family in the Wild
Book description and connections
Swoop and Soar, two young osprey chicks, are safe in their forest nest until a powerful storm sends their tree crashing to the ground. SWOOP AND SOAR is the true story of how raptor biologist Janie Veltkamp used science to rescue the orphans and find them a new osprey family in the wild. In a race against time, Janie sets out to find the checks a new nest and new parents. But will the new osprey parents accept Swoop and Soar as their own chicks, or fly away from the nest forever?
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- English-Language Arts/General, Life Science (Biology)
That's Not My Name!
Book description and connections
Mirha is so excited for her first day of school! She can't wait to learn, play, and make new friends. But when her classmates mispronounce her name, she goes home wondering if she should find a new one. Maybe then she'd be able to find a monogrammed keychain at the gas station or order a hot chocolate at the cafe more easily. Mama helps Mirha to see how special her name is, and she returns to school the next day determined to help her classmates say it correctly--even if it takes a hundred tries.
- Culture
- South Asian
- Topics
- Not specified
The BFG
Book description and connections
A friendly giant who catches dreams whisks a young orphan away to Giant Country and enlists her help against giants who eat children.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Imagination, Wordplay
The Boxcar Children
Book description and connections
Four orphaned siblings make a home for themselves in an abandoned boxcar and solve a mystery about their family.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Resourcefulness, Mystery-genre conventions
The Button Box
Book description and connections
After Jewish fifth-grader Ava and her Muslim best friend Nadeem are called hateful names at school, Ava's Granny Buena rummages in her closet and pulls out a glittering crystal button box. It's packed with buttons that generations of Ava's Sephardic ancestors have cherished. With the help of Granny's mysterious cat Sheba, Ava and Nadeem discover that a button from the button box will take them back in time. Suddenly, they are in ancient Morocco, where Nadeem's ancestor, Prince Abdur Rahman, is running for his life. Can Ava and Nadeem help the prince escape to Spain and fulfill his destiny, creating a legendary Golden Age for Muslims, Jews and Christians?
- Culture
- Jewish/Jewish American, Muslim
- Topics
- American History, Global Historical Events and Figures, International Studies/World History
The Cricket in Times Square
Book description and connections
A country cricket accidentally arrives in New York City's subway and becomes friends with a cat, a mouse, and a boy who runs a newsstand.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Friendship across differences, Urban setting
The Elote Man Goes to College
Book description and connections
Every morning Diego packs his elote cart with care and travels across his community to provide for his family. One day, his daughter Marisol joins him while he works. The Elote Man Goes to College tells the story of all the hardworking street vendors in our communities, selling their wares to provide for themselves and their families.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
The Fire
Book description and connections
This story is a fictionalized account of the Great Fire of 1918 based on a 1973 interview of Elizabeth (Betty) Gurno, a Fond du Lac Reservation elder. Betty was a little girl when the fire swept the area. The Fire of 1918 destroyed the city of Cloquet, Minnesota and surrounding communities, including the Fond du Lac Reservation, and resulted in the loss of many lives.
- Culture
- Indigenous Peoples, Native American
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Geography
The Gardener of Alcatraz
Book description and connections
When Elliott Michener was locked away in Alcatraz for counterfeiting, he was determined to defy the odds and bust out. But when he got a job tending the prison garden, a funny thing happened. He found new interests and skills--and a sense of dignity and fulfillment. Elliott transformed Alcatraz Island, and the island transformed him.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- American History
The Kindest Red: A Story of Hijab and Friendship
Book description and connections
"It's picture day and Faizah can't wait to wear her special red dress with matching hair ribbons, passed down from her mother and sister. Faizah's teacher starts the day by asking her students to envision the kind of world they want, inspiring Faizah and her friends to spend the day helping one another in ways large and small. But when it's time for sibling pictures, Faizah realizes that she and her older sister, Asiya, don't match like her classmates do with their siblings. With help from her classmates inspired by Asiya's hijab, Faizah finds that acts of kindness can come back to you in unexpected ways. "
- Culture
- Black/African American, Muslim
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
The Last Mapmaker
Book description and connections
Joining an expedition to chart the southern seas, twelve-year-old mapmaker's assistant Sai, posing as a well-bred young lady with a glittering future, realizes she's not the only one on board harboring secrets when she discovers the ship's true destination.
- Culture
- South Asian
- Topics
- Not specified
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Book description and connections
Four siblings step through a wardrobe into the snowy, enchanted land of Narnia and join a battle to free it from an endless winter.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Allegory, Courage, Good versus evil
The Marvellers
Book description and connections
Eleven-year-old Ella Durand is the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, a magic school in the clouds where Marvellers from around the world practice their cultural arts. Despite her excitement, Ella discovers that being the first isn’t easy—some Marvellers mistrust her magic, which they deem “bad and unnatural.” But eventually, she finds friends in elixirs teacher, Masterji Thakur, and fellow misfits Brigit, a girl who hates magic, and Jason, a boy with a fondness for magical creatures. When a dangerous criminal known as the Ace of Anarchy escapes prison, supposedly with a Conjuror’s aid, tensions grow in the Marvellian world and Ella becomes the target of suspicion. Worse, Masterji Thakur mysteriously disappears while away on a research trip. With the help of her friends and her own growing powers, Ella must find a way to clear her family’s name and track down her mentor before it’s too late.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Not specified
The Most Beautiful Thing
Book description and connections
Drawn from Kao Kalia Yang's childhood experiences as a Hmong refugee, this heartfelt picture book offers a window into the life of a family with little money and a great deal of love. The theme of respect and love for an aging family member is central to this moving story, as is the stunning, expressive art that includes visual references to Hmong fabric.
- Culture
- Hmong/Hmong American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Immigration/Migration, Lifestyles Around the World, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
The Mother of a Movement: Jeanne Manford
Book description and connections
The Mother of a Movement tells the story of Jeanne Manford, the founder of PFLAG (Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). When her son Morty was beaten by New York City officials for handing out pro-gay leaflets, Manford wrote a powerful letter to the New York Post to complain about how Morty was treated. In the letter she came out as the mother of a gay son.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, Global Social Issues, Government and Politics, Law and Legal Studies, Gender/Sexuality
The Notebook Keeper: A Story of Kindness from the Border
Book description and connections
In this moving and stunningly illustrated picture book, Noemi and Mama flee their home in Mexico, and head for the US border. There, they look for "The Notebook Keeper"-- the person in charge of a ledger for those waiting to cross, and they add their names to the book. As the days turn into weeks, and hope dwindles, the little girl looks for kindness around her-- and inside herself. One day, when the Notebook Keeper's own name is called to cross, Noemi and her Mama are chosen--for the generosity in their hearts-- to take her place.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Global Social Issues, Government and Politics, Immigration/Migration, International Studies/World History, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health
The One and Only Ivan
Book description and connections
A gorilla living in a shopping-mall enclosure remembers his past and works to get a baby elephant a better life.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Point of view, Animal welfare, Empathy
The Secret Battle of Evan Pao
Book description and connections
A fresh start. That's all Evan Pao wants as he, along with his mother and sister, flee from California to Haddington, Virginia, hoping to keep his father's notoriety a secret. But Haddington is a southern town steeped in tradition, and moving to a town immersed in the past has its own price.
- Culture
- Chinese/Chinese American
- Topics
- Not specified
The Tale of Despereaux
Book description and connections
A small mouse with oversized ears and a big heart sets out to save a princess, in a tale told from four intertwined perspectives.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Courage, Multiple perspectives
The Tryout
Book description and connections
When cheerleading tryouts are announced, Christina and her best friend, Megan, literally jump at the chance to join the squad. As two of the only kids of color in the school, they have always yearned to fit in-and the middle school cheerleaders are popular and accepted by everyone. But will the girls survive the terrifying tryouts, with their whole grade watching? And will their friendship withstand the pressures of competition?
- Culture
- Middle Eastern, South Asian
- Topics
- Nutrition and Physical Activity
The Water Walker
Book description and connections
The dual language edition, in Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) and English, of The Water Walker, the award-winning story of a determined Ojibwe Nokomis (Grandmother) Josephine-ba Mandamin and her great love for Nibi (water). Nokomis walked to raise awareness of our need to protect Nibi for future generations, and for all life on the planet. She, along with other women, men, and youth, have walked around all the Great Lakes from the four salt waters, or oceans, to Lake Superior. The walks are full of challenges, and by her example Josephine-ba invites us all to take up our responsibility to protect our water, the giver of life, and to protect our planet for all generations.
- Culture
- Native American
- Topics
- Earth Science, Life Science (Biology)
The Whipping Boy
Book description and connections
A spoiled prince and the commoner boy punished in his place become unlikely allies after they're kidnapped together.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Friendship across class lines, Adventure
The Wolves of Yellowstone: A Rewilding Story
Book description and connections
In the 1930s, the last wolves disappeared from Yellowstone National Park. They carefully relocated fourteen wolves from the Canadian Rockies to Yellowstone. This is the story of their homecoming. Engaging, informative, and hopeful, The Wolves of Yellowstone shows us that every creature plays a role in sustaining a thriving ecosystem.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Life Science (Biology)
The World Belonged to Us
Book description and connections
It's getting hot outside, hot enough to turn on the hydrants and run through the water--and that means it's finally summer in the city! Released from school and reveling in their freedom, the kids on one Brooklyn block take advantage of everything summertime has to offer: Freedom from morning till night to go out to meet their friends and make the streets their playground--jumping double Dutch, playing tag and hide-and-seek, building forts, chasing ice cream trucks, and best of all, believing anything is possible.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Not specified
This is a School
Book description and connections
A school isn't just a building; it is all the people who work and learn together. It is a place for discovery and asking questions. A place for sharing, for helping, and for community. It is a place of hope and healing, even when that community can be together in the same room.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- English-Language Arts/General, Lifestyles Around the World, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health, Personal and Community Health
This Story Is Not About A Kitten
Book description and connections
A heartwarming picture book about a neighborhood coming together to help a kitten find a home. It is a story about community compassion, and generosity.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General
Tumble
Book description and connections
Before she decides whether to accept her stepfather's proposal of adoption, twelve-year-old Adela Ramirez reaches out to her estranged biological father--who is in the midst of a career comeback as a luchador--and the eccentric extended family of wrestlers she has never met, bringing Adela closer to understanding the expansive definition of family.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Physical Fitness
Twas the Night Before Pride
Book description and connections
This joyful picture-book homage to a day of community and inclusion--and to the joys of anticipation--is also a comprehensive history
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Global Historical Events and Figures, Global Social Issues, Gender/Sexuality
Two Degrees
Book description and connections
Fire. Ice. Flood. Three climate disasters. Four kids fighting for their lives. Akira, Owen, George, and Natalie are all swept up in the devastating effects of climate change. They are also connected in ways that will shock them--and could alter their destinies forever.
- Culture
- Japanese/Japanese American, Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Earth Science
V is for Voting
Book description and connections
An engaging introduction to the tenets of democracy, V Is for Voting is a playful, poetic, and powerful primer about the importance of voting and activism.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Government and Politics, Law and Legal Studies
Wake, Sleepy One: California Poppies and the Super Bloom
Book description and connections
Follow the golden poppy's journey as it slowly wakes inside its seed, stretches its roots, and unfolds its delicate petals. Watch as it transforms the land into an ocean of orange--the amazing "super bloom." A lyrical ode to California's most treasured wildflower, Wake, Sleepy One gently captures the quiet strength of the poppy in all its breathtaking wonder.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Life Science (Biology)
Wave
Book description and connections
When her best friend's cancer returns in the summer of 1987, none of her usual pursuits--surfing, singing, or reading poetry--can keep thirteen-year-old Ava afloat.
- Culture
- Middle Eastern
- Topics
- Not specified
We Are Here
Book description and connections
We Are Here is a poignant story about Black and brown heritage and community. Full of assurance, tenderness, and triumph, this much-anticipated follow-up to the New York Times bestselling picture book All Because You Matter offers an equally inspirational and arresting ode to all of the Black women and men throughout history who have made momentous contributions from the beginning of time.
- Culture
- Black/African American
- Topics
- Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Ethnic Studies, Global Historical Events and Figures, Mental, Emotional, and Social Health, World Cultures: Perspectives, Practices, and Products
We Want to Go to School! The Fight for Disability Rights
Book description and connections
There was a time in the United States when millions of children with disabilities weren't allowed to go to public school. But in 1971, seven kids and their families wanted to do something about it. They knew that every child had a right to an equal education, so they went to court to fight for that right. The case Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia led to laws ensuring children with disabilities would receive a free, appropriate public education. Told in the voice of Janine Leffler, one of the millions of kids who went to school because of these laws, this book shares the true story of this landmark case.
- Culture
- Multicultural
- Topics
- American History, Diversity, English-Language Arts/General, Law and Legal Studies
What's Your Name?
Book description and connections
Names hold power. They can be a greeting, provide comfort, act as a warning, or honor our ancestors and heroes. Sometimes growing into a name, or selecting a new one, can take a little time. Names connect us to others and help create who we are and what makes us uniquely special.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
Who Was the Voice of the People?: Cesar Chavez
Book description and connections
Follow Cesar Chavez and the National Farm Workers Association, as they set out on a difficult 300-mile protest march in support of farm workers' rights. A story of hope, solidarity, and perseverance, this graphic novel invites readers to immerse themselves in the life of the famous Latino American Civil Rights leader -- brought to life by gripping narrative and vivid full-color illustrations that jump off the page.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- American History
With Lots of Love
Book description and connections
A beautiful, lyrical story about a girl who moves from her home in Central America to the United States, and everything she leaves behind and longs for--especially her Abuela--as she makes a new life.
- Culture
- Latino/Latino American
- Topics
- Immigration/Migration
Yummy: A History of Desserts
Book description and connections
Explore the history of desserts through a fun adventure with facts, legends, and recipes for readers to try at home.
- Culture
- Not specified
- Topics
- Not specified
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Selection note: Grade recommendations come from the source collection. Educators should confirm local availability, instructional purpose, accessibility, and community context when selecting a title.








































































