Real-life third grade classrooms!
Third grade! Yay! I survived the first two weeks of third grade and finally have the time/energy to tell you a little bit about it. I won’t be going into total detail, so please leave a comment if you have a question! (UPDATE: I wrote a much more detailed post with more links and full ... Read More about The First Week of Third Grade
Everything you need for a smooth school year.
These are the top 10 3rd grade room transformations just for you. They are easy to implement, rigorous, and fun for third graders!
Are you new to teaching third grade? Whether you’re a newbie or a veteran teacher, here’s what you need to know: 1. Multiplication is king. Multiplication RULES third grade math. Our standards say that students must memorize facts within 100, but it doesn’t say how we have to do it. Lots of games and teaching ... Read More about New To Teaching Third Grade?
Great for teachers new to 3rd grade or new to CCSS! I created this pacing guide to assist me in making sure I teach all the third grade CCSS by the end of the year. Included is a "year-at-a-glance" calendar that I keep on my bulletin board to remind me what students should have mastered and what is...
If you ask me (and I am pretending that you did), third grade is the BEST grade to teach! Third graders are still young enough to love school, love their teacher and get excited over simple things like coloring. However, they are old enough to be independent workers and thinkers. Most third graders know how to read
Looking for great books for 3rd graders? Check out my favorite novels for literature circles & book clubs with your third-grade classroom.
Wondering what to do on the first day of third grade? Plan for the first day of school like a pro with these detailed first day lesson plans including math, reading, and writing activities, easy
Download your complete guide to the third grade reading standards for both nonfiction and fiction texts. This is handy tool for guided and shared reading.
Dig deep with these fun activities!
I wanted to share how I use (and have used for several years) a token economy in my classroom. I taught at different PBIS/PBS schools for 7 years, and a token economy is the perfect addition to what your school is already doing! I’ve used this system in 1st, 2nd, and 4th grades, and absolutely ... Read more
In this post I share with you my classroom schedule in the third grade classroom. I talk about how I teach reading, math, writing, morning routine, and more!
Hello darlings! Amy here from That Teaching Spark! If you are like me, you use some semblance of technology in your classroom. You might be 1:1 with each student having a device or you may have access to a few devices for your entire class! I'm lucky enough to have a class set of chrome carts to share with my grade level of five teachers. We rotate the chrome books around to each other. I also have four devices that I use for math rotations every day! I have to admit, I would be lost without them! There are so many amazing websites and resources out there! I asked all of you in the All About 3rd Grade Facebook Group, to share the websites you use on a daily basis. I have reviews those websites and have included the ones most often recommended in this All About 3rd Grade Symbaloo. A Symbaloo is simply a bookmarking site. You can copy and paste this link on your classroom website, Google Classroom, or other learning platform for your students. Then students can click the icon to take them to the recommended page. https://www.symbaloo.com/mix/allabout3rdgrade Most websites that I included are free or at least allow for a free version with less bells and whistles. Here are 3 of My Favs 1. Epic Epic is perfect for sharing books on your projector. It has over hundreds of popular books! They have some books read aloud but I really like it for the nonfiction and collections that it offers. You can even create quizzes for your students. Watch this video for a little overview. 2. Prodigy Play Math Prep My kiddos use Prodigy everyday in math rotations. I can assign them any standard I want and it will create questions for them. This is what students see. They create little avatar wizards and then battle through lands that they unlock. They even earn pets that can have powers! They unlock and earn power ups by answering question correctly. You can assign the skills or have the game do it for you! In this video, I explain how to assign test prep, but it is the same directions for other assignments. 3. Go Formative This is a new website for me! I am super excited to try it next year! create online assessments, classwork or homework connects seamlessly with Google Classroom ANY GRADE, ANY SUBJECT, ANY DEVICE create a class & track student data students can type, draw or upload images get LIVE results & give instant feedback to your students very easy to use FREE & PAPERLESS for both teachers and students Check out the video for a sneak peek on how it works! Join us in the All About 3rd Grade Facebook Group to learn more amazing tips like this!
I think I may just be the Queen of Combination classes! Right now I’m on the fourth year of a 4th/5th combination stint, but way back when I started, I did several 1st/2nd’s and 2nd/3rd’s. Why do I keep doing it? Am I just a glutton for punishment? Right now, my principal has given me […]
This year, I decided to make some modifications to my classroom decor, and I am thrilled to share this reveal with you all.
Yes, it has it's own board on my Pinterest account. I used to be embarrassed by how fascinated and excited I was about classroom libraries. I paroused thrift stores, hit up retiring teachers, and planned my weekends around library book sales for months leading up to my first year in the classroom. By the time I actually got my own room, I didn't even have enough space for all the books I had collected. Thankfully, Pinterest came along when it did and showed me that I wasn't the only person in the world obsessed with classroom libraries. Of course, that meant hours of my life were spent pouring over pictures, pinning everything from book bin labels to decor. I'm all about helping out other teachers and hopefully I can save someone out there time by putting a lot of ideas about this topic in one place (and also by offering a freebie at the end of this post). I guess there is also the chance that someone will stumble upon this post randomly and then become enthralled with cultivating the perfect classroom library and in turn end up spending a gazillon hours on Pinterest. If that is you, sorry in advance! Below are some of the many ideas I have found over the years. 1. Collection The first, and maybe the most important, question to answer is...how do you get books for your classroom? Teachers certainly can't afford to spend their entire paycheck buying a wide variety of texts (not with all the other classroom items we spend our paycheck on ;) ). Don't fret! There are many options out there. Like I mentioned above, I ended up with more than enough books on a substitue's salary and I didn't break the bank. In fact, I still have a couple bags of chapter books in my basement. -Retiring Teachers: If you don't know any retiring teachers, you can always look on Craig's List or keep your eye on your local newspaper. A lot of retiring teachers are looking to sell their entire collection of books for cheap. I ended up with a lot of goodies from a librarian who retired at the school I was subbing at. She used to be a classroom teacher and passed down classroom library books, teaching resource books, name tags, posters, stickers, etc. -Teachers at Your School: Many teachers probably aren't going to give you any of their new, shiny books, but that doesn't mean they don't have others they are willing to pass along. My first year, I had many teachers offer me books for my room because like me, they had more than enough (especially as they continue to replace older books with new purchases). My school also does a lottery at the beginning of the school year. Every August when we get back in our rooms and start to clear out the junk for a fresh start, we place all the items we no longer want in the front lobby. All week, teachers can stop by and place a post-it with their name on any item from class sets of books/magazines to teacher desks, easels, and pocket charts. On Friday, items are handed out to their new owners and the rest are donated. -Student Donations: My first year I had a parent ask if I needed any books because her child, who was the youngest in the family, had already read or outgrown many books. I said yes and was floored when a box full of shiny, crease-free, new-book-smelling, age appropriate chapter books came my way. I ended up putting old books on the wishlist every week on my classroom newsletter. I made it clear that parents did not need to go out and buy books for the classroom, but if they had old books around the house, I would be willing to take them. I got a lot of good books this way, of course some were not so good or not usable, but it was worth it. -Thrift Stores: Most thrift stores sell children's books, the hard part is finding the best price in your area. One thrift store near me sells books for $0.50 to $1.00 each. I was surprised when I first started looking, but then I found another thrift store 5 minutes away that sold 6 books for $2.00, and their selection was much wider. Do some shopping around and you might be surprised what you find. A lot of the time I would find gems that were in pristine condition and do a little dance in the aisle knowing that I was about to pay 33 cents for a book that would cost me $15.00 at the store. Thrift stores in my area are definitely cheaper than used book stores. You might want to check around to see if that is true for your area as well. -Book Sales: Library book sales are a gift from God. Okay, I might be being just a bit dramatic right know, but this is really where I got the bulk of my books. The libraries in my county have weekend long book sales 3 or 4 times a year. There are good prices on Friday and Saturday, but if you wait until Sunday you will make out like a theif! Sundays are brown bag days. One dollar a bag for all of the books you can fit into a brown paper grocery bag. Let me tell you, I was a master at stacking and cramming those books in there. I would walk away with hundreds of books for $4.00. I used to go to these so often that I devised my own method. I would go on Fridays or Saturday morning while most of the books were still there to see what they had and where it was. I would buy anything that I really wanted and didn't think would still be around on Sunday. I would also take note of where the books I wanted were, so I wouldn't waste any time later. You also can't really dilly dally on Sunday morning. I would get to the library at least half an hour before they opened. I ain't lyin' when I say there was a looonnnggg line by the time the doors open and the library crowd is not polite when there are books involved. There was all sorts of pushing and shoving when the doors were opened, but I would speed walk to the paper bag table, grab at least two, and write my name on them with my Sharpie as I headed over to the children's book table. Then, I really just started grabbing and shoving until my bags were full. Man, those were the days, just writing this makes me want to look up sales in my area. Anyway, I suggest you Google library book sales in your area and at least go once to see what all the Hullabaloo is about. Here is a website to help you get started, Book Sale Finder. 2. Location Where will your classroom library be located? I have seen some teachers place bookshelves along the back and side walls of the room. This really helps save space, but I have found that it doesn't create a library/book nook feel. I like to use a corner so I have two walls of space, but it is all in one spot. It is also a nice area for my students to read during Daily Five time. If you see the pictures from my 3 rooms below, you will notice that I always utilize my corners! 3. Organization My first year, I set up my library by placing all chapter books on one side and all pictures books on the other side. I organized each section by series and then genre or theme. The past two years, I have been sorting my books by just series/genre/theme. I place all the chapter books for the category in a basket and all of the picture books for the same category on the shelf next to the chapter books, to the right of the basket. I like this set up a lot more. In actual libraries students search by interest and not by chapter or picture book, so I wanted to replicate that. As you look at my classroom libraries below, keep in mind that the rooms in my school aren't that big. I would love to have space like some of the rooms I see out there, but you have the make the best of what you have. I love how neat and tidy The Plaid Apple is. If you have the space, this reading nook is great! This library from the 2 sisters is ah-ma-zing. I'm pretty that's all we would do all day long. This library is simple and purposeful. 4. Procedure My students all have book boxes for Daily Five. I stress to my students that they must keep their books in the boxes and not in the desks since that can damage the books and cause them to get lost. I don't let my students choose books in the morning (they were socializing too much and not completing their morning work) or during Daily Five time (they spent the whole time shopping for books and not reading). My students are each assigned days of the week. On Monday, Monday friends (about 5 or 6 students) can switch out their books in the morning. They get 15 minutes to do this and must be in their seat working by 9:10. At the beginning of the year, I teach students how to choose books that will last them a week. At 9:10, the "Daily Friends" bring their book boxes to me to check. Each student has a booklet in their book box and I stick a label rubric in and circle how they did. The categories on the rubric label that I am checking their box for are organization, nonfiction books, fiction books, and their writing notebook (I require them to keep their writing notebook in their box for ease of transitioning during Daily Five). I also take this time to make sure students have chosen appropriate books for their level and enough books to get them through the week. Sometimes I ask students to put back some books if I think they have too many and will end up not being able to finish any within the week. Two students every week are assigned the job of librarian in my classroom. It is their job to search the room for misplaced books and put them back where they belong. They also straighten up and organize my library every afternoon to keep it looking clean. 5. Tracking I don't really keep track of who has what book. My primary concern is to get the books into the hands of the students and they usually have about 8-10 books in their book box at any given time. That is way too many for me to keep track of for every student. The system I mentioned above, checking book boxes for "Daily Friends", gives me a good idea of where things go and who is reading what. There is incredible software out there that allows you to scan your books online and set up accounts for your students to check them out using a smart phone or tablet, just like a real library. I think this is awesome! I would use it if I could, but I don't have any tablets in my room or the patience to scan all my books. Other Ideas This source uses paper clips to attach read aloud books to the wall of the library. This source has a "book hospital" for torn or ripped books that need to be repaired. Themed libraries are always super cute, like this one from Proteacher. If you made it this far, you definitely deserve a freebie. Below you can download my Genre posters. The posters make a nice addition to my classroom library. I post them one at a time after teaching each genre. I hope I was able to give you some ideas or inspire you in some way. I know you all have tons of awesome ideas as well and I would love to learn from you. Leave me a comment to let me know how you do things in your room. See you soon! Click Here to view my Class Library Pinterest Board Click here to download Genre Posters
Have a chatty class? Do your talkative students get louder and louder during small groups until it feels like chaos? Do they talk when you'r...
In this post I share with you my classroom schedule in the third grade classroom. I talk about how I teach reading, math, writing, morning routine, and more!
Visualizing the text is such an important strategy used for building your students’ reading comprehension. It is very versatile as it can be used in different ways with students of all ages and reading levels. I
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• THIS 2 PAGE DOCUMENT IS AN OVERVIEW AND DOES NOT CONTAIN ALL THIRD GRADE STANDARDS. YOU CAN FIND THE VERSION WITH ALL STANDARDS HERE: 3rd Grade Common Core Standards Visual Reference- All Common Core Standards •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• This skill goal sheet is a two page resource that is a fun and very visual way for the kids and parents to see 3rd grade skills. There is one sheet for ELA and one sheet for math. It can be placed in data folders or homework folders as communication of the students learning. This can also be provided to parents as simple to understand resource at conferences, parent teacher conferences or open house to inform parents a basic idea what their child is expected to learn. Included in both color and black and white, with the common core standards listed in each box and a second version with only the images and text. Includes basic third grade skills such as: reading multi- syllable words reading with fluency retelling and comprehending stories multiplying telling time to the minute measuring reading and writing sight words adding and subtracting with fluency measuring volume writing personal narratives writing opinion pieces writing expository text Unfortunately, I was not able to fit all third grade standards because I wanted it to be simple and not overwhelming for parents and students but a great variety so students and parents can see what is expected. ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• You may also like: 3rd Grade Common Core Standards Visual Reference- All Common Core Standards- all 3rd grade common core standards I can statements in 6 page kid friendly format 3rd Grade I Can Statements: Each standard is listed on 1 page with an I can statement and a visual representation or an example. Perfect for posting in your classroom while teaching the standards. •3rd Grade Common Core I Can Statements or a bundle of all three of these products together at a discount price 3rd Grade I Can Statements Bundle •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• You may also like the other grade level skill sheets found here: •Pre-Kindergarten Skills •Kindergarten Skills •First Grade Skill Sheet •2nd Grade Goals Sheet •4th Grade Goals Sheet ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Are you new to teaching third grade? Whether you’re a newbie or a veteran teacher, here’s what you need to know: 1. Multiplication is king. Multiplication RULES third grade math. Our standards say that students must memorize facts within 100, but it doesn’t say how we have to do it. Lots of games and teaching ... Read More about New To Teaching Third Grade?
Use these FREE and fun 3rd grade writing prompts and give your students a chance to write about the things that inspire them.
3 examples of classroom management strategies to help you regain control of your classroom through effective behavior management.
Make the most of your writing block with these funny picture prompts! Go here:
Graphic organizers are timeless, versatile tools that support students in independently using reading comprehension strategies. A quality graphic organizer can be the difference between students using and understanding a comprehension strategy or not. WHY USE GRAPHIC
I get asked all of the time on Facebook what books I recommend for third grade read alouds or classroom libraries. I keep typing out my list of favorites and then it occurred to me- I should make this list a blog post! Duh! #alwayslearning So here are some of my favorite books for third
This kid friendly 3rd grade common core checklist is a 6 page resource that is a fun and very visual way for teachers, students and parents to see third grade skills. Includes all common core standards in a condensed and student (and parent) friendly format. There are 2 pages of I can statements of math and 4 pages of I can statements for ELA standards. This reference sheet includes all 3rd grade common core standards with I can statements for each common core standard. These can be placed in data notebooks as a form of communication to students to allow them to see all they have learned and what is expected. They can use this as a checklist for 3rd grade common core standards to mark off mastery. This can also be provided to parents at conferences, with report cards, parent teacher conferences or open house to inform parents what their child is expected to learn. Included with the common core standards listed in each box and a second version with only the images and text (in case you live in a state that does not teach common core) Included in both black and white and color. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• You may also like: A simpler 2 page handout of 3rd grade standards overview (1 for math and 1 for ELA), with less standards but can be used to provide parents and students with a general overview of 3rd grade standards that can be found here: 3rd Grade Skills 3rd Grade I Can Statements: Each standard is listed on 1 page with an I can statement and a visual representation or an example. Perfect for posting in your classroom while teaching the standards. •3rd Grade Common Core I Can Statements or a bundle of the overview, full page I can statements and student friendly version at a discount price 3rd Grade I Can Statements Bundle 3rd Grade NGSS I Can Statements (note: these are not included in this bundle. •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Other grade level common core standards visuals: Kindergarten Common Core Reference Guide- All Standards 1st Grade Common Core Standard Visual Reference Guide 2nd Grade Common Core Standard Visual Reference Guide 4th Grade Common Core Student I Can Statements ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
A third grade teacher's blog with a ton of teaching freebies, advice, lesson plans, and everything else teacher related.
Happy Tuesday! Today I am going to share one of my favorite ways to build classroom community: creating a classroom playlist. Here is what I had on our whiteboard when my third-graders entered Room 21 on our first day: I had placed an index card at each student's seat, and pencils were in the caddy in the center of each table. I told students they were welcome say things like, "That Taylor Swift song where she..." or "Anything by Twenty One Pilots." We have specials first thing in the morning (about 15 minutes after the bell rings), so I collected the cards as everybody lined up for Art. What a treat to read everybody's responses! I downloaded music from Amazon Prime (it's free! Yay!), making sure that the versions I downloaded were clean (free of offensive language or content) and appropriate for the classroom. When my young scholars came back, we moved on with our day, often working with our favorite songs playing in the background. I can't even express how happy I feel when my whole class is singing together while they're working on a project! I think the first time that happened, I realized what a community-builder shared music can be. Another eye-opener for me regarding the community-building qualities of shared music was when one of my students last year proclaimed that a particular song was "our class theme song"! Students often have additional songs that they think of later, or that comes out mid-year. I keep a notepad and pencil on our table next to the bathroom sign-out log so that kids can add to it as ideas occur to them. This particular notepad is the one I have out for book requests; this is what I refer to when I order bonus point books! (I had this photo but not one of our song request list - they are very much the same though!) One of the bonuses is that these song requests reveal a bit about each student. While most requests were pop chart favorites, I did get some interesting digressions - The Chicken Dance, Spring from Antonio Vivaldi's Four Seasons, and The Star Spangled Banner, to name a few! One sweet request came from a little boy who shared that Peter, Paul, and Mary's Lemon Tree makes him happy! And really, I couldn't ask for any more than that!
If you're tired of teaching parts of speech lessons only to have kids forget all about it the next day, try these easy ideas and activities!
Visualizing the text is such an important strategy used for building your students’ reading comprehension. It is very versatile as it can be used in different ways with students of all ages and reading levels. I
Are you feeling a bit stuck when trying to come up with fun and engaging classroom transformation ideas? Look no further! This page is devoted to helping you find the perfect standards-based theme for your next classroom transformation! All of the theme ideas that I share will allow you to create an engaging yet rigorous … Classroom Transformation Ideas Read More »
One of my favorite writing lessons is all about the Hamburger Paragraph Plan. It is such a third grade-friendly layout and something that provides enough structure to help any student feel success with their writing. For more on how I introduce this with my class at the beginning of the year, click HERE. As the year progresses, I want to up the complexity of their paragraphs by encouraging them to add in details, descriptions, and examples. It's at this point that I introduce the Deluxe Hamburger Paragraph. I made this anchor chart this year, with help from some students about preferred toppings: This expands on our original Hamburger Plan by adding in a space for examples and descriptions after each reason/support/detail. It's awesome to see how their paragraphs improve with this simple addition and really help take their writing to the next level! *Quick Note: The green light reminds kids to have a "go" introduction sentence and the red light reminds them to add a "stop" conclusion sentence. Many times, I will have them underline their intro sentence in green and their conclusion sentence in red to reinforce this. I have updated my popular Hamburger Plan for Paragraph Writing to now include posters, notebook helpers, and plan outlines for the Deluxe Plan. You can redownload if your currently own this, or check it out in my TpT Store HERE. Happy paragraph writing!