Third grade provides a bridge between the lower elementary and upper elementary school years. Well on their way to solidifying a strong set of core skills, our third graders love the challenge of big ideas and the opportunity to work more independently. 
 
Students have multiple opportunities to work in cooperative groups, which maximizes engagement and provides an opportunity for all students to participate and be heard. Thematic units, such as the study of Native People, integrate learning across disciplines and provide a rich learning experience.
 
Technology is integrated into all disciplines and is seen as an important tool in the learning process. Students use iPads to create projects, practice skills, collaborate as teams, and demonstrate understanding.
 
The social curriculum in third grade focuses on developing skills for cooperative work. Students are encouraged to be “bucket fillers,” a term based on a favorite third-grade book, which stresses the importance of helping and building up one another. Through our Social Thinking curriculum, students in grades 2-5 have a common language as well as strategies for emotional and sensory self-management. Students explore a variety of problems and appropriate reactions to each of the four leveled zones. Third graders are also introduced to the Unthinkables (characters who represent different types of inflexible thinking in social situations) to self-identify areas where social growth can be made, to develop an awareness of how their behaviors affect others, and to learn strategies to help build better communication skills with peers and adults alike.