Grade 3

English Language Arts

EL Education is the provider of the OUSD ELA curriculum for grades K-5,.* The curriculum is standards-based, and relies heavily on fiction and nonfiction trade books. This curriculum is open access, and full materials are available to view and at the EL Education website.

* OUSD Dual Language schools use the Benchmark Education curriculum for language instruction.

Fall

Overcoming Learning Challenges Near and Far

Why are education, books, and reading important? How can I overcome learning challenges?


  • Waiting for the Biblioburro by Monica Brown

  • Rain School by James Rumford

  • Nasreen's Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan by Jeanette Winter

  • My Librarian Is a Camel: How Books Are Brought to Children Around the World by Margriet Ruurs

  • Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco (one per classroom)

  • More Than Anything Else by Marie Bradby

Winter

Adaptations and the Wide World of Frogs

How does an author engage the reader in a narrative? How do experts build knowledge and share expertise about a topic? How do frogs survive?


  • Everything You Need to Know about Frogs: And Other Slippery Creatures by DK Publishing

  • Bullfrog at Magnolia Circle by Deborah Dennard

  • Lizards, Frogs, and Polliwogs: Poems and Paintings by Douglas Florian

Spring

Exploring Literary Classics

How do writers capture a reader's imagination? What can we learn from reading literary classics?


  • Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie (one per student)


Math

Eureka Math2 (Eureka Math "Squared") is the adopted OUSD curriculum for elementary schools. The curriculum is aligned to California Common Core standards, which describe what students should know and be able to do in each subject in each grade.

Fall

Module 1

Multiplication and Division

with Units of 2, 3, 4, 5, and

10


Module 2

Place Value Concepts

Through Metric

Measurements

Winter

Module 3

Multiplication and Division

with Units of 0, 1, 6, 7, 8, and 9


Module 4

Multiplication and Area

Spring

Module 5

Fractions as Numbers


Module 6

Geometry, Measurement, and Data

Science

For elementary science instruction, OUSD uses FOSS (Full Option Science System), a research-based science curriculum developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California, Berkeley. This curriculum emphasizes hands-on activities and is aligned to Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Each grade's curriculum spans three modules - physical science, earth science, and life science. The order of the three modules varies from school to school, depending on the rotation of physical science kits at each school site.

Physical Science

Motion and Matter

What causes objects to move?

How can we use tools to measure the mass of materials in mixtures?


Investigations:

  1. Forces

  2. Patterns of Motion

Earth Science

Water and Climate

How do Earth’s geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere interact to create a sustainable environment for life?


Investigations:

  1. How is water involved in weather?

  2. Are weather conditions the same around the world and throughout the year?

Life Science

Structures of Life

Where do organisms come from?

How do they survive?

How are all the different kinds of plants and animals able to continue to exist on earth?


Investigations:

  1. Origin of Seeds

  2. Growing Further