Your child is growing up and entering third grade. Whether you’ve been homeschooling from the start, or this is your third year, you probably have some questions. How do you decide what kind of curriculum program will work best for your child? What kind of expectations should you have for your child? Continue reading for some helpful tips in helping you decide on a great curriculum program for you and your child.
Grade Level Expectations
Naturally, as with any grade level, each student has different strengths and weaknesses. This will be apparent when you’re choosing curriculum programs for your child. Many people choose homeschooling for the freedom it affords in developing a personalized education. This is one of the many perks of homeschooling, and it is true for third grade as well. On the other hand, there are some grade level expectations that you want to keep in mind as you’re choosing a plan.
Language and Literacy
- In third grade, kids become more capable of taking on more complicated assignments.
- Reading should become much more proficient in third grade.
- Kids become much more capable of discussing the books they’re reading.
- Kids at this age can become much more organized in their learning.
- Writing will involve different genres of writing like reports, creative writing, and they can begin using research methods to write.
Math
- This may be a time to begin introducing harder math concepts like fractions and decimals.
- Third graders will often be expected to do addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
- More mental math is appropriate at this grade level.
Science
- While there’s a lot of leeway for what subjects you cover in science, the concepts should begin to deepen and grow in complexity.
- This is a good age to make observations and discuss potential scientific outcomes.
- Kids can make smart guesses about what they think might happen in a science experiment.
- You may begin learning about things like the food chain, states of matter, weather concepts, how does the environment affect organisms, classifying living and nonliving organisms, etc.
Social Studies
- As with science, there’s a lot of freedom to choose what you study in social studies. But again, there should be a growing complexity in your curricula.
- Third grade is a good time to expand your child’s worldview and begin learning about different cultures around the world.
- Some concepts they could begin understanding is the way geography influences a community, or how individual people contributed to the improvement of a society.
- Kids at this age can understand concepts such as past, present, and future.
- You can discuss methods of travel.
- This is also a good age to introduce the purpose of government and how it functions.
Our Recommendations
Complete Programs
Homeschool Complete was created by a teacher with 27 years of experience. The coursework includes interactive learning, projects, and experiments.
Alpha Omega Switched on Schoolhouse is a good choice if you’re looking for a computerized learning program.
Language Literacy
If you’re looking for a strong grammar program, we recommend Grammar Galaxy. It creatively intertwines a story with grammar concepts in a really fun way. Make sure to check out our complete review of this program.
Math
If you’re looking for an engaging math program, RightStart Mathematics is an excellent choice. It’s interactive and hands-on and includes tangible objects. To learn more you can check out our complete review.
Science
If you’re looking for a Christian worldview science program, Apologia is a good choice. The text is interesting, academic, and informative.
For a secular option, R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey is a popular choice. The lessons are presented in a story format to keep kids interested. For grades 1st through 5th, the themes are Life/Biology, Earth & Space, Chemistry, & Physics.
On to Third Grade
As always, when choosing your curriculum for the year, make sure that you’re abiding by your state’s standards. In addition, remember that third graders are growing and their reasoning skills are developing strongly at this age. Don’t be afraid to challenge their thinking, but also keep in mind their individual abilities.