WHAT YOUR CHILD WILL LEARN IN 3rd GRADE

Research & Historical Thinking

• Describe how significant people, events, and developments have shaped their own community.
• Use information obtained through observation and books to identify problems that suggest solutions and make decisions.
• Identify an issue and provide several reasons to support a position, organize information into sequenced presentations that include a beginning, middle, and end.
• Generate questions and research historical figures to learn about the past.
• Locate specific information in primary and secondary sources, dictionaries, atlases, and encyclopedias.
• Use technology and resources independently to locate and access information.
• Use the computer to access information and as a writing tool.
• Obtain information through print and non-print materials. (Artifacts, pictures, photographs, filmstrips and videos.
• Use a timeline to display and sequence specific time periods in New Haven and Connecticut history.

Civics and Government

• Explain what it means to be citizens of their community, state, and nation.
• Identify characteristics of a good citizen living in the community.
• Identify the functions and the major positions of authority in the community and describe the services provided by local government.
• Use a variety of resources to gather information about the government in their community and other communities around the world.
• Demonstrate understanding of democratic principles and practices.
• Explain how rights and responsibilities have changed over time.

Geography 

• Use terminology to identify and describe a variety of land and water forms (e.g., oceans, rivers, lakes, islands).
• Explain that latitude and longitude are used to locate places on maps and globes, and understand
  Earth/sun relationships.
• Identify the distinctive physical and cultural features of New Haven as compared to another community.
• Explore history of select landmarks and geographical features that are named after Indigenous peoples of Connecticut.
• Explain the geographic relationships of New Haven with the state, nation, and world.
• Construct a model or a map of an ideal community.

Economics

• Explain how people in their community make choices
• Describe the functions of banks in the community. 
• Compare ways of earning a living in urban and rural communities.
• Compare ways of earning a living now and at other times throughout history. 
• List ways taxes are used to support both your community and state. 
• Define and apply economic terms such as costs, specialization and division of labor, barter, currency & trade, limited and unlimited resources. 

Diversity

• Examine the contributions of people from various cultures to the development of New Haven, such as but not limited to black Americans and Indigenous peoples.
• Compare the characteristics of life in New Haven with various times in the past. 
• Clarify the roles of children and adults in communities that differ from their own in time and place. 
• Distinguish similarities and differences among children and families of different cultures living in New Haven and other communities studied. 

How You Can Help Your Child

• Foster a positive attitude towards the subject matter and explore ways to engage your child in learning about social studies.
• Show an interest in what they are learning in school, discuss concepts with them and give them examples of social studies from their daily lives that they can relate to.
• Strengthen your child's willingness to express their opinion and positively contribute to classroom discussion by sharing stories about their family heritage instilling pride and confidence in who they are.
• Visit local and national museums (whenever possible) during weekends and school breaks to uncover the history of different cultures.
• Social Studies is a subject that requires lots of reading, therefore it is important to provide your child with access to rich, relevant and engaging subject matter.
• Visit your local library and make sure that you and your child each have a library card. This allows growth in content knowledge but also helps support reading comprehension skills.