Third Grade
1. In order for students to be successful in fourth grade, each student will exhibit at least 70% mastery of reading, vocabulary skills, and math skills and three of the four following subjects:
science, social studies, language, and spelling.
The 70% will reflect an average of grades from each 9 weeks throughout the school year. Grades will be based on daily grades, end of selection tests, and authentic assessments.
2. For a student to be promoted to fourth grade a rating of meets expectations or above is required on the reading portion of the third grade Criterion-Referenced Competency Test. The student should also meet promotion standards and criteria established by the local board of education.
3. In all subject areas, professional assessment, written documentation, and portfolio assessment of the student’s performance shall carry great weight in the final decision for promotion and retention.
The characteristics of a Third Grader:
Third graders are concrete learners who are just beginning to think abstractly. They are curious and active learners. Third graders become more independent, organized, and responsible.  What should a child be able to do at the completion of 3rd Grade?
• Throughout the year, classroom teachers will assess each student’s growth and progress toward achievement of
the learning goals specified in the state curriculum.
• These classroom assessments will be used to guide instruction in order to provide every child with the opportunity to learn and to succeed.
• Students will be made aware of the performance expectations for 3rd grade and will acquire self monitoring and self-assessing skills to help them maximize their achievement.
• In the spring, Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests in Reading, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies will be administered to 3rd graders in order to provide a standardized measure of student learning.
• Beginning in the year the Georgia Performance Standards are implemented for a content area, the CRCT will directly align with those GPS.
• The writing of all 3rd graders will also be assessed. This assessment is based on teacher judgment of the developmental stage most representative of student writings collected throughout the year.
• Georgia law also mandates the administration of a norm referenced test to all 3rd grade students sometime during the school year. The state provides the Iowa Test of Basic Skills; a school may choose to administer an alternate norm-referenced test at the system’s own expense.
Promotion and Retention Policy from Coweta County Schools Board of Education Policy

3rd Grade Language Arts
Third grade students will be engaged in reading, writing, and listening, speaking, & viewing. By the end of 3rd grade, students will be able to:
• Read grade level text with appropriate speed, accuracy, and expression
• Read a variety of text
• Recognize and use grade level vocabulary
• Use strategies, such as summarizing, to gain meaning from text
• Work independently on research projects
• Use the writing process to produce pieces, including reports and essays
3rd Grade Social Studies
Third grade students will explore the origins of American democracy as well as the lives of important Americans. In addition, 3rd graders will continue to acquire basic economic concepts. By the end of 3rd grade, students will
be able to:
• Explain the political roots of American democracy
• Discuss the lives of selected Americans who expanded people’s rights and freedoms in a democracy
• Locate and describe the major topographical features of America
• Describe the cultural and geographic systems associated with historical figures in American democracy and explain how these Americans display positive character traits
• Explain the importance of the basic principles that provide the foundation of a republican form of government
• Describe and explain economic concepts involving productive resources, taxation for public services, and interdependence and trade
3rd Grade Science
Third grade students will use inquiry to focus on questions about the world around them. By the end of 3rd grade, students will be able to:
• Explain how heat is produced and the effects of heating and cooling
• Describe the effect of magnets on common objects and in other magnets
• Describe the ways in which the parts of an object influence or interact with one another
• Represent objects in the real world with geometric figures, number sequences, graphs, diagrams, maps, and stories; and compare/ contrast these representations to their objects
• Compare objects, record findings accurately, and analyze data in order to answer their own questions
• Use information about the relationship between the form and shape of an object and that object’s use, operation, or function to explain fossils, rock cycles, and features of plants and animals
• Differentiate between habitats in Georgia and the organisms that live in our state
• Recognize the effects of pollution and humans on theenvironment
3rd Grade Mathematics
Third grade students will be actively engaged in developing mathematical understandings in real and relevant contexts. By the end of 3rd grade, students will be able to:
• Understand place value through ten thousands
• Add and subtract using properties and estimation
• Understand the relationship between division and multiplication and between division and subtraction
• Multiply/divide a 2-3 digit whole number by a 1-digit whole number
• Model addition and subtraction of decimals and common fractions
• Measure length, perimeter, area, and elapsed time
• Classify triangles by sides and understand circles
• Create and interpret tables and graphs (using scale increments)
• Problem solve, develop arguments, use language of mathematics, make connections, communicate