The goal of studying selected topics in World History and Geography in third grade is to foster curiosity and the beginnings of understanding about the larger world and about the varied civilizations and ways of life. This can be done through a variety of means: story, drama, art, music, discussion, and more.
World Geography – The study of geography embraces many topics throughout the third grade program of studies, including topics in history and science. Geographic knowledge includes a spatial sense of the world, an awareness of physical processes that shape life, a sense of the interactions between humans and their environment, an understanding of the relations between place and culture, and an awareness of the characteristics of specific regions and cultures. Students name our continent, country, state, and community; work with maps and learn the importance of keys or legends with symbols; use globes and other geographic tools in order to identify different cardinal directions; identify major oceans, the seven continents, the Equator, Northern and Southern Hemisphere, and North and South Poles. They also learn to measure straight line distances using a bar scale and they are encouraged to utilize atlases, magazines, books, and on-line resources to find geographic information. The third grade social studies program also reviews many geographical terms and features and introduces the terms including: boundary, channel, delta, isthmus, plateau, reservoir, and strait. Also covered in our program studies are the names, location, and importance of the major rivers of the world.
Ancient History – Students begin their studies of Ancient History by closely examining the geography of the Mediterranean Region. They learn of the area’s seas, gulfs, straits, oceans, peninsulas, and countries. Their unit on Ancient Rome focuses on the background, the empire, the “decline and fall” of Rome, and the eastern Roman Empire: Byzantine Civilization. They then study the lives of the Earliest Europeans (long before Columbus) we know of to come to North America: the Vikings.
American History and Geography – In third grade, students begin a more detailed and in-depth chronological investigation of topics, some of which have been introduced in grades K-2. Specific topics include: the early exploration of North America; ways of life of specific Native American peoples; life in colonial America before the Revolution. Use of timelines is also implemented in their lessons. Students focus on The Earliest Americans who crossed the land bridge from Asia to North America during the Ice Age. They also study the lives of the Native Americans including major tribes and nations such as Cherokee Confederacy, Seminole, Powhatan, Delaware, Susquehanna, Mohican, Massachuset, and Iroquois Confederacy.
Third grade students also examine early Spanish exploration and settlement in America, paying particular attention to the settlement of Florida, the founding of St. Augustine, and the spread toward the islands of the Caribbean. Studies of these Spaniards also lead students to focus on the exploration and settlement of the American Southwest in lands that are now the states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California and also toward the Spaniards’ search for the Northwest Passage (finding a short cut across North America to Asia). The third grade also studies The Thirteen Colonies: Life and Times Before the Revolution. During these lessons they pay close attention to the geography, events, and contribution of the Southern, New England, and Middle Atlantic Colonies.
Self awareness – Students identify themselves as American citizens and learn of the community (paying particular attention to Baltimore), state, and country in which they live.
Academics – Students are often required to conduct research on a present topic, gather information, and share their findings with the class. They are also given oral challenge questions and end-of-unit assessments.
Reading – Very often, correlating literature selections are incorporated into a unit to provide student motivation, connection, and additional information to a studied unit. (Example: Perry’s Baltimore Adventure)
Leadership Observation – Students give presentations in front of their peers as well as larger audiences based upon characters and events studied in their units. They also make connections to the contributions of specific portrait leaders on our walls to nation’s and world’s history. (Example: Sacagawea)
