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Mathematics - Elementary Curriculum Mathematics Grade 3
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Strand: MEASUREMENT AND DATA (3.MD)

Solve problems involving measurement and estimation of intervals of time, liquid volumes, and masses of objects. (Standards 1-2). Represent and interpret data (Standards 3.MD.3- 4). Understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and addition (Standards 3.MD.5-7). Recognize perimeter as an attribute of plane figures and distinguish between linear and area measures (Standard 3.MD.8).
  • Area (elementary)
    In this lesson students will find the area of rectangular shapes and irregular shapes with right angles.
  • Area Explorer
    The applet in this activity generates a random geometric figure and allows the student to test their understanding of how to find the volume of an area.
  • Classroom Supplies
    In this task students are asked to decide how to spend $1,000 on supplies and materials for their classroom; students will have to make choices and be careful not to exceed the budget. Students are asked to decide which supplies will benefit the class the most and will compare their choices with other students' choices.
  • Dajuana's Homework
    The purpose of this task is for students to work on elapsed-time questions. This task includes three different elapsed time situations: end-time unknown, elapsed time unknown, and start-time unknown.
  • Elapsed Time Two
    This lesson can be used to help students understand how to read a clock, as well as understand addition and subtraction with time.
  • Finding the Area of Polygons
    The purpose of this instructional task is for students to find the area of figures that can be decomposed and then recomposed into rectyangles.
  • Fixed Areas
    This lesson plan activity helps students understand the relation between area and perimeter.
  • Geoboards in the Classroom
    This site offers the teacher lesson plans and resources for exploring the area of two-dimensional objects.
  • Grade 3 Math Module 2: Place Value and Problem Solving with Units of Measure (EngageNY)
    Module 2 uses place value to unify measurement, rounding skills, and the standard algorithms for addition and subtraction. The module begins with plenty of hands-on experience using a variety of tools to build practical measurement skills and conceptual understanding of metric and time units. Estimation naturally surfaces through application; this transitions students into rounding. In the modules final topics students round to assess whether or not their solutions to problems solved using the standard algorithms are reasonable.
  • Grade 3 Math Module 4: Multiplication and Area (EngageNY)
    In this 20-day module students explore area as an attribute of two-dimensional figures and relate it to their prior understandings of multiplication. Students conceptualize area as the amount of two-dimensional surface that is contained within a plane figure. They come to understand that the space can be tiled with unit squares without gaps or overlaps. They make predictions and explore which rectangles cover the most area when the side lengths differ. Students progress from using square tile manipulatives to drawing their own area models and manipulate rectangular arrays to concretely demonstrate the arithmetic properties. The module culminates with students designing a simple floor plan that conforms to given area specifications.
  • Grade 3 Math Module 6: Collecting and Displaying Data (EngageNY)
    This 10-day module builds on Grade 2 concepts about data, graphing, and line plots. The two topics in this module focus on generating and analyzing categorical and measurement data. By the end of the module, students are working with a mixture of scaled picture graphs, bar graphs, and line plots to problem solve using both categorical and measurement data.
  • Grade 3 Math Module 7: Geometry and Measurement Word Problems (EngageNY)
    This 40-day final module of the year offers students intensive practice with word problems, as well as hands-on investigation experiences with geometry and perimeter. The module begins with solving one- and two-step word problems based on a variety of topics studied throughout the year, using all four operations. Next students explore geometry. Students tessellate to bridge geometry experience with the study of perimeter. Line plots, familiar from Module 6, help students draw conclusions about perimeter and area measurements. Students solve word problems involving area and perimeter using all four operations. The module concludes with a set of engaging lessons that briefly review the fundamental Grade 3 concepts of fractions, multiplication, and division.
  • Grade 3 Mathematics
    In order to assist educators with the implementation of the Common Core, the New York State Education Department provides curricular modules in Pre-K-Grade 12 English Language Arts and Mathematics that schools and districts can adopt or adapt for local purposes.
  • Grade 3 Unit 1: Number and Operations in Base Ten (Georgia Standards)
    In this unit, students will investigate, understand, and use place value to manipulate numbers. Build on understanding of place value to round whole numbers. Continue to develop understanding of addition and subtraction and use strategies and properties to do so proficiently and fluently. Draw picture graphs with symbols that represent more than one object. Create bar graphs with intervals greater than one and use graphs and information from data to ask questions that require students to compare quantities and use mathematical concepts and skills.
  • Grade 3 Unit 2: The Relationship Between Multiplication and Division (Georgia Standards)
    In this unit, students will begin to understand the concepts of multiplication and division, learn the basic facts of multiplication and their related division facts, apply properties of operations (commutative, associative, and distributive) as strategies to multiply and divide, understand division as an unknown-factor problem. For example, find 32 8 by finding the number that makes 32 when multiplied by 8. Fluently multiply and divide within 100, using strategies such as the patterns and relationships between multiplication and division, understand multiplication and division as inverse operations, solve problems and explain their processes of solving division problems that can also be represented as unknown factor multiplication problems and represent and interpret data.
  • Grade 3 Unit 3: Patterns in Addition and Multiplication (Georgia Standards)
    In this unit, students will understand concepts of area and relate area to multiplication and addition. Find the area of a rectangle with whole- number side lengths by tiling it. Multiply side lengths to find areas of rectangles with whole-number side lengths in context of solving real world and mathematical problems. Construct and analyze area models with the same product. Describe and extend numeric patterns. Determine addition and multiplication patterns. Understand the commutative propertys relationship to area. Create arrays and area models to find different ways to decompose a product and use arrays and area models to develop understanding of the distributive property.
  • Grade 3 Unit 4: Geometry (Georgia Standards)
    In this unit students will further develop understandings of geometric figures by focusing on identification and descriptions of plane figures based on geometric properties. Identifies examples and non-examples of plane figures based on geometric properties. Identify differences among quadrilaterals. Understand that shapes in different categories may share attributes and those attributes can define a larger category (example: rhombuses, rectangles, and others have four sides and are all called quadrilaterals). Expand the ability to see geometry in the real world and can draw plane figure shapes based on attributes.
  • Grade 3 Unit 5: Representing and Comparing Fractions (Georgia Standards)
    In this unit, students will develop an understanding of fractions, beginning with unit fractions. View fractions in general as being built out of unit fractions, and they use fractions along with visual fraction models to represent parts of a whole. Understand that the size of a fractional part is relative to the size of the whole. For example, 1/2 of the paint in a small bucket could be less paint than 1/3 of the paint in a larger bucket, but 1/3 of a ribbon is longer than 1/5 of the same ribbon because when the ribbon is divided into 3 equal parts, the parts are longer than when the ribbon is divided into 5 equal parts. Students are able to use fractions to represent numbers equal to, less than, and greater than one.
  • Grade 3 Unit 6: Measurement (Georgia Standards)
    In this unit students will tell and write time to the nearest minute and measure time intervals in minutes. Solve elapsed time, including word problems, by using a number line diagram and reason about the units of mass and liquid volume.
  • Halves, thirds, and sixths
    The purpose of this task is for students to use their understanding of area as the number of square units that covers a region, to recognize different ways of representing fractions with area, and to understand why fractions are equivalent in special cases.
  • How Heavy?
    In this activity students measure the weight of various objects using a balance scale and cubes and record the results.
  • India's Bathroom Tiles
    Students are given a word problem about tiling a bathroom. This task allows students to use the concept of "tiling" as an entry point to linking area with multiplication. Ideally, they would be given foam or plastic tiles to actually practice putting the tiles on the space without gaps or overlaps.
  • Introducing the Distributive Property
    This is an instructional task, best used when students are first working with the distributive property. The standard asks students to apply the distributive property to area models, though this task intentionally begins with array models.
  • Introduction to Bar Graphs
    This lesson is designed to have students practice making bar graphs and interpret those graphs.
  • IXL Game: Interpret Pictographs
    This game helps the third grader draw a scaled picture graph and a scaled bar graph to represent a data set with several categories. This is just one of many online games that supports the Utah Math core. Note: The IXL site requires subscription for unlimited use.
  • Junior Architects
    This unit of 4 lessons leads students to design a clubhouse and thereby review two- and three-dimensional shapes, calculate perimeter and area, and create blueprints and three-dimensional models.
  • Length, Perimeter, and Area
    This lesson will help students understand how to find the area and perimeter of a random shape and a random triangle.
  • Measurement and Data (3.MD) - Third Grade Core Guide
    The Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and educators around the state of Utah developed these guides for Third Grade Mathematics - Measurement and Data (3.MD)
  • Perimeter
    This lesson plan and activities will help students understand the concept of perimeter.
  • Perimeter (elementary)
    This lesson will help students find the perimeter of rectangular shapes and irregular shapes with right angles.
  • Shape Builder
    This activity allows the student to explore area and perimeter by either allowing the computer to randomly draw a shape on a grid or build the shape on the grid.
  • Shape Explorer
    The applet contained in this lesson allows the student to test his or her skill at calculating the area and perimeter of a various figures.
  • Shapes and their Insides
    The purpose of this task is to help students differentiate between a polygon and the region inside of a polygon so that they understand what is being measured when the perimeter and area are being found.
  • The Square Counting Shortcut
    Students are given 4 pictures made up of squares. This is a rectangle subdivision task; ideally instead of counting each square. students should break the letters into rectangles, multiply to find the areas, and add up the areas.
  • Three Hidden Rectangles
    The purpose of this task is for students to decompose a figure into rectangles and then find the total area by adding the area of all of its smaller, non-overlapping rectangles. This task also requires students to create expressions to represent the area of the entire figure as the sum of the areas of the rectangles.


UEN logo http://www.uen.org - in partnership with Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and Utah System of Higher Education (USHE).  Send questions or comments to USBE Specialists - Patricia  Stephens-French or Molly  Basham and see the Mathematics - Elementary website. For general questions about Utah's Core Standards contact the Director - Jennifer  Throndsen.

These materials have been produced by and for the teachers of the State of Utah. Copies of these materials may be freely reproduced for teacher and classroom use. When distributing these materials, credit should be given to Utah State Board of Education. These materials may not be published, in whole or part, or in any other format, without the written permission of the Utah State Board of Education, 250 East 500 South, PO Box 144200, Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4200.