3rd Grade Lessons
Third grade is a very thrilling year filled with many new concepts to learn. Below you will find a variety of lesson plans to help guide your instruction. In order to help you integrate these lessons into your existing curriculum, many of the lessons are aligned to the Common Core State Standards. These lessons are the work of the talented teachers from our Teacher.org community. With that said, the third grade lessons plans will continuously grow as more teachers submit their work. Contact us if you would like to submit lessons. You have the power to inspire our future!
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3rd Grade Arts Lesson Plans
Art Outside
In this visual and performing arts lesson, students will explore their artistic skills while becoming more connected with nature. Students will look for fallen plants outside or in the garden and they will use them in the classroom to make art.
Bugs and Design
This lesson is designed to help students use their skills to analyze art elements and various principles of design.
Camouflage and Environment
Students will make butterflies of various colors and then they will experience the advantage that butterflies that are the same color as their environment have against predators.
Chinese New Year - Fan Dance
A hands-on lesson which integrates Social Studies concepts with performing arts (dance). Students will delve into customs of Chinese New Year by exploring traditional artifacts and dance.
Christmas Around the World Part 1
This lesson combines Visual Arts with Social Studies. Students will read about how Christmas is celebrated in different parts of the world and draw a scene depicting that location.
Christmas Around the World Part 2
This lesson combines Music and Social Studies. Students will listen to and learn Christmas songs from around the world and analyze.
Kwanzaa Art
Students will discuss the 7 principals of Kwanzaa and then draw pictures of an example of each.
Mini Diorama
This visual arts lesson will allow students to share some personal interests in the form of a diorama. Sample rubric included.
Upside Down Art
This lesson will allow students to practice creating art from a unique perspective while learning about Michelangelo.
Yarn Painting
This lesson will allow students to practice creating art using a unique medium, yarn.
3rd Grade English/Language Arts Lesson Plans
Author's Purpose
Students will have the opportunity to delve into the world of "Author's Purpose" with this engaging lesson. This lesson is aligned with 2nd grade standards and expectations.
Collaborative Questioning
Students will read a teacher selected, standards-based science or history text. Students will then develop questions based on Costa’s levels of questioning to encourage collaborative discussion of the reading.
Discovering Adjectives
Students will work in groups to describe various objects based on taste, smell, look, touch, and emotional feeling.
Fable Lesson: What is a Fable?
In this fable lesson, students will use Internet sources, graphic organizers and group activities to analyze and discuss the characteristics and story lines of two different fables, "The Owl and The Grasshopper" and "The Town Mouse and The Country Mouse." After students read and brainstorm story elements of the folktales, they will then write a fable of their own.
Hiding Homophones
This lesson offers a simple introduction or refresher course in homophones, words that are pronounced the same, but spell and mean differently. Students will create a visual reminder of some of the more common homophones.
Main Idea
This lesson is designed to help students' comprehension and Analysis of Grade-Level Appropriate Text.
Main Idea and Details
This lesson is designed to teach students to use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.
Moody Reading: Reading with Expression
This lesson will be used to help students understand how to read with expression by choosing an expression to read with regardless of what is written.
Short Stories
This lesson is designed to help students ask questions and support answers by connecting prior knowledge with literal information found in, and inferred from, the text.
Story Themes
This lesson is designed to help students understand “describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.” -CCSS
Tearing Into Vocabulary
This is a quick activity to allow students to work cooperatively while increasing awareness of vocabulary for a given lesson.
What is a Verb?
Students will be able to define and give examples of verbs by telling about how they celebrate their birthdays.
Writing Main Idea
This lesson is designed to help student’s organization and focus their grade appropriate writing.
Writing Narratives
In this lesson, students will use a graphic organizer for narrative writing.
Writing to a Photograph
Students will develop a plan for a fictional story based on a picture.
3rd Grade Environmental Lesson Plans
Angles in Nature
Students will take a walk outside with their protractor and measure the angles in nature. They will record the angles that they find in branches, trees, bushes, flowers, etc… and then determine the supplementary angle.
Beach Day
This lesson will allow students to learn about the beach environment and experience working with sand.
Camouflage and Environment
Students will make butterflies of various colors and then they will experience the advantage that butterflies that are the same color as their environment have against predators.
Classroom Garden From Trash
Students will create several plants (a garden) from parts of a plant that are normally thrown away.
Food Chain Tag
Students will learn a brief background about energy transfer between the sun, producers, primary consumers, and secondary consumers. ½ of the students are primary consumers (plants) and ¼ of the students are primary consumers (rabbits) and ¼ of the students are secondary consumers (hawks).
Food Web Art Project
Students will discuss food webs and how animals interact together in an ocean biosphere and make a model of how animals get their energy from other animals and the sun.
Ozone Layer
Students will think about how people affect the environment and what they can do to help it and prevent further damage.
Rainfall Gauge
This lesson will allow students to learn about the rain amounts in their area as well as offer a hands-on science experiment that could lead to discussions about the water cycle.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (In That Order)
Students will watch a video about reduce, reuse, and recycle and then complete a gallery walk to discuss ideas of other ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
Save the World
This lesson is intended to motivate students to become environmental superheroes.
We Must Recycle
Students will use creativity to use something considered trash to create something new.
Window Garden
Students will plan, experiment, and observe as seeds grow in a window garden. Students will explore why this is important to the sustainability of our environment.
3rd Grade Math Lesson Plans
Angles in Nature
Students will take a walk outside with their protractor and measure the angles in nature. They will record the angles that they find in branches, trees, bushes, flowers, etc… and then determine the supplementary angle.
Comparing Multiplication Facts (Hey Tocayo!)
Students will be assigned a number that has various factors and they will find partners with different factors that have the same product.
Even or Odd Nature Walk
Students will do a nature walk to find things in nature that are grouped in pairs that are odd or even.
Exchanging Time
The lesson is used for students to practice basic time measurement, and understanding the basic units of time.
Feed the Gator
Students will compare numbers with three or more digits using visual cues.
Fun Fraction Pizza
Students will create a “pizza” from construction paper divided into 8 slices. They will decorate each slice and then exchange slices with classmates and then evaluate the fractions of slices that they have at the end. For example, 1/8 slices of my own pizza, 4/8 or ½ of pizza that was made by a female, 2/8 or ¼ that was made by my buddy. Note: Students should have already had some lessons about simplification of fractions.
Graphing With Insects
This lesson is designed to teach students to draw a picture graph and a bar graph (with single-unit scale) to represent a data set with up to four categories. Plus, solve simple put-together, take-apart, and compare problems.
Odd or Even
This engaging lesson will help students determine whether a group of objects (up to 20) has an odd or even number of members.
Scale It Up
This lesson will allow students to demonstrate knowledge use of scale.
Shape Up
This lesson will allow students to demonstrate knowledge of various grade appropriate shapes.
Symmetry Search
The students will locate manmade objects or things in nature that are symmetrical.
The Value of a Number
The students will work in groups of 4-6 physically learning and reviewing place value.
3rd Grade P.E. Lesson Plans
And Freeze!
Students will practice listening skills and basic physical concepts as required in physical education class. Students will also work on balance and coordination.
Animal Laps
Combining information about the speed of animals, the students will run laps in the gym or outdoors.
Basketball Relay
Students will practice teamwork, dribbling, and shooting a basketball.
Bear Hunt Obstacle Course
This plan will combine reading with balance and coordination skills to allow students to navigate a simple obstacle course.
Boom Over Movement Game
Students will play a game in which they need to change direction quickly. Students are to pretend that they are on a sailboat that is in the middle of a storm. They will have to run and change direction based on verbal commands and duck quickly to avoid being hit by the imaginary boom.
Butterfly Stretches
This lesson is designed to help students learn the importance and reasons for exercise through multiple activities and discussions.
Coordination Course
This plan will allow students to practice coordination while staying physical.
Food Chain Tag
Students will learn a brief background about energy transfer between the sun, producers, primary consumers, and secondary consumers. ½ of the students are primary consumers (plants) and ¼ of the students are primary consumers (rabbits) and ¼ of the students are secondary consumers (hawks).
Music Movement
The students will move to the music based on its beat, words, tune, and other variables.
On Top of Spaghetti
This plan will allow students to practice coordination while staying physical.
Pass It Off
This lesson will allow students to practice passing, dribbling, and bouncing skills using basketballs
Race to the Answer
This lesson will allow students to practice teamwork, basic math skills, and get exercise through a relay race. Note: Problems/difficulty level can be altered by grade
Simon Says
Students will practice listening skills and basic physical concepts as required in physical education class.
Trust Me
This lesson will allow students to practice teamwork and trust building, as well as working on directionality for younger students.
What Time is it FOX?
The students play a game where they practice different movements including jumping, galloping, skipping, running, jogging, leaping, and walking. Based on National Physical Education Standards, students should have been learning these skills for the last 4 years.
3rd Grade Science Lesson Plans
All About Pollination
This lesson is designed to help students develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants.
Camouflage and Environment
Students will make butterflies of various colors and then they will experience the advantage that butterflies that are the same color as their environment have against predators.
Classroom Garden From Trash
Students will create several plants (a garden) from parts of a plant that are normally thrown away.
Food Chain Tag
Students will learn a brief background about energy transfer between the sun, producers, primary consumers, and secondary consumers. ½ of the students are primary consumers (plants) and ¼ of the students are primary consumers (rabbits) and ¼ of the students are secondary consumers (hawks).
Food Web Art Project
Students will discuss food webs and how animals interact together in an ocean biosphere and make a model of how animals get their energy from other animals and the sun.
Layers of the Earth
This lesson is designed to help students understand that the Earth has a layered structure.
Planets and Solar System
Students will create a mini poster with pictures and a ‘memory phrase’ to teach others the planets in order.
Solar System
The students will learn about the Solar System, the order of the 8 planets, special words such as orbit and asteroid.
Thanksgiving Food Pyramid
Students will discuss the foods that are traditionally eaten at Thanksgiving in the United States and place them into food groups based on the food pyramid.
Window Garden
Students will plan, experiment, and observe as seeds grow in a window garden. Students will explore why this is important to the sustainability of our environment.
3rd Grade Social Studies Lesson Plans
Chinese New Year - Fan Dance
A hands-on lesson which integrates Social Studies concepts with performing arts (dance). Students will delve into customs of Chinese New Year by exploring traditional artifacts and dance.
Christmas Around the World Part 1
This lesson combines Visual Arts with Social Studies. Students will read about how Christmas is celebrated in different parts of the world and draw a scene depicting that location.
Christmas Around the World Part 2
This lesson combines Music and Social Studies. Students will listen to and learn Christmas songs from around the world and analyze.
We Must Recycle
Students will use creativity to use something considered trash to create something new.
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