Reader's Workshop is a reading program for third graders which allows them to read a variety of books and reflect, write and discuss. According to Houston, Texas's Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District's website, reader's workshop allows "students to gain the knowledge to understand literature on multiple levels and respond to it thoughtfully."
To do Reader's Workshop in the home, have your child choose books that interest him and that are challenging, but that do not frustrate him. He reads for a certain amount of time each day, taking notes about characters, vocabulary, plot points or settings on sticky notes as he reads, as well as any interesting thoughts that occur to him. After about fifteen minutes of reading, stop in for a visit to make sure your child is progressing in the book and to see if there are any questions or information he wants to share. Then he continues reading.
At the end of the reading period, teach your child other language arts skills by asking him to write about a specific topic in his reading response journal. For example, your child could write a summary of what he read, or pretend he is a character and write a letter to another character. Ask questions like, "What is the character's problem?" "How do you think he will solve it?" "What do you think will happen next? Why?" With Reader's Workshop, third graders develop their comprehension and writing skills as well as a love for reading.
Third graders are calculating harder addition and subtraction problems, learning their multiplication facts and being introduced to division. They also measure objects with standard and metric measurements, solve word problems with strategies and develop money skills. Math easily lends itself to playing games with children, and homeschool parents can use math games to reinforce skills, create a fun and positive learning environment and reinforce the family bond, as Carletta Sanders discusses in her book. Bob Hazen, who writes for the Practical Homeschooling Magazine website, says, "Games are fun! Games help foster a positive, enjoyable attitude about mathematics. In math, as in much of life, attitude is extremely important."
One easy multiplication game needs a pair of dice, paper and a pencil. Children roll the dice (or die depending on which multiplication table you are teaching) one time, and that is the first number in the multiplication problem. Children roll the dice again, and that is the second number. Then they multiply the numbers and solve the problem. If they get the correct answer, they receive that number of points added to their score. Incorrect answers give a player zero points. Then it's the next person's turn. At the end of a set amount of time, whoever has the most points wins.
Another simple game to play at home that reinforces characteristics of two- or three- dimensional shapes is "I Spy." You say, "I spy with my little eye a rectangular prism that holds food." The child then guesses, "The refrigerator." You and your child can make the clues easy or difficult, but each clue has to involve a proper shape name. You can be creative with math games and use household items to work on math skills.
Set up centers in your home school just like regular classroom teachers do to reinforce skills in various subject areas. For example, if you are teaching third graders about the plant cycle, one center can focus on plant life. Students can plant seeds, measure plant growth and conduct experiments with light and water. Depending on space in the home, the plant center can stay up so children can check on their plants throughout the week whenever they are not involved in other activities.
Here are some more ideas for third grade centers: a typing center where children learn the proper fingering for keyboards; a book-making center where children can turn their stories into published copies with illustrations and covers; and a history center where students create projects like flash cards to remember important historical figures or time lines for historical events. Centers should provide extra practice for third graders and be easy to understand and work on anytime of the day.