Dear Parents,

We are so pleased that you have chosen Colegio Maya as your child's school. We realize that this was a significant decision on your part and we will honor your trust by providing a quality, broad based, multiply intelligent education for your child. One means by which we can demonstrate our accountability is in providing you with these grade level curriculum books.

Each grade level booklet was produced through the efforts of our elementary teachers and is intended to give you an outline of what your child will learn this year. In addition we want you to understand our philosophy, so we have also included a belief and mission statement for each subject area. You will find a profile of the intellectual, physical and emotional make-up of a child at each grade level. Because we believe as Howard Gardner that all individuals have the capacity to demonstrate intelligence in a variety of ways, we have also provided you with a listing of Gardner's 8 Intelligences. You will find that your child will have the opportunity throughout the school year to experience learning and demonstrate knowledge through these intelligences.

We believe curriculum is a process as well as a product and as such is always changing. Each year as we revise curriculum, we post our most current information on our web site www.cm.edu.gt. Please check the website to see in greater detail what your child will learn in Social Studies. Spanish will be added soon and this year we will add Language Arts.

Colegio Maya Elementary is proud to be partners with you in the education of your child. We welcome your comments and questions regarding this booklet and hope that you will find it useful.

Sincerely,

Donna K. Lyne
Elementary Principal

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Linguistic intelligence	Musical intelligence
Linguistic intelligence consists of the ability to think in words and to use language to express and appreciate complex meanings. Authors' poets, journalists, speakers, and newscasters exhibit high degrees of linguistic intelligence.	Musical intelligence is evident in individuals who possess a sensitivity to pitch, melody, rhythm, and tone. Those demonstrating this intelligence include composers, conductors, musicians, critics, instrument makers, as well as sensitive listeners.
Logical-mathematical intelligence	Interpersonal intelligence
Logical-mathematical intelligence makes it possible to calculate, quantify, consider propositions and hypotheses, and carry out complex mathematical operations. Scientists, accountants, engineers, and computer programmers all demonstrate this intelligence.	Interpersonal intelligence is the capacity to understand and interact effectively with others. It is evident in successful teachers, social workers, actors, or politicians. Just as Western culture has recently begun to recognize the connection between mind and body, so too has it to come to value the importance of proficiency in inter- personal behavior.
Spatial intelligence	Intrapersonal intelligence
Spatial intelligence instills the capacity to think in three-dimensional ways as do sailors, pilots, sculptors, painters, and architects. It enables one to perceive external and internal imagery, to recreate, transform, or modify images, to navigate oneself and objects through space, and to produce or decode graphic information.	Intrapersonal intelligence refers to the ability to construct an accurate perception of oneself and to use such knowledge in planning and directing lif one se. Some individuals with strong intra- personal intelligence specialize as theologians, psychologists, and philosophers.
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence	Naturalist intelligence
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence enables one to manipulate objects and fine-tune physical skills. It is evident in athletes, dancers, surgeons, and craftspeople. In Western societies, physical skills are not as highly valued as cognitive ones, and yet elsewhere the ability to use one's body is a necessity for survival as well as an important feature of many prestigious roles.	Naturalist intelligence consists of observing patterns in nature, indentifying and classifying objects, and understanding natural and human-made systems. Skilled naturalists include farmers, botanists, hunters, ecologists, and landscapers.

The Mayan School of Guatemala intends to provide an excellent educational opportunity, based on a U.S. curriculum, primarily for the international community in Guatemala, regardless of race, nationality or creed. The Mayan School shall offer a program of studies to prepare for success in the U.S. university system. Recognizing the transient nature of the student body, the curriculum should enable students to transfer between the Mayan School and other U.S. international and Guatemalan schools, insofar as equivalency requirements do not conflict with U.S. curriculum standards. The Mayan School shall endeavor to provide a program that maintains, and benefits from the international diversity of the community. The Mayan School is committed to the development of the whole individual and is dedicated to fostering students' intellectual, social, emotional and physical growth to prepare them to become good citizens and productive members of society.

We at Colegio Maya believe in educating lifelong learners by:

Fostering a safe, caring, and joyful environment;
Celebrating the diversity of our Colegio Maya family;
Creating responsible world citizens;
Encouraging a social and environmentally aware conscience;
Preparing for a changing technological world;
Stimulating curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking;
Affirming the students' right and responsibility to explore their potential.

The Colegio May Community Will:

1. Integrate and celebrate diversity within and beyond the campus.
2. Enhance information management skills and resources.
3. Create opportunities to improve communication and participation within the school community.

While calm may describe second graders, excitement is a good description for most third graders. Dramatic and inquisitive, they will willingly tackle a great deal more than they can handle. Enthusiasm and curiosity are high and children this age have a seemingly limitless reserve of untapped energy.

Eight years olds will undertake almost anything. They anticipate and frequently adopt a "know-it-all" attitude. Impatience is common, however, and interest may be short-lived. Some may appear to be verbally "fresh". They become critical of others, often exaggerating, but they may also become self-critical. They can be demanding of both parents and teachers.

Happiness often results from achievement for this age group. They are still active seekers of praise. Most have good communication skills. Self-expression seems to come easily, and their sense of humor is increasing. Third graders are beginning to understand that while they have needs, so do others.

Peer group relationships now play an ever more important part in the lives of these children. While families and teachers are still important, the larger peer group is now very important. Spontaneous groupings of short duration occur; best friends are acquired; and a stronger differentiation between sexes develops. In addition, eight-year olds are able to assume more responsibility for their actions. They are now more ready to accept blame for wrongdoing.

Philosophy:

The Language Arts Program enhances students' literacy and fluency through experiences and instruction in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Students receive a balanced program which emphasizes meaning, teaches skills such as phonics in context, exposes children to good literature, and leads children toward study and understand quality literature, they learn to appreciate language and gain the ability to use language in a meaningful context. Writing is taught as a process: students pre-write, compose, and then edit for correctness of grammar, spelling, capitalization, punctuation, and usage. The teaches of language arts assist students in unlocking the doors of language and discovering the best that human beings have thought, written, and spoken.

The Focus Areas of the Third Grade Language Arts Program are:

Reading

· Selecting reading as an activity of choice.
· Learning to use reading comprehension strategies; prediction, inference, context clues, and decoding.
· Finding the main idea and supporting details in a paragraph.
· Demonstrating understanding of setting, characters, and plots.
· Learning to use word analysis skills including prefixes, suffixes, contractions, root words, and compound words.
· Increasing reading vocabulary.
· Recognizing the difference between fiction and non-fiction.
· Learning to sequence events in a story.
· Learning to summarize a story.
· Comparing to use table of contents, index, and glossary.
· Learning to use a dictionary and an encyclopedia.
· Learning to recognize the difference between fact and opinion.

Writing

· Pre-writing, composition, editing, and revising written work.
· Writing for a variety of purpose stories, poems, reports, letters, and journals.
· Learning to write complete sentences using correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
· Learning the correct form for friendly letters.
· Studying high frequency spelling words and using them correctly in daily work.

Speaking

· Contributing to class discussions.
· Preparing and giving oral presentations.
· Learning to use successful speaking techniques.
· Participating in drama activities.
· Increasing spoken vocabulary.

Listening

· Listening attentively to others.
· Following oral instructions.
· Listening carefully while literature is read.

The ways in which you can help your child are:

· Encouraging your child to do the best possible work and giving praise for accomplishments.
· Reading to your child.
· Listening to your child read to you.
· Taking your child to the library to check out and read books.
· Asking the librarian for help in selecting award-winning books.
· Having books, magazines, and newspapers available.
· Letting your child see you reading frequently.
· Limiting television and video games.
· Giving books and magazine subscription as gifts.
· Writing notes to your child and having your child answer the notes.
· Encouraging letter writing to relatives, teachers, or friends.
· Practicing class work and spelling words with your child.
· Supporting the parent teacher organization at your child's school.
· Taking your child to local theater productions.
· Playing boards games, which involve reading and spelling.

Philosophy:

The mathematics program is designed to equip all students with mathematical expertise that enables them to succeed in the twenty-first century and to help them develop a positive attitude towards mathematics. The program is balanced, integrated, and activity-oriented with an emphasis on the basics. Students are engaged in investigations, problem solving, and critical thinking. Using a variety f tools and techniques, students are challenged to find solution to real life problem and situations using computation, written and oral communication, and mathematical thinking. Mathematics instruction weaves several stands of mathematics together to support the understanding of unifying ideas.

In the area of focus, your third grade child should learn to:

Statistics

· Collect, communicate, and interpret date using graphs.

Pattern

· Find odd and even numbers patterns.
· Find patterns and solve problems using skip counting.

Number Relations

· Identify place value to 1,000
· Make connections between the basic arithmetic facts, (+, -) and (x, /)
· Use addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division to solve 1 or 2 step problems.
· Express fractions by dividing a whole into equivalent parts.
· Apply mathematical knowledge to real-world settings.

Logic and Algebra

· Identify similarities and different by showing all possible combinations.

Measurement

· Read and write money notation.
· Find perimeter, area, and volume as standard measure.
· Learn to use the correct measuring tool for a measurement task.
· Solve problems telling time.

Geometry

· Use shapes in combination to make other shapes.
· Learn to use the language of geometry.

Probability

· Determine the probability that a particular event will occur.

Mathematical Tools and Communication

· Clearly and logically explain solutions to problems. Support solutions with evidence in both oral and written form.
· Use appropriates mathematical terms, vocabulary, and language.
· Show ideas in a variety of ways including word, numbers, symbols, pictures, charts, graphs, tables, diagrams, and models.

Parents can help by:

· Practicing basic math facts.
· Encouraging your child to play games which use math.
· Taking your child shopping, discussing prices, and estimating totals
· Providing opportunities to use measurement (i.e. check books, product contents, budgeting and price comparisons.)
· Providing opportunities for your child to manage money.

Philosophy:

Science gives children opportunities to explore how things work through activities and experiences. Science activities stimulate them to wonders, predict, and offer explanations. Grades three through six students learn to use the scientific process skills of observing, communicating, comparing, ordering, and categorizing. This helps them construct heir own knowledge of scientific principles and concepts making these a part of the way they see the world and influencing the decisions they make about their lives.

Your child should investigate these concepts in the third grade:

Physical Science

· Everything that makes up space and has mass is called matter.
· Properties of matter tell exactly what an object is like. Size, shape, color, smell, and tested are some properties of matter.
· The three states of matter are solid, liquid and gas.
· Physical and chemical changes.

Earth Science

· The earth is a sphere with three layers: the crust, the mantle, and the core.
· Rock can be classified by size, shape, color, or what they are made of.
· Rocks are made of one or more minerals.
· Space explorations in the 20th Century.

Life Science

· Animals and Kenya
· Introduction to classifying of animals.
· Seed germination.
· Effects of people on plants.
· Plant use.
· How seeds scatter plants.
· Introduction to organs and systems of the human body.
· Good nutrition, exercise, and adequate sleep can help your body stay healthy.
· Communicable and non-communicable diseases.
· Building self-esteem.

Parents can help by:

· Taking walks and observing living things in the environment.
· Have your child write a description about the properties of a favorite object at home such as a bicycle, pet, food, or clothing. Allow your child to read his/her description. Try to identify the object described.
· Have your child classify the foods they ate for breakfast or lunch as solid, liquid or gas.
· Visiting a natural history museum to learn about rocks
· Have your child collect rocks. Have him/her group similar rocks together and list the characteristics of the rocks in each group. Use the lists to classify rocks.
· Have your child describe the three layers of the earth. Cut a peach in half and show it to your child. Ask your child to observe the peach closely and determine its main layers.
· Have your child make a rock collection.
· Visit different environments such as the desert, coast, mountains and temperate forest.
· Discuss with your child about some of the space explorations in the 20th century.
· Have your child look for stories or books on animals of mountains and temperate forest.
· Have your child use pictures from magazines to make a poster that shows three animals with backbones and three animals without backbones. Have he/she list the animals they chose from each group.
· Discuss with your child on how plants can be harmful or helpful to people.

Philosophy:

The Social Studies program is designed to present students with a growing view of the world. At the initial level students become aware of the self and families and then move to an integrated multicultural approach for different countries of the world and ancient and medieval civilization with a period of discovery and explorations. By learning about history, geography, culture, and current events, students begin to understand the vital connections between the past, present and the future. The Social Studies program is integrated with the Science program through the study of plants and animal life of determined habits in assigned countries. It is also integrated with the Language Arts program through development of communication skills and the reading of literature, which explores selected themes.

The focus areas of the third grade Social Studies program are:

1st Quarter Geography/Basis Map Skills/Continents and Shelters
2nd Quarter Kenya, Africa
3rd Quarter China, Asia, Ireland, Europe,
4th Quarter Mexico, North America, South America

· To understand that all people are connected to each other through symbol systems such as literacy, numerically, and artistic endeavor.
· To explore the history and rich variety of symbols.
· To discover how communication can enhance or diminish human understanding.
· To understand that everyone holds membership in a variety of groups and institutions, beginning with the family; to understand how ear of us influence and is shaped by these groups.
· To develop a sense of civic and social responsibility.
· To understand that all people are responsive to forms of beauty and the power of the arts.
· To explore the rich variety of artistic expression.
· To interpret various works of art create artworks; and know some of the ways in which visual and performing arts have evolved in different cultures.
· To learn that all people have the capacity to place themselves in time and in space.
· To discover their own roots.
· To examine the traditions of others cultures; and consider where they are located in the universe that surrounds them.
· To learn that all humans seek meaning and purpose in their lives.
· To understand the importance of values and ethics.
· To experience the significance of service to others; and to be familiar with the vital roles spirituality and religion continue to play in the human experience.

The ways in which you can help you're child are:

· Encouraging your child to do the best work possible and praising your child's best effort.
· Visiting local museums and local landmarks.
· Demonstrating the use of maps and directions.
· To read and discuss about different countries around the world.
· To read and discuss about Chine and Asia.
· Sharing information about different countries around the world.
· Discussing the meaning and origin of various holidays in Chine, Asia and different countries around the world.
· Volunteering to go on a class field trip.
· Volunteering and participating in the World's Fair at school.
· Volunteering to make food and bring to the International Food Day and the annual Friendship Fair at school.

Third Grade Classroom Sets and Novels

· Stone Soup
· Leprechauns Don't Play Basketball
· Hill of Fire
· Lion Dancer
· Magic School Bus Inside the Human Body and Inside the Earth
· This is My House
· A Day in Space
· Crow Boy
· Talking Eggs.
· 100 Dresses
· Boxcar Children # 1
· Catwings
· Class Clown
· Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Dinosaur Bones
· Aliens for Breakfast
· Muggie Maggie
· Teach Us, Amelia Bedelia
· Aliens Don't Wear Braces
· Ming Lo Moves a Mountain
· Freckle Juice
· Everybody Cooks Rice
· The Chalk Doll
· Hoang Anh A Vietnamese-American Boy
· How a House is Built
· Whistling Thorn
· The Popcorn Dragon
· Village of the Round and Square Houses
· The Secret Garden