1. Welcome to Grade 3
The International School of Tanganyika

2. Grade 3 Has Four Classes
• 3R: Ms. Rorey (Team Leader) and Ms.
Irene
• 3B: Ms. Joyce and Ms. Aida
• 3W: Ms. Melanie and Mr. Stephen
• 3McP: Mr. John and Ms. Mariam

3. Communication
• You can reach us by email at...
• Rorey Risdon: arisdon@istafrica.com
• Joyce Bolyard: jbolyard@istafrica.com
• John McPherson:
jmcpherson@istafrica.com
• Melanie Wipf: mwipf@istafrica.com

4. Within the PYP Famework these are the
Curriculum Resources We Use...
• Units of Inquiry
• Everyday Math
• Sitton Spelling
• The 6+1 Writing Traits
• Nelson Handwriting

5. PYP Units of Inquiry
• Who We Are- Our Body Systems
• How We Organize Ourselves- Marketing
• How We Express Ourselves- Seeing Is Believing
• Where We Are In Place and Time- Heroes
• Sharing the Planet- Cold And Here, Hot And
Gone
• How The World Works- Plantastic

6. Expert Parent Visitors??
• If you have a specific expertise related
to one of our units we would love to
have you come in and present your
knowledge to our students.
• Please sign up on the back sheet before
you leave.

7. Differentiation Happens
• Across all subjects for all students as needed
• Adapts the classroom curriculum to meet the needs of
the child but does not change the grade three learning
objectives
• In the homework process as needed
• Students are encouraged to bring in independent
items/projects that they have done outside of school to
share and show action and connections to learning
occurring in school

8. Assessment and Reports
• Assessment is ongoing and involves both summative
and formative assessment.
• Reports are written based on assessments, anecdotal
notes and individual student continuums.
• Conferences occur twice per year on October 3rd
(parent teacher) and March 13th (student led), but if at
any time you would like to discuss student
performance and progress toward benchmarks, please
make an appointment with your child’s teacher.
• For more information please see the Parent Handbook.

9. Technology In Grade 3
• Each classroom has three student computers for daily use
• ICT integration occurs within the technology labs across
all subjects
• Grade level teachers work with ICT teachers to teach
collaboratively
• Grade level teachers encourage the use of technology
(cameras, computers, personal devices) at home
• Some websites for students to practice skills are found on
the IST Grade 3 Blog which can be found at
http://istgrade3.wordpress.com/

10. Technology Continued
• Typing will be assigned occasionally for homework
• PYP Technology Strands: create, investigate, collaborate,
communicate, organize and responsible digital
citizenship
• There are a few grade 3 teachers that have individual
classroom blogs. These are not an expectation from the
school, just personal projects
• ****If you are getting email from the Grade 2 blog, please
“unsubscribe” from the email

11. Special Days
• Interhouse Competitions occur about 4 times
throughout the year. If you would like to
volunteer to help, talk to Ms. Straight
• Assemblies occur about once per month.
Grade 3 will perform at two assemblies this
year, in addition to the musical mornings
scheduled by the music department

12. Being Prepared for School
• Students are expected to:
• Wear the IST uniform (PE uniform on PE days)
• Bring a hat to school each day for outside play; “No Hat,
No Play”
• Bring a water bottle with them each day
• Prepare their homework accordingly
• Be at school and ready to learn by 7:10
• Get a good nights sleep (8-10 hours)
• Leave toys, electronics and cell phones at home
• Come to school healthy and remain home if they are
unwell
• Bring a healthy snack and lunch to school
• Make sure everything brought to school is labeled

13. Meals at School
• Food sent from home should be nutritious and
healthy
• Chocolate, biscuits, candy and soda pop are
not permitted
• Nutrition was taught last year in grade 2 and
the students should be practicing a healthy
lifestyle by eating nutritious snacks and lunch
• Please send enough food for both a snack and
lunch and an additional snack on ASA days

14. Homework...
• Will be assigned weekly and typically involve open
ended tasks for math, language and/or unit.
• Students should be reading 20 minutes a day. Please
help them set up a reading routine at home.
• The grade team teachers will plan homework together
but however at times, homework may vary depending
on classroom need.
• We encourage students to take action with their learning
at home and share their learning or independent projects
with the class.

15. Homework Pointers
• Should be done in a quiet space away from distractions
such as the TV, computer or siblings who are playing
• Should be made into a routine to complete every night
• Students should have available to them any materials
they may need (pencils, paper, rulers, ect.)
• If a child needs assistance, try to help guide them to the
right answer, call the homework buddy, write a note in
the Linkbook or have the child come to the teacher the
following morning

16. To Offer Support...
• Check and sign the linkbook each night
• Sit down and offer support while you child completes homework
• Come into the classroom and spend time looking with your child
at their portfolio
• Play an educational game with your child
• Check the blog often with your child
• Discuss the current Unit of Inquiry (UOI) and make connections
from the UOI to family life
• Encourage students to take action based on their learning
• Use PYP vocabulary when discussing issues with your child…

17. Responsible Third Graders
• Are learning independence with many
tasks at school and at home. Guide
them, but please don’t do tasks for
them.
• Are learning how to be kind, generous,
thoughtful, helpful and.... Expect this
behavior to carry on into the home as
well.

18. In Closing…
• If you have further questions:
• Check the IST Parent Handbook
• Email the teacher
• Thanks so much for coming!!!! We are
looking forward to having a fantastic
year!