GRADE 3 | MODULE 1
TIPS FOR FAMILIES
WHAT IS MY GRADE 3 STUDENT LEARNING IN MODULE 1?
Wit & Wisdom® is our English curriculum. It builds knowledge of key topics in history, science, and literature
through the study of excellent texts. By reading and responding to stories and nonfiction texts, we will build
knowledge of the following topics:
Module 1: The Sea
Module 2: Outer Space
Module 3: A New Home
Module 4: Artists Make Art
In Module 1, we will study why people explore the sea. Poets and writers explore the sea through words and images.
Scientists use technology to discover new species. We will explore literature, informational text, and art as we ask
the question: Why do people explore the sea?
OUR CLASS WILL READ THESE BOOKS
Picture Books (Informational)
▪▪ The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau, Dan Yaccarino
▪▪ Giant Squid: Searching for a Sea Monster, Mary M. Cerullo and Clyde F. E. Roper
▪▪ Shark Attack!, Cathy East Dubowski
Picture Book (Literary)
▪▪ Amos & Boris, William Steig
Poetry
▪▪ “The Sea Wind,” Sara Teasdale
Stories
▪▪ “The Lion and the Mouse,” The Full Text of Aesop’s Fables
OUR CLASS WILL EXAMINE THESE WORKS OF ART
▪▪ The Great Wave off Kanagawa, Katsushika Hokusai
▪▪ The Boating Party, Mary Cassatt
▪▪ The Gulf Stream, Winslow Homer
OUR CLASS WILL WATCH THESE FILMS
▪▪ “Cousteau’s Silent World: Shipwreck Excerpt”
▪▪ “Quest for the Giant Squid”
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 1
▪▪ “Sperm Whale Encounter”
▪▪ “Why the Ocean Matters”
OUR CLASS WILL ASK THESE QUESTIONS
▪▪ How do artists explore the sea?
▪▪ Why and how do scientists explore the sea?
▪▪ Why and how do scientists explore sea creatures?
▪▪ Why do people explore the sea?
QUESTIONS TO ASK AT HOME
As you read with your Grade 3 student, ask:
▪▪ What do you notice and wonder?
BOOKS TO READ AT HOME
▪▪ A Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle, Claire A. Nivola
▪▪ Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist, Jess Keating
▪▪ Shark Lady: True Adventures of Eugenie Clark, Ann McGovern
▪▪ Swimming with Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark, Heather Lang
▪▪ Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau, Jennifer Berne
▪▪ Mary Cassatt: Extraordinary Impressionist Painter, Barbara Herkert
▪▪ The Great Wave: A Children’s Book Inspired by Hokusai, Veronique Massenot
▪▪ Ocean: A Visual Miscellany, Ricardo Henriques and Andre Letria
▪▪ Tentacles!: Tales of the Giant Squid, Shirley Raye Redmond
▪▪ National Geographic Readers: Weird Sea Creatures, Laura Marsh
▪▪ Surprising Sharks: Read and Wonder, Nicola Davies
▪▪ National Geographic Kids First Big Book of the Ocean, Catherine D. Hughes
▪▪ Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea, Steve Jenkins
▪▪ Sharks, Seymour Simon
▪▪ Seymour Simon’s Extreme Oceans, Seymour Simon
▪▪ Giant Squid, Candace Fleming
▪▪ Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, Janet Halfmann
PLACES YOU CAN VISIT TO TALK ABOUT THE SEA
Visit the local zoo or aquarium. Ask:
▪▪ What do you notice about the environment?
▪▪ What do you wonder about the animals?
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 2
TIPS FOR FAMILIES
WHAT IS MY GRADE 3 STUDENT LEARNING IN MODULE 2?
Wit & Wisdom® is our English curriculum. It builds knowledge of key topics in history, science, and literature
through the study of excellent texts. By reading and responding to stories and nonfiction texts, we will build
knowledge of the following topics:
Module 1: The Sea
Module 2: Outer Space
Module 3: A New Home
Module 4: Artists Make Art
In Module 2, we will study how people have learned about space through history. By reading books and examining
art, students explore our fascination with the cosmos, asking the question: How do people learn about space?
OUR CLASS WILL READ THESE BOOKS
Picture Books (Informational)
▪▪ Moonshot, Brian Floca
▪▪ One Giant Leap, Robert Burleigh
▪▪ Starry Messenger, Peter Sís
Picture (Literary)
▪▪ Zathura, Chris Van Allsburg
Articles
▪▪ “Galileo’s Starry Night,” Kelly Terwilliger
▪▪ “Greek Myths,” American Museum of Natural History
▪▪ “Apollo 11: The Eagle Has Landed,” Leigh Anderson
Stories
▪▪ “Pegasus and Perseus,” Anonymous
▪▪ “Pegasus and Bellerophon,” Anonymous
▪▪ “Callisto and her Son,” Anonymous
OUR CLASS WILL EXAMINE THESE WORKS OF ART
▪▪ Starfield, Vija Celmins
▪▪ Space Object Box, Joseph Cornell
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 2
OUR CLASS WILL WATCH THESE FILMS
▪▪ “CBS News Moon Landing Coverage with Walter Cronkite (7/20/1969)”
▪▪ “Moon 101,” National Geographic
OUR CLASS WILL ASK THESE QUESTIONS
▪▪ How did Galileo learn about space?
▪▪ How did the astronauts of Apollo 11 learn about space?
▪▪ How do artists and writers help people learn about space?
QUESTIONS TO ASK AT HOME
As you read with your Grade 3 student, ask:
▪▪ What’s happening?
▪▪ What does a closer look at words and illustrations reveal about this text’s deeper meaning?
BOOKS TO READ AT HOME
▪▪ Reaching for the Moon, Buzz Aldrin
▪▪ Moonwalk: The First Trip to the Moon, Judy Donnelly
▪▪ Footprints on the Moon, Alexandra Siy
▪▪ Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon, Catherine Thimmesh
▪▪ Voyager’s Greatest Hits: The Epic Trek to Interstellar Space, Alexandra Siy
▪▪ The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
▪▪ The Adventures of Tintin: Explorers on the Moon, Hergé
▪▪ The Moon over Star, Dianna Hutts Aston
▪▪ Mr. Cornell’s Dream Boxes, Jeanette Winter
▪▪ Meteor!, Patricia Polacco
▪▪ Space, Will Osborne and Mary Pope Osborne
▪▪ The Moon, Seymour Simon
▪▪ Boy, Were We Wrong about the Solar System!, Kathleen V. Kudlinski
▪▪ Find the Constellations, H. A. Rey
▪▪ Next Time You See the Moon, Emily Morgan
▪▪ The Stars: A New Way to See Them, H. A. Rey
▪▪ Planets!, Editors of TIME for Kids
▪▪ Zoo in the Sky, Jacqueline Mitton
▪▪ The Planet Gods, Jacqueline Mitton
▪▪ Once Upon a Starry Night: A Book of Constellations, Jacqueline Mitton
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 2
IDEAS FOR TALKING ABOUT SPACE
Go outside after dark together. Look up at the night sky and ask:
▪▪ What do you notice and wonder about space?
▪▪ What constellations do you see?
▪▪ Would you travel to space if you could? Why or why not?
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 3
TIPS FOR FAMILIES
WHAT IS MY GRADE 3 STUDENT LEARNING IN MODULE 3?
Wit & Wisdom® is our English curriculum. It builds knowledge of key topics in history, science, and literature
through the study of excellent texts. By reading and responding to stories and nonfiction texts, we will build
knowledge of the following topics:
Module 1: The Sea
Module 2: Outer Space
Module 3: A New Home
Module 4: Artists Make Art
In Module 3, students will explore the immigrant experience through the lens of stories. We will ask: How do stories
help us understand immigrants’ experiences?
OUR CLASS WILL READ THESE BOOKS
Picture Books (Literacy)
▪▪ Grandfather’s Journey, Allen Say
▪▪ Tea with Milk, Allen Say
▪▪ The Keeping Quilt, Patricia Polacco
▪▪ Family Pictures, Carmen Lomas Garza
Picture Book (Informational)
▪▪ Coming to America: The Story of Immigration, Betsy Maestro
OUR CLASS WILL READ THIS STORY
▪▪ “Two Places to Call Home,” Jody Kapp (Cobblestone article)
OUR CLASS WILL EXAMINE THESE PHOTOGRAPHS
▪▪ The Steerage, Alfred Stieglitz
▪▪ “Untitled photograph of evacuees seeing the Statue of Liberty”
OUR CLASS WILL EXAMINE THIS ARCHITECTURE
▪▪ “Liberty Enlightening the World,” Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi
▪▪ “Gateway Arch,” Eero Saarinen
▪▪ “The Washington Monument,” Robert Mills
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 3
OUR CLASS WILL WATCH THESE VIDEOS
▪▪ “Día de los Muertos Festival 2015—Artist Talk by Carmen Lopez Garza 1.” Smithsonian National Museum
of the American Indian. (excerpts)
OUR CLASS WILL LISTEN TO THESE HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS
▪▪ “Morris Remembers the Steamship,” Ellis Island Oral History Collection, National Park Service
▪▪ “William Remembers the Storm,” Ellis Island Oral History Collection, National Park Service
▪▪ “Oral History Library,” The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc.
OUR CLASS WILL ASK THESE QUESTIONS
▪▪ What challenges do immigrants face in a new country?
▪▪ Why do people immigrate to America?
▪▪ How do immigrants respond to challenges in a new country?
QUESTIONS TO ASK AT HOME
As you read with your Grade 3 student, ask:
▪▪ What is the essential meaning, or most important message in this book?
BOOKS TO READ AT HOME
▪▪ At Ellis Island: A History in Many Voices, Louise Peacock
▪▪ Ellis Island, Elaine Landau
▪▪ Immigrant Kids, Russell Freedman
▪▪ Lowji Discovers America, Candace Fleming
▪▪ Wishtree, Katherine Applegate
▪▪ Nory Ryan’s Song, Patricia Reilly Giff
▪▪ In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson, Bette Bao Lord
▪▪ Paper Son: Lee’s Journey to America, Helen Foster James
▪▪ Peppe the Lamplighter, Elisa Bartone
▪▪ Four Feet, Two Sandals, Karen Lynn Williams
▪▪ Sitti’s Secrets, Naomi Shihab Nye
▪▪ The Memory Coat, Elvira Woodruff
▪▪ Tucky Jo and Little Heart, Patricia Polacco
▪▪ Lailah’s Lunchbox: A Ramadan Story, Reem Faruqi
▪▪ Landed, Milly Lee
▪▪ Her Right Foot, Dave Eggers
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 3
▪▪ The Great Migration: An American Story, Walter Dean Myers and Jacob Lawrence
▪▪ Rebekkah’s Journey: A World War II Refugee Story, Ann E. Burg
▪▪ Statue of Liberty: A Tale of Two Countries, Elizabeth Mann
▪▪ Hannah’s Journal: The Story of an Immigrant Girl, Marissa Moss
▪▪ A Civil War Scrapbook: I Was There Too!, History Colorado
▪▪ Unspoken, Henry Cole
▪▪ Bull Run, Paul Fleischman
IDEAS FOR TALKING ABOUT THE IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE
Share your family’s history. Consider the following:
▪▪ Your family’s country of ancestry on a map or globe
▪▪ Customs, traditions, and food from your family’s country of origin
▪▪ Folktales and music from your family’s country of origin
Learn more about the Statue of Liberty and other monuments. Consider the following:
▪▪ Taking a virtual tour of the Statue of Liberty
▪▪ Visiting a local monument
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 4
TIPS FOR FAMILIES
WHAT IS MY GRADE 3 STUDENT LEARNING IN MODULE 4?
Wit & Wisdom® is our English curriculum. It builds knowledge of key topics in history, science, and literature
through the study of excellent texts. By reading and responding to stories and nonfiction texts, we will build
knowledge of the following topics:
Module 1: The Sea
Module 2: Outer Space
Module 3: A New Home
Module 4: Artists Make Art
In Module 4, students will explore the creative impulse as they read biographies of artists in the fields of dance,
literature, the visual arts, and music. In addition to reading about the artists, students encounter the work of each
of these artists. We will ask: What is an artist?
OUR CLASS WILL READ THESE BOOKS
Picture Book (Literacy)
▪▪ Emma’s Rug, Allen Say
Picture Books (Informational)
▪▪ Alvin Ailey, Andrea Davis Pinkney
▪▪ A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, Jen Bryant
▪▪ Action Jackson, Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
▪▪ When Marian Sang, Pam Muñoz Ryan
OUR CLASS WILL READ THESE ARTICLES
▪▪ “Working as a Team on Children’s Books,” Roberta Hershenson
▪▪ “Brian Pinkney,” National Center for Children’s Literature
▪▪ “A Signature Work,” Muse Magazine
OUR CLASS WILL READ THIS POEM
▪▪ “Willow Poem,” William Carlos Williams
OUR CLASS WILL READ THIS INTERVIEW
▪▪ “Andrea Davis Pinkney Interview Transcript,” Scholastic Students
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 4
OUR CLASS WILL EXAMINE THESE PAINTINGS
▪▪ I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold, Charles Demuth
▪▪ My Egypt, Charles Demuth
▪▪ Number 1, 1950 (Lavender Mist), Jackson Pollock
▪▪ Number 11, 1952 (Blue Poles), Jackson Pollock
▪▪ Mural, Jackson Pollock
OUR CLASS WILL EXAMINE THIS PHOTOGRAPH
▪▪ “Marian Anderson singing in front of Lincoln Memorial”
OUR CLASS WILL WATCH THESE VIDEOS
▪▪ “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child, Marian Anderson”
▪▪ “Excerpt from 1988 interview with Alvin Ailey”
▪▪ “Revelations at 50, Alvin Ailey”
▪▪ “Christine Dixon discussing Blue Poles”
▪▪ “Jackson Pollock, Hans Namuth”
▪▪ “Newsreel footage of Marian Anderson’s first Lincoln Memorial”
▪▪ “Excerpts of Revelations, Alvin Ailey”
OUR CLASS WILL ASK THESE QUESTIONS
▪▪ What inspires artists?
▪▪ How do artists make art?
▪▪ What are some character traits that are useful to artists?
▪▪ Why is art important?
QUESTIONS TO ASK AT HOME
As you read with your Grade 3 student, ask:
▪▪ How does this text build your knowledge of artists and art?
BOOKS TO READ AT HOME
▪▪ Stone Giant: Michelangelo’s David and How He Came to Be, Jane Sutcliffe
▪▪ Who Was Leonardo da Vinci?, Roberta Edwards
▪▪ The Music in George’s Head: George Gershwin Creates Rhapsody in Blue, Suzanne Slade
▪▪ Who Was Pablo Picasso?, True Kelley
▪▪ Sandy’s Circus: A Story about Alexander Calder, Tanya Lee Stone
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GRADE 3 | MODULE 4
▪▪ Jackson Pollock, Mike Venezia
▪▪ Michelangelo, Diane Stanley
▪▪ Georges Seurat, Mike Venezia
▪▪ Some Writer! The Story of E. B. White, Melissa Sweet
▪▪ Vincent Van Gogh: Portrait of an Artist, Jan Greenberg
▪▪ Leonardo: Beautiful Dreamer, Robert Byrd
▪▪ The Dreamer, Pam Muñoz Ryan
▪▪ Building on Nature: The Life of Antoni Gaudi, Rachel Rodriguez
▪▪ The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky’s Abstract Art, Barb Rosenstock
▪▪ An Eye for Color: The Story of Josef Albers, Natasha Wing
▪▪ José! Born to Dance, Susanna Reich
▪▪ The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau, Michelle Markel
▪▪ Electric Ben: The Amazing Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, Robert Byrd
▪▪ The Garden of Monsieur Monet, Giancarlo Ascari
▪▪ Edgar Degas: Paintings that Dance, Kristin N. Cole and Maryann Cocca-Leffler
▪▪ The Artist and His Models: The Art of Rembrandt, Hanuel Ddang
▪▪ Mr. Matisse and His Cutouts, Annemarie van Haeringen
▪▪ Lives of the Artists: Masterpieces, Messes (and What the Neighbors Thought), Kathleen Krull
▪▪ The World Is Not a Rectangle: A Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid, Jeanette Winter
▪▪ Seen from a Distance: The Art of Monet, Seon-hye Jang
▪▪ Ballet for Martha: Making Appalachian Spring, Jan Greenberg
▪▪ Pippo the Fool, Tracey E. Fern
▪▪ Mario’s Angels: A Story about the Artist Giotto, Mary Arrigan
▪▪ Firebird, Misty Copeland
▪▪ Ellington Was Not a Street, Ntozake Shange
IDEAS FOR TALKING ABOUT ARTISTS AND ART
Find opportunities to explore art in your area. Consider the following:
▪▪ Visiting a local art museum or exhibit
▪▪ Attending a musical concert
▪▪ Attending a dance performance
▪▪ Attending a poetry reading or other literary event
Deepen your student’s experiences with art by engaging in art activities together. Consider the following:
▪▪ Working together to create an art project, discussing how you are using the materials for specific purposes
▪▪ Singing together, noticing harmonies, melodies, and rhythm
▪▪ Reading favorite poems aloud at home
▪▪ Dancing together, noticing how you are using your body to express emotions or ideas
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