I am always trying to collect great new ways to start the school year. Feel free to share read alouds, activities, etc that are great for third graders! I'll start: Save Fred www.nclark.net/SaveFredLab.doc I modified this activity using gummy worms, gummy lifesavers, plastic cups, and paperclips and it was a great team-building activity. I even created a homework assignment based on it. I sent home a spare cup, worm, and lifesaver. They had to use a different tool (not a paperclip) to try to save Fred and then answer some questions. It was a big hit! At the end of the year, my students remembered it as one of their favorite activities of the year. I usually use this as a social studies/building community activity.
I used Louis Sachar, Sideways Stories at Wayside School as my beginning of the year read aloud. The kids love this series.
So just to clarify, how exactly does the FRED activity work? I read the website but I'm still confused.
I agree. It is a bit confusing. Please clarify as I would like to use this activity with my students. Thank you!
We're reading Sideways Stories, too! My kids are loving it so far... We did a science lab where they had to try to build the boat that would hold the most weight using foil, clay, and popsicle sticks. My kids loved it, and then we used it to talk about the scientific process. They were able to identify with how they used each step. I also used a get-to-know-you glyph activity, and then I randomly handed them out to students (they didn't have names on). Students had to use the instructions to "crack the code" and figure out whose they had. They wrote a paragraph about what they knew about the person from their glyph. It gave me a good look at their writing skills, and they thought it was a lot of fun!
I'm new to 3rd grade and this sounds like a really fun activity. I would also like more details. I'm sure the kids would love this. Thanks !
