3rd-grade science introduces foundational topics in physical, life and earth sciences, with an emphasis on hands-on exploration and observation. 

Key concepts include learning about:

• Habitats
• Ecosystems
• Weather patterns
• The basics of matter

One of the big ideas 3rd-grade science students encounter is the concept of “work”. This refers to the effort applied to move objects and includes understanding forces like pushes and pulls. 

The early exploration of energy and force gives young learners insight into how things interact, paving the way for more complex scientific studies in the future.

As your child tackles these topics, they may need guidance in understanding new terms and principles. They may benefit from help with activities or science experiments for kids that reinforce what they’re learning. 

With a range of topics, exploring 3rd-grade science at home can be an exciting opportunity for you to participate in your child's learning and foster their curiosity about the world around them.

Whether your child is doing science activities or conducting simple experiments, the right approach can turn science exploration at home into an enjoyable journey of discovery.

Understanding 3rd-Grade Science

Learning science at home should focus on reinforcing core concepts to build a strong foundation and fostering a love of science learning. 

Revisiting and reinforcing these ideas through exploration ensures that students don't just memorize facts but begin to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. 

Doing science at home provides a structured opportunity for them to apply what they’ve learned, ask questions and make connections to real life.

Parents and educators each play a unique role in supporting 3rd-grade science learning. 

Parents can create a positive learning environment and encourage curiosity by helping their children connect what they’re studying in the classroom to real-life examples. Educators, on the other hand, can provide focused guidance by explaining complex ideas in simpler terms and may offer additional resources for practice through 3rd-grade science homework.

Together, these supportive influences help your child feel confident and motivated in their science education.

3rd-grade science covers foundational topics that build a solid understanding of physical and environmental sciences. These topics include:

Life Sciences

• Growth and Development of Organisms
• Understand the life cycles of plants and animals, including birth, growth, reproduction, and death, and use models to describe these processes.
• Recognize that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles, which follow predictable patterns.
• Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience
• Construct arguments about how animals form groups to help members survive, such as herds protecting themselves from predators or packs working together to obtain food.
• Inheritance of Traits
• Recognize that offspring inherit traits from their parents, but variations exist within a species.
• Explore how traits can also be influenced by the environment, such as plants growing differently based on water or sunlight availability.
• Adaptation
• Study how certain traits can improve an organism’s chances of surviving, finding mates, and reproducing in its environment.
• Investigate how environmental changes can impact which organisms survive, move, or perish.

Earth and Space Sciences

• Weather and Climate
• Identify patterns of weather conditions across different seasons and regions using data representation tools like bar graphs and tables.
• Learn about climates in different parts of the world and how they vary over time by combining information from various sources, such as books and media.
• Natural Hazards
• Investigate how natural events, such as floods or droughts, affect human communities and ecosystems.
• Develop and evaluate design solutions to reduce the impacts of weather-related hazards, such as constructing barriers to prevent flooding or designing wind-resistant structures.

Physical Sciences

• Forces and Motion
• Observe and measure how forces (pushes and pulls) affect the motion of objects.
• Explore how balanced and unbalanced forces influence an object’s motion.
• Types of InteractionStudy how magnets attract or repel objects and how magnetic forces can act at a distance, such as the interaction between a magnet and a steel paperclip.Define and solve simple design problems that use magnets, such as creating a latch for a door or preventing objects from touching.

To align these science topics with Common Core Standards skills, teachers should make these connections. 

• English Language Arts Connections:
• Read and comprehend informational science texts 
• Write informative reports summarizing scientific investigations 
• Present scientific findings through discussions or oral reports 
• Math Connections:
• Measure, record, and interpret data from science experiments 
• Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving measurement and estimation of intervals, time, and volume

Engaging and Educational Resources

When it comes to engaging your child in science at home, hands-on activities, like children’s science projects and experiments, are invaluable tools for making learning fun. 

Encourage experiments that make scientific principles easy to explore, such as experimenting with magnets to explore force and motion or experimenting with household items to learn about the states of matter. 

Science projects for kids bring science to life, giving your child the chance to observe the concepts they’re learning about. 

Simple, safe projects — such as keeping a small weather journal to track daily changes or creating a mini water cycle model — are both fun and informative

Tips for Enhancing Learning at Home

Your child may not bring home 3rd-grade science homework but you can still support their learning science at home by selecting quality resources for learning science at home. 

Look for materials that are not only grade-appropriate but also align with the curriculum topics they’re covering, like matter, force and climate. Reputable educational websites, local libraries and science-focused apps offer well-designed videos and activities. 

Choosing resources that include clear explanations and visuals help reinforce what students learn in the classroom. 

Check for interactive elements, like quizzes or games, that add an element of fun while testing their knowledge and providing instant feedback.

These activities nurture curiosity, allowing your child to make real-world connections and give them a sense of ownership over their learning.

Prodigy Science

Prodigy is making science learning even more exciting for third graders with a brand-new subject that brings science concepts to life! 

With engaging questions and fun, colorful pictures, students can dive into the curriculum about human biology, animals, physics and more. 

What’s more, the new science subject on Prodigy allows students to learn at their own pace, offering questions that are tailored to their individual learning levels. 

As third graders work through science curriculum like force and motion or weather and climate, they’ll receive instant feedback that helps them improve. 

This personalized experience, combined with exciting visuals, makes it a fantastic way for students to practice and reinforce their science knowledge outside the classroom. 

With the Prodigy Science curriculum, your child will look forward to learning science at home, and they will have so much fun along the way!

Additional Support and Resources

Encouraging scientific curiosity outside the classroom is an excellent way to deepen a third grader’s understanding of science and foster a love of learning that lasts. 

You can spark curiosity by making everyday activities more educational—whether it's exploring the outdoors, experimenting with simple children’s science projects or discussing how things work in the world around them.

Encouraging your child to ask questions like "Why does it rain?" or "How do plants grow?" promotes an inquisitive mindset, which is at the heart of scientific thinking. 

Real-world connections to what students are learning in the classroom can make science come alive and help them see the relevance of their studies. For example, when teaching about weather patterns, taking a walk to observe the sky or tracking daily temperature changes could enhance their learning experience.

Nurturing scientific curiosity early on provides long-term academic benefits. Your child will gain a deeper understanding of how the world works, which not only helps them excel in future science classes but also equips them with skills that are valuable in many subjects and in life. 

Early exposure to science concepts also lays the groundwork for later success in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields, which are increasingly important in our modern world. 

Ready to add more science into your child’s day? Check out Prodigy Science today!