3rd Grade Family Guide to Iowa Academic Standards

This guide helps families understand the Iowa Academic Standards and shows what students will learn by the end of third grade. Published by the Iowa Department of Education, December 2025.

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English/Language Arts

In grade 3, students start to read with greater fluency and accuracy as they build their confidence with text. Students will read a wider variety of literary and informational texts. Students will be taught to decode multisyllabic words and use their meaning or word parts to figure out word meanings. Students will learn that not all word meanings are literal. Students will be introduced to cursive writing. By the end of grade 3, students will be able to write clear sentences and paragraphs in various formats, including research. Students will use communication skills with others and present information orally.

What Will My Student Learn?

In connection to the standards:

• Students will expand their decoding skills to include multisyllabic words.
• Students will read text carefully to find the supporting details for the main idea.
• Students will be asked to compare two texts on the same topic to determine which details are the same and which are different.
• Students will expand their vocabulary through both word analysis skills and reading many text types and genres for information.
• Students will use the writing process to plan, draft, revise and edit their writing.
• Students will conduct a short research project to build knowledge on a topic.
• Students will use cursive writing.
• Students will collaborate and communicate to develop oral presentations.
• Students will ask and answer questions, building on the ideas of others while participating in a discussion.

In the classroom:

• Your student will learn how to read different books on the same topic and compare the books using specific events or details from the book to support their answer.
• Your student will read stories and poems aloud fluently, without pausing to figure out what each word is during the reading.
• Your student will determine how to decode multisyllabic words using a strategy.
• Your student will distinguish the literal and nonliteral meanings of words, such as "something's fishy" and "cold shoulder."
• Your student will read a variety of texts to expand their vocabulary on a topic.
• Your student will write for a variety of purposes, including research.
• Your student will learn and use cursive writing.
• Your student will learn to effectively communicate with adults and peers in a way that moves conversations forward, offering appropriate elaboration and details to build on what others have said.

How Can I Help at Home?

• Set aside quiet time for your student to read.
• Help your student find books to read based on an interest or a question they are trying to answer.
• Encourage your student to write for a variety of purposes.
• Play games with your student to increase their vocabulary, such as keeping track of how many times they can use a word of the day.
• Provide experiences for your student in which afterwards they can deepen their knowledge through reading and writing.

Questions for My Student

• How might you split that word into parts so that you can read it?
• How is the information from this book the same and different from the other book you read on this topic?
• How can you determine what that word means?
• What can you write about this topic?
• What would be a good question to ask about this topic?

Questions for the Teacher

• May I see a sample of my student's work?
• Is this piece of work satisfactory? How could it be better?
• Is my student on track with their reading and writing skills?
• How can I help my student improve or excel in reading and writing?
• If my student needs extra support, are there resources I can use at home?

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Mathematics

Third grade is a pivotal year where students deepen their understanding of key mathematical concepts, transition to more abstract thinking and tackle new challenges like multiplication, division and fractions. This year emphasizes problem-solving, critical thinking and real-world applications. Your encouragement and involvement are essential in helping your student build confidence and enthusiasm for mathematics.

What Will My Student Learn?

In connection to the standards:

• Multiplication and Division: Understanding and fluently multiplying and dividing within 100 and solving problems using arrays, groups and equations.
• Fractions: Representing and understanding fractions as numbers; comparing, ordering and identifying equivalent fractions.
• Operations and Algebraic Thinking: Solving multi-step word problems and understanding patterns and relationships in math.
• Measurement and Data: Measuring time, volume and mass and solving problems involving these concepts, interpreting and creating bar graphs and pictographs.
• Geometry: Identifying and classifying shapes based on their attributes; understanding area and perimeter concepts.

In the classroom:

• Building fluency with multiplication and division facts to solve complex problems.
• Exploring fractions and understanding how they relate to whole numbers.
• Learning to solve real-world math problems involving measurement and data.
• Developing a deeper understanding of area and perimeter through hands-on activities.
• Strengthening their ability to explain their reasoning and share their problem-solving strategies.

How Can I Help at Home?

• Practice multiplication and division facts through games or daily tasks.
• Use everyday activities, like cooking or shopping, to introduce fractions and problem-solving.
• Engage your student in projects involving measurement, such as building or crafting.
• Play board games or puzzles that encourage strategic thinking and mathematical reasoning.
• Encourage your student to talk about their problem-solving process and praise their effort, not just their answers.

Questions for My Student

• What math strategies did you use today?
• Can you show me how you solved a multiplication or division problem?
• What do you know about fractions so far?
• Can you explain what area and perimeter mean?
• What kinds of graphs or charts have you worked on recently?

Questions for the Teacher

• How is my student doing with multiplication and division facts?
• What are some activities I can do at home to reinforce fractions and problem-solving?
• Are there any tools or resources to help my student with geometry or measurement concepts?
• How can I support my student if they struggle with multi-step word problems?

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Science

The Iowa Academic Standards for Science empower teachers to provide all students in third grade with engaging science instruction that emphasizes data analysis and interpretation, critical thinking, problem solving and interdisciplinary connections — all while maintaining high expectations for academic achievement.

The science standards work in harmony with English/Language Arts and mathematics standards, allowing classroom instruction to better reflect real-world problem-solving, which often draws on multiple disciplines.

What Will My Student Learn?

• What happens to the motion of an object when balanced or unbalanced forces are applied? How can we measure, describe and predict object movement?
• Why do some animals form groups to help them survive? What are some traits that plants and animals inherit from their parents?
• How do environmental factors, such as climate, habitat changes, or food availability, impact the traits of plants and animals in a specific habitat? Why do some, but not all organisms thrive in a habitat?
• What are the typical weather conditions during each season and how do they affect our daily lives currently and in the future?

How Can I Help at Home?

• Encourage your student to begin to make sense of the world around them by asking questions and making observations. Ask them what they notice and what they wonder about the world around them.
• Extend classroom experiences at home by encouraging your student to explore, using their own language to describe lived experiences.
• Use the information in this guide to ask your student's teacher meaningful, informed questions.

Each year, students are expected to deepen their ability to make meaningful connections across physical sciences, life sciences, Earth and space sciences and engineering design. In third grade, your student will continue to build these connections by exploring key concepts such as understanding relationships between objects, planning and conducting investigations and constructing evidence-based explanations.

Through daily, hands-on science experiences, third graders will develop models and draw conclusions about both the physical and living world. Encourage your student to continue to explore their world at home through asking questions, modeling, or making claims based on evidence.

Questions for the Teacher

• What kinds of phenomena is my student going to be making sense of this year?
• How is my student going to be engaging with the practices of science?