3rd Grade Curriculum Choices

 It's time again to start prepping for the start of a new school year! Here is our current plan for the 2026-2027 year, although it can always change along the way. Technically it is his 3rd grade year, but we go with his level.

If you're a video type person, I also made a video with my choices.

Math:

• Beast Academy - Last year we did Beast Academy Level 3B, 3C, 3D and 4A. This year we will continue with Beast Academy Level 4. We also have the Puzzles 2 & 3 books as a summer supplement.

• Math Books - He also reads a math "story" every week. This might be a Mathstart book, a Sir Cumference book, a Life of Fred book (our library has most of them), or another math picture book we have. 
• Those pictured:
• Life the Flap Fractions and Decimals
• The School of Numbers
• Amazing Visual Math
• How to be a Math Genius
• Can you Count to a Googol

• Math Games - We play tons of board games as a family and many have hidden math components, but we have some dedicated "math" games. 
• Prime Climb
• ADSUMUDI
• Mobi

Language Arts:

• Hearth & Story -  Probably our biggest curriculum change will be switching to Hearth & Story complete 3rd grade for all the ELA subjects except spelling. This will encompass literature studies, writing, poetry, grammar, breakfast serial (a type of lit study) and brain food (media literacy, philosophy, logic, etc.). It was a lot of printing, but I really like the way it was laid out. It includes a lot of things I wouldn't think to do myself, so I am really excited to dive in.
• Read aloud - I will read his lit study books aloud to him as part of Hearth & Story. It won't take all year, though, so I have some others lined up.

• Spelling - We have completed All About Spelling through level 5, so I kind of feel like he's good on regular "spelling" curriculum. Hearth & Story also has a spelling component, that we will be skipping. This year he will complete Word Roots Beginnings instead. It is a look at the meaning and spelling of roots, prefixes and suffixes of words. I think it will be a better way to prepare him to decode unfamiliar words and be successful on standardized tests in the future.

Logic

• Building Thinking Skills Level 2 - We've done a ton of logic girds in the past, so I think it is time to do a bigger variety. Technically this level says grades 4-6, but after looking through the sample pages, it seemed like a better fit. Some might be a stretch, but I'd rather help him work through them than waste time on problems that are too easy. We'll probably use this book over a couple of years.
• Word Explorer Level 1 - Honestly, we're mostly doing this because we came across it when I was looking for logic materials and my son loved the sample pages and asked for it. My plan is to have him do one a week.
• Crypto Mind Benders Famous Quotations - I already had this from when my oldest was in elementary and I think my 3rd grader will like them. I'll throw one page a week in as long as he's still enjoying it.

• Solo Logic Games - we have a bunch of these. I want to make an effort to have him play one at least once a week. 
• Those pictured:
• Laser Maze
• Marble Circuit
• Kanoodle Gravity
• IQ Flow
• Noodlers
• Super Slide
• Super Blocks
• Smart Sudoku

Science

• We have loved Beast Academy for math and now they have a science curriculum, so we are going to try that for 3rd grade, starting with Beast Academy Science 3A. As a former secondary science teacher, I love that it is based on the national standards. We will also supplement with books from our home library. It does seem like a lot to do in a week, so we might or might not do all the supplemental activities.

History & Social Studies

• Last year we used Curiosity Chronicles Snapshots of Medieval History and really liked the format. This year we will do Curiosity Chronicles: Snapshots of Modern History Part 1. I will probably pull our books or books from the library to go with relevant chapters are we reach them.

• To hit the social studies standards we will be using units from Tony the Tourist, we're doing most, but not all of 3rd grade.

Others

• Social Emotional - I got a Social Skills Activities workbook that I'm hoping to go through with both little kids. We will probably alternate with Heart and Mind activities, which is supposed to teach mindfulness, friendship and other executive function type skills. 
• Art- We will do 3rd grade art activities from a variety of internet sources (Deep Space Sparkle is great) as well as some projects in his history curriculum. My goal is just to expose him to various media and have him explore different techniques.
• Typing - we will use Typing Club, which is a free website for learning typing.

Spooky Tower Board Game Review

 

Spooky Tower

Players: 2-5

Play Time: 15-30 minutes

Ages: 6+ (8+ officially)

Adorable ghosts, a fantastic 3D clock that serves as a dice tower, amazing looking dice and quick and easy gameplay? Yes please!

👻Overview👻
The amulet that keeps ghosts stuck in the clock tower has broken, letting all the ghosts escape! Players are trying to trap the ghosts by either collecting 5 or collecting 3 amulet fragments. Upon rolling the die you can choose one or the sum of your dice for your action. You can either choose a new card from the town and put it next to your house or you can flip all of your existing cards of the matching number. When you flip cards, you’re hoping to reveal ghosts, but you may reveal nothing, a pawprint which gives you a (stealable) pet ghost, some clues or other special actions. The fronts of the cards show you the probability of getting various items on the back, so that can help you decide which cards to take.

👻Thoughts👻
The ghosts have so much personality and most look really friendly, so why are we trying to lock them up?! That aside, I think it is an adorable game with great product quality. The clock tower is fantastic and the art is a fun spooky-rather than scary-spooky, which fits the family friendly vibe. Even the inside of the box is nicely decorated and everything fits perfectly.

I like that the higher numbers, which are harder to roll, give much better rewards. Taking those cards is a risk, though, because you have to roll that number again. On the other hand, collecting multiple smaller numbers and then flipping them all at once can be a good strategy. Between the park, the Grimoire, the pets and the clock tower actions, there are multiple ways to collect ghosts, lending a feel of variety to the game. However, it is overall a very light, luck dependent game.

I am always looking for fun, quick games my whole family can play, and Spooky Tower absolutely delivers. My toddler can be on my teen’s team and help him put the dice in the tower. My 7 year old can  play independently, but the game is still plenty enjoyable for the adults. It would also make a great starter or filler game on a bigger game night!

Game gifted by the publisher but all thoughts are always my own.

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First Giants Board Game Review

First Giants

Players: 2-5

Play Time: 30 minutes (less with lower player counts)

Ages: 8+ (10+ officially)

I usually don’t consider dino themed things “beautiful” but that is exactly how I would describe the dinosaurs in First Giants

Overview
You are paleontologists trying to collect and display the most beautiful fossils in your museum. Players take turns placing their markers at one of the four dig sites to draft cards for their studies, but can only have one marker per site. Cards in the study offer immediate or recurring benefits. When you spend a turn reclaiming the markers, you can either collect amber or pay amber to put a card on display in the museum. Once a card is on display, its benefit is lost, but it is how you score. Fossils on display score for being in sets of different sizes but the same family or the same size but different families. Complete sets score more than partial ones. In addition, the first person to start each type of set gets a bonus “news” token, which can change players as other people make that type of display with even more cards.

Thoughts
First Giants is such a solid little game!  I played it a few times on BGA and enjoyed it, but love it even more in person. I’ve never really been huge on dinosaur themes but some of these games are quickly changing my mind! The watercolor style cards and art are absolutely lovely, the tokens are chunky and the amber is fantastic. The dig sites and personal boards were thoughtfully made to make gameplay as easy as possible, plus the box came with tuck boxes for organization!

Even though we played in about 15-20 minutes, the decisions feel purposeful. Since the benefits of the fossils are lost once you display them, you have to decide how long to wait. You don’t want your opponents to end the game before you complete your sets! For a game that plays so quickly, you still come away feeling satisfied. I found it entertaining to play with a grown up, but can see my almost 8 year old learning it too.

Game gifted by the publisher but all thoughts are always my own.

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Tulikko Board Game Review

Tulikko

Players: 2-4

Play Time: 30 minutes (much less with lower player counts)

Ages: 8+

Gorgeous artwork, a mystical firefox and tile laying meant I absolutely wanted to play as soon as I heard about Tulikko

Overview
Players adopt a Tulikko or other spirit animal, gain its corresponding board, tiles and tokens and then try to be the first to place all of their animal and river tokens. To explore your forest, you slide one of your forest tiles into the central board, taking the tile that comes out the opposite side. Then you place that tile on a corresponding symbol on your board. Placing two tiles of the same color next to each other lets you place an animal token and placing different tiles next to each other lets you place a river. 

Completing arrangements on various goal cards lets you place a couple extra tokens on them. Being the first to play a minimum number of tiles of the same color earns you an aurora tile, which each grants a one time bonus power.

Thoughts
The artwork is beautiful, especially on the iridescent cover. I loved the whimsical style on the trees and boards. The tiles are sturdy, the tokens are chunky and it is all put together with care. I had fun to learning the legend of the Tulikko and I would have loved to learn the lore behind the other spirit animals as well.

Gameplay is faster and simpler than expected. The central board definitely adds a new element over just straight drafting. Since there are only 12 turns, it is impossible to fill your entire board, meaning you have to be strategic as to which objectives you try to complete. Some of the aurora tiles grant pretty powerful rewards, so they’re pretty important to chase.

Our first game was over in about 15 minutes, so we reset and immediately played again. I like that there are a variety of objective cards, adding some variety while keeping it easy to learn. I was even able to teach my 7 year old, who enjoyed it (although we played without aurora tiles for the first game).

Overall, I think it is a lovely, family weight game for when you want something a little lighter or to be able to play multiple games in a night.

Game gifted by the publisher but all thoughts are always my own.

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Dodo Board Game Review

Dodo

Players: 2-4

Play Time: 10 minutes
Ages: 6+

Gameplay
In Dodo, a mama dodo has laid her egg at the top of the mountain. Players cooperatively work to build bridges and dock the boat to catch the egg before it falls off the mountain (keeping it from hatching). You do this by rolling a die and turning over tokens. If they match, you get to add the building materials to your bridges and dock.

Thoughts
Everything about the components of this game screams “play with me!!” The mountain, how you add the bridges, the boat and the amazing wobbly, slow rolling egg are pretty irresistible on the table. I was initially a little skeptical about how sturdy a kids game with so many 3D components could be, but the way things go together, it seems like it will hold up really well.It does take a little while to put together, but play goes fast so you can get in multiple games in a session (especially if you lose). 

This is such a fun cooperative kids game! It is also low stress enough to help my speed-averse kid work though some of that anxiety around “racing” a game. I actually think my 3 year old will be able to play soon.

Game gifted by the publisher but all thoughts are always my own.

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My Book Nook Game Review

My Book Nook: Cozy Word Building Game

Players: 1-5

Play Time: 20 minutes (officially 30)

Ages: 8+

I am doing my best to raise a family of bookworms (and board gamers), so my kids’ library is actually much bigger than our game library. Therefore, it was an immediate “yes” when I had the opportunity to review My Book Nook: Cozy Word Building Game

📚Overview📚
In My Book Nook, you’re trying to build words, decorate your shelves & create the coziest reading nook. On your turn, you can either choose two cards or build a word. Book Nook cards feature a book with a letter and a genre. Decoration cards feature an endgame scoring condition, usually based on the location or number of books of a particular genre. You use the Book Nook cards to build words, which earn you ambiance cards. The ambiance card you get is determined by the length of the word; more letters are worth more points. There are also sometimes bonuses for rarer letters and a penalty for wildcards. Once someone builds four words, everyone gets one more turn, you assign decorations to each word and the game ends.

📚Thoughts📚
I ended up really liking this, as did my teen, who is my usual word game partner! The rules are well written and straightforward. The art is wonderfully thematic. I really enjoyed the array of fun decorations you can get, as well as the cozy ambiance cards (think snacks, slippers, pets, etc.). Plus, who doesn’t want to create an amazing book nook?! 

The length of the game feels perfect for the lighter weight of the game. When I played with two players, it probably took less than 20 minutes. My solo game was even faster. I worried the lack of a wiping mechanism might make the card market feel stale, but it wasn’t a problem at all. I really appreciate the inclusion of a solo mode, since so many word games lack them. Gameplay is very similar to multiplayer, without any additional management. You are just competing with your own score, but it works for a relaxing little word puzzle.

*Game provided, but all thoughts are my own

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Widget's Workshop Game Review

Widget's Workshop

Players: 2-5

Play Time: 20 minutes (officially 30)
Ages: 7+ (Officially 14+)

I bought Widget's Workshop on a whim a few weeks back, never having played a “drop style” game before, and I’m really glad I did!

⚙️Overview⚙️
Players are trying to build the best robots and golems possible. First, all of the transparent gear cards are dropped randomly onto the table. Each has some symbols on the edges corresponding to elements, archetypes and make, plus a body part (leg, arm, body) in the middle. Players take turns using just one finger to pull either one face up card or two face down ones, then adding the part to one of their construct bays. Once a bay has all five parts, you stack the pieces to create your construct, learn its name and score based on how many symbols match for each category (0-30 points). The first one to complete a certain number of constructs gets a bonus, and then everyone compares scores.

⚙️Thoughts⚙️
This is such a clever family weight game! The box says 14, but my 7 year old played easily (even if tempted to cheat by using more than one finger to draw cards). I love how the gears stack to make your little robot/golem, the clear cards are used so creatively! I also love how when the 5 parts are stacked, a name is revealed. I think the names were my son’s favorite part!

Setup is easy and gameplay is quick. It feels very unique in our large collection, so is an excellent addition.

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