Becoming Thinkers and Researchers in Our Sharing the Planet Unit

Grade 3 Weekly Learning Journey – Sharing the Planet

This week, our Grade 3 learners continued to inquire deeply into our Unit of Inquiry Sharing the Planet, with a special focus on the central idea of how human choices impact the environment and shared resources.

In UOI, we began with a research task exploring “What is energy?” Students activated their prior knowledge and extended their understanding using a variety of sources. With growing confidence as Researchers and Thinkers, they then engaged in a schoolwide investigation:
How does our school use energy?

Learners walked through the school building, observing carefully and taking notes. They analysed their findings and collaboratively sorted them into three meaningful categories:

  • Good Use

  • Wasteful Use

  • Ideas for Improvement

This encouraged students to think critically about sustainable choices and to reflect on what it means to be Balanced community members who take responsibility for shared resources. Their discussions were thoughtful, reflective, and aligned beautifully with our PYP focus on action.

Mathematics

In Mathematics, we continued exploring Probability. Through hands-on experiments with coins and dice, students collected data and compared expected outcomes to actual results. This inquiry brought the language of probability to life as they learned to express likelihood using phrases such as:
certain, good chance, even chance, poor chance, and no chance.

The learning engagements supported students in developing mathematical reasoning and helped them understand that probability is all around us.

Language / English

In Language, we strengthened our skills as effective communicators by working with:

  • Alphabetical order

  • Dictionary skills

  • Root words

Students practiced locating words efficiently, understanding word families, and recognizing how roots contribute to meaning—valuable tools for becoming more independent readers and writers.

This week, we also introduced a personal journal/diary. From now on, students will write in their journals every Friday (or over the weekend). This routine supports reflective learning, encourages meta cognition, and helps students develop their voices as authors while documenting what they have learned, experienced, and wondered about.


















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