Newfoundland and Labrador · Grade 3 · 2026–27 · For parents

What your child learns in Grade 3 in Newfoundland and Labrador

In Grade 3, Newfoundland and Labrador students work through Mathematics, English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies — 116 specific skills across 23 units, set by the province's official curriculum. This page lists them all in plain words, subject by subject, so you know exactly what "how was school?" is actually covering this year.

4Subjects
23Units
116Skills

Built from the official Newfoundland and Labrador curriculum · free to start · web, iPhone & Android

How to read this page

Newfoundland and Labrador publishes its curriculum as long official documents written for teachers. This page is the same content, translated for the fridge door: each subject below shows this year's units and the skills inside them. If a skill sounds unfamiliar, that's the point — now you know what to ask about at dinner.

Mathematics this year

Numbers stop being abstract this year — they become things your child can count, compare, build, and explain. In Newfoundland and Labrador, that's Mathematics, Grade 3 — 10 units, 39 skills.

Counting and Estimating

  • Skip counting sequences
  • Estimating with groups of ten and hundred
+ 3 more skills in this unit →

Representing Whole Numbers

  • Reading numbers and number words
  • Ordering three-digit numbers
+ 4 more skills in this unit →

Fractions

  • Equal parts and everyday fractions
+ 2 more skills in this unit →

Addition and Subtraction

  • Modelling and solving problems
  • Strategies for adding
+ 3 more skills in this unit →

Multiplication and Division

  • Recognizing multiplication and division
  • Solving multiplication and division problems
+ 2 more skills in this unit →

Patterns

  • Describing and extending patterns
+ 3 more skills in this unit →

Equality

  • Meaning of the unknown symbol
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Measurement

  • Length units and referents
  • Mass in grams and kilograms
+ 3 more skills in this unit →

2-D Shapes and 3-D Objects

  • Classifying polygons
  • Identifying and describing 3-D objects
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Data

  • Organizing data with tallies and line plots
  • Constructing and interpreting bar graphs

See the full Mathematics, Grade 3 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →

English Language Arts this year

Reading and writing grow fast at this age — this is the year the letters turn into stories. In Newfoundland and Labrador, that's English Language Arts, Grade 3 — 3 units, 35 skills.

Speaking and Listening

  • Describing experiences with supporting details
  • Participating in active conversations
  • Communicating with respect and sensitivity
+ 11 more skills in this unit →

Reading and Viewing

  • Choosing texts for specific purposes
  • Formulating inquiry questions
  • Making connections to texts
+ 11 more skills in this unit →

Writing and Representing

  • Writing feelings and imaginative ideas
  • Using different text types and forms
  • Using strategies to write effectively
+ 4 more skills in this unit →

See the full English Language Arts, Grade 3 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →

Science this year

Science at this age is guided curiosity — observing, sorting, asking why, and testing ideas hands-on. In Newfoundland and Labrador, that's Science, Grade 3 — 3 units, 22 skills.

Earth and Space Science

  • Comparing different soils
  • How moving water changes soil
+ 4 more skills in this unit →

Physical Science

  • Shapes and forms in structures
  • Judging if a structure works
  • Making and using static electricity
+ 8 more skills in this unit →

Life Science

  • Parts of a plant and their jobs
  • The life cycle of a flowering plant
+ 3 more skills in this unit →

See the full Science, Grade 3 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →

Social Studies this year

Social studies starts close to home — family, community, and how people live together. In Newfoundland and Labrador, that's Social Studies, Grade 3 — 7 units, 20 skills.

Social Studies Concepts and Skills - 1. Inquiry and Research

  • Using an inquiry model
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Anthropology - 2. Civic Engagement

  • Positive interactions and stereotyping
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Anthropology - 3. Culture and Diversity

  • Ways people express culture
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Anthropology - 4. People, Place, and Environment

  • The various peoples of our province
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Civics - 5. Civic Engagement

  • What it means to be an active citizen
  • Methods of decision-making
+ 2 more skills in this unit →

Politics - 7. Citizenship, Power, and Governance

  • The purpose of laws
+ 1 more skill in this unit →

Geography - 6. People, Place, and Environment

  • Using the concept of location
  • Landforms and bodies of water
  • Rural and urban communities
+ 3 more skills in this unit →

See the full Social Studies, Grade 3 curriculum, with the ministry's own wording →

Three ways parents use this list

At report-card timeMatch the teacher's comments to the units above — "working on number sense" stops being a mystery phrase.
At parent-teacher nightPick one unit per subject and ask "how is my child doing with this?" — specific questions get specific answers.
When they're stuckFind the exact skill on this page, open it in MapleMind, and the tutor teaches just that — step by step, as many times as it takes.

Common questions

What does my child learn in Grade 3 in Newfoundland and Labrador?

Newfoundland and Labrador's official curriculum sets out Mathematics, English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies for Grade 3 — 116 specific skills in total. The big themes: Mathematics covers counting and estimating and representing whole numbers; English Language Arts covers speaking and listening and reading and viewing; Science covers earth and space science and physical science. The full list is on this page.

Is this the official Newfoundland and Labrador curriculum?

It's built from Newfoundland and Labrador's official program of studies, reorganized into plain language — and each subject links to a course page that quotes the ministry's own wording and links to the government source, so you can check our work. One honest caveat: we're not the ministry, curricula do change, and we can't guarantee this reflects the very latest revision, so confirm anything important against the live provincial curriculum data.

My child is finding one of these skills hard. What can I do?

That's normal — every skill on this page is one most kids wobble on at first. MapleMind teaches any of them one-on-one: a short lesson in plain words, a worked example, then solving together. It's free to start, on any device, in 14 languages.

Keep exploring

Knowing the list is half the job

The other half is the teaching — and that's what MapleMind does. Pick any skill on this page and see it taught properly, free, in under a minute.

MapleMind isn't affiliated with any ministry of education. We build these guides from each province's official program of studies and refresh them from time to time — but curricula change, and we can't guarantee this page reflects the very latest revision. Always confirm against the live provincial curriculum data. Last updated 2026-08-15.