New York City Third Grade Math Test Preparation Guide

An Overview of Third Grade Math

New York City public school students will be developing an understanding of multiplication and division up to 100 and learning about fractions. In this focus area, your child should be able to solve problems that involve addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. It is important that your third grader can explain how he or she arrived at the answer and also check to make sure it is reasonable.

Another focus area will have students learning how to determine the area of rectangles. You will also want to ensure that your student is capable of estimating and measuring a variety of objects using standard units of measurement, like inches. Lastly, your student will learn to analyze and describe 2-dimensional shapes. In the geometry standard, your third grader should be able to partition a shape into parts with equal areas. Students should also recognize shapes, like squares and rectangles, as examples of quadrilaterals.

Types of Questions Your Child Can Expect

The New York third grade math test consists of multiple-choice as well as open-ended questions. Be sure your child is prepared to write sentences that will explain the math processes that he or she used to arrive at a solution. To answer many of the questions, students will be using information presented in tables, charts or diagrams.

Often, the answer a student gets on the first part of a question will affect the answer that is determined for subsequent parts of the question. For example, a student may be presented with a table that shows the total number of raffle tickets sold by each third grade class. Students may then be asked to use that information and create a graph that accurately depicts the same data.

Keep in mind that the questions your child will be expected to answer come from each of the content standards for third grade students. This means there will be questions that require your child to add, subtract, multiply and divide. He or she should also be prepared to demonstrate a knowledge of measurement, fractions and geometry.