Recycling Adds Up!

Through Recycling Adds Up, Solid Waste Services hopes to impress upon Third Grade students the fact that even small efforts to recycle do literally “add up”. This program is designed to introduce this simple fact to students in a fun and interactive way through playing a mathematics game based upon word problems. Filled with math-based questions about recycling, Recycling Adds Up helps students see the impact that they can make upon the local environment when they recycle. We understand that Grade 3 students have many math concepts and skills to master, and our game touches upon many of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) as outlined below. We urge you to utilize our program in your classroom to give your students practical experience in the many math skills that Grade 3 presents.

§111.15. Mathematics, Grade 3

(b) Knowledge and skills.

(1) Number, operation, and quantitative reasoning. The student uses place value to communicate about increasingly large whole numbers in verbal and written form, including money. The student is expected to:

• (A) use place value to read, write (in symbols and words), and describe the value of whole numbers through 999,999;
• (B) use place value to compare and order whole numbers through 9,999; and
  
• determine the value of a collection of coins and bills.

(3) Number, operation, and quantitative reasoning. The student adds and subtracts to solve meaningful problems involving whole numbers. The student is expected to:

• (A) model addition and subtraction using pictures, words, and numbers; and
• (B) select addition or subtraction and use the operation to solve problems involving whole numbers through 999.

(4) Number, operation, and quantitative reasoning. The student recognizes and solves problems in multiplication and division situations. The student is expected to:

• (A) learn and apply multiplication facts through the tens using concrete models;
• (B) solve and record multiplication problems (one-digit multiplier).

(6) Patterns, relationships, and algebraic thinking. The student uses patterns to solve problems. The student is expected to:

• (B) identify patterns in related multiplication and division sentences (fact families) such as 2 x 3 = 6, 3 x 2 = 6, 6 ÷ 2 = 3, 6 ÷ 3 = 2.

(15) Underlying processes and mathematical tools. The student applies Grade 3 mathematics to solve problems connected to everyday experiences and activities in and outside of school. The student is expected to:

• (A) identify the mathematics in everyday situations;
• (C) select or develop an appropriate problem-solving strategy, including drawing a picture, looking for a pattern, systematic guessing and checking, acting it out, making a table, working a simpler problem, or working backwards to solve a problem.

(16) Underlying processes and mathematical tools. The student communicates about Grade 3 mathematics using informal language. The student is expected to:

• (B) relate informal language to mathematical language and symbols.

(17) Underlying processes and mathematical tools. The student uses logical reasoning to make sense of his or her world. The student is expected to:

• (B) justify why an answer is reasonable and explain the solution process.