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Learning Standards Standards

What does a student learn in ?

This is the year students start treating videos, photos, and digital projects as something they plan on purpose. Students come up with an idea, sketch out how it should go, and then put the pieces together using simple tools like a camera or recording app. They learn to look back at their own work and a classmate's work and say what feels clear and what needs another try. By spring, students can plan and finish a short media project that tells a story or shares an idea.

  • Planning a project
  • Making videos and photos
  • Editing and revising
  • Sharing work
  • Talking about media
Source: Vermont Common Core State Standards
Year at a glance
How the year usually goes. Every school and district set their own curriculum, so treat this as a guide, not official pacing.
  1. 1

    Getting ideas for media projects

    Students start the year coming up with ideas for media projects like short videos, digital drawings, or sound pieces. They learn to pull from their own lives and from things they have seen before.

  2. 2

    Building and shaping the work

    Students plan and build their projects step by step. They try out tools, arrange images or sounds, and learn that a first try is rarely the finished piece.

  3. 3

    Looking at media made by others

    Students watch, listen to, and study media made by other people. They talk about what the maker might have meant and how the time or place a piece was made shapes what it says.

  4. 4

    Polishing and sharing finished pieces

    Students revise their projects, pick which ones are ready to show, and present them to classmates or families. They also give honest feedback on each other's work using shared questions.

Mastery Learning Standards
The required skills a student should display by the end of Grade 3.
Connecting

  • Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

    MA:Cn10.3

    Students connect something from their own life to a media arts project, using that personal experience to shape what they make and how they make it.

  • Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural

    MA:Cn11.3

    Students look at a photo, video, or artwork and connect it to when and where it was made. Knowing that context helps them understand what the artist was trying to say.

Creating

  • Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work

    MA:Cr1.3

    Students brainstorm and sketch out ideas for a media arts project before they start making it. This is the planning stage where imagination leads.

  • Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

    MA:Cr2.3

    Students plan and build a media project (like a short video, photo story, or digital image) by choosing what to include and arranging the pieces until the work reflects their idea.

  • Refine and complete artistic work

    MA:Cr3.3

    Students revisit a media art project, make changes based on feedback or their own ideas, and finish it to a standard they feel good about.

Performing/Presenting/Producing

  • Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation

    MA:Pr4.3

    Students choose which of their media projects to share and explain why that piece best shows what they were trying to make.

  • Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation

    MA:Pr5.3

    Students practice and improve a media project (a short video, a photo series, or a digital image) until it's ready to share. They make choices about how it looks or sounds, then revise until the work is as clear and complete as they want it.

  • Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work

    MA:Pr6.3

    Students choose how to share a piece of media work, such as a drawing, video, or photo, so the audience understands the idea or feeling behind it.

Responding

  • Perceive and analyze artistic work

    MA:Re7.3

    Students look closely at a photo, video, or digital image and explain what they notice, such as the colors, shapes, or mood the creator chose.

  • Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work

    MA:Re8.3

    Students look at a piece of media art, such as a photo, video, or digital image, and explain what they think the artist was trying to say and why.

  • Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work

    MA:Re9.3

    Students look at a piece of media art and decide what makes it work well or fall short, using a set of agreed-on criteria like clarity, purpose, or visual appeal.

Common Questions
  • What is media arts in third grade?

    Media arts is making things like short videos, simple animations, slideshows, podcasts, and digital drawings. Students learn to plan an idea, put it together on a screen or recording, and share it with an audience. The focus is on telling a story or sharing an idea, not on fancy software.

  • What should students be able to make by the end of the year?

    By spring, students should be able to plan a short project, like a one-minute video or a five-slide story, and finish it from start to end. They should be able to explain why they picked certain pictures, sounds, or words. They should also give a kind, specific comment on someone else's work.

  • How can families support media arts at home?

    Let students record a short video about a pet, a recipe, or a family story, then watch it back together and talk about one thing to change. Looking at picture books, ads, or short cartoons and asking what the maker wanted you to feel also builds the same skills. Ten minutes is plenty.

  • Do students need a computer or special apps at home?

    No. A phone camera, paper flipbooks, voice memos, or a free drawing app all work. The thinking matters more than the tool. If a project is assigned that needs specific software, the teacher will share what is needed.

  • How should media arts be sequenced across the year?

    A common arc is to start with short responding tasks, looking at media and naming choices the maker made. Move into small creating tasks like a six-frame story or a thirty-second sound piece. End the year with a longer project that goes through planning, drafting, revising, and presenting.

  • Which skills usually need the most reteaching?

    Revision is the hardest part. Students often want to call a first draft done. Building in a clear feedback step, with one or two criteria from a simple rubric, is usually where the most time goes. Talking about intent, what the maker wanted the audience to think or feel, also needs steady practice.

  • How does media arts connect to other subjects?

    A media arts project can show what students learned in reading, science, or social studies. A short documentary about a local pond, a podcast retelling a folktale, or an animated math explainer all count. Pairing projects with another subject saves planning time and makes the learning stick.

  • How is media arts work assessed at this age?

    Assessment looks at the process, not just the finished piece. Teachers look for whether students planned an idea, made choices on purpose, revised after feedback, and could talk about what they made and why. A simple rubric with three or four criteria works well.

  • How do I know students are ready for next year?

    Students should be able to take a project from idea to finished piece without needing to be walked through each step. They should use basic media vocabulary, such as frame, sound, image, and audience, and apply a short list of criteria to their own work and a classmate's. Comfort with revision is the strongest signal.