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Curriculum

Everything Boop knows, in plain view. Boop's knowledge base is built on the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) framework — the same standards used in every Texas public school classroom.

Why this matters: Teaching methods vary by state and even by school. For example, Boop uses the GET method (Group size, Equal groups, Total) for division word problems — your child's school may use a different approach. We believe parents should know exactly what an education AI is teaching before trusting it with their kids.

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Mathematics — Grade 3
Place value, operations, fractions, geometry, measurement, data analysis
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Place Value — TEKS 3.2 (Numbers to 100,000)

  • Compose and decompose numbers up to 100,000 using expanded notation
  • Compare and order whole numbers using >, <, =
  • Round to the nearest 10, 100, 1,000, or 10,000
  • Understand base-10 relationships through hundred thousands

Fractions — TEKS 3.3

  • Represent fractions with denominators of 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8
  • Use concrete objects, strip diagrams, and number lines
  • Understand unit fractions (1/b means 1 part out of b equal parts)
  • Compare fractions with same numerator or denominator
  • Equivalent fractions using number lines and area models
  • Partition objects/sets among recipients using pictorial representations

Operations — TEKS 3.4 (Most Tested Area)

Addition & Subtraction: Solve fluently within 1,000 using place value strategies. Round to nearest 10 or 100 to estimate. Determine value of coin/bill collections.

Multiplication & Division:

  • Represent multiplication using: repeated addition, equal-sized groups, arrays, area models, number line jumps, skip counting
  • Recall facts up to 10 × 10 with automaticity AND corresponding division facts
  • Multiply 2-digit × 1-digit using strategies (mental math, partial products, properties)
  • Division: determine number of objects in each group when partitioned into equal shares
  • Determine quotients using the relationship between multiplication and division
TEKS 3.4(K) — STAAR Readiness Standard:
"Solve one-step and two-step problems involving multiplication and division within 100 using strategies based on objects; pictorial models, including arrays, area models, and equal groups; properties of operations; or recall of facts."

The GET Method (Used in Kingston's School)

G = Group Size — how many in each group
E = Equal Groups — how many groups
T = Total — the big starting number

Equation: Total ÷ Equal Groups = Group Size

Memory trick: "Got Extra Treats?"

What to FindLook for Words Like...
Total (T)"has," "there are," "made," "in all"
Equal Groups (E)"shared with X friends," "into X teams," "X rows," "X boxes"
Group Size (G)"how many in each," "how many per," "each person gets"

Division Strategies (in order of accessibility)

  • Think Multiplication — "What × 4 = 24?" Run through the times table
  • Deal It Out — like dealing cards one at a time into piles
  • Skip Count on Fingers — count by the divisor until you reach the total
  • Draw Equal Groups — circle objects into groups
  • Use Arrays — arrange in rows and columns
  • Number Line Jumps — jump backwards by the divisor from the total to 0
Key rule: In division, the answer is NEVER bigger than the starting number (at this level).

Algebraic Reasoning — TEKS 3.5

  • Represent problems using pictorial models, number lines, equations
  • Describe multiplication as comparison ("3 × 24 = 3 times as much as 24")
  • Find unknown whole number in multiplication/division equations
  • Number pairs in tables and verbal descriptions of relationships

Geometry — TEKS 3.6

  • Classify 2D and 3D figures (cones, cylinders, spheres, prisms, cubes)
  • Recognize quadrilaterals: rhombuses, parallelograms, trapezoids, rectangles, squares
  • Area of rectangles (rows × unit squares per row)
  • Decompose composite figures into rectangles for area

Measurement — TEKS 3.7

  • Perimeter of polygons and missing side lengths
  • Fractions (halves, fourths, eighths) as distances on a number line
  • Addition/subtraction of time intervals in minutes
  • Choose appropriate units for liquid volume vs. weight

Data Analysis — TEKS 3.8

  • Frequency tables, dot plots, pictographs, bar graphs with scaled intervals
  • Solve problems using categorical data from these displays

Personal Financial Literacy — TEKS 3.9

  • Human capital/labor and income connection
  • Supply, scarcity, and cost relationships
  • Credit, borrowing, interest, and responsibility
  • Reasons to save, savings plans, saving for college
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Mathematics — Grades 4 & 5
What's ahead — decimals, multi-digit operations, fractions, volume
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Grade 4 — Key New Skills

  • Place value: interpret each position as 10× the position to the right
  • Decimals: relate to fractions (tenths, hundredths), compare and order
  • Fractions: add/subtract with equal denominators, represent on number line
  • Multiplication: up to 4-digit × 1-digit and 2-digit × 2-digit
  • Division: up to 4-digit ÷ 1-digit, interpret remainders (drop it, round up, express as fraction)
  • Multi-step problems: strip diagrams and equations with letter variables
  • Geometry: measuring/classifying angles, lines of symmetry, parallel/perpendicular lines
  • Measurement: perimeter and area formulas, unit conversions
  • Data: stem-and-leaf plots, frequency tables
  • Financial literacy: fixed vs. variable expenses, financial institutions, calculating profit
The big jump in Grade 4: Students move from basic facts (within 100) to dividing multi-digit numbers using place value strategies, partial quotients, area models, and interpreting remainders in context.

Grade 5 — Key New Skills

  • Decimals: multiply and divide decimals to hundredths
  • Fractions: add/subtract with unequal denominators, multiply whole × fraction, divide unit fractions
  • Expressions: order of operations (no exponents yet)
  • Volume: formulas for rectangular prisms
  • Coordinate graphing: plot ordered pairs in first quadrant
  • Algebraic reasoning: additive vs. multiplicative patterns
  • Geometry: classify 2D figures in a hierarchy (all squares are rectangles, etc.)
  • Data: scatterplots, mean/median/mode introduced informally
  • Financial literacy: balancing a simple budget
  • Long division: up to 4-digit ÷ 2-digit using the standard algorithm
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English Language Arts
Phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, writing, and research — Grade 3
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Oral Language — TEKS 3.1

  • Listen actively, ask relevant questions
  • Follow and give multi-step oral instructions
  • Speak coherently with eye contact and appropriate volume

Phonics & Spelling — TEKS 3.2

  • Decode multisyllabic words (closed, open, VCe, vowel teams, r-controlled syllables)
  • Syllable division patterns: VCCV, VCV, VCCCV
  • Prefixes and suffixes (including how they change base words)
  • Spell homophones, compound words, contractions
  • Write legibly in cursive (yes, Texas still requires this in 3rd grade)

Vocabulary — TEKS 3.3

  • Use print/digital resources for meaning, syllabication, pronunciation
  • Context clues within and beyond a sentence
  • Affixes: im-, non-, dis-, in-, pre-, -ness, -y, -ful
  • Antonyms, synonyms, idioms, homophones, homographs

Fluency — TEKS 3.4

  • Read grade-level text with appropriate rate, accuracy, and prosody (expression)

Comprehension — TEKS 3.6

  • Establish purpose for reading
  • Generate questions before, during, after reading
  • Make and confirm predictions
  • Make inferences with evidence
  • Synthesize information
  • Monitor comprehension and self-correct

Response Skills — TEKS 3.7

  • Write responses to literary/informational text
  • Use text evidence to support responses
  • Retell and paraphrase maintaining meaning and logical order

Literary Elements & Genres — TEKS 3.8–3.9

  • Infer theme (distinguish theme from topic)
  • Explain character relationships, plot elements, setting's influence
  • Folktales, fables, fairy tales, legends, myths
  • Poetry: rhyme scheme, sound devices, stanzas
  • Drama: characters, dialogue, setting, acts
  • Informational text: central idea, text features, organizational patterns
  • Argumentative text: claim, facts vs. opinion, intended audience

Author's Purpose & Craft — TEKS 3.10

  • Explain author's purpose and message
  • Text structure and its contribution to purpose
  • Imagery, simile, onomatopoeia, hyperbole
  • First-person vs. third-person point of view

Writing & Composition — TEKS 3.11–3.12

  • Plan, draft, revise, edit, publish
  • Write personal narratives, poetry, informational texts, opinion essays, correspondence
  • Complete simple and compound sentences
  • Past, present, future verb tense
  • Nouns (singular, plural, common, proper), adjectives (comparative/superlative), adverbs, prepositions, pronouns, conjunctions
  • Apostrophes in contractions/possessives, commas in compound sentences and series

Research — TEKS 3.13

  • Generate questions, develop research plan
  • Identify primary and secondary sources
  • Difference between paraphrasing and plagiarism
  • Create a works cited page
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Science
Matter, force & motion, Earth & space, organisms — Grade 3, TEKS 2024
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Scientific & Engineering Practices

  • Make observations and ask testable questions
  • Plan and conduct simple investigations
  • Collect and record data
  • Analyze results and draw conclusions

Matter & Its Properties

  • Describe physical properties (mass, magnetism, relative density, solubility)
  • States of matter: solid, liquid, gas
  • Mixtures and separation methods

Force, Motion, & Energy

  • Position, motion, and changes in speed or direction
  • Pushes and pulls (contact forces)
  • Magnets and magnetic fields
  • Light: sources, reflection, refraction, shadows
  • Sound: vibration, pitch, volume
  • Heat: conduction, temperature changes

Earth & Space

  • Soil: layers, composition, importance to life
  • Water cycle: evaporation, condensation, precipitation
  • Weather patterns: temperature, wind, precipitation data
  • Objects in the sky: Sun, Moon, stars, patterns of apparent movement
  • Natural resources: renewable vs. non-renewable

Organisms & Environments

  • Life cycles of organisms
  • Inherited traits vs. learned behaviors
  • Food chains and food webs
  • Habitats and ecosystems
  • How organisms depend on their environment
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Social Studies
History, geography, economics, government, culture — Grade 3
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History

  • Community and state history
  • Historical figures and their contributions
  • Timelines and chronological thinking
  • Contributions of diverse cultures to community development

Geography

  • Maps and globes: interpret and use
  • Physical characteristics of places (landforms, bodies of water, climate)
  • Human characteristics of places (population, land use, cultural features)

Economics

  • Producers and consumers
  • Supply and demand
  • Goods and services
  • Wants vs. needs

Government

  • Local and state government structure
  • Purpose of rules and laws
  • Good citizenship and civic responsibility

Culture

  • Customs and celebrations
  • Contributions of various cultural groups
  • How culture shapes community identity
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How Boop Teaches
Teaching philosophy, learning strategies, and STAAR test preparation
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Teaching Philosophy

  • Concrete → Pictorial → Abstract (CPA approach) — start with real objects, move to drawings, then equations
  • Ask, don't tell — guide students to discover answers through questions
  • Celebrate effort, not just correct answers
  • Offer multiple strategies — different brains click with different methods
  • Connect to real life — sharing snacks, dealing cards, splitting teams
  • Use school vocabulary — GET method, strip diagrams, arrays, etc.

Division-Specific Strategies

  • Always connect division back to multiplication: "Division is just asking: what times ___ equals ___?"
  • Teach fact families: 4 × 6 = 24, 6 × 4 = 24, 24 ÷ 4 = 6, 24 ÷ 6 = 4
  • Use the GET method for word problems
  • Encourage skip counting as a backup strategy
  • Use real objects when possible (crayons, snacks, toys)

Reading & Writing Approach

  • Always ask "What's your evidence?" — Texas prioritizes text evidence
  • Practice identifying theme vs. topic (theme = message/lesson, topic = what it's about)
  • Use graphic organizers for story elements
  • Follow the writing process: plan → draft → revise → edit → publish

Science Approach

  • Encourage observation and questions
  • Fair tests: change one thing, measure one thing, keep everything else the same
  • Connect to real-world examples

STAAR Test Facts

DetailInfo
Grades tested3, 4, 5 (math and reading); 5 (science)
FormatPrimarily online — multiple choice + open-ended (drag-and-drop, text entry, hot spots)
Performance levelsDid Not Meet, Approaches, Meets, Masters
Grade 5 gatewayMust pass math and reading STAAR to be promoted to 6th grade
Tools allowedGraph paper is available on STAAR math tests

Vocabulary by Grade Level

Grade 3

addend, sum, difference, factor, product, quotient, dividend, divisor, array, area model, equal groups, fraction, numerator, denominator, unit fraction, equivalent, number line, place value, expanded notation, perimeter, area, data, frequency table, pictograph, bar graph

Grade 4

All of Grade 3, plus: decimal, tenths, hundredths, remainder, compatible numbers, expression, equation, variable, angle, degree, protractor, line of symmetry, parallel, perpendicular, stem-and-leaf plot, prime, composite

Grade 5

All of Grades 3–4, plus: volume, coordinate plane, ordered pair, x-axis, y-axis, origin, algebraic expression, simplify, scatterplot, mean, median, mode, range, numerical pattern, unit fraction, mixed number, improper fraction

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Sources & References
Where this curriculum data comes from — verified, public, linkable
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Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS)

STAAR Testing Program

Teaching Methodologies

  • CPA Approach (Concrete → Pictorial → Abstract) — developed by Jerome Bruner, widely adopted in Singapore Math and recommended by TEA for elementary math instruction
  • GET Method (Group size, Equal groups, Total) — a division word-problem framework used in Texas elementary classrooms to help students identify what to solve for
  • Strip Diagrams / Bar Models — visual problem-solving strategy emphasized in TEKS process standards and used across Texas math curricula
  • TEA Resources for Revised Mathematics TEKS — instructional strategies, multiple representations, and process standards guidance

Direct PDF Downloads

Transparency commitment: Every standard, strategy, and vocabulary term on this page can be verified against the publicly available TEKS documents linked above. All links point directly to tea.texas.gov (Texas Education Agency) and statutes.capitol.texas.gov (Texas Legislature). If your child's school uses different terminology or methods, we want to know — Boop should match what's happening in the classroom.