Welcome to Mandracchia/Sawmill Intermediate School! Upon entering these halls, you will meet so many exciting people and take part in countless interesting activities. Here at MSIS your introduction to all that lies ahead lies in your third grade year. Sawmill's third graders are an amazing group who really know how to get the most out of a year. You'd be surprised at how much our "freshman" accomplish.

Have you ever dreamed of traveling around the world? Our third graders have done more than that - they have gotten the chance to study communities from all over the world. Pick a continent, any continent, and our third graders could tell you about the culture, history, and fascinating facts connected to the region. Whether near to home or far, Sawmill's third graders sure know where they are.

We also like to go far by using our favorite travel tools, books! Sawmill's third graders love to read, read, read. Using our anthology we experience literature through themes, and try to connect our own world to the words we've read about. Using trade books, we read for knowledge, for literary expression, for social interaction, and even for plain enjoyment (stop in some time during D.E.A.R. time and just try to tear us away from our stories). We also like to read in groups to have a more special encounter with some stories. By sharing our thoughts and reactions to a story with a group, we sometimes get even more out of it! Sawmill's third graders know one thing for sure-you can never go wrong with a good book!

Sawmill's third graders have also learned a thing or two when it comes to numbers as well. Did you know that in third grade alone, we work on addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions, graphs, money matters, and more problem solving than you can...well, than you can count!  We've even been known to make up our own problems to solve. Through cooperative learning, various manipulatives, and a range of practice opportunities, you can really see sum difference in Sawmill's third graders. They're the product of hard work and brainpower, and that makes them one in a million!

Speaking of million, did you know that everything in this world is made up of millions of tiny little molecules? Sawmill's third graders know that. They also know what makes a boat float, the phases of the moon, why displacement happens, and when a butterfly uses its proboscis! Do you know the answers to all of these questions? Well if you don't, just find a third grader. With all of the super science done in third grade, they'll be able to explain all of those mysteries, and interest you in more tales of science fact!

But wait, there's more! Besides filling our brains with ideas, we use our first year to get accustomed to our new school, to meet and get to know our new teachers and staff, and to get to know each other. At Sawmill, we have created a caring community that learns, laughs, and shares each special day together. Again, welcome to Mandracchia/Sawmill, our school sweet school!