I hope your friend wants you to succeed in taking quite a few Crappie out of that pond. That's a pretty small body of water to have Crappie in. Most DNR guys will tell you that a "pond" of less than 50 acres is probably not big enough to support a population of Crappie, successfully, unless they are preyed upon heavily by another species. They spawn large numbers and eventually will overpopulate the smaller waters - then eat themselves out of house & home - and become stunted & thin. So, to help thin out the population and keep that from happening ... don't wait for "the spawn" - get after them BEFORE they can spawn.
In 3 acres, they don't have far to roam ... nor do they have many places to hide. As long as the water isn't frozen over, a minnow/float - minnow/jig - jig/float - Crappie jig (hair/feather/marabou) - or jighead/plastic body should get you some hits. As long as the water temps are below 50deg ... fish slow and in the deeper portion of the pond. Once the water temps get back above 50deg, they should become more active and shallower. Then they will start their pre-spawn "feeding" ... but cold spells will push them back deep, if only for a short while. Once the temps get above 55deg, the males should start checking out spawning spots, while the females stay out deeper and develop their eggs. When the water temps get around 60deg, the females should start making short visits to the nesting sites. And between 60 & 65deg, the spawn should be in full swing. Now - these temps are not exact ... they can vary by a few degrees +/- ... and you have to factor in the weather, water color & condition, and available spawning cover. It also depends on which species of Crappie are in this pond. Black Crappie prefer cool, clear water and weeds ... White Crappie prefer warm, murky water and wood. But, either will adapt to whatever conditions the pond holds for them.
These are just "my" opinions ... hopefully some of the "pond" anglers on the board will chime in with theirs. I don't pond fish ... so my "opinions" may be skewed more towards small lakes.
And Welcome aboard Crappie.com !! ...............luck2ya ........cp