3rd grade · English Language Arts · Unit 11 of 13
Cause, order, point of view and the index
Spotting cause and effect and order of importance, deciding who is telling a story, making inferences from clues, and using an index.
Arizona Academic Standards learning standard: 3.RI.5 · cause and effect, order and other text structures
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
Example: A story says, “She opened the door and gasped.” Who is telling it? The narrator says “she,” not “I.” So the teller is not a character. Answer: someone outside the story
In the Arizona Academic Standards, this is unit 11 of 13 in 3rd grade English Language Arts, after Grammar Gears and before Wonder & Find Out.
Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.
Source: Arizona Department of Education
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
How did Hana feel when she saw the mitten?
When Hana got to the bus stop, she patted her pockets. She had only one mitten. Her ears felt cold, but her heart felt even colder.
She looked all along the sidewalk, retracing her steps. Then she saw a bright red scrap sticking out of the snow bank. “Found you!” she cried, and tugged it free.
relieved and happy
Hint: She cried “Found you!” That tells us she was glad.
Question 2
Where did Hana find the mitten?
When Hana got to the bus stop, she patted her pockets. She had only one mitten. Her ears felt cold, but her heart felt even colder.
She looked all along the sidewalk, retracing her steps. Then she saw a bright red scrap sticking out of the snow bank. “Found you!” she cried, and tugged it free.
in a snow bank
Hint: Read the last sentences.
Question 3
Which topic is on page 17?
| Topic | Page |
|---|---|
| Beavers | 4 |
| Lynx | 23 |
| Moose | 31 |
| Salmon | 36 |
| Wolves | 17 |
Wolves
Hint: Find the page number, then read the topic beside it.
Question 4
An index lists topics in alphabetical order. Which of these would come first?
Beavers
Hint: Compare the first letters. Which comes earliest in the alphabet?
Question 5
What can you tell about the weather?
When Hana got to the bus stop, she patted her pockets. She had only one mitten. Her ears felt cold, but her heart felt even colder.
She looked all along the sidewalk, retracing her steps. Then she saw a bright red scrap sticking out of the snow bank. “Found you!” she cried, and tugged it free.
It was cold and snowy.
Hint: She needed mittens and there was a snow bank.
Question 6
What point of view is this story told from?
Every morning, a great blue heron stood still at the edge of the pond. It watched the water with sharp yellow eyes.
A frog hopped near the reeds. Quick as lightning, the heron struck.
third person
Hint: When the narrator is not a character, it is told in the third person.