How Sentences Connect is a free printable Grade 3 English worksheet on sorting linked sentences by cause and effect, comparison or sequence, aligned to Common Core standard RI.3.8. It prints 3 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 11 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

One paper per student

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

How Sentences Connect

RI.3.8

NameDate

Sort each one into the right box.

1.Sort each one: Cause and effect or Comparison or Sequence?

Sort: Because E is so common, it was given a single dot., After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars., In the fall the swallows fly south. The following spring they return., The heat sets the gluten, so the bubbles are locked in., A dash is three times as long as a dot., The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

2.Sort each one: Cause and effect or Comparison or Sequence?

Sort: A starter culture is added first. Then rennet is added., Like the swallow, the salmon returns to where it was born., The whey is drained off. After that, the curds are pressed., Nobody had looked after the violin, so the bridge came loose., Swallows travel by day, but many other birds travel at night., Because the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

3.Sort each one: Cause and effect or Comparison or Sequence?

Sort: The water comes down by gravity. That is why no pump is needed., First the grain falls between the stones. Finally flour comes out at the edge., First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes., Raised letters were slow, while braille dots fit under one fingertip., The insects disappear in October, so the swallows leave., The top millstone turns; the bottom one does not.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

LessonPrint · RI.3.8 · Set 11 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — How Sentences Connect

Set 11. Prints on its own sheet.

1.1. A dash is three times as long as a dot. — Comparison 2. After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars. — Sequence 3. Because E is so common, it was given a single dot. — Cause and effect 4. In the fall the swallows fly south. The following spring they return. — Sequence 5. The heat sets the gluten, so the bubbles are locked in. — Cause and effect 6. The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one. — Comparison
2.1. A starter culture is added first. Then rennet is added. — Sequence 2. Because the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round. — Cause and effect 3. Like the swallow, the salmon returns to where it was born. — Comparison 4. Nobody had looked after the violin, so the bridge came loose. — Cause and effect 5. Swallows travel by day, but many other birds travel at night. — Comparison 6. The whey is drained off. After that, the curds are pressed. — Sequence
3.1. First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes. — Sequence 2. First the grain falls between the stones. Finally flour comes out at the edge. — Sequence 3. Raised letters were slow, while braille dots fit under one fingertip. — Comparison 4. The insects disappear in October, so the swallows leave. — Cause and effect 5. The top millstone turns; the bottom one does not. — Comparison 6. The water comes down by gravity. That is why no pump is needed. — Cause and effect

More practice for RI.3.8

Name how one sentence or paragraph connects to the next.

Teaching this next? How Sentences and Paragraphs Connect is the 40-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 3 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to RI.3.8 of the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.