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 18 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: A cheese aged for two years tastes nothing like one aged for two weeks., The heat sets the gluten, so the bubbles are locked in., The salmon hatches, then swims to the sea, and later returns., Before the upper gate opens, the water must reach the level above., Raised letters were slow to read, so Braille wanted something better., Raised letters were slow, while braille dots fit under one fingertip.

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., Going downhill, a lock works the other way round from going uphill., After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars., Nobody had looked after the violin, so the bridge came loose., The salmon does not eat, so it grows thin on the climb., Q is rare and long, whereas E is common and short.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

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

Sort: Swallows travel by day, but many other birds travel at night., Because the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round., First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes., The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one., First the grain falls between the stones. Finally flour comes out at the edge., The gluten traps the gas, and as a result the dough swells.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

LessonPrint · RI.3.8 · Set 18 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — How Sentences Connect

Set 18. Prints on its own sheet.

1.1. A cheese aged for two years tastes nothing like one aged for two weeks. — Comparison 2. Before the upper gate opens, the water must reach the level above. — Sequence 3. Raised letters were slow to read, so Braille wanted something better. — Cause and effect 4. Raised letters were slow, while braille dots fit under one fingertip. — Comparison 5. The heat sets the gluten, so the bubbles are locked in. — Cause and effect 6. The salmon hatches, then swims to the sea, and later returns. — Sequence
2.1. A starter culture is added first. Then rennet is added. — Sequence 2. After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars. — Sequence 3. Going downhill, a lock works the other way round from going uphill. — Comparison 4. Nobody had looked after the violin, so the bridge came loose. — Cause and effect 5. Q is rare and long, whereas E is common and short. — Comparison 6. The salmon does not eat, so it grows thin on the climb. — Cause and effect
3.1. Because the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round. — Cause and effect 2. First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes. — Sequence 3. First the grain falls between the stones. Finally flour comes out at the edge. — Sequence 4. Swallows travel by day, but many other birds travel at night. — Comparison 5. The gluten traps the gas, and as a result the dough swells. — Cause and effect 6. The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one. — Comparison

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.