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 2 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: The salmon hatches, then swims to the sea, and later returns., Before the upper gate opens, the water must reach the level above., Going downhill, a lock works the other way round from going uphill., Raised letters were slow to read, so Braille wanted something better., The top millstone turns; the bottom one does not., The salmon does not eat, so it grows thin on the climb.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

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

Sort: Nobody had looked after the violin, so the bridge came loose., Like the swallow, the salmon returns to where it was born., A cheese aged for two years tastes nothing like one aged for two weeks., Braille was twelve when he saw the dots; three years later his code was finished., The insects disappear in October, so the swallows leave., The whey is drained off. After that, the curds are pressed.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

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

Sort: The gluten traps the gas, and as a result the dough swells., The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one., Because the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round., First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes., After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars., A dash is three times as long as a dot.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

LessonPrint · RI.3.8 · Set 2 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — How Sentences Connect

Set 2. Prints on its own sheet.

1.1. Before the upper gate opens, the water must reach the level above. — Sequence 2. Going downhill, a lock works the other way round from going uphill. — Comparison 3. Raised letters were slow to read, so Braille wanted something better. — Cause and effect 4. The salmon does not eat, so it grows thin on the climb. — Cause and effect 5. The salmon hatches, then swims to the sea, and later returns. — Sequence 6. The top millstone turns; the bottom one does not. — Comparison
2.1. A cheese aged for two years tastes nothing like one aged for two weeks. — Comparison 2. Braille was twelve when he saw the dots; three years later his code was finished. — Sequence 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. The insects disappear in October, so the swallows leave. — Cause and effect 6. The whey is drained off. After that, the curds are pressed. — Sequence
3.1. 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 the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round. — Cause and effect 4. First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes. — Sequence 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.