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 7 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: Raised letters were slow, while braille dots fit under one fingertip., Because the sails are angled, the wind pushes them round., Raised letters were slow to read, so Braille wanted something better., First the boat enters the lock. Next the lower gate closes., First the grain falls between the stones. Finally flour comes out at the edge., The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

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

Sort: Before the upper gate opens, the water must reach the level above., The salmon does not eat, so it grows thin on the climb., In the fall the swallows fly south. The following spring they return., Swallows travel by day, but many other birds travel at night., Like the swallow, the salmon returns to where it was born., The gluten traps the gas, and as a result the dough swells.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

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

Sort: A dash is three times as long as a dot., A starter culture is added first. Then rennet is added., Q is rare and long, whereas E is common and short., The water comes down by gravity. That is why no pump is needed., After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars., Nobody had looked after the violin, so the bridge came loose.

Cause and effectComparisonSequence

LessonPrint · RI.3.8 · Set 7 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — How Sentences Connect

Set 7. Prints on its own sheet.

1.1. 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. Raised letters were slow to read, so Braille wanted something better. — Cause and effect 5. Raised letters were slow, while braille dots fit under one fingertip. — Comparison 6. The smaller gear spins faster than the larger one. — Comparison
2.1. Before the upper gate opens, the water must reach the level above. — Sequence 2. In the fall the swallows fly south. The following spring they return. — Sequence 3. Like the swallow, the salmon returns to where it was born. — Comparison 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 salmon does not eat, so it grows thin on the climb. — Cause and effect
3.1. A dash is three times as long as a dot. — Comparison 2. A starter culture is added first. Then rennet is added. — Sequence 3. After the yeast wakes up, it begins to feed on the sugars. — Sequence 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 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.