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California Standards

California 3rd Grade ELA Standards

All 42 California English language arts standards for 3rd grade, each explained in plain English. Where California uses the Common Core wording, it is one click away; California's own additions are explained in our words.

42 standards

Reading Standards for Literature

9 standards
RL.3.1
Ask and answer questions about a story and point to the exact words in it that prove each answer, not a guess from memory.
Official wording
Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
Common Core RL.3.1
RL.3.2
Retell a fable, folktale or myth from another culture, name its lesson or moral, and show which details in the story teach it.
Official wording
Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.
Common Core RL.3.2
RL.3.3
Describe a character’s traits, feelings and reasons for acting, and explain how what the character does moves the story along.
Official wording
Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
Common Core RL.3.3
RL.3.4
Work out what words and phrases mean in a story and spot when they are not meant word for word, like a character who has butterflies in her stomach.
RL.3.5
Use words like chapter, scene and stanza when talking about a story, play or poem, and tell how each part builds on the one before.
Official wording
Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.
Common Core RL.3.5
RL.3.6
Separate their own view from the narrator’s or a character’s, like saying the wolf thinks he is right but I do not.
Official wording
Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
Common Core RL.3.6
RL.3.7
Explain what a story’s pictures add to its words, such as making a scene feel scary or showing how small a character is.
Official wording
Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
Common Core RL.3.7
RL.3.9
Compare the themes, settings and plots of two books in the same series, like two stories about the same detective.
Official wording
Compare and contrast the themes, settings, and plots of stories written by the same author about the same or similar characters (e.g., in books from a series).
Common Core RL.3.9
RL.3.10
By the end of the year, read chapter books, plays and poems at the hard end of the grades 2 to 3 range on their own and understand them.
Official wording
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poetry, at the high end of the grades 2–3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Common Core RL.3.10

Reading Standards for Informational Text

10 standards
RI.3.1
Ask and answer questions about a story and point to the exact words in it that prove each answer, not a guess from memory.
Official wording
Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
Common Core RL.3.1
RI.3.2
Find the main idea of an informational text, retell its key details, and explain how those details back up the main idea.
Official wording
Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
Common Core RI.3.2
RI.3.3
Explain how events, ideas or steps in a nonfiction text connect, using words like first, next, because and as a result.
Official wording
Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.
Common Core RI.3.3
RI.3.4
Work out what academic words like predict and science or history terms like pollen mean in a nonfiction text on a 3rd grade topic.
RI.3.5
Use a book’s headings, bold key words and sidebars, or a website’s search box and links, to find facts on a topic fast.
Official wording
Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.
Common Core RI.3.5
RI.3.6
Tell their own opinion apart from the author’s, like noticing that a writer thinks zoos are good while they are not sure.
Official wording
Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text.
Common Core RI.3.6
RI.3.7
Use a map, photo or diagram together with the words to explain where, when, why or how something in a nonfiction text happened.
Official wording
Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).
Common Core RI.3.7
RI.3.8
Explain how the sentences and paragraphs of an informational text fit together, like a cause and its effect or steps in order.
Official wording
Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).
Common Core RI.3.8
RI.3.9
Read two books or articles on the same topic, such as two about sharks, and tell how their big points and details are alike and different.
Official wording
Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.
Common Core RI.3.9
RI.3.10
By the end of the year, read history, science and how-to texts at the hard end of the grades 2 to 3 range on their own and understand them.
Official wording
By the end of the year, read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 2–3 text complexity band independently and proficiently.
Common Core RI.3.10

Reading Standards for Foundational Skills

2 standards
RF.3.3
Read words alone and in texts by knowing what common prefixes and suffixes mean, decoding Latin endings like -tion and long words, and reading tricky spellings.
RF.3.4
Read 1st-grade books aloud smoothly and accurately with expression, understand them, and reread when a word or sentence does not make sense.
Official wording
Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.aRead on-level text with purpose and understanding.bRead on-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readingscUse context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.
Common Core RF.1.4

Writing Standards

9 standards
W.3.1
Write an opinion piece that names the topic, states the opinion, gives reasons in order, links them with because or for example, and ends with a closing.
Official wording
Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.aIntroduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons.bProvide reasons that support the opinion.cUse linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons.dProvide a concluding statement or section.
Common Core W.3.1
W.3.2
Write an informative piece that introduces a topic, groups related facts and definitions, links them with words like also, and closes with a final sentence.
Official wording
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.aIntroduce a topic and group related information together; include illustrations when useful to aiding comprehension.bDevelop the topic with facts, definitions, and details.cUse linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information.dProvide a concluding statement or section.
Common Core W.3.2
W.3.3
Write a story, real or made up, that sets the scene, introduces the characters, uses dialogue and time words like later, and ends with a sense of closure.
Official wording
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.aEstablish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.bUse dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to situations.cUse temporal words and phrases to signal event order.dProvide a sense of closure.
Common Core W.3.3
W.3.4
With an adult’s help, organize a piece of writing so it fits the job, like a thank-you note versus a report on bats.
Official wording
With guidance and support from adults, produce writing in which the development and organization are appropriate to task and purpose. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
Common Core W.3.4
W.3.5
With help from classmates and adults, plan a piece, then revise and edit it to make it better, like fixing capitals and spelling learned through 3rd grade.
W.3.6
With an adult’s help, type and publish writing on a computer or tablet and use it to share work and ideas with others.
Official wording
With guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish writing (using keyboarding skills) as well as to interact and collaborate with others.
Common Core W.3.6
W.3.7
Do a short research project on one topic, like reading a few books about honeybees and writing down what was learned.
Official wording
Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.
Common Core W.3.7
W.3.8
Gather facts from memory, books or websites, jot short notes, and sort them into the categories the teacher gives, like food and habitat.
Official wording
Recall information from experiences or gather information from print and digital sources; take brief notes on sources and sort evidence into provided categories.
Common Core W.3.8
W.3.10
Write regularly, from a report built over several days to a journal entry finished in one class, for different subjects, purposes and readers.
Official wording
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
Common Core W.3.10

Speaking and Listening Standards

6 standards
SL.3.1
Join discussions on grade 3 topics prepared, follow the group’s rules, ask questions to check understanding, stay on topic and build on others’ ideas.
Official wording
Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.aCome to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion.bFollow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion).cAsk questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others.dExplain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.
Common Core SL.3.1
SL.3.2
Tell the main idea and key details of a read-aloud, a video, a chart or a talk.
Official wording
Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
Common Core SL.3.2
SL.3.3
Ask a speaker questions about what they said and answer questions about it with enough detail to be clear.
Official wording
Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail.
Common Core SL.3.3
SL.3.4
Give a short talk about a topic, book or experience with facts and descriptive details, speaking clearly and not too fast.
Official wording
Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.
Common Core SL.3.4
SL.3.5
Record themselves reading a story or poem smoothly and at a good pace, and add a picture or chart when it helps make a point.
Official wording
Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays when appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.
Common Core SL.3.5
SL.3.6
Speak in full sentences when the situation calls for it, especially when asked for more detail or an explanation, like describing how they solved a math problem.

Language Standards

6 standards
L.3.1
Print many letters, use everyday nouns, verbs and little words like in and on, make plurals like dogs and wishes, ask with who and where, and speak in full sentences.
Official wording
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.aExplain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and their functions in particular sentences.bForm and use regular and irregular plural nouns.cUse abstract nouns (e.g., childhood).dForm and use regular and irregular verbs.eForm and use the simple (e.g., I walked; I walk; I will walk) verb tenses.fEnsure subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent agreement.*gForm and use comparative and superlative adjectives and adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be modified.hUse coordinating and subordinating conjunctions.iProduce simple, compound, and complex sentences.
Common Core L.K.1
L.3.2
Capitalize the first word of a sentence and the word I, name the period and question mark, and spell simple words the way they sound, like kat for cat.
Official wording
Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.aCapitalize appropriate words in titles.bUse commas in addresses.cUse commas and quotation marks in dialogue.dForm and use possessives.eUse conventional spelling for high-frequency and other studied words and for adding suffixes to base words (e.g., sitting, smiled, cries, happiness).fUse spelling patterns and generalizations (e.g., word families, position-based spellings, syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts) in writing words.gConsult reference materials, including beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and correct spellings.
Common Core L.K.2
L.3.3
Notice the difference between formal and casual English, like Good morning, Mrs. Lee versus Hey, and choose which fits the moment.
Official wording
Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.aChoose words and phrases for effect.*bRecognize and observe differences between the conventions of spoken and written standard English.
Common Core L.2.3
L.3.4
Work out an unknown word on a grade 3 topic from the sentence around it, from a known prefix or root like pre in preheat, or by checking a glossary or dictionary.
Official wording
Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning word and phrases based on grade 3 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.aUse sentence-level context as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.bDetermine the meaning of the new word formed when a known affix is added to a known word (e.g., agreeable/disagreeable, comfortable/uncomfortable, care/careless, heat/preheat).cUse a known root word as a clue to the meaning of an unknown word with the same root (e.g., company, companion).
Common Core L.3.4
L.3.5
Connect words to real life, like naming foods that are spicy or juicy, and tell apart close words like toss, throw and hurl or thin, slender and scrawny.
Official wording
Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings.aDistinguish the literal and non-literal meanings of words and phrases in context (e.g., take steps).bIdentify real-life connections between words and their use (e.g., describe people who are friendly or helpful).cDistinguish shades of meaning among related words that describe states of mind or degrees of certainty (e.g., knew, believed, suspected, heard, wondered).
Common Core L.2.5
L.3.6
Learn and use grade 3 conversation, school and subject words, including time and place words like after, during and beside.
Official wording
Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).
Common Core L.3.6

The official California documents

Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.

The plain-English lines are EMStudio's own explanations. Where California uses the Common Core wording it is shown under the Common Core license; California's own additions are explained in our words, and their official wording is in California Department of Education's documents above.