Common Core Grade 3 ELA Exam Survival Guide

Must-do topics

• Reading Literature & Informational: recount fables/folktales; determine central message; identify main idea & key details; use text features (headings, diagrams).
• Foundational Skills: fluency with accuracy/expression (120 wpm); decode multisyllabic words.
• Writing: opinion (topic → reasons → closure); informative/explanatory (facts, definitions, conclusion); narrative (sequence + dialogue).
• Language: irregular past tense verbs, simple vs compound sentences, commas in addresses/series, capitalization of titles.
• Speaking/Listening: ask/answer with details; recount stories; report on a topic with facts.

Top traps

• Retelling without central message (only events).
• Confusing “detail” with “main idea.”
• Writing lists instead of structured paragraphs.
• Run-on sentences without punctuation.
• Reading monotone without phrasing.

Quick checks

• Retell a fable in 3 sentences: beginning, middle, lesson.
• Short text: “What is the main idea? Give 2 supporting details.”
• Opinion prompt: “Best recess activity?” — write OREO (Opinion, Reason, Example, Opinion).
• Spot the run-on: “I went to the park and I saw ducks they were swimming.”

You will make

• Main Idea Pyramid (top = main idea; lower blocks = details).
• OREO Planner Sheet for opinion writing.
• Dialogue Bubbles (narrative practice).
• Fluency Graph (words per minute over weeks).

Daily practice plan (25–30 min)

• 10 min fluency (paired/choral reading).
• 10 min comprehension (text + 3 Qs: main idea, detail, inference).
• 10 min writing (opinion/informative/narrative rotation).