Browse

Writing Prompts for 3rd Graders

17 free PDFsUS Letter PDFsAnswer key includedNo login

Story, informative, and opinion writing prompts with a plan and a full page of lines, plus planners and a revise-and-edit page.

Download the writing prompts worksheets

Narrative writing prompts

True and make-believe story prompts with a plan, asking children to tell events in order and add dialogue and feelings.

Informative and how-to prompts

Teach a reader how to do something or explain a topic, with facts grouped together and a conclusion.

Opinion writing prompts

State an opinion and back it up with reasons and linking words.

Planners and revising

Organizers for planning stories and reports, a five-senses planner, and a revise-and-edit page.

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these writing prompts worksheets

Third graders write longer pieces with a clear structure: stories with dialogue, feelings, and a real ending; informative pieces that group facts and end with a conclusion; and opinions backed by several reasons. These writing prompts for 3rd graders give each child a clear prompt, a short plan to fill in first, and a full page of third grade writing lines.

Narrative prompts mix true stories (a time you felt brave, the best day of your year) with make-believe ones (a secret door in the library, a robot who wants a friend). Informative prompts ask children to teach a skill, explain a healthy snack, or tell all about a habitat or a job. Opinion prompts ask children to take a side and give reasons. Each page has a word bank and a short checklist for checking the writing.

Planners for stories and reports, a five-senses planner, and a revise-and-edit page help children plan before they write and fix their work after.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.1Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.1.AIntroduce the topic or text they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.1.BProvide reasons that support the opinion.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.2Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.2.AIntroduce a topic and group related information together; include illustrations when useful to aiding comprehension.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.2.CUse linking words and phrases (e.g., also, another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within categories of information.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.2.DProvide a concluding statement or section.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3.AEstablish a situation and introduce a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3.BUse dialogue and descriptions of actions, thoughts, and feelings to develop experiences and events or show the response of characters to situations.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3.CUse temporal words and phrases to signal event order.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3.DProvide a sense of closure.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.5With guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, and editing.

How to use them

  1. Read the prompt together and talk about ideas before writing.
  2. Fill in the plan boxes with a few words each, not full sentences.
  3. Write on the lines, using the plan as a guide.
  4. Use the checklist at the bottom to reread and fix the writing.

Teaching tips

  • A plan of a few words keeps a story in order. Beginning, middle, and end is enough.
  • Encourage dialogue in stories: what did people say?
  • In informative writing, put facts about the same thing together.
  • Praise one strong part before asking for a fix.

Questions teachers and parents ask

How much should a 3rd grader write?

Most third graders can write a page or more: one long paragraph or two to three shorter ones. The lines on these pages are sized for third grade.

Do writing prompts have answer keys?

No. Answers vary, so prompt pages have no key. The revise-and-edit page has a key.

What size are the writing lines?

Third grade lines: just under half an inch from the top line to the baseline, with a dashed midline.