essay examples for 3rd grade

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Essay for Class 3 Students and Children | Creative Writing Topics For Grade 3

While Writing Essays most of you will feel difficult to express your ideas. In this article, you will find Essays for Class 3 belonging to different categories. We have listed the Short and Long Essay Topics for Grade 3 in an organised manner. Access the Essay Writing Topics for 3rd Standard all in one place through the quick links available and know how to write different essays.

List of Ideas & Essay Topics for Class 3

To help students of Class 3 we have listed the most common Essay Writing Topics. All of them are given in simple and easy to understand language. Just click on the concerned Essay Topic and learn how to write on the particular topic in a matter of seconds. You will find Short & Long Essays for 3rd Std provided here extremely helpful to inculcate creative writing ideas among your kid.

• My School Essay for Class 3
• My Family Essay for Class 3
• My Best Friend Essay for Class 3
• My Country Essay for Class 3
• Essay on My School Garden for Class 3
• My Favourite Game Essay for Class 3 Kids
• My Dream Essay for Class 3
• English Is My Favourite Subject Essay For Class 3
• Essay on Rainy Day for Class 3
• My Mother Essay For Class 3
• Myself Essay in English for Class 3
• My Pet Essay for Class 3
• My Neighbour Essay for Class 3
• My Favourite Season Essay for Class 3
• 10 Lines Essay on Save Trees
• My Hobby Essay for Class 3
• My Brother Essay In English For Class 3
• My Favourite Fruit Essay For Class 3
• My Grandparents Essay for Class 3
• Essay on Train for Class 3
• Essay on Diwali for Class 3
• Essay on Holi for Class 3
• Dussehra Essay for Class 3
• Essay on Television for Class 3
• Essay on National Flag for Class 3
• Essay on Good Habits for Class 3
• Republic Day Essay for Class 3
• Essay on My Father for Class 3
• Essay on Winter Season for Class 3
• Essay on Earth Day for Class 3
• My PET Dog Essay for Class 3
• Independence Day Essay for Class 3
• Summer Vacation Essay for Class 3
• My Classroom Essay for Class 3
• Discipline Essay for Class 3
• Essay on Christmas for Class 3
• My Favourite Food Essay for Class 3
• Importance of Trees Essay for Class 3
• Essay on Moon for Class 3
• My House Essay for Class 3
• A Visit to a ZOO Essay for Class 3
• Essay on Pollution for Class 3
• Essay on Birds for Class 3
• Essay on Computer for Class 3
• Essay on Butterfly for Class 3
• Essay on Doctor for Class 3
• Essay on Journey by Train for Class 3
• Essay on Football for Class 3

FAQs on Essay for Class 3

1. How to get better at writing essays?

Make an outline and acquire a solid understanding of grammar, punctuation. Use the Right Vocabulary and write an introduction, body and conclusion supporting your ideas.

2. Where do I get different Essay Topics for Class 3?

You can get different Essay Topics for Class 3 on our page.

3. Where do I get Free Resources for improving my Writing Skills?

You can get Free Resources for improving Writing Skills on Worksheetsbuddy.com a trusted portal.

Hope the information shared gave you several ideas on Essay Writing Topics for Class 3. If you want us to add a few more topics do leave us your suggestions and our team will look into them and add them at the earliest. Bookmark our site Worksheetsbuddy.com for Essays of Different Classes and Topics.

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Third Grade Essay Writing Worksheets and Printables

Student Writing Samples

Annotated student writing samples illustrating the integration of content understanding and writing in the three types of writing expected by college- and career-ready standards, including the CCSS. The resources presented are from  In Common: Effective Writing for All Students , authored by the Vermont Writing Collaborative with Student Achievement Partners and CCSSO. There are two types of resources available:

• On-Demand Writing   provides a progression of writing  across grades  (K–5 and 6–12); students have written independently to the same text-based prompt across grades.
• Range of Writing   provides multiple examples of student writing  within a grade  across a wide variety of content areas, curriculum units, conditions for writing, and purposes.

Learn more about In Common.

Resources specifically designed to support understanding and development of CCR-aligned writing

Filter by category

• Argument/Opinion Writing
• Informative/Explanatory Writing
• Narrative Writing

To find out how mini-assessment questions align to particular standards, use the Literacy Mini-Assessment Sorter Microsoft Excel file Learn More

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Narrative: Range of Writing

These pieces represent a wide variety of content areas, curriculum units, conditions for writing, and purposes.  They reflect Comm…

Argument/Opinion: Range of Writing

Informative/explanatory: range of writing.

Grades 11–12

Grades 9–10

Informative/Explanatory Writing: On-Demand ©

The pieces in this On-Demand section represent one of the three types of writing named in the Common Core State Standards for Writing: …

Grades K–5

Informative/Explanatory Writing: On-Demand

Grades 6–12

Narrative Writing: On-Demand

Argument/opinion writing: on-demand, narrative writing: on-demand ©.

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Third Grade: Writing Sample 2

Context of writing.

Written by a third grade girl in a Writer’s Workshop style class where students had free choice of topics. This story was inspired by the Judy Blume book, The Pain and the Great One , which the teacher had read aloud to the class.

What is this child able to do as a writer?

• Chooses a topic that she feels strongly about — her brother being a pain.
• Experiments with some punctuation and emphasis to create a lively piece (‘NO!’ and ‘uh!’).
• Uses interesting, precise words (‘Whatever’ and ‘Midget’).
• Shows an awareness of a reader or audience with her opening sentence (‘Welcome to my life were evey thing I do is wonrg’).
• Evidence of understanding contractions: I’m, don’t.
• Beginning to show understanding of a paragraph: the main idea is that her brother is a pain with a few supporting details.

Title: Pain Wars: Me and my big brother the pain.

Welcome to my life where everything I do is wrong. We fight a lot. We fight about stupid stuff. The pain thinks I am the painful one. Sometimes I want to ask him to play. NO! I say, “Why not”” He says, “because I don’t want to play with a kindergartner.” “I’m in third grade.” “Whatever. Well you look like a midget.” “Take that back.” “No.” “Why not?” “Because it is the truth.” “Uh!” My brother is rude too. I even go to his football games and lacrosse games. My brother is mean to me. The End.

What does this child need to learn next?

This writer has a lot of ideas, but she needs make sure they make sense as she writes her story. She should be encouraged to reread and revise her piece to help her present her ideas in a clear way. Rereading can help identify information that needs to be added to help the reader understand the story. Other information may need to be deleted. Because the author includes dialogue in her writing, it may help if the author identified who was speaking each part. The teacher could also challenge the student to add a few transition words to improve the flow of the story.

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50 Creative 3rd Grade Writing Prompts (Free Printable!)

Taking the leap from the primary level to the intermediate grades.

Third grade is a huge transitional year in elementary school. Third grade writers have learned foundational concepts and skills and have had time to practice. Now they are developing more complex skills as they dig deeper, learn to make connections, and analyze the topics they write about. Here are 50 third grade writing prompts to help your students master and refine their writing skills.

If you’d like even more upper elementary writing prompts, we publish new ones twice a week on our kid-friendly site: the Daily Classroom Hub . Make sure to bookmark the link!

(Want this entire set in one easy document? Get your free PowerPoint bundle by submitting your email here, so you’ll always have the prompts available!)

1. Tell about a special event in your life.

2. What are you best at?

3. What do you want to learn more about?

4. I could never live without______.

5. If you could go anyplace in the world, where would you go and why?

6. Interview one of your parents or grandparents and ask them to tell you a story from their childhood. Share their story here.

7. Describe one of your favorite book characters. Tell three things about their personality.

8. Do you think third graders should have to do chores at home? Why or why not?

9. What is something you would change about school if you could?

10. Tell about a time you helped somebody.

11. Tell about a time somebody helped you.

12. Tell about a memorable “first” in your life. For example, the first time you ate a particular kind of food, the first time you met your teacher, etc.

13. Describe step by step how to make a pizza.

14. What does it mean to be a hero?

15. I am afraid of _______ because_______.

16. What is the difference between being polite and rude? Give three examples.

17. What is the most important rule in the classroom?

18. What are the three most important qualities you look for in a friend?

19. Do you think kids should be assigned homework? Why or why not?

20. Nature gives us many beautiful things—plants, animals, water, weather, stars and planets, etc. What is one of your favorite things in nature and why?

21. If I were a spider, I’d _______.

22. Three things that make me happy are ______.

23. What is your favorite holiday and why?

24. Tell about one of your family’s unique traditions.

25. If you could have a pet, what would you choose? How would you take care of it?

26. Write about a dream you recently had.

27. Tell about a person that inspires you and why.

28. Name five things you are thankful for and why you are thankful for them.

29. What are ways you can be a good citizen?

30. When you and a friend disagree, how do you work it out?

31. What do you think the world will be like in one hundred years?

32. What is your favorite type of weather? Why?

33. What superpower do you wish you had? Why?

34. What famous person would you like to meet? Why?

35. In your opinion, which animal makes the best pet? Give three reasons for your answer.

36. If someone gave you $100, how would you spend it?

37. Should third graders have cell phones? Why or why not?

38. If you could be an Olympic athlete, what sport would you participate in?

39. Write about your “getting ready for school” routine.

40. Write about your “getting ready for bed” routine.

41. If you could travel through time like Jack and Annie in the Magic Tree House, where would you go?

42. In your opinion, what does a perfect weekend look like?

43. Write about the last time you felt really angry. What happened and how did it all work out?

44. Pretend there was a special zoo where animals could talk. Which animal would you talk to and what are three questions you would ask?

45. What is your favorite thing with wheels? Why?

46. Tell the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears from the point of view of Baby Bear.

47. What do you think would grow if you planted a magic bean?

48. Which would you rather be able to do—fly or read people’s minds? Why?

49. Tell about an adult in your life that you admire.

50. If you were traveling for a week and could only bring a backpack, what would you pack?

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Love these third grade writing prompts? Make sure to check out our third grade jokes to start the day !

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Student Writing Models

How do I use student models in my classroom?

When you need an example written by a student, check out our vast collection of free student models. Scroll through the list, or search for a mode of writing such as “explanatory” or “persuasive.”

Jump to . . .

Explanatory writing.

• How Much I Know About Space Explanatory Paragraph
• My Favorite Pet Explanatory Paragraph
• Sweet Spring Explanatory Paragraph

Narrative Writing

• A Happy Day Narrative Paragraph
• My Trip to Mexico Narrative Paragraph

Creative Writing

• Happy Easter Story Paragraph
• Leaf Person Story

Research Writing

• Parrots Report
• If I Were President Explanatory Paragraph
• My Dad Personal Narrative
• The Horrible Day Personal Narrative

Response to Literature

• One Great Book Book Review
• A Fable Story
• Ant Poem Poem
• The Missing Coin Story
• Winter Words Poem
• Horses Report
• Ladybugs Report
• How to Make Boiled Eggs How-To

Persuasive Writing

• Plastic, Paper, or Cloth? Persuasive Paragraph
• The Funny Dance Personal Narrative
• The Sled Run Personal Narrative
• Hello, Spring! Poem
• Cheetahs Report

Business Writing

• Dear Ms. Nathan Email
• My Favorite Place to Go Description
• My Mother Personal Essay
• Rules Personal Essay
• Shadow Fort Description
• Adopting a Pet from the Pound Editorial
• Letter to the Editor Letter to the Editor
• Ann Personal Narrative
• Grandpa, Chaz, and Me Personal Narrative
• Indy’s Life Story Personal Narrative
• Jet Bikes Personal Narrative
• The Day I Took the Spotlight Personal Narrative
• A Story of Survival Book Review
• Chloe’s Day Story
• Did You Ever Look At . . . Poem
• Dreams Poem
• I Am Attean Poem
• Sloppy Joes Poem
• The Civil War Poem
• The Haunted House Story
• The Terror of Kansas Story
• When I Was Upside Down Poem
• Deer Don’t Need to Flee to Stay Trouble-Free! Report
• Height-Challenged German Shepherd Report
• Friendship Definition
• What Really Matters News Feature
• Cheating in America Problem-Solution
• Hang Up and Drive Editorial
• Musical Arts Editorial
• Summer: 15 Days or 2 1/2 Months? Editorial
• A Cowboy's Journal Fictionalized Journal Entry
• Giving Life Personal Narrative
• The Great Paw Paw Personal Narrative
• The Racist Warehouse Personal Narrative
• Limadastrin Poem
• The Best Little Girl in the World Book Review
• How the Stars Came to Be Story
• Linden’s Library Story
• My Backyard Poem
• The Call Poem
• I Am Latvia Research Report
• Mir Pushed the Frontier of Space Research Report
• The Aloha State Research Report
• The Incredible Egg Observation Report
• Unique Wolves Research Report
• Dear Dr. Larson Email

Personal Writing

• A Lesson to Learn Journal
• Caught in the Net Definition
• From Bed Bound to Breaking Boards News Feature
• If Only They Knew Comparison-Contrast
• Save the Elephants Cause-Effect
• Student Entrepreneur Reaches for Dreams of the Sky News Feature
• Internet Plagiarism Problem-Solution
• Mosquito Madness Pet Peeve
• Anticipating the Dream Personal Narrative
• Huddling Together Personal Narrative
• H’s Hickory Chips Personal Narrative
• It’s a Boy! Personal Narrative
• My Greatest Instrument Personal Narrative
• Snapshots Personal Narrative
• Take Me to Casablanca Personal Narrative
• The Boy with Chris Pine Blue Eyes Personal Narrative
• The Climb Personal Narrative
• The House on Medford Avenue Personal Narrative
• Adam’s Train of Ghosts Music Review
• Diary of Gaspard Fictionalized Journal Entry
• My Interpretation of The Joy Luck Club Literary Analysis
• Mama’s Stitches Poem
• The KHS Press Play
• Rosa Parks Research Report
• The Killer Bean Research Report
• Mid-Project Report on History Paper Email
• Vegetarian Lunch Options at Bay High Email

Engaging Writing Prompts for 3rd Graders

Students in 3rd grade should be writing regularly in a variety of styles and for a variety of audiences. Useful writing projects for 3rd graders include  opinion , informative, and narrative essays, as well as short research projects.

For many students, the most difficult part of writing is facing the blank page. The following grade-level appropriate writing prompts provide plenty of inspiration to help your students get started on a number of different writing assignments.

Narrative Essay Writing Prompts

Narrative essays tell a story based on real or imagined events. Students should use descriptive writing and dialogue to tell their tale.

• Scary Stuff. Think of something that scares you and explain what makes it so frightening.
• Grouchy Pants. Describe a day when you were grouchy. What made you so grumpy and how did you get in a better mood?
• School Rules. If you could make a new school rule, what would it be? How would your rule change an average day at school?
• Snappy Travel. Imagine you could snap your fingers and be anywhere else in the world. Write about where you’d go.
• Family Tales. What is the most interesting story that a family member has ever told you about their life?
• Food Forever. If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would you choose?
• Book Bound. If you could be the main character from your favorite book, who would you be? Write about an adventure you might have.
• Seeing Double. Imagine that you have an identical twin who is a different class than you. What pranks would you play on your teachers and classmates?
• Nessy's Life. Have you heard of the Loch Ness Monster ? Imagine you’re the monster. Describe your life under the sea.
• Lost. Have you ever been lost? Write about your experience.
• Perfect Party. Describe what the ultimate birthday party would look like if you could do anything you wanted.
• Kindness Counts. You’re given $100 to do random acts of kindness for others. What do you do?
• Memory Eraser . Describe something that happened to you that you wish you could forget. Explain why.

Opinion Essay Writing Prompts

When writing an opinion essay , students should clearly state their opinion, then back it up with sound reasons and facts. Opinion essays should close the essay with a concluding paragraph and a summary of the argument. 

• Be a Friend. What does it mean to be a good friend?
• Growing Up or Down. Would you rather be older than you are right now or younger? Why?
• Hello? Some kids in 3rd grade have cell phones. Do you? Do you think that’s good or bad?
• Best Pets. Which animal makes the best pet? Give at least three reasons for your opinion.
• Tattletale. If you saw one of your friends doing something that you knew was wrong, should you tell on them? Why or why not?
• School Favorites . What do you think is the best subject in school? What makes it the best?
• Off Limits . Is there a TV show that you’re not allowed to watch or a video game that you’re not allowed to play? Explain why your parents should allow it.
• Summer School. Should your school be in session year ‘round with more breaks throughout the year or continue to give students the summer off? Why?
• Junk Food Fans. Should candy and soda machines be available to students on school property? Why or why not?
• School Supplies. What is the most important tool in your classroom? What makes it so useful?
• School Pride . What is the best thing about being a student at your school?
• What’s in a Name? If you could change your name, what would you choose and why?

Informative Essay Writing Prompts

Informative essays introduce a topic, explain a process, or describe an idea, then provide facts, definitions, and details. Students should organize related information into paragraphs in order to write the most logical essay possible. Remember that they should also include introductory and concluding paragraphs.

• Real Superheroes. Superheroes in movies and comics can do some pretty amazing things, but think of someone you consider to be a real-life hero. What do (or did) they do that makes them a hero? 
• Liar, Liar. Someone told your best friend a lie about you and your friend believed them. Explain how you’d handle the situation.
• Student Teacher. Think of something that you found difficult to do at first (such as multiplication or tying your shoes), but that you now understand. Explain the process so that someone else could learn to do it.
• Holidays . What is your favorite holiday? Explain how you celebrate it.
• Pet Sitter. Your family is going on vacation and a pet-sitter is coming to care for your pets. Write a note explaining how to care for them.
• PB&J. Write out the step-by-step process for making the perfect peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
• Chores. What is a household chore for which you are responsible? Explain how to do it.
• Emergency Drills. Think of one emergency drill that your school practices. Write a paper describing exactly how to do it as if you were explaining it to a brand-new student.
• Allergies. Do you have a serious allergy to something like peanuts or milk? Write an essay explaining why it’s so important for you not to come into contact with the allergen.
• Color Wheel. What is your favorite color? Choose an animal or object that is that color and describe it.
• State Fun Facts . Describe some interesting facts about your state to someone who has never visited.
• Family Traditions. Describe a unique family tradition that your family has.
• Game On.  What's your favorite game? Explain the rules to someone who has never played it before.

Research Writing Prompts

Students in 3rd grade can conduct simple research projects that build on their knowledge about a topic. They should use digital and print media to explore the topic , take simple notes, and create a basic outline before beginning the writing process.

• State History. What is the history of your state? Research the history and write an essay about one key event in your state's past.
• Marsupials. Marsupials are animals who carry their babies in pouches. With the exception of the opossum, all marsupials live in Australia. Choose one of them to learn more about.
• Insects. They may be small, but insects play an important role in our environment. Choose an insect to research and write an essay about its characteristics.
• Jaws! Are Great White sharks really man-eaters? Research this question and write an essay about your answer. 
• Bat Signal. How do bats use echolocation?
• Explorers. Choose a famous (or not-so-famous) explorer to research.
• Comic Book Heroes. When was the first comic book published and what was it about?
• Extreme Weather. Choose an extreme weather event such as a tornado, hurricane, or tsunami, and explain its cause.
• International Space Station. Learn more about the International Space Station: how it's used, who visits it, and why it's important. Write an essay about your findings.
• Ben Franklin, Inventor . Many people know Benjamin Franklin as a Founding Father and statesman, but he was also an inventor. Learn about some of the things he invented.
• Legends.  Research a popular legend such as the Lost City of Atlantis, Big Foot, or Paul Bunyan . Write an essay describing the evidence for or against the legend.
• Presidential History. Research the childhood of one American president and write an essay about what you learn.
• First Grade Writing Prompts
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• Second Grade Writing Prompts
• 4th Grade Writing Prompts
• 24 Journal Prompts for Creative Writing in the Elementary Classroom
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• The Best Read-Aloud Books for Elementary Students
• Creative Easter Word Lists for Classroom Activities
• Journal Writing Prompts for Easter
• Halloween Worksheets, Printables, and Activities
• 7 Reading Strategies and Activities for Elementary Students
• Free St. Patrick's Day Worksheets
• Free Christmas Worksheets for the Holidays
• 5 Simple Ways to Improve a Boring Lesson
• Summer Word List
• Martin Luther King Jr. Writing Prompts

Teach, Learn, Every Day, No Excuses

Oakdale Joint Unified School District

In This Section

3rd grade writing samples, writing in third grade.

Third Grade Opinion Writing Sample 1

Third Grade Opinion Writing Sample 2

Third Grade Opinion Writing Sample 3

Third Grade Opinion Writing Sample 4

Third Grade Narrative Sample 2

Third Grade Narrative Sample 3

Third Grade Narrative Sample 4

How to Write an Expository Essay for Grade Three

How to Make an Outline for a Fourth Grade Research Paper

Third grade is often the year when students first begin to experiment with structured writing, such as the expository essay. Writing an expository essay in third grade is a lot like making a sandwich. Just as a good sandwich has three parts -- the top bun, fillings and bottom bun -- a good expository essay also has three parts: the introduction, details and conclusion.

Choose a Topic

You write an expository essay to tell or teach the reader about a topic. Start by choosing a topic that you think is interesting and that you already know a lot about. You might choose to write about an animal you like, a place you have visited or a person whom you have read about. If you have too many ideas, make a list and then close your eyes and pick.

Do Some Research

Research is when you look for more information on a topic. Start your research by choosing and reading a book about your topic. Pick a book that is nonfiction, as it will have factual information that you can use in your essay. As you read, take notes. Use a notebook to copy down the facts that you think are most important and to write down questions that you have. You will refer to these notes as you write your essay.

Write the Introduction

The beginning of your expository essay is your introduction -- where you capture the reader's attention and tell her what the main idea of the essay is going to be. Make the introduction as interesting as possible so that the reader wants to keep reading. A good way to start an introduction is with a question or with an amazing fact. For example: "Did you know that great white sharks can eat up to 11 tons of food a year? Sharks are amazing and important fish."

Add Some Details

Once you have hooked the reader's attention, tell him more about your topic. Details are individual facts that provide more information about a topic. The best details give sensory information. That means that they give more information that helps your reader imagine how things feel, smell, sound, taste or look. Try to include at least three details in your expository essay. For example: "Sharks might look smooth when they are in the water, but their skin is actually very rough. Sharks are often called silent hunters, because the only sounds they make are crunching sounds -- after they've caught their prey."

Write a Conclusion

The final part of your expository essay is the conclusion where you return to the main idea of your essay and restate it in different words. The conclusion helps tie the whole essay together and reminds the reader of the most important points. Conclusions often start with phrases like "in conclusion," "as you can see," "finally" or "in the end."

Proofread Your Work

If you wrote your essay on paper, reread it and look for spelling, punctuation and capital letter mistakes. If you find any, fix them. If you wrote your essay on the computer, print out a copy and read it on paper, looking for the same kinds of mistakes. Before you hand in your work, check that your name is on the paper. You want to get credit for the hard work you did.

Related Articles

How to Write an Anecdotal Essay

How to Stay on Topic When Writing an Essay

How to Write a Dissertation Summary

How Do Reflective Essays Differ From Analytical Essays?

How to Write a Scholarship Letter

How to Pair a Wrap Dress With Boots

What Is a Descriptive Paragraph?

How to Add Figurative Language to an Essay

A lifetime resident of New York, Christi O'Donnell has been writing about education since 2003. O'Donnell is a dual-certified educator with experience writing curriculum and teaching grades preK through 12. She holds a Bachelors Degree from Sarah Lawrence College and a Masters Degree in education from Mercy College.

Free Argumentative Text Passage for 3rd Grade

Scouring the internet for hours only to find argumentative text resources that are geared toward older kids feels like going bathing suit shopping after eating a #3 at Whataburger. Nothing fits, you can’t find anything you like, and you end up in tears.

Well, dry those eyes, Beautiful, because your day is about to get a lot easier.

Finally, a high-interest argumentative text passage for third graders. And it comes with two versions of response sheets to help your students organize their thoughts as they read it.

The best part? It’s completely free. Get it below.

I’m so excited to give you this free argumentative passage about recess. That’s right, your students are going to be reading about their favorite part of the school day. And they are going to love the author’s claim.

But recess isn’t just fun and games. In this passage, they’ll learn about ways recess can benefit them – physically, socially, and academically. The author cites evidence about these benefits to support her claim that recess is good for kids.

Why You'll Love It:

• The simple structure of this argumentative passage for third graders will help your students break down and identify the characteristics of argumentative text.
• The high-interest topic of the text will keep your kids fully engaged in your lesson.
• 2 versions of response sheets allow you to choose how you want to focus your lesson.
• Answer keys have been included to ease the burden on you.

Need Help Selecting More Argumentative Texts for Third Graders?

You’ll likely need more than one passage, so here are some tips to help you as you look for more.

Choose a high-interest topic.

Argumentative text can be a tough genre, so using a text with an engaging topic is important. Your kids will be more motivated to read and understand something they care about. So find an argumentative text that you know your students will be interested in. Some popular topics are video games , class pets , year-round school, and anything else that they encounter at school.

Consider the text structure.

I suggest starting the unit with a very basic text structure that only argues one point. This helps the kids wrap their heads around the genre, its structure, and characteristics. I would stick with this simple structure until your students understand how an author makes and supports his/her claim with facts and evidence. This free passage is perfect for this.

As you move through the unit, you may want to consider texts that present both sides of the argument in the same text.

Be sure it is argumentative, not persuasive.

I would advise against using the I Wanna… books and others like it because they are more persuasive in nature. We want our students to understand that argumentative texts rely on facts, evidence, and research rather than emotional pleas. You can read more about the difference between argumentative and persuasive texts here .

Don’t Want to Spend Any More Time Searching?

I don’t blame you. It’s rough out there. And finding the perfect fit is hard. Here are two sets of argumentative texts for 3rd graders. Both sets come with two different passages that make opposing claims about the topic. These are perfect for analyzing separately and comparing and contrasting.

If You Really Want to Save Time & Tears

This bundle has everything you need to teach argumentative text to your third graders and lifts all the hard work off your shoulders. It is all planned and ready to go.

What You'll Get:

• 5 easy to follow, scripted lesson plans take out all the guesswork.
• 3 of the 5 are PowerPoint lessons that make introducing the genre a breeze.
• A total of 7 high-interest passages will keep your students engaged.
• An assessment with an answer key is included.
• Interactive notebook pages help your students interact with the text and give them a tool to refer back to.
• Task cards help your students practice distinguishing fact from opinion and identifying evidence that supports the author’s claim.
• Plus, you’ll get resources for tier 2 vocabulary, grammar, and more!

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More About Argumentative Text:

What Is An Argumentative Text? How to Teach It in 3rd Grade

How to Teach Argumentative Text to 3rd Graders

Argumentative vs Persuasive Text: What’s the Difference?

Reading Comprehension Strategies That Will Help 3rd Graders Understand Argumentative Text

How to Introduce Argumentative Text to 3rd Graders

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3rd grade writing

by: Jessica Kelmon | Updated: August 4, 2022

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This year, your child’s stories will amaze you, showing character development and dialogue. Your child’s opinion pieces and informational writing will be more organized. With this new writing prowess, your child will be using more sophisticated language and better grammar.

Building 3rd grade study skills

Third graders are expected to use books, websites, and other digital sources to do research projects and to build knowledge about different topics — both on their own and as part of group work with their peers. But there’s a new skill to learn this year: taking notes. Third graders need to start writing down what they learn from each source they use, keeping track of the source name and page so they are able to find it again, and then practice sorting any evidence they find into relevant categories.

3rd grade opinion pieces

Of course your child has an opinion — and here’s how they learn to share it in writing! Opinion pieces will likely start with your child reading a couple of books and responding to what they’ve learned. Your child should start their opinion piece by clearly introducing the topic, stating their opinion, and then giving multiple reasons to support their opinion. Kids should practice using linking words (e.g. because, therefore, since, for example ) to connect their reasons to their opinion, and then end their writing with a conclusion.

3rd grade informative writing

The purpose of informative writing is to convey facts and ideas clearly. After introducing their topic, kids should group related information into a few clear, well thought-out points. They should develop these points using facts, definitions, and details and using linking words (e.g. also, another, and, more, but ) to connect their ideas within each point. Your child can also include illustrations when they may help make or clarify a point. Finally, kids should end their work with a concluding sentence or two.

Can your 3rd grader write an informational essay?

3rd grade narrative writing

Narrative is just a fancy word for story — and this year your child’s stories will be much more complex. Using a narrator, characters, dialogue, and descriptive details, your third grader’s writing should show a story unfolding — including how the characters feel and respond to what happens. The sequence of events should be clear. Be sure not to let your child’s story simply stop by writing “The End”. Instead, the story should read like it’s coming to a close.

Check out this related worksheet: •  How to write a story

bttr, better, best!

Expect to see your child spending more time writing this year, whether it’s in the planning, writing, revising, or editing phase. While planning , your child may read or reread books on the topic, discuss their ideas aloud, brainstorm ideas, gather and organize information visually, jot down notes about the points they’ll make, and start to think about the structure of the piece. Once a first draft is in, the teacher or other students will go over it with your child. They’ll ask questions and suggest details or facts that could be added, clarified, or improved. Do the word choices convey what your child really meant? Is there an introduction and a conclusion? Are the story’s events in order? Using all these questions and suggestions as guidance, your child will do a revision , adding to, reordering, and improving the content. After one or more revisions, the teacher might help your child with the final edit — focusing on spelling and grammar, capitalizing proper nouns, ensuring nouns and verbs are in agreement, and checking that periods, commas, and quotation marks are used correctly. Following these steps — planning, writing a first draft, revising their work, and editing the final piece — teaches third graders that gathering information, organizing their thoughts, strengthening and clarifying their ideas, and improving grammar and presentation are all key to quality writing.

See what 3rd grade writing looks like

A red-letter year for grammar!

This year your child will learn the functions of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs — and what role they play in a sentence. By year’s end, your child should be using regular and irregular verbs in simple past, present, and future tense (e.g. stopped/stop/will stop and knew/know/will know ) — all while ensuring subject-verb agreement (e.g. I know/he knows ). Your child should also use comparative adjectives and adverbs (e.g. big/bigger/biggest and quickly/quicker/quickest ) and choose between them based on whether they’re modifying nouns (adjectives) or verbs (adverbs). In writing compound and complex sentences, your child will use conjunctions that show connection (e.g. and, or, but ) and dependence (e.g. if, when, because ).

Check out these related worksheets: • Big, bigger, biggest • Verb machine! • 3rd grade spelling list #15: irregular plural nouns

Third graders should use increasingly precise words. This means understanding root words (e.g. knowing that add is the root of addition and additional ), choosing the right word from synonyms (e.g. knew, believed, suspected, heard, wondered ), and using words to signal timing (e.g. after, then, later ). With all this focus on word nuance, your child may need a thesaurus handy.

Related: Print this list of 3rd grade academic vocabulary words .

Check out these related worksheets: •  3rd grade weekly spelling lists • Prefix practice • Writing practice: alternatives to “said”

And it’s live!

When the research is done — and the planning, writing, revisions, and edits are complete — the final step for some of your third grader’s writing is to publish the work. Your third grader should have some keyboarding skills by the end of the year. It’s a new level of independence and tech savvy. And while adults should be there to help out, your child should become comfortable taking the lead.

What about cursive?

Penmanship matters. Traditionally, third grade is when students learn cursive, so it’s a great idea to ask the teacher whether or not they’ll be learning cursive in class. If not, you may want to work on this skill with your child at home.

Updated August 2022

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Elementary Assessments

Expository Writing Prompts for 3rd Grade: 43 Great Ideas

Assess how well your third graders explain or define something using these fun expository writing prompts for 3rd grade.

Whether explaining the steps to a recipe or describing how to do something, expository writing prompts for 3rd grade encourage third graders to show what they know!

So pencil a few of these third grade expository writing prompts into your lesson plan today.

Related: how -to writing prompts

Expository Writing Prompts for 3rd Grade Students

1. Explain how to ride a bike.

2. Describe how to appropriately resolve a conflict with a sibling.

3. Explain the reasons why people should avoid junk food.

4. Think of a person that you admire a lot. Explain why he or she is so special to you.

5. Explain to your teacher why you deserve to pass to the next grade level.

6. Think about the strategies that good readers implement as they read. Describe them.

7. Describe the benefits of having a cat as a pet.

8. Explain the benefits of keeping one’s desk organized.

9. Think about what you imagine the world will be like in 100 years. Describe it.

10. Imagine you are speaking to a child younger than you. Explain to him/her why we need rules in school.

11. Explain the importance of asking the teacher for help when you don’t understand something.

12. Define what it means to be popular.

13. Explain to the principal at least two improvements needed in the school in order to make learning better for kids.

14. Describe the benefits of owning a dog.

15. Explain what characteristics make a good friend.

16. Define what makes a good teacher.

17. Describe the elements of a great piece of writing.

18. Explain three to five ways to show kindness to others.

19. Define what it means to put forth your best effort.

20. Explain a few key strategies for resolving conflict between a friend or sibling.

21. Describe at least three things that bring you joy.

22. Explain how working in a group is good for learning.

23. Define love.

24. Explain how a whiteboard makes teaching easier for the teacher.

25. Describe what it may feel like to someone who is being laughed at for doing something embarrassing.

26. Explain the consequences of being late for school too many times.

27. Define a best friend.

28. Explain the benefits of consistently using an anchor chart for learning.

29. Describe at least three ways to be helpful to your family at home.

30. Explain how responding to third grade expository writing prompts helps you improve your writing skills.

31. Write about what you think the world will be like in 100 years.

32. Share something new you learned in school this week. How does this new knowledge help you in life?

33. Explain your favorite type of music.

34. Write two expository writing prompts for 3rd grade you think your teacher might like.

35. If someone was new to your town, what sights, or highlights would you encourage them to see?

36. What makes a good friend?

37. Without giving names, explain why one teacher is/was so special to you.

38. If you could change one thing about your school, what would it be and why?

39. Explain why people get mad with others.

40. Define the differences between mammals and amphibians or any other two groups of animals.

41. Share one current issue in the world. Explain how the problem can be solved.

42. Describe the benefits of healthy eating and exercise on a daily basis.

43. Tell about your favorite game or sport.

44. If you could choose any animal as a class pet, which would you choose and why?

Final Thoughts: Expository Writing Prompts for 3rd Grade

Now you have a collection of quality expository writing prompts for 3rd grade to use for a variety of writing activities.

For support, teach students  how to respond well to these third grade expository writing prompts .

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Opinion paragraphs with examples

Use examples to support your opinion.

Students write an opinion paragraph including 3 reasons and a supporting example for each reason . A graphic organizer is provided to help the student structure the paragraph. 

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