Third Grade - ELA
1: Environment
Unit 1: Tornado
Lesson 2
The Storm
Students encounter possessive noun forms in reading and discussion: for example, the paragraph includes "my brother's toy truck" and the comprehension answers use forms like "the narrator's 2 brothers" and "the narrator's father (Lincoln)." Students are asked to read Chapter 1 and answer questions that include these possessive forms. Students also write chapter summaries and journal entries where they may reproduce such possessive structures in their own sentences.
Unit 2: Sarah, Plain and Tall
Lesson 3
The News
The lesson text contains multiple explicit examples of possessive nouns such as "Anna's father wanted help," "Anna's first diary entry," "Anna's family," and "Anna's dad." Students are instructed to write a journal entry pretending to be Anna (e.g., "Anna's first diary entry in her journal") and to create an advertisement for a helper for Anna and Caleb, contexts in which possessive forms appear in the materials.
Lesson 5
The Arrival
The lesson text contains possessive forms in prompts that students read and respond to (for example, "Anna's point of view" and "Sarah's arrival"). Students are asked to write sentences for the journal entry and to "write a sentence or two" explaining a token, which invites use of possessive constructions in their writing. The directions to "speak in complete sentences" and to write explanatory sentences provide opportunities for students to produce possessive forms in oral and written responses.
Lesson 10
Neighbors
Students are prompted to write "Anna's journal entry" (Activity 1), which requires producing a possessive noun. The lesson text contains several possessive examples in context, such as "Sarah's eyes fill with tears" and references to "Sarah's home," providing models of possessive usage. Reading questions and writing activities require students to refer to characters and their relationships or belongings, which can elicit possessive forms in their responses.
Lesson 11
Squall
The lesson text includes possessive forms in its wording and examples, e.g., the activity prompt "Anna's journal entry" and the sentence example "Sarah's chickens were not afraid." Students are asked to write a journal entry about characters and to write words or phrases describing each character, which present contexts where possessive forms appear in the text.
Final Project
Welcome To Kansas
Students are asked to write a card that begins with 'Dear Sarah,' and includes the line 'Your new daughter, Anna,' which shows use of a possessive pronoun. The activities require students to write invitations and labels (e.g., 'For: Sarah') and to produce multiple written drafts, giving opportunities to use possessive forms in context. The self-editing checklist prompts students to check 'Is there any punctuation that needs to be changed?' which could lead students to notice possessive punctuation.
Unit 3: Who Was Helen Keller?
Lesson 1
Helen's Early Years
Students read multiple headings and timeline labels that use possessive nouns, such as "Helen's Early Years," "Helen's birth," "Helen's death," and "Helen Keller's Life." Students are asked to add events to a timeline that contains these labeled phrases and to write titles for books on an activity page. Students are instructed to answer questions in complete sentences, which may require them to read and reproduce possessive forms present in the text.
Lesson 4
Inventors
The lesson includes multiple possessive forms in text and headings such as "Helen's signs," "Helen's family," "Benjamin Franklin's glasses," and references to "people's lives" and "people's eyesight." Students are asked to write ten facts about Alexander Graham Bell and to write sentences describing inventions, tasks in which they will likely produce possessive constructions when describing ownership or relationships (for example, "Edison's light bulb" or "Ben Franklin's glasses").
Lesson 7
More Learning
Students encounter multiple explicit examples of singular possessives in the materials: labels and event phrases such as "Helen's Journey," "Helen's childhood home," and "Helen's first public speech" appear on the map- and timeline-related activity pages. Students are asked to label places on a map and paste events next to those labels, which requires them to read or copy the possessive phrases provided in the activity.
2: Change
Unit 1: Morning Girl
Lesson 1
Background Information
The lesson text contains possessive forms in its print: the student activity page is titled "Columbus's First Voyage," which uses a singular noun possessive, and the background description uses the possessive pronoun "its" when referring to features ("such as its location, sights, food, activities"). These examples expose students to possessive constructions in authentic text and labels that students will read during activities.
Lesson 3
The News
Students encounter possessive forms in the text and questions, for example in phrases like "Morning Girl's reading so far" and "Morning Girl's mother." Activity 3 asks students to write three phrases or sentences that describe what each family member brings to the family, which could prompt students to write about family members (potentially using possessives) in their own sentences.
Lesson 4
The Rock
Students read and rewrite sentences that contain possessive forms (for example, "Susan rode Susan's bike..." and "John and Josh... John and Josh's friends"). Students replace those noun-based possessives with possessive pronouns in the provided answers (e.g., "She rode her bike..." and "They are always playing baseball with their friends"). The pronoun reference list on the activity page includes possessive pronouns such as his, hers, and their, which students use in their rewrites.
Lesson 6
The Storm
Students encounter possessive forms in the text and questions (for example, "Star Boy's uncle" and "Star Boy's old name?") and are reminded to be careful about using correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation when writing answers. The directions ask students to answer in complete sentences and to pay attention to punctuation, which could include punctuation used in possessives. Students are also prompted to describe relationships and ownership implicitly when discussing names and family members in Activity 3.
Final Project
Poetry Night
Students read passages and sample poems that include possessive forms (for example, the Student Activity Page uses "people's lives" and the sample poem uses "we were the land's"). Students are asked to write two before-and-after poems and a mini-fold book, which require them to compose sentences where possessives could naturally appear. Students also read these texts aloud, exposing them to possessive usage in context.
Unit 2: Communities and Culture
Lesson 2
Where Are We?
Students read and answer questions that include possessive pronouns and noun phrases, for example "their friends," "their needs," and directions referring to "his own community" and "his journal." The student activity page asks students to write names or descriptions (e.g., resources used as shelter, food, and clothing) where students may produce possessive constructions in complete-sentence responses. The instructions require students to answer in complete sentences, which encourages use of possessive forms in context.
Unit 3: American Heroes
Lesson 3
Heroes of Freedom
Students read texts that include possessive forms: the poem contains examples such as "childhood's merry bell," and the unit text refers to "Lincoln's poem" and uses possessives in directions (e.g., "your child"). Students also read and discuss biographical passages that use possessive constructions while answering comprehension questions.
Lesson 7
Female Heroes
The text contains multiple possessive forms that students will read and encounter, for example "How are women's lives different today than they were during Susan B. Anthony's time?" and repeated uses of "child's" in directions. The Skills section also lists "Discuss appropriate use of punctuation," which could include discussion of apostrophes used in possessives.
3: Cycles
Unit 1: Poppy
Lesson 7
Ereth
Students encounter possessive forms in the materials, for example the phrase "log's length" is given as an alliteration example and the activity title "Ereth's Circle Map" uses a possessive. The wrapping-up text also uses a possessive in "Poppy's new knowledge." These instances show students will read and record words or phrases that include possessive forms.
Unit 2: Charlotte's Web
Lesson 4
Some Pig
Students read and discuss text that contains possessive forms (for example: "Charlotte's plan to save Wilbur," "Charlotte's message in the web," and "Wilbur's trough" appear in the reading and question sections). Students are asked to locate and read aloud sentences from Charlotte's Web, which will expose them to possessive constructions in context. Character description and plot activities require students to write about characters and events, where possessives could appear naturally in their responses.
Lesson 7
The End
Students read and answer questions that include possessive forms such as "Charlotte's Web," "Charlotte's egg sac," "Charlotte's babies," and "Charlotte's description of the seasons." Students will speak or write responses to comprehension questions and complete activity pages (e.g., Plot Flow Chart, Character Descriptions) that use these possessive phrases. Students also address envelopes in Activity 6, which requires writing names and addresses but does not explicitly focus on possessive forms.
Unit 3: The Family Under the Bridge
Lesson 2
The French Man
Students are introduced to apostrophes in the skills list that asks them to use punctuation such as apostrophes with increasing accuracy. Students encounter apostrophes in sample sentences (contractions like "Let's" and "don't") when adding commas and reading punctuation examples. Students are directed to read punctuation pages and add punctuation to sentences, which exposes them to the use of apostrophes in context.
Lesson 7
Among Friends
Students are explicitly taught the rule that to show ownership for one owner add an apostrophe and then s, and for more than one owner add s and then an apostrophe, with examples such as "The dog's toys" and "The dogs' toys." Students practice adding missing apostrophes in sentences in Option 1 and check answers against an answer key that corrects possessives (e.g., "The man's hat," "The twin sisters' party," "The family's dinner"). Option 2 requires students to add words and apostrophes to sentences, combine word tiles to show ownership, and write original sentences using apostrophes for possession.
Lesson 8
Christmas Eve
The lesson text tells students to "Review the use of apostrophes for ownership that was covered yesterday," which directly references possessive apostrophes. The Skills section lists apostrophes among punctuation students should use with increasing accuracy. The punctuation activity explicitly asks students to brainstorm contractions and create sentences and flaps showing contractions, linking apostrophe use to contractions in practice.
Lesson 9
Saying Goodbye
Activity 3 includes sentences that contain possessive forms students will read and respond to: for example, "his owner," "my favorite," and "his mom's favorite song" appear in the sentences students work with. Students are asked to write words in parentheses and to mark removable phrases, which requires them to read and manipulate phrases that include possessive pronouns and a noun with apostrophe-s.
Final Project
Reader's Theater
Students are directed to study scripts and "look for examples of apostrophes in the scripts," explicitly drawing attention to apostrophes. The Final Project Rubric lists "Apostrophes for ownership" (and apostrophes in contractions) as a punctuation criterion that students must meet. Students must write their own scripts and are evaluated on whether they include possessive apostrophes, so they will practice using apostrophes in their writing.
4: Relationships
Unit 1: One Day in the Tropical Rain Forest
Lesson 2
Morning in the Rain Forest
Students encounter possessive forms in the materials (for example, directions repeatedly refer to "your child's" and the Student Activity Page column titled "Tepui's Life in the Rain Forest"). Students are asked to write sentences using vocabulary words, which could require using possessive constructions. The Daily Activities chart asks students to record "My Life" and compare it to "Tepui's Life," exposing students to possessive usage in labels.
Lesson 4
Butterfly Search
The reading questions include the phrase "What is Tepui's job?", which uses the possessive form Tepui's. Student directions refer to the child's ownership of materials (e.g., "her 'Rain Forest Animals Chart'" and prompts for the student to write a paragraph about the type of scientist she would like to be), showing possessive pronoun use in context. These instances present possessive forms within authentic text and student prompts.
Lesson 7
Helping a Friend
Students read and answer questions that include possessive forms, for example Question 7 uses the phrase "Tepui's grin" and the answer compares it to a "crocodile's smile." The answer key and script lines include possessive pronouns and constructions (e.g., "his only arrow"; "Tepui's grin"). Students write and perform scripts and may encounter possessive forms while choosing lines and composing dialogue.
Unit 3: Iggie's House
Lesson 2
Meeting the Neighbors
Students encounter multiple examples of possessive forms in the lesson text and activity pages, e.g., "Winnie's mom," "Winnie's father," "Winnie's first meeting," and "Winnie's mother did not bake brownies for the Garbers." The comprehension questions and fact/opinion statements repeatedly use apostrophe-s to show possession in context.
Lesson 5
A Visit from Germs
Students read multiple examples of possessive nouns in the text and questions, including "Iggie's House," "Winnie's parents," and "Winnie's mother." The reading questions and chapter references repeatedly present names with apostrophe-s forms embedded in sentences students read and discuss.
Lesson 9
A Letter
The Skills list explicitly names apostrophes as part of "more complex capitalization and punctuation," indicating students should attend to apostrophe use. The Mechanics section of the Letter Rubric includes punctuation and contractions as categories for editing, and the editing procedure directs students to reread drafts focusing on capitalization and ending punctuation. Students are instructed to use the rubric and colored pencils to make punctuation corrections in their drafts.
Lesson 10
I Have a Dream
Students read and discuss text that includes possessive forms such as "many people's attitudes have changed" and the question "What can you do to help King's dream come true?" Students are asked to read an excerpt of the speech aloud and answer questions like "What was Martin Luther King Jr.s dream?" which requires recognizing a possessive relationship in context.
Lesson 11
The End
Students read and encounter possessive forms in the text such as "Winnie's parents," "author's message," and "character's traits." The instructions refer to a child's possessions/actions with possessive pronouns and nouns (e.g., "her child," "her journal"). These instances provide explicit examples of possessive forms in context.
