Cueword3rd Grade English Classes: Comprehension, Writing & Speaking
Live one-on-one coaching for Grade 3 in all five skills, built on stories your child picks. This year is about answering from the text.
What We Work On in Grade 3
All five skills, every class.
These are the threads we pull hardest on at this grade.
Answering From the Text
Finding the main idea, and the details in the text that prove it.
Reading a Character
Working out who a character is from what they say and do.
Explaining Why Things Happen
Saying why things happen in a story, in their own words.
Speaking and Writing With Reasons
A short, organized piece, spoken and written, with reasons.
What Grade 3 Covers, Term by Term
Grade 3 is about reading closely, and telling it clearly.
Each term has six levels, each harder than the last, and ends in a live Showcase in your presence.
Term 1 · Storytelling
Narrative: telling a story well
Six levels, each harder than the last- Answer from the textAnswer who, what, where and when from the text
- Describe the characterDescribe how a character feels and acts
- Find the evidencePoint to the sentence that proves an answer
- Actions and consequencesExplain why characters act, and what follows
- Point of viewTell their own view apart from the narrator's
- Use dialogueSee how dialogue moves a story, then write a full scene
See the five skills this term
- Listening ComprehensionHears a story read aloud and gives its main idea with two supporting details, picks out details that explain why, asks the speaker a question, and tracks who said what.
- Reading ComprehensionAnswers who, what, where and when from the text, finds the sentence showing a character's feelings, sees how actions and dialogue drive the story, and compares their view with a character's.
- SpeakingRetells a moment in complete sentences, describes a character with two details, explains a character's decision with two reasons, speaks as another character, and voices a two-line exchange between characters.
- WritingWrites events in order with time words, details and because or so, puts their view beside the story's, then drafts a full scene with dialogue and improves it after one suggestion.
- VocabularyWorks out new words from pictures and context clues, such as a definition or an example, then uses word parts like un-, re- and -ful, and learns feeling words.
Ends in a Showcase: a story, told live in your presence.
Term 2 · Explaining
Informative: explaining clearly
Six levels, each harder than the last- Main idea and detailsFind the main idea and two facts that back it
- Text features and visualsUse headings, captions, diagrams and maps
- Sequence and causeFollow a process in order, and explain its causes
- Compare two sourcesSay how two texts on one topic compare
- The author's viewTell the author's view apart from their own
- Teach it backTeach a mini-lesson, then write the full explainer
See the five skills this term
- Listening ComprehensionHears a nonfiction recording and gives its main idea, takes in facts shown in visuals, follows the steps and causes in a process, and finds what two recordings both say.
- Reading ComprehensionFinds a true text's main idea and details, uses headings, captions and photos, follows sequence and cause and effect, compares two texts, and weighs the author's view against their own.
- SpeakingTells back a main idea with two facts, describes what a diagram shows, explains a process step by step, asks the speaker a question, and gives an organized one-minute mini-lesson.
- WritingWrites a topic sentence with two facts, groups related facts, adds cause and comparison words, weaves in definitions, then drafts a full explainer paragraph and improves it after one suggestion.
- VocabularyLearns subject words from context, glossaries and diagram labels, works out words with pre-, mis- or -less, meets their first Greek and Latin roots, and uses precise verbs to explain.
Ends in a Showcase: an explainer, presented live in your presence.
Term 3 · Persuading
Opinion: arguing a point
Six levels, each harder than the last- Fact vs opinionTell facts and opinions apart
- Opinion with two reasonsBack an opinion with two linked reasons
- Claim and evidenceSpot a claim and the evidence for it
- See the other sideState the other side fairly, then give their own
- Defend your opinionAnswer a challenge to their opinion with detail
- Deliver the full caseGive a persuasive talk, then write the full case
See the five skills this term
- Listening ComprehensionHears statements and tells fact from opinion, follows a speaker's two reasons, compares two speakers' opinions, asks and answers questions about a speaker's case, and says which reason was strongest.
- Reading ComprehensionSorts facts from opinions in a text, finds the reasons and evidence behind an author's claim, compares two opinion pieces on one question, and spots persuasive language not meant literally.
- SpeakingStates a clear one-sentence opinion, adds two linked reasons, explains the other side fairly, answers a challenge, and delivers a short persuasive talk ending in a call to action.
- WritingBuilds from a one-reason opinion to two linked reasons backed by facts or examples, answers the other side, then drafts a full opinion paragraph and improves it after one suggestion.
- VocabularyChooses precise opinion words, works out words with dis- and -able, learns words like claim, convince and evidence, and trades weak words for strong ones, like convincing for good.
Ends in a Showcase: a case, argued live in your presence.
By the end of Grade 3, your child answers questions using exactly what the text says, can point to the sentence that proves an answer, describes how characters feel and why, tells their own view apart from the narrator's, and writes structured stories, explanations and opinions.
Placement is a starting point, not a ceiling. Your child moves through at their own pace, so this is the order of the journey, not a fixed timetable.
Gaps From Earlier Grades, Covered
Some children have gaps: a tricky tense, misplaced commas, words they can't spell.
The coach fills them with targeted lessons within your 26 classes a term.
There are no extra classes to book.
Here's what our foundations curriculum covers, up to Grade 3:
Grammar
Countable, uncountable and abstract nouns, irregular plurals, pronouns, articles, prepositions, comparing adjectives, past, present and future tenses, and simple and compound sentences.
Punctuation and Capitals
Apostrophes for belonging and in short forms, commas in letters, quotation marks around dialogue, and capital letters for names, places and holidays.
Spelling
Sight words and everyday words, sound-alike words like there and their, words that share a spelling pattern, and checking spellings in a dictionary.
Word Building
Prefixes like re-, un- and dis-, endings like -ed, -less, -ful and -ness, and open, closed and hyphenated compound words.
Vocabulary
Synonyms and antonyms, shades of meaning, literal and non-literal meaning, working out a new word from clues, and topic words from history and science.
Reading and Writing Basics
Character, setting, problem and theme, comparing two stories by the same author, how a poem and a play are built, and the order of steps in a text.
Plans for Grade 3
Pick the class length that suits your child.
Basic
40-minute classes26 classes · $520 per term (USD)
- Two 1:1 classes a week
- 26 classes over three months
- Same coach all term
- Two parent-coach meetings a term
- Live Showcase and two term reports
Standard
55-minute classes26 classes · $650 per term (USD)
- Two 1:1 classes a week
- 26 classes over three months
- Same coach all term
- Two parent-coach meetings a term
- Live Showcase and two term reports
Questions About Grade 3
What does a Grade 3 class look like?
Live, online and one-on-one with the same coach all term. Your child picks the stories they want to do in each class, then listens, reads, learns words in context, speaks and writes about them. The coach follows "Cue, don't tell": they ask the right question so your child works it out.
How long are the classes?
Two classes a week, in terms of about three months. 40 minutes on Basic or 55 minutes on Standard.
How will I see progress?
After every class, the coach sends a class summary in the Cueword Parent app. You also meet the coach twice a term, and get a report after each mid-term and end-of-term assessment. Each term ends in a Showcase in your presence.
How do we get started?
Book a free Cueword evaluation: 50 minutes, one-on-one, a dialogue, not a test. You get the Cueword Report and a recommended plan the same day.
Start Grade 3 With a Free Evaluation
50 minutes, one-on-one, not a test. You get a report and a recommended plan the same day.
Get Started