PARCC Grade 3 ELA Practice Test Questions 2 — Questions and Answers

Question 1: Read this sentence: 'The puppy wagged its tail and barked loudly.' What does the puppy do in this sentence?

It sleeps and runs away.
It wags its tail and barks. (Correct answer)
It eats and drinks water.
It growls and hides.

Correct answer: It wags its tail and barks.

The sentence says the puppy 'wagged its tail and barked loudly' — two actions performed by the puppy.

This question tests literal reading comprehension — finding stated information directly in a sentence. This is a Grade 3 foundational reading skill aligned to Common Core and PARCC ELA standards. The sentence clearly states two actions the puppy performed: (1) wagged its tail and (2) barked loudly. Option B correctly identifies both actions. Options A, C, and D describe actions that are NOT mentioned anywhere in the sentence. Choosing one of these would mean adding information that is not there — a common reading error called making an unsupported inference. Grade 3 reading strategy — Find the Answer in the Text: 1. Read the question carefully. 2. Go back to the sentence or passage. 3. Find the words that answer the question. 4. Choose the answer that matches those words. For this sentence, the key words are 'wagged its tail and barked loudly.' Option B uses nearly the same words: 'wags its tail and barks.' This is the correct answer because it matches the text directly. Important Grade 3 concept: Always go back to the text to find the answer. Do not pick an answer just because it sounds possible — it must be stated or clearly shown in the text.

Question 2: Which word in this sentence is an adjective? 'The fluffy cat sat on the warm blanket.'

sat
fluffy (Correct answer)
on
cat

Correct answer: fluffy

'Fluffy' describes the cat — it tells us what kind of cat it is. Adjectives describe nouns.

Identifying adjectives is a Grade 3 grammar standard in Common Core ELA, tested on PARCC assessments. An adjective is a word that describes a noun (person, place, or thing). Adjectives answer questions like: What kind? Which one? How many? How much? Let's look at each word in the sentence: - 'sat' → this is a verb (an action word — what the cat did) - 'fluffy' → this describes the cat (what kind of cat?). ADJECTIVE ✓ - 'on' → this is a preposition (it shows the relationship between sat and blanket) - 'cat' → this is a noun (a person, place, or thing) The sentence also contains the adjective 'warm' (it describes the blanket — what kind of blanket?), but 'fluffy' is among the answer choices. Grade 3 strategy: Find the noun, then find the word that describes that noun. 'What kind of cat?' → fluffy. 'What kind of blanket?' → warm. A helpful trick: Try placing the word between 'the' and a noun. 'The fluffy cat' — yes, this sounds right. 'The sat cat' — no, that doesn't work. This helps identify adjectives.

Question 3: A student wrote: 'I love summer. I go to the pool I eat ice cream and I play with friends.' Which version fixes the punctuation?

I love summer. I go to the pool. I eat ice cream, and I play with friends. (Correct answer)
I love summer, I go to the pool I eat ice cream and I play with friends.
I love summer. I go to the pool, I eat ice cream and I play with friends.
I love summer. I go to the pool! I eat ice cream. And I play with friends?

Correct answer: I love summer. I go to the pool. I eat ice cream, and I play with friends.

Option A adds a period after 'pool' (ending a complete thought) and a comma before 'and' to correctly list activities.

Punctuation — using periods and commas correctly — is a core Grade 3 writing and language standard tested on PARCC. The original sentence has two problems: 1. 'I go to the pool' is a complete sentence (independent clause), but no period separates it from 'I eat ice cream.' 2. When joining two independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or), a comma is needed before the conjunction: 'I eat ice cream, and I play with friends.' Option A fixes both: - Adds a period after 'pool' → separates two complete thoughts. - Adds a comma before 'and' → correct comma usage with a coordinating conjunction. Option B uses a comma after 'summer' instead of a period, creating a run-on. Option C does not fix the missing period — 'I go to the pool, I eat ice cream' is a comma splice. Option D uses incorrect end marks (exclamation point, question mark) that don't match the meaning. Grade 3 punctuation rules: - End every sentence with a period (.), question mark (?), or exclamation point (!). - Use a comma to separate items in a list: 'I like cats, dogs, and birds.' - Use a comma before 'and,' 'but,' or 'or' when joining two complete thoughts.

Question 4: What is the main idea of this paragraph? 'Frogs are amazing animals. They start life as eggs in water. Then they grow into tadpoles. Later, they grow legs and become adult frogs. This change is called metamorphosis.'

Frogs live in water their whole lives.
Frogs go through a life cycle that changes from eggs to adult frogs. (Correct answer)
Tadpoles are the youngest frogs.
Metamorphosis only happens to frogs.

Correct answer: Frogs go through a life cycle that changes from eggs to adult frogs.

The paragraph describes each stage of a frog's life cycle, from eggs to adults, making option B the best main idea statement.

Identifying the main idea of a paragraph is a foundational Grade 3 reading comprehension skill, central to PARCC ELA assessments. The main idea is what the WHOLE paragraph is mostly about. It is not a detail — details support the main idea. Let's check each sentence in the paragraph: - 'Frogs are amazing animals.' → This is the topic sentence (introduces what the paragraph is about). - 'They start life as eggs in water.' → Detail about Stage 1. - 'Then they grow into tadpoles.' → Detail about Stage 2. - 'Later, they grow legs and become adult frogs.' → Detail about Stage 3. - 'This change is called metamorphosis.' → Summarizes the process. The whole paragraph traces the stages of a frog's life — so the main idea is about the life cycle of frogs (B). Option A is wrong — the paragraph says frogs START in water but eventually become land animals (adult frogs). Option C is a detail, not the whole paragraph's focus. Option D is wrong — metamorphosis happens to many animals (butterflies, for example), and the paragraph doesn't say it only happens to frogs. Grade 3 strategy: Ask 'What is EVERY sentence in this paragraph about?' The answer that covers all sentences = main idea.

Question 5: Which sentence uses the correct form of the verb 'to be'?

She are going to the store today.
The dogs is barking in the yard.
My brother is a very good swimmer. (Correct answer)
They was happy about the surprise.

Correct answer: My brother is a very good swimmer.

'My brother is' correctly matches a singular subject (brother) with the singular verb form 'is.'

Subject-verb agreement with the verb 'to be' is a Grade 3 grammar standard tested on PARCC ELA assessments. Students must match the form of 'to be' to the subject. Forms of 'to be' (present tense): - I am - He/she/it IS - You/we/they ARE Forms of 'to be' (past tense): - I/he/she/it WAS - You/we/they WERE Now check each option: Option A: 'She are going' — 'she' is singular and needs 'is,' not 'are.' Incorrect. Option B: 'The dogs is barking' — 'dogs' is plural and needs 'are,' not 'is.' Incorrect. Option C: 'My brother is' — 'brother' is singular (he/she/it), so 'is' is correct. CORRECT ✓ Option D: 'They was happy' — 'they' is plural and needs 'were,' not 'was.' Incorrect. Grade 3 strategy: Find the subject of the sentence first. Decide if it is singular (one) or plural (more than one). Then choose the matching form of 'to be.' Memory tip: If you can replace the subject with 'it,' use 'is' or 'was.' If you can replace it with 'they,' use 'are' or 'were.'

Question 6: Which detail from a story about a girl planting a garden BEST supports the idea that she worked very hard?

She liked the color of the flowers.
The garden was next to a tall oak tree.
She dug holes, pulled weeds, and watered the plants every day for two weeks. (Correct answer)
Her neighbor also had a garden with tomatoes.

Correct answer: She dug holes, pulled weeds, and watered the plants every day for two weeks.

Option C shows specific, repeated actions over time (digging, weeding, watering every day for two weeks), which directly supports working hard.

Using text evidence to support an idea is a critical Grade 3 reading standard tested on PARCC. This skill (often called 'evidence-based reasoning') asks students to find a detail that PROVES a statement. The idea to support: 'She worked very hard.' We need a detail that is evidence of hard work. Hard work involves effort, repeated action, time, or difficulty. Option A ('She liked the color of the flowers') tells us about her preference, not her effort. This is not evidence of hard work. Option B ('The garden was next to a tall oak tree') is a setting detail. It tells us WHERE the garden was, not how hard she worked. Option C ('She dug holes, pulled weeds, and watered the plants every day for two weeks') shows: multiple specific physical actions (dug, pulled weeds, watered), sustained effort over time (every day for two weeks). This is direct evidence of hard work. BEST ANSWER ✓ Option D ('Her neighbor also had a garden') is about someone else and provides no evidence about the girl's effort. Grade 3 test strategy: Match the evidence to the idea. Ask: 'Does this detail PROVE the idea, or does it just relate to the topic?' Only option C actually proves she worked hard.

PARCC Grade 3 ELA Practice Test Questions 2

Read this sentence: 'The puppy wagged its tail and barked loudly.' What does the puppy do in this sentence?