Year 3 Further study of the four joins worksheet

“The first join” is free to print, with no account. It is the first sheet in the Year 3 English unit “Further study of the four joins”, for children aged 7 to 8, and takes about 20 minutes.

Print it on A4. The child's pages come first; the answers, and what each wrong answer tells you, are on the grown-up page that follows. Weeks 12 to 13 of the year, 6 sheets in the unit.

Free sample · answers on the last page

The first join

Name: ____________ · Date: ____________
Year 3 · English · about 20 minutes
Answers are on the grown-up page

Today I can make the first join in one smooth stroke, with my pencil on the page.

A Look back3 min

1.
Which way does the letter c curve when you write it? Circle one.
anticlockwiseclockwise
2.
Join each handwriting tip to its reason.
Hold the pencil looselyKeep the paper straight
Keeps your lines levelStops the hand getting tired
3.
Put these steps for the letter o in order. Write 1, 2 or 3 in each box.
1. Curve round to the left
2. Close where you started
3. Start near the top right

B Watch me, then you4 min

Look at the pair an. The first join is the stroke between the a and the n.

A sharpened pencil lying across a blank sheet of tramlines paper

Watch me

The a finishes on the baseline.

The join sweeps up to the x-height line.

The n starts there, and the pencil never lifts.

Now you

1.
In the pair ig, where does the join start? Circle one.
baselinex-height linetop line

C Your turn8 min

Look at each pair. Answer about the first join.

1.
In the pair ed, where does the join start? Circle one.
baselinex-height linetop line
2.
In the pair ed, where does the join finish? Circle one.
baselinex-height linetop line
3.
In the pair ar, where does the join finish? Circle one.
baselinex-height linetop line
4.
Write the word tin on lined paper. Make the join between i and n in one smooth stroke. Tell your grown-up where it starts.

Say it out loud: What stayed the same in every row? What changed each time?

D Spot the mistake3 min

Kit says: “Lifting your pencil between a and n makes the join neater.”

1.
What should Kit do instead? Write one sentence.

E Think deeper4 min

A blank sheet of tramlines paper with paired lines and a pencil beside it.

1.
On lined paper, write a short sentence using one pair from this sheet. Keep your pencil on the page for the join. Then tell your grown-up where the join starts and why.

How did it feel?

I can do it Nearly Not yet

For the grown-up

The first join · 2 minutes to read

Answers, and what a wrong one tells you

A

1. anticlockwise They have turned the wrong way. Ask your child to trace c slowly in the air, starting at the top right and curving to the left.

2. Hold the pencil loosely → Stops the hand getting tired; Keep the paper straight → Keeps your lines level

3. 1 Start near the top right · 2 Curve round to the left · 3 Close where you started Steps are out of order. Ask your child to say the o out loud as they trace it, one step at a time.

B

1. baseline They have chosen the x-height line. Ask your child which line the i finishes on, then start the join there.

C

1. baseline They chose the x-height line. Ask your child to point to the baseline first, then move up with the join.

2. x-height line They chose the baseline, which is where the join starts. Ask your child where the d begins.

3. x-height line

4. Look for: The word tin written in joined handwriting, and an explanation that the join from i to n begins at the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

D

1. Look for: Keep the pencil on the page through the join, and lift only at the end of the word or string. If they say lifting is fine, ask your child to trace the join in an with one smooth sweep, without stopping.

E

1. Look for: A sentence using one of in, ig, ed, eg, aw, ap, an or ar, plus an explanation that the join starts on the baseline and rises to the x-height line.

Words to use

Say“Show me where your pencil starts the join. Did it stay on the page the whole way?”

Instead of“Your joins look messy, just try to write neater.”

After the sheet

On scrap paper, write the pair an large, then trace the join with a finger, saying 'baseline, up, x-height' as you go.

Tick what your child got right in StudyDen. Anything missed comes back in a later Look back box, so there's no need to redo the sheet.

The rest of this unit

5 more sheets come with a StudyDen plan, in teaching order:

Climbing joins: ck, ch, if(with a plan)
The third join(with a plan)
The third join(with a plan)
The fourth join(with a plan)
Joining a whole sentence(with a plan)

Every Year 3 English worksheet

The worksheets plan opens a printable sheet for every lesson in Years 1 to 6, each with its answers on a separate page for you. It costs £6.99 a month or £59 a year for the whole family, with no free trial.

The full StudyDen plan adds the lessons themselves, marked as your child works, with the worksheets included. It is 7 days free, then £29.99 a month.

Get the worksheets Try the full plan free

Both start with a free account; you choose the plan when you sign up.