Ready-to-teach lesson
TumbleTA | REGIONAL STANDARDS EDITION Pizza Counting - Literal or Nonliteral?
Colorado | Grade 3
TEACHES
RW.3.2.1.2
CURRENT FRAMEWORK
Colorado Academic Standards — Reading, Writing, and Communicating
STANDARD
Use Craft and Structure to: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language. (CCSS: RL.3.4)*; Use signal words (such as before , after , next ) and text structure (narrative, chronology) to determine the sequence of major events ;
Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections. (CCSS:
RL.3.5) ; Distinguish their own point of view from that of the narrator or those of the characters.
(CCSS: RL.3.6);
WHY THIS FROZEN LESSON EARNS TEACHES
Students distinguish literal from nonliteral use in three fixed book examples and explain each intended meaning from context.
INTEGRITY RULE
The regional standard is additive. The two lesson pages that follow are the frozen V5 lesson and have not been rewritten to obtain this standards match.
Standards-first production package | final 60-region audit | September 9, 2026 TumbleTA · Standards-First Short Lesson · Grade 3
Pizza Counting Literal or Nonliteral?
20 MINUTES
TARGET
Distinguish literal from nonliteral meanings of words and phrases in context.
STUDENT PRODUCT
Three fixed book expressions classified and explained.
LESSON SEQUENCE
- 1.Cat expression Reread the cat expression together with the definition supplied on that page.
Students record the literal picture the words suggest and the intended meaning.
- 2.Whale line Move to the whale line. Students decide whether the words are literally possible in
the scene, then name the clue that tells them how to read it.
- 3.Apple-pie line Repeat with the apple-pie line. Students must state both the literal reading and
the intended meaning.
- 4.Compare all three Students circle which expression would be most confusing if the
picture/context disappeared and explain why.
ASSESSMENT · LOOK FOR
- Classifies all three fixed expressions.
- States literal and intended meaning where appropriate.
- Uses the supplied definition, picture, or surrounding line as evidence.
Standards-first rule: freeze the lesson after QA. Add a regional code only when the complete local expectation is actually satisfied.
page 1
TumbleTA · Student Evidence · Grade 3
Pizza Counting
Literal or Nonliteral?
Name ________________________________ Date __________________
BOOK EXPRESSION
CAT expression + supplied definition
LITERAL / NONLITERAL
MEANING + CLUE
WHALE line
page 2
APPLE-PIE line
This student page is part of the frozen standards-first lesson. Complete the evidence shown here; do not substitute a different task to fit a standard.
page 3