Year 3 English · Key Stage 2 · Vocabulary, grammar and punctuation – English Appendix 2

Year 3 paragraphs, headings and the present perfect

In Year 3, children’s writing starts to look more organised on the page. They are introduced to paragraphs as a way to group related material, learn to use headings and sub-headings in non-fiction, and meet a new verb form called the present perfect, as in “He has gone out to play”, which they learn to use instead of the simple past where it fits.

Paragraphs, headings and the present perfect, explained

A paragraph is a group of sentences about one idea, one time, one place or one person. When the subject changes, a new paragraph begins. In Year 3 this is an introduction rather than a finished skill. Children are usually asked to plan a piece in sections first, perhaps with a box for each, and then write one paragraph per box. Some schools use a memory aid for when to start a new paragraph: a change of time, place, topic or person. Whether a new paragraph is shown by indenting the first line or by leaving a gap depends on the school.

Headings and sub-headings do for non-fiction what paragraphs do for all writing: they help the reader find their way. A heading tells you what the whole piece is about. A sub-heading tells you what one section is about, and usually sits above one or more paragraphs. Children practise this when they write information texts, reports and instructions, and they look at how books, leaflets and websites use headings to organise facts. A good sub-heading is short and tells the reader something, so “What hedgehogs eat” helps more than “More facts”.

The present perfect is a verb form made from has or have plus a past participle: has gone, have eaten, has finished, have made. It links the past to the present. “He has gone out to play” tells us that he went, and that he is still out. “He went out to play” only tells us about a past event that is over. The present perfect is often the right choice when the result matters now: “I have lost my pencil” means I haven’t got it, whereas “I lost my pencil” could be about last week.

Children are not expected to be able to explain the difference in technical terms. What counts is that they hear it and use it naturally: “Has anyone seen my shoes?”, “We have finished our work.” Many past participles are irregular (gone, seen, broken, written, taken), so this topic overlaps with learning the right forms of common verbs. A helpful rule is that the present perfect is not used with a finished time such as yesterday or last week, where the simple past is needed.

Words your child will hear

Paragraph: A group of sentences about one idea, time, place or person. A new paragraph starts when this changes.
Heading: A title at the top of a piece of writing that tells the reader what it is about.
Sub-heading: A smaller title above one section of a text, telling the reader what that section covers.
Present perfect: A verb form made with has or have plus a past participle, such as “has gone” or “have finished”, linking the past to now.
Simple past: The ordinary past tense, such as “went” or “finished”, used for something that is over.
Tense: The form of a verb that shows when something happens, such as past or present.

What the National Curriculum says

The programme of study for Year 3 says:

Pupils should be taught an introduction to paragraphs as a way to group related material
Pupils should be taught headings and sub-headings to aid presentation
Pupils should be taught use of the present perfect form of verbs instead of the simple past

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Try it: organising an information text

Sort these sentences about hedgehogs into paragraphs and give the text a heading and a sub-heading for each paragraph. Then rewrite “The hedgehog ate all the slugs in our garden” using the present perfect. The sentences are: (a) Hedgehogs come out at night. (b) They eat slugs, worms and beetles. (c) In winter, hedgehogs sleep in a pile of leaves. (d) This long sleep is called hibernation. (e) A hedgehog’s back is covered in spines. (f) The spines protect it from danger.

Read all six sentences and ask what each one is about. Sentences (a) and (b) are about when hedgehogs are active and what they eat. Sentences (c) and (d) are about winter. Sentences (e) and (f) are about spines.
Group the related sentences. That gives three paragraphs: (a) and (b), then (c) and (d), then (e) and (f). Each paragraph has one main idea.
Give the whole text a heading: “Hedgehogs”. Then write a sub-heading above each paragraph: “Night-time feeding”, “Sleeping through winter” and “Prickly protection”.
Check the order. Starting with how a hedgehog looks makes sense for a reader, so the spines paragraph might come first. Either order works if each paragraph stays on one idea.
Now the present perfect. “The hedgehog ate all the slugs in our garden” is the simple past. Use has plus the past participle of eat, which is eaten: “The hedgehog has eaten all the slugs in our garden.” This focuses on the result now: there are no slugs left. Note that it is has eaten, not has ate.

Heading: Hedgehogs. One good order is: sub-heading “Prickly protection”, then (e) and (f); sub-heading “Night-time feeding”, then (a) and (b); sub-heading “Sleeping through winter”, then (c) and (d). Other orders are fine if each paragraph keeps to one idea. Present perfect: The hedgehog has eaten all the slugs in our garden.

Common mistakes and how to help

Starting a new paragraph for every sentence, or never starting one

Children see short paragraphs in comics and dialogue, and may think a paragraph is just a new line. Others write one long block because the ideas feel connected.

What helps: Ask “What is this part about?” before they write. If the topic, time, place or person changes, start a new paragraph. Two to four sentences on one idea is a good Year 3 target.

Confusing a heading with a sub-heading, or using vague ones

Both look like titles, so children use one style for everything, or write labels such as “Facts” that tell the reader nothing.

What helps: The heading names the whole text, and sub-headings name each section. Check by covering the paragraph and asking whether the sub-heading still tells you what it will be about.

Writing “I have went” or “She has saw”

Children know the past form they use in speech (went, saw) and put it after has or have. The present perfect needs the past participle, which for many verbs is different: gone, seen.

What helps: Say both versions aloud: “I went” but “I have gone”. A short list of common irregular verbs, with has and have written in front, builds the habit.

Using the present perfect with a time that is over: “I have seen it yesterday”

The present perfect feels like a past tense, so children attach any past time word to it. But it links to now, so it does not go with finished times such as yesterday or last week.

What helps: If the sentence has a finished time, use the simple past: “I saw it yesterday.” If it is about what is true now, use the present perfect: “I have seen it.”

How to help at home

Plan before you write. When your child writes about a trip or a favourite animal, ask them to jot three or four section names first. Each one becomes a paragraph, and the names can become sub-headings.
Headline hunt. Look at a leaflet, a magazine or a children’s non-fiction book together. Ask which words are headings and which are sub-headings, and whether they help you find things quickly.
Has gone or went? Chat about what has happened today: “Has the post come?”, “I have lost my keys.” Then ask what happened yesterday, which needs the simple past. Hearing the difference helps more than rules do.
Cut-up paragraphs. Write a short piece on strips of paper, with a line for each sentence. Jumble them up and ask your child to group the strips by idea and decide where each paragraph begins.
Irregular verb pairs. Make cards that show verbs such as go, eat, see, break and write. On the back, put “has gone”, “have eaten”, and so on. Test each other a few at a time rather than all at once.

Updated 20 October 2026.