Captain Lucky Response Sheet
Reading Comprehension • Grade 3
Captain Lucky’s First Day
Character Feelings
Name:
Date:
Read the Story: Captain Lucky’s First Day Fail
Short Story
On the first day of fourth grade, Carlos showed up with two different shoes, ketchup on his shirt, his backpack still zipped from last year, and with a fossilized sandwich inside. “It’s vintage,” he said, as everyone gagged from the smell. The sandwich was so hard it bounced when he dropped it. The teacher had to crack open a window just to breathe. Carlos just smiled awkwardly, pretending nothing unusual had happened.
To make things worse, he accidentally sent the whole class a text meant for his mom: “Don’t forget my lucky socks. I’m nervous.” From that moment on, he was known as Captain Lucky… and he had no idea how to make it stop. Even his math worksheet had “Good luck, Captain!” written in glitter pen by someone anonymous.
Even the lunch lady called him that at lunch. Carlos groaned into his mashed potatoes, wondering if his day could get any worse. He held onto hope that tomorrow would be better and that everyone would forget the disasters of his first day.
Question
How does Carlos feel at the end of the day? Write what he feels and give one clue from the story that shows why.
Feelings Word Bank:
embarrassed hopeful nervous tired
Sentence Starters: “At the end of the day, Carlos feels...” • “I know this because the story says...”
My Answer Write neatly in complete sentences
My Checklist:
I named Carlos’s feeling I used a detail from the text Capitals & punctuation
Captain Lucky Answer Key
Teacher Guide • Grade 3 Answer Key
Captain Lucky’s First Day
Target Standard:
RL.3.1 (Text Evidence) • RL.3.3 (Character Feelings)
Prompt
“How does Carlos feel at the end of the day? Write what he feels and give one clue from the story that shows why.” Target Feelings: hopeful (optimistic for tomorrow) and/or embarrassed / discouraged (tired of the nickname).
Sample Student Responses
Identifies Feeling Cites Text Detail Explains Clue
Exemplar 1: Advanced / Complete Response (3 Points) Full Credit
“At the end of the day, Carlos feels hopeful. I know this because the story says ‘he held onto hope that tomorrow would be better and everyone would forget.’ This shows that even though his first day was a total disaster, he believes the teasing will stop soon.”
Exemplar 2: On-Grade Level Response (3 Points) Full Credit
“Carlos feels embarrassed and fed up at lunch. The text says ‘Carlos groaned into his mashed potatoes, wondering if his day could get any worse.’ He groans because even the lunch lady teased him with his new nickname.”
Acceptable Evidence Guide
Exact Story Clue / Quote
Feeling Supported
What It Reveals
“He held onto hope that tomorrow would be better...”
Hopeful / Optimistic
Looks forward to a fresh start; refuses to give up.
“Carlos groaned into his mashed potatoes...”
Embarrassed / Tired
Overwhelmed and humiliated after everyone teasing him.
“...wondering if his day could get any worse.”
Frustrated / Defeated
Feels like everything went wrong on day one.
3-Point Quick Scoring Rubric
3 Points Proficient
Accurately names a feeling (hopeful, embarrassed) AND provides a relevant story clue with a clear explanation.
2 Points Approaching
Names a feeling correctly but provides a vague clue or forgets to explain how the clue shows his feeling.
1 Point Beginning
Provides only an emotion word without evidence, or cites an irrelevant clue from earlier (e.g. old sandwich).
Common Misconception to Watch For: Students often focus on what happened in the morning (the rotten sandwich or mismatched shoes) rather than how Carlos feels at the end of the day. Prompt students: “Look at the very last paragraph—what is Carlos doing and hoping for as the day wraps up?”
