EQAO Grade 3 parent guide: what to expect in spring 2027

If your child is in Grade 3 this year, they’ll take part in EQAO, Ontario’s provincial assessment of reading, writing and math, this spring. For a lot of families it’s the first “big test”, and the letter from school can raise more questions than it answers.

This guide puts the answers in one place, from EQAO’s own pages and its guide for parents. For math tips by topic, see our Grade 3 EQAO math page, and for a month-by-month plan, our calm plan from now to May.

When is it?

EQAO’s 2027 window for Grade 3 runs from Tuesday, May 4 to Tuesday, June 8, 2027. Your child’s school chooses the days within that window and will tell you. The last two days are kept for students who missed their sessions, and no sessions are held on June 1.

Schools can spread it out. Your child might do the parts back to back with breaks, or on different days.

What’s on it?

There are two parts, both done online at school.

Reading and writing (the language part): four sessions of about 35 minutes, with 29 questions in all. Some are multiple choice; others ask your child to write an answer. Teachers can let children write those answers on a printed sheet instead of typing.

Math: four stages of about 30 minutes each, with 40 questions in all. Every math question is answered by choosing or placing: pick one answer or several, drag and drop, choose from a drop-down list or tick a checklist. Your child doesn’t type an explanation in the math part.

The math is based on the Ontario curriculum up to the end of Grade 3: number, algebra (including coding), data, spatial sense and financial literacy. Our Grade 3 math guide explains each in plain language.

How long does my child get?

The times are guides, not hard limits. EQAO’s guide for parents says schools schedule the sessions so that students can take the time they need.

Can they use a calculator?

Yes. There’s a calculator built into the math part, and your child can use paper for rough work. Every student can also zoom in and out, have the questions read aloud by text-to-speech, and switch to a high-contrast view.

A calculator doesn’t make number sense less useful. Knowing that 5 × 4 is 20, or that 38 is close to 40, helps your child spot whether an answer makes sense and leaves more attention for reading the question.

Can they go back and change an answer?

Yes, until they submit that session or stage. After that, it’s done.

My child is in French Immersion. Which language is it in?

Your school board decides. For Grade 3 French Immersion students, EQAO allows three set-ups:

1. everything in English,
2. reading and writing in English, and math in French,
3. only the math part, in French (no reading or writing part).

In the math part, students can use French–English and English–French glossaries, on screen or printed. Ask the school which set-up your child’s class uses.

My child has an IEP. What accommodations are there?

The school confirms which of the accommodations in your child’s IEP can be used for EQAO. EQAO’s list includes printable and large-print versions, Braille, audio versions (with or without descriptions of the math pictures), sign-language support and assistive technology such as screen readers. If you’re not sure, ask the teacher early in the spring, not the week before.

What if my child is away?

If your child is absent, they can do the missed parts when they’re back, as long as it’s still within the window. Grade 3 students can’t retake the assessment.

Does it count on the report card?

No. EQAO results aren’t part of the grades on your child’s report card, and there’s no pass or fail. Results use the same four levels as the curriculum. Level 3 is the provincial standard: EQAO describes it as a target that helps show whether a student is ready for the next grades, “not used to determine if a student passes or fails.”

When do results come, and what will I see?

Individual results come home through the school as an Individual Student Report, by the end of September 2027, when your child is in Grade 4. It gives an overview of how your child did.

You won’t see your child’s answers or which questions they got wrong. EQAO doesn’t share completed assessments because questions are used again in later years. If you want to know what to work on, EQAO’s advice is to ask the teacher, who knows your child’s math across the whole year.

Do we need to prepare?

EQAO says no extra preparation is needed beyond regular classwork, because the assessment follows the Ontario curriculum. The math your child does in class and for homework is the preparation.

What does help:

• Try the sample test once, together. It’s free on eqao.com, and the math part has two stages with 22 questions. Seeing the screens, the tools and the drag-and-drop questions once means fewer surprises. Your child will also try it in class.
• Look at released questions if you’d like more. EQAO has posted sets of past Grade 3 math questions, most recently in November 2025, and that set shows how students across Ontario did on each one.
• Read questions out loud. Many slips come from answering a different question. Ask “What is it asking?” before anything else.
• Keep math facts ticking over. Grade 3s are learning the 2, 5 and 10 times tables. A few minutes most days, as a game, is plenty.
• Ask how, not just what. “How did you figure that out?” after homework builds the habit of checking.

What to skip

• Nightly test-prep booklets. EQAO says no extra preparation beyond classwork is needed, and booklets can turn math into a chore.
• Making it a big deal. Children notice when we’re worried. Treat assessment week like any school week, with good sleep and breakfast.
• Reading too much into one result. It’s a snapshot from a few sessions in the spring. Your child’s report cards show the fuller picture.

Questions to ask the school

• Which days will my child’s class write EQAO?
• Which accommodations from the IEP will be used?
• For French Immersion: which language set-up does our board use?
• Is there one area of math you’d like us to practise at home?

Where Astuzo fits in

Astuzo is a homework tutor, not a test-prep product. It helps with the everyday homework where Grade 3 math is learned. Your child snaps a photo of their math homework, and Spark, our friendly robot tutor, helps one step at a time with hints and questions, using methods Ontario classrooms use. Spark never just gives the answer. Your child can type or talk, and Spark’s messages can be read aloud, which helps younger readers.

It’s made for Grades 1 to 8 and the Ontario math curriculum. There are no ads, nothing is sold to your child, and homework photos are read and never stored. You get a short email each evening your child uses it, so you know what they worked on.

Astuzo is available on Android in Canada: get it on Google Play. On iPhone or iPad? Join the waitlist to hear when it’s on the App Store. Or see what your child is learning this year in our Grade 3 math guide.

Astuzo is not affiliated with or endorsed by EQAO or the Ontario Ministry of Education. Details from EQAO’s primary division page and its guide for parents, Navigating EQAO Assessments, read November 2026. Your school sets the exact days; check eqao.com for updates.