California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP), Smarter Balanced
CAASPP practice tests
CAASPP is the state test California public school students take each spring. In English language arts and math, Grades 3 to 8 and 11 sit the Smarter Balanced tests, which Washington, Oregon, Hawaii, Delaware, Idaho, Nevada, South Dakota and Connecticut also give. Each test is untimed, with a part that adapts to answers and a performance task; ELA includes listening and ends with a full piece of writing about sources.
Our CAASPP-style tests follow Smarter Balanced's adjusted blueprint, the one California gives: the same number of questions, its question types, listening texts read aloud, and a full write scored with the three traits of the Smarter Balanced rubric. The report shows your child's answers in California's two performance areas per subject, never a predicted scale score or achievement level.
A look at the test
Questions in the CAASPP test style
Written by us in the style of the published CAASPP test question types.
Grade 4 Math: a matching table
Is each number equivalent to 0.3? Choose Yes or No in each row.
30/100 AYes BNo 0.03 CYes DNo 0.30 EYes FNo Show the answer and whyHide the answer
AnswerA, D, E30/100
yes.
0.03
no.
0.30
yes.
Final answer
Yes, No, Yes.
Remember
Change the given number into a decimal, then change each choice into a decimal too.
Grade 6 Math: choose all that apply
Which TWO numbers are equivalent to 9/20? Choose two answers.
- A0.920
- B45
- C4.5%
- D18/40
- E45%
Show the answer and whyHide the answer
AnswerD, E9/20 = 9 ÷ 20 = 0.45, which is 45%.
First answer
18/40
Second answer
45%
Remember
Change the given number into one form you trust, usually a decimal.
Grade 7 ELA: central idea
Why Your Ears Pop
You are on a plane as it begins to descend for landing, or in a car winding up a mountain road, when suddenly your ears feel stuffed with cotton. Sounds go muffled. Then you swallow, and with a small pop, everything becomes clear again. What just happened inside your head?
The answer has to do with air pressure, because the air around us is constantly pressing on everything it touches, including your body. At sea level, that pressure is fairly high, because a tall column of air is pressing down from above. At higher elevations, there is less air above you, so the pressure decreases.
Inside each ear, just behind the eardrum, is a small, air-filled space called the middle ear. The eardrum is a thin sheet of skin stretched like the top of a drum. Normally, the air pressure in the middle ear matches the pressure outside, so the eardrum sits flat and vibrates freely when sound waves strike it.
When the outside pressure changes quickly, however, the pressure in the middle ear cannot keep up. On the way up a mountain, the outside pressure drops, and the air trapped in your middle ear pushes the eardrum outward. On the way down, the outside pressure rises and pushes the eardrum inward. Either way, a stretched eardrum can't vibrate well, so sounds seem dull, and your ears may even hurt.
The fix is a narrow passage called the Eustachian tube, which connects the middle ear to the back of the throat. It usually stays closed, but swallowing, yawning or chewing opens it briefly. Air rushes in or out until the pressure on both sides of the eardrum is equal again, and the eardrum snaps back into place. That snap is the pop you hear. It also explains why flying with a cold can be so uncomfortable: a cold can swell the Eustachian tubes shut, trapping the pressure inside.
Which sentence best states the main idea of the passage?
- APeople should never fly on an airplane when they have a cold.
- BEars pop when swallowing or yawning lets air even out the pressure on both sides of the eardrum.
- CAir pressure is higher at sea level than at the top of a mountain.
- DAirplanes and mountain roads can permanently damage the middle ear.
Show the answer and whyHide the answer
AnswerBEars pop when swallowing or yawning lets air even out the pressure on both sides of the eardrum.Find the part of the passage the question is about, and read it again.
Check each choice against it. Keep the one the passage backs up.
Final answer
Ears pop when swallowing or yawning lets air even out the pressure on both sides of the eardrum.
Remember
Read the title, the headings and the first and last paragraphs.
The test
CAASPP tests by grade
| Grade | Grades | Questions | Time | Performance areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 Math | Grade 3 | 22 | No limit | Concepts and procedures; mathematical practices |
| Grade 3 ELA | Grade 3 | 22 | No limit | Reading and listening; writing and research |
| Grade 4 Math | Grade 4 | 22 | No limit | Concepts and procedures; mathematical practices |
| Grade 4 ELA | Grade 4 | 22 | No limit | Reading and listening; writing and research |
| Grade 5 Math | Grade 5 | 22 | No limit | Concepts and procedures; mathematical practices |
| Grade 5 ELA | Grade 5 | 22 | No limit | Reading and listening; writing and research |
| Grade 6 Math | Grade 6 | 22 | No limit | Concepts and procedures; mathematical practices |
| Grade 6 ELA | Grade 6 | 24 | No limit | Reading and listening; writing and research |
| Grade 7 Math | Grade 7 | 22 | No limit | Concepts and procedures; mathematical practices |
| Grade 7 ELA | Grade 7 | 24 | No limit | Reading and listening; writing and research |
| Grade 8 Math | Grade 8 | 22 | No limit | Concepts and procedures; mathematical practices |
| Grade 8 ELA | Grade 8 | 24 | No limit | Reading and listening; writing and research |
Question counts follow Smarter Balanced's adjusted blueprint. Our ELA test leaves out the full write, which is a separate written task here, and our math performance task is five problem-solving questions rather than one scenario.
Pricing
Three free practice tests. Unlimited tests and answers are US$49.
A free account includes 3 practice tests. A plan opens unlimited tests and shows your child what they got right, the right answers and how to reach them, on every STAAR and CAASPP test. Practicing for more than one kind of test? The US bundle covers them all for US$99.
State tests packLaunch price
US$49
for 6 months
- Which questions your child got right, after every practice test
- The right answer to every question
- A worked solution for every question, step by step
- STAAR-style math and reading for Grades 3 to 8 (Texas)
- CAASPP-style math and ELA for Grades 3 to 8 (California and the Smarter Balanced states)
- Written short answers and essays, scored with the state's own rubric
- Every new state test we add, at no extra cost
Every US testLaunch price
US$99
for 6 months
- Everything in every US pack, in one payment
- CogAT, NNAT, OLSAT and NGAT, for gifted and talented programs
- SCAT-style practice for the CTY talent search, Grades 2 to 9
- InView-style practice for gifted screening, Grades 2 to 12
- Matrices-style and spatial reasoning practice
- ISEE and SSAT, for private school entry
- HSPT and TACHS, for Catholic high school entry
- Hunter-style practice, for Hunter College High School
- Math contest practice, Grades 1 to 8
- MAP Growth practice, by grade and subject
- i-Ready-style Math and Reading, Kindergarten to Grade 8
- Early reading practice, Kindergarten to Grade 3
- SHSAT practice for Grades 8 and 9, English and math
- Iowa practice for Grades 3 to 8, all five Core tests
- TerraNova, Stanford 10 and CTP-style practice for Grades 3 to 8
- ACT-style English, Math, Reading and Science for Grades 10 to 12
- SAT-style and PSAT-style practice, Grades 8 to 12, Reading and Writing and Math
- State test practice: STAAR-style and CAASPP-style math and reading, Grades 3 to 8
One payment in US dollars for 6 months of access. No auto-renewal: when the 6 months end, access stops unless you buy again.
Questions
What parents ask
- Are these real CAASPP or Smarter Balanced questions?
- No. Smarter Balanced's practice and training tests belong to Smarter Balanced. We write our own passages and questions to the published blueprint and the Common Core, in the same question types.
- Is it adaptive like the real test?
- Not yet. Each of our tests is a fixed set of questions at your child's grade, at the real length. The real test picks each question from your child's last answers.
- Does it include listening?
- Yes. The ELA test has two short talks your browser reads aloud, each with questions, as the real test has audio clips. Turn your sound on.
- How is the full write scored?
- With the three traits of the Smarter Balanced full-write rubric: Organization/Purpose and Evidence/Elaboration from 1 to 4, and Conventions from 0 to 2. The report quotes your child's own sentences as the reason for each score.
- Will it predict my child's score?
- No. We show how many questions your child answered correctly in each of California's performance areas. Only the real test gives a scale score or an achievement level.
- Is it free?
- A free account includes 3 practice tests. The state tests pack is US$49 for six months and opens every state test we build; the US bundle (US$99) covers every US test we offer.
CAASPP (California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress) is a program of the California Department of Education, and Smarter Balanced is the consortium that writes its English language arts and math tests. Scholar Tests is not affiliated with or endorsed by the California Department of Education, Smarter Balanced, any state or any school district. Our practice questions and passages are written by us in the style of the published Smarter Balanced question types; they are not real CAASPP or Smarter Balanced questions, and a practice score is not a CAASPP score.