Free printable CAASPP practice test for Grade 6

English Language Arts

Circle the letter of the best answer, or two letters where a question asks for two. No time limit.

1. The Other Side of the Camera

   For seven months, my whole job on the Ridgeview Morning Report had been to stay invisible. Every school day at 7:40, I set up the camera in Room 114, tested the microphones, and typed the day's script into the old laptop that we used as a teleprompter. At 8:05, when the red light came on, Jaylen Brooks, our anchor, smiled into the lens and told six hundred students what was for lunch.

   I liked being invisible. Behind the camera, nobody could see my hands shake when the red light blinked on, and nobody noticed that I silently mouthed every word along with Jaylen, like a backup singer whose microphone had been switched off.

   On the second Tuesday in March, Ms. Albright, our faculty adviser, looked up from her phone at 7:52. "Jaylen has a fever," she said. "He's staying home today."

   "So we skip today?" I asked hopefully.

   "We never skip." She studied me the way a coach studies the last player left on the bench. "Marisol, you're anchoring."

   My stomach tried to escape through the soles of my sneakers. "I can't," I said. "I run the camera. Benny can anchor instead."

   From the corner, Benny Kowalski held up a half-eaten breakfast burrito. "I have salsa on my shirt," he pointed out, "and honestly, I would rather be chased by a swarm of bees."

   "Benny will run the camera," Ms. Albright said calmly, "and you will anchor, because you've already done it about a hundred and forty times."

   "I've never done it even once," I protested.

   "You've done it silently. I've watched you, and every morning your lips move with every single line. You type the script yourself, so you know it better than Jaylen does, and you know exactly where he pauses and where he takes a breath. The only part you haven't practiced is the part where people can actually hear you."

   I wanted to argue, but the clock already said 8:01, and she was right about my lips.

   I sat down in Jaylen's chair, which suddenly felt much too big. Benny squinted through the camera and said, "Can you scoot left? Right now I'm getting mostly forehead."

   At exactly 8:05, the red light came on.

   For one long second, my mind was a blank sheet of paper. Then I heard Jaylen's voice in my head, the way he always started, and my mouth followed it, the way it had followed him every morning since September.

   "Good morning, Ridgeview Hawks! Here's what's happening today."

   My voice wobbled on "Hawks," but it held, and I made it through the club meetings and the bus change for Route 9. Then, halfway through the lunch menu, the laptop froze. The words stopped on "chicken tenders with" and sat there like a car stalled in an intersection.

   Behind the camera, Benny's eyes went wide, and he started waving both arms, which did not help at all.

   But I didn't need the screen, because I had typed those words myself at 7:45 that morning. "Chicken tenders with green beans and a fruit cup," I said. "And happy birthday to Ana Reyes, who turns twelve today."

   I got through the weather and the quote of the day without glancing at the frozen screen once. Then I reached the closing line, the one I had heard Jaylen say more times than I could count.

   "That's the Morning Report. I'm Jaylen Brooks. I mean, I'm Marisol Ortega. Have a great day, Hawks."

   When the red light went off, Benny laughed so hard that he had to hang on to the tripod. Ms. Albright laughed too, and then she gave me a thumbs-up and held it there.

   In the hallway, two eighth graders I had never met called me "Jaylen" and grinned. At lunch, a message from Jaylen popped up on my phone: "Heard you were great. Also heard you introduced yourself as me."

   The next morning, Jaylen was back in his chair, and I was back behind the camera, where my hands could shake in private. But before the show, I walked to the bulletin board and wrote my own name on the sign-up sheet for spring anchors.

   I was still afraid of the red light. I just understood now that being scared and being ready could sit in the same chair.

   1.

   How does the author develop Marisol's point of view in the first two paragraphs?

   1. AShe explains that she has always wanted Jaylen's job as anchor.
   2. BShe explains that running the camera is harder than anchoring.
   3. CShe explains that she does not trust Ms. Albright's judgment.
   4. DShe explains that she likes working where no one can see her nerves.
2. 2.

   Why does Marisol say "I'm Jaylen Brooks" at the end of the broadcast?

   1. AMs. Albright told her to use Jaylen's name to end the show.
   2. BShe wants viewers to believe Jaylen is still at school.
   3. CShe planned the mix-up as a joke with Benny.
   4. DShe has heard Jaylen say that line so often it slips out.
3. 3.

   How does Marisol change from the beginning of the story to the end?

   1. AShe goes from feeling fearless to being afraid of the red light.
   2. BShe goes from trusting Ms. Albright to doubting her advice.
   3. CShe goes from disliking Jaylen to wishing she could be him.
   4. DShe goes from wanting to stay hidden to choosing to try anchoring again.
4. 4.

   Which TWO details best support Ms. Albright's claim that Marisol is ready to anchor? Choose two answers.

   1. AMarisol types the day's script into the laptop each morning.
   2. BMarisol mouths every word of the script along with Jaylen.
   3. CBenny tells Marisol to scoot to the left.
   4. DMarisol's voice wobbles on the word "Hawks."
   5. ETwo eighth graders call Marisol "Jaylen" in the hallway.

5. Read this aloud to your child.

   A Voice for Every Sixth Grader

   Good morning, sixth graders. My name is Gabriel Santos, and I am running to be your representative on the student council.

   I want to talk about one thing: being heard. Every one of us has an idea that could make this school better. Maybe it's a club that doesn't exist yet. Maybe it's a fix for the line at the water fountain after gym. But most of those ideas never leave our heads, because we don't know who to tell.

   If you elect me, I will change that. First, I will put a suggestion box in every sixth-grade homeroom. I have already asked Principal Whitfield, and she said yes. The art club has even offered to decorate the boxes. Every Friday, I will read every suggestion and bring the most popular ones to the student council meeting.

   Second, I will report back. Each month, I will post a short update on the sixth-grade bulletin board telling you what happened to your ideas: which ones the council is working on, which ones it turned down, and why.

   You might be wondering whether I'll actually follow through. Last spring, I noticed that our school had no place to recycle cans at lunch. I wrote a letter, collected 212 signatures, and met with the custodians. Now there is a blue bin at the end of every cafeteria table. When I say I'll do something, I do it.

   And finally, if you vote for me, I promise that our class will have the best field day this school has ever seen.

   So when you fill out your ballot on Thursday, vote for the person who will make sure you are heard. Vote for Gabriel Santos. Thank you.

   5.

   Why does the speaker mention the line at the water fountain?

   1. ATo explain why the student council turned down one of the ideas
   2. BTo give an example of a small idea that might never be shared
   3. CTo show where the suggestion boxes will go
   4. DTo complain about how long gym class lasts

6. Read this aloud to your child.

   Why Onions Make You Cry

   You start chopping an onion for dinner, and within a minute your eyes are stinging and tears are rolling down your cheeks. You are not sad, of course. Your eyes are defending themselves against a chemical attack, one that the onion launches the moment your knife slices into it.

   An onion is made of millions of tiny cells. Inside each cell, certain chemicals that contain sulfur are stored separately from enzymes, substances that can change those chemicals into something new. As long as the cells remain whole, the chemicals and the enzymes never meet. A knife, however, slices thousands of cells open at once. The chemicals and enzymes mix, and within seconds they react to produce a new substance, a gas that drifts up from the cutting board.

   When this gas reaches your eyes, it irritates the sensitive nerves on their surface. Your eyes respond in the only way they can: they produce tears to wash the gas away. The more you chop, the more cells break, and the more you cry.

   Scientists think onions developed this chemical trick as a defense. An animal that bites into an onion gets a mouthful of stinging chemicals and may decide to leave the rest of it alone.

   Fortunately, you can still make salsa without sobbing. Try these tips.

   Chill it. Put the onion in the refrigerator for about half an hour before cutting it. Cold temperatures slow the chemical reaction, so less gas forms and less of it rises toward your face.

   Keep your knife sharp. A sharp blade slices cleanly through cells, while a dull one crushes and breaks many more of them.

   Let it blow away. Work near a fan or an open window so the gas drifts away before it reaches your eyes.

   6.

   According to the talk, what causes the gas to form?

   1. ACold air from the refrigerator turns into gas.
   2. BThe onion's papery outer skin gives off a gas whenever it touches the air.
   3. CCutting breaks cells, so chemicals that were kept apart mix and react.
   4. DThe knife heats the onion until it releases steam.
7. 7.

   By the time we got to the station, the train ______.

   Which word or words best complete the sentence?

   1. Ahas left
   2. Bhad left
   3. Cleaves
   4. Dwill have left
8. 8.

   You can measure how much rain falls in your yard by building a simple rain gauge. First, ask an adult to cut the top off a clear plastic bottle with straight sides. Next, turn the cut-off top upside down and set it in the bottle to work as a funnel. Then tape a ruler to the outside of the bottle and place the gauge in an open spot outdoors. After each rainstorm, read the water level on the ruler and write it in a notebook. Over time, your notes will show which weeks were the wettest in your neighborhood.

   What is the writer's main purpose in this paragraph?

   1. Ato argue for a claim and support it with reasons and evidence
   2. Bto tell a story about something that happened
   3. Cto explain how to do something, step by step
   4. Dto give facts about a topic
9. 9.

   The robotics club meets on Thursdays. The club is building a robot. The robot can sort recycling.

   Which sentence best combines the three sentences without changing what they mean?

   1. AThe robotics club, which meets on Thursdays, are building a robot that can sort recycling.
   2. BThe robotics club, which meets on Thursdays, is building a robot that can sort recycling.
   3. CThe robotics club which meets on Thursdays, is building a robot that can sort recycling.
   4. DThe robotics club, which meets on Thursdays, is building a robot who can sort recycling.
10. 10.

    Which sentence uses commas correctly?

    1. ACrater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States formed inside the top of an old volcano.
    2. BCrater Lake the deepest lake in the United States, formed, inside the top of an old volcano.
    3. CCrater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States, formed inside the top of an old volcano.
    4. DCrater Lake, the deepest lake in the United States, formed inside, the top of an old volcano.