Free printable STAAR practice test for Grade 4

Reading Language Arts

Circle the letter of the best answer, or two letters where a question asks for two, and one letter in each row of a table and for each numbered blank. No time limit.

1. The Fix-It Fair

   On the first Saturday in March, the gym at Lincoln Elementary did not smell like sneakers. It smelled like oil, dust, and fresh coffee. Long tables stood in rows, and on every table sat something broken: a lamp with a loose cord, a toaster that would not toast, a bicycle with a wobbly wheel.

   It was the town's Fix-It Fair, and I was there to help my neighbor, Mr. Okafor. He used to repair radios for a living, and he could fix almost anything with a small screwdriver and a lot of patience. I had brought only the screwdriver.

   Our first customer was a man with a desk fan that buzzed but would not spin. I wanted to take it apart right away. Mr. Okafor held up one finger. "First, we look," he said. "Then we think. Then we touch."

   We looked. A piece of string was wound tightly around the fan's center. I snipped it free, and the blades whirled so fast that the man's hat nearly blew off. He laughed and shook my hand.

   By lunchtime, my fingers were sore, and I was ready to go home. Then a girl about six years old walked up holding a wooden music box in both hands. "It was my great-grandmother's," she said softly. "It stopped singing."

   I opened the lid. Inside was a tiny brass drum covered with pins, next to a row of thin metal teeth. Nothing moved. My stomach dropped. This was not a fan with a string stuck in it.

   "First, we look," I whispered to myself.

   I looked for a long time. At last I saw that one tooth was bent sideways. It had jammed against the drum like a stick caught in a bicycle wheel. Mr. Okafor handed me a pair of tweezers. "Slowly, Lena," he said. "Slower than you think."

   I held my breath and eased the tooth back into line, a tiny bit at a time. It took eleven tries. On the twelfth, the drum turned, and a soft, tinkling song floated up from the box.

   The girl's face lit up like a birthday candle. She hugged the music box to her chest, and then, to my surprise, she hugged me too.

   On the walk home, Mr. Okafor asked what I had learned. I thought about the fan and the music box. "The hard part isn't fixing things," I said. "It's waiting until you really understand them."

   He smiled. "Then you are ready for next year."

   1.

   Which sentence best states the central message of the story?

   1. ATaking time to understand a problem is the key to solving it.
   2. BPeople should throw away things that break.
   3. COld things are always worth more than new things.
   4. DFixing things is easy if you have the right tools.
2. 2.

   Which TWO details show that Lena was patient with the music box? Choose two answers.

   1. AShe was ready to go home by lunchtime.
   2. BShe asked Mr. Okafor to fix it for her.
   3. CShe kept trying until her twelfth try worked.
   4. DShe looked at the music box for a long time before she touched it.
   5. EShe wanted to take the desk fan apart right away.
3. 3.

   Who is telling this story?

   1. AThe man with the desk fan
   2. BLena, a girl who helps at the fair
   3. CA narrator who is not a character in the story
   4. DMr. Okafor, who used to repair radios
4. 4.

   In the story, the word "jammed" in "It had jammed against the drum" means

   1. Aplayed music loudly
   2. Bbroke into small pieces
   3. Cgot stuck so it could not move
   4. Dwas spread with fruit

5. Joining the Rails

   In the 1850s, getting from the East Coast of the United States to California was a long, hard trip. Travelers could ride in a covered wagon for four to six months, crossing prairies, deserts, and mountains. Or they could sail all the way around South America, which also took months. Many people dreamed of a faster way: a railroad that stretched across the whole country.

   In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed a law to make that dream real. Two companies would build the railroad. The Central Pacific Railroad would start in Sacramento, California, and build east. The Union Pacific Railroad would start near Omaha, Nebraska, and build west. Somewhere in between, the two tracks would meet.

   The work was enormous. Crews had to clear the land, lay wooden ties, and bolt heavy iron rails on top, mile after mile. The Central Pacific faced the hardest job first: the Sierra Nevada mountains. Thousands of workers who had come from China cut tunnels through solid granite. Some days they moved forward less than a foot. Heavy snow buried their camps in winter, but the work went on.

   Out on the Great Plains, Union Pacific crews raced across flatter land. Many of these workers had come from Ireland, and many had fought in the Civil War. On a good day, they could lay a few miles of track.

   Finally, on May 10, 1869, the two lines met at Promontory Summit, in Utah. Workers and leaders gathered for a ceremony. A golden spike was tapped into the last tie. Then a single word was sent by telegraph to cities across the nation: "DONE." People cheered and rang bells to celebrate.

   The new railroad changed the country. A trip from coast to coast that once took months now took about a week. Mail, goods, and people moved quickly between East and West. Towns grew up along the tracks. Farmers and factories could send their goods to faraway places.

   The railroad also changed life for the American Indian nations whose homelands it crossed. More and more settlers moved onto their lands. Today, we remember both the hard work of building the railroad and the many people whose lives it changed.

   5.

   What is this passage mostly about?

   1. AWhy people traveled to California in covered wagons
   2. BHow the golden spike was made in Utah
   3. CHow the telegraph sent messages across the country
   4. DHow the first railroad across the country was built and how it changed the nation
6. 6.

   Which TWO details from the passage support the idea that building the railroad was hard work? Choose two answers.

   1. AWorkers cut tunnels through solid granite.
   2. BTowns grew up along the tracks.
   3. CA golden spike was tapped into the last tie.
   4. DHeavy snow buried the camps in winter.
   5. EThe two lines met at Promontory Summit.
7. 7.

   Right now, my aunt (1) ______ two horses.

   Which word or words best complete the sentence?

   (1)	Aowns	Bowned	Cwill own	Downing

8. 8.

   Which word is spelled correctly?

   1. Amention
   2. Bmenshun
   3. Cmentoin
   4. Dmension
9. 9.

   This is the park ______ we play soccer on Saturdays.

   Which word best completes the sentence?

   1. Awho
   2. Bwhen
   3. Cwhere
   4. Dwhose
10. 10.

    Theo is writing to a marine scientist to ask for an interview for his school report.

    Which sentence would be best to use?

    1. AGonna need some sea turtle facts from you, okay?
    2. BHey, can I ask you some turtle stuff?
    3. CSea turtles. Questions. You in?
    4. DWould you be willing to answer a few questions for my report on sea turtles?