Free printable STAAR practice test for Grade 6

Reading Language Arts

Circle the letter of the best answer, and one letter in each row of a table and for each numbered blank. No time limit.

1. The Weaver Who Would Not Bow

   A myth from ancient Greece

   In the land of Lydia, in a hill town where sheep grazed on every slope, there lived a young woman named Arachne who could weave like no one else alive. Her father dyed wool for a living, soaking it in great vats until it came out the deep purple of ripe plums. Arachne spun that wool into thread and wove the thread into cloth so fine that people swore it had been made from mist.

   Visitors traveled for days just to watch her work. Her hands moved so quickly that the shuttle seemed to fly across the loom by itself. Flowers bloomed on her cloth, then rivers, then whole forests with deer stepping between the trees. Even the nymphs, the shy spirits of the springs and woods, crept out of hiding to watch.

   "Surely Athena herself taught you," an old shepherd said one afternoon. Athena was the goddess of wisdom and of crafts, and weavers all over Greece prayed to her before they began a new piece.

   Arachne did not look up from her loom. "No one taught me," she said. "My skill is my own. If Athena believes she can weave better, let her come here and prove it."

   The room went silent. A few visitors edged toward the door, as if they expected lightning.

   No lightning came. But the next morning, an old woman leaning on a staff shuffled in and sat down beside the loom. Her hair was white and her back was bent, but her gray eyes were sharp.

   "Child," she said, "long years teach a person a few things, so listen to an old woman. Be proud of your gift, but do not compare yourself to the gods. Take back your words and ask the goddess to forgive you. She is generous to those who ask."

   Arachne laughed. "Save your advice for your own grandchildren. If the goddess is offended, why doesn't she come herself? She must be afraid of losing."

   "She has come," said the old woman.

   The staff fell to the floor. The bent back straightened, the white hair became a gleaming helmet, and in place of the old woman stood Athena, tall and shining. The visitors dropped to their knees. Only Arachne stayed on her feet. Her cheeks flushed red and then went pale, but she did not take back a single word.

   So the contest began. Two looms were set up side by side, and the goddess and the young woman went to work.

   Athena wove the gods seated in glory on Mount Olympus, calm and powerful. In each corner of her cloth, she added a small scene of a mortal who had challenged the gods and been punished. They were warnings woven in thread, and she meant Arachne to read them.

   Arachne read them and kept weaving. On her cloth, she showed the gods at their worst: tricking people, quarreling, and changing shapes to fool anyone who trusted them. Every face was perfect. Every wave looked wet enough to touch. Around the edge, she wove a border of ivy as delicate as a whisper.

   When both looms were still, Athena studied Arachne's cloth for a long time. She could not find a single flaw. That was the trouble. The work was flawless, but its message was an insult, and the weaver who made it had never once bowed her head.

   Athena tore the cloth from the loom. Then she touched Arachne's forehead.

   "You love your weaving more than anything," the goddess said. "Then you will weave forever, you and your children and their children after them."

   Arachne felt herself shrinking. Her hair fell away, her head grew tiny, and her fingers stretched into thin, nimble legs. In a moment, a small spider dangled from the beam of the loom on a single silver thread.

   She has been weaving ever since. Look in the corner of a barn on a dewy morning, and you will find her work: a web as fine as mist, perfect in every strand. Scientists still call spiders arachnids, after her. The goddess never took away Arachne's skill. It was her pride that cost her everything else.

   1.

   Which statement best expresses a theme of the myth?

   1. AOlder people always give the wisest advice.
   2. BHard work is the only way to become truly skilled.
   3. CThe gods always reward people who speak their minds honestly.
   4. DRefusing to admit any limits can cost a person dearly.
2. 2.

   Which word best describes Arachne when Athena appears in her true form?

   1. Agrateful
   2. Bdefiant
   3. Cbored
   4. Dapologetic
3. 3.

   How does the scene with the old woman fit into the myth as a whole?

   1. AIt offers Arachne a way out, so her refusal matters more.
   2. BIt introduces the person who judges the contest.
   3. CIt shows that Athena is afraid of the contest.
   4. DIt explains how Arachne first learned to weave cloth so well.
4. 4.

   Why does Athena most likely visit Arachne disguised as an old woman first?

   1. ATo learn Arachne's weaving secrets in private
   2. BTo keep the nymphs from recognizing her
   3. CTo give Arachne a chance to change her mind
   4. DBecause she was afraid of losing to Arachne
5. 5.

   In the myth, what does the word "flaw" mean in "She could not find a single flaw"?

   1. Aa bright color
   2. Ba hidden picture in the cloth
   3. Ca mistake or weak spot
   4. Da pattern of ivy
6. 6.

   According to the myth, what leads Athena to turn Arachne into a spider?

   1. AA complaint that the nymphs bring to Athena about Arachne
   2. BArachne's loss in the weaving contest
   3. CArachne's attempt to tear Athena's cloth
   4. DArachne's insulting cloth and her refusal to bow
7. 7.

   Dad irons (1) ______ own shirts.

   Which word best completes the sentence?

   (1)	Ahis	Bits	Ctheir	Dher

8. 8.

   Which sentence uses capital letters correctly?

   1. Aour science class learned that Jupiter is larger than all of the other planets put together.
   2. BOur science class learned that jupiter is larger than all of the other planets put together.
   3. COur science class learned that Jupiter is larger than all of the other planets put together.
   4. DOur Science class learned that Jupiter is larger than all of the other planets put together.
9. 9.

   Jalen read this sentence by education researcher Paul Green in an article about recess:
   "Students who get a short break for outdoor play often return to class calmer and better able to pay attention to their lessons."

   Which sentence uses the source correctly in a report?

   1. AEducation researcher Paul Green says that students who get a short break for outdoor play often return to class calmer and better able to pay attention.
   2. BEducation researcher Paul Green explains that a brief recess outside makes students too excited to focus when they come back to class.
   3. CRecess matters because students "return to class calmer and better able to pay attention to their lessons."
   4. DEducation researcher Paul Green explains that a brief recess outside can help students settle down and focus when they come back to class.
10. 10.

    The Pacific Ocean is larger ______ the Atlantic Ocean.

    Which word best completes the sentence?

    1. Athan
    2. Bthat
    3. Cthin
    4. Dthen