Free printable TACHS practice test for Grade 8

Reading

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 12 minutes.

1. The Night Before Regionals

   CHARACTERS: JADA and MATEO, seventh graders and co-captains of the Westfield Middle School robotics team

   (The robotics lab, late afternoon, the day before the regional competition. A robot sits on the workbench, its lifting arm hanging loose. MATEO is alone. He spots a cracked plastic gear on the floor, picks it up, studies it, and slides it into his pocket just as JADA rushes in with a sketchbook.)

   JADA: I was up half the night drawing, and I've figured it out. We rebuild the whole arm, longer this time, so it can reach the top shelf and score double.

   MATEO: Jada, the competition is tomorrow morning, and we've never once tested a longer arm.

   JADA: Then we test it tonight. Every other team will play it safe, which is exactly why we shouldn't.

   MATEO: Or we fix the arm we have, since it worked perfectly all season. Something small probably just slipped.

   JADA: "Probably." (She flips the sketchbook open to a drawing.) It fell apart in the middle of your practice run, Mateo, in front of the whole team, so that's not small. Judges remember teams that take risks.

   MATEO: Judges remember robots that move. If a new arm jams on the field, we score zero.

   JADA: You always say that. You said it about the new wheels in October, and the wheels turned out to be the best thing we built all year.

   MATEO: (His hand goes to his pocket and stays there.) This is different.

   JADA: How?

   (A long pause. MATEO looks at the robot, then at the floor.)

   MATEO: It just is.

   JADA: (closing the sketchbook) That's not a reason. Give me a real one in the next ten minutes, or I start taking the old arm apart.

   (She crosses to the workbench and begins loosening bolts. MATEO pulls the gear out of his pocket, turns it over in his fingers, and opens his mouth to speak. Then he closes it and puts the gear away. The lights fade.)

   1.

   What do the stage directions reveal that Mateo keeps from Jada?

   1. AHe has already told the judges about the arm.
   2. BHe has secretly built a longer arm of his own at home last night.
   3. CHe has a cracked gear that probably made the arm fail.
   4. DHe has lost the sketchbook with Jada's design.
2. 2.

   Why does Mateo most likely refuse to explain why "This is different"?

   1. AHe secretly wants Jada to win the argument.
   2. BHe has forgotten why the arm stopped working.
   3. CShowing the gear might mean admitting the arm broke during his own run.
   4. DHe has not looked at the robot since practice.

3. Two Accounts of the Great Chicago Fire

   Text 1: The Cow That Burned Chicago

   On the night of October 8, 1871, Catherine O'Leary went out to the barn behind her small house on DeKoven Street to milk her cow. She set a kerosene lantern down in the straw. The cow, restless at the late hour, kicked over the lantern, and the dry straw burst into flames. Within minutes the barn was burning, and a strong wind carried sparks to the sheds and houses nearby, nearly all of them built of wood. For more than a day, the fire raced across Chicago. When it was finally over, about 300 people were dead and about 100,000 had lost their homes. All of it began with one cow and one careless kick.

   Text 2: What Really Started the Fire?

   Historians agree that the Great Chicago Fire began on the evening of October 8, 1871, in or near the barn behind the O'Leary home. What they cannot agree on is the cause, because no one has ever proved the story about the cow.

   Weeks after the fire, city officials held an inquiry and questioned dozens of witnesses. Catherine O'Leary told them she had been in bed when the fire started. In the end, the officials could not say how it began.

   The cow story first spread through the newspapers. In 1893, a reporter named Michael Ahern admitted that he and other reporters had made it up because it made a lively story. By then, many people had already blamed Mrs. O'Leary for the disaster, partly because she was a poor Irish immigrant, and the story followed her for the rest of her life.

   In 1997, the Chicago City Council passed a resolution officially clearing Mrs. O'Leary and her cow.

   3.

   On which point do Text 1 and Text 2 disagree?

   1. AWhether the fire caused great destruction
   2. BThe date on which the fire began
   3. CWhether a cow kicking over a lantern started the fire
   4. DWhether Catherine O'Leary owned a cow
4. 4.

   According to Text 2, what did Catherine O'Leary tell the officials who looked into the fire?

   1. AHer cow had kicked over a lantern.
   2. BShe had left a lantern in the barn.
   3. CShe had been in bed when it started.
   4. DA neighbor had started it on purpose.

5. Sunday Night, Monday Morning

   Each Sunday night I call across the sea to where my grandmother's new day has begun. She asks the things she always asks of me: Am I eating? Am I warm? Is school still fun? I answer fast, one eye upon my screen, and half-hear stories I have heard before: the mango tree, the hen, the old machine that stitched her first school dress beside the door. Last week she asked me twice if I'd been fed, then laughed and blamed the hour and the line; and in that pause I heard what she had said beneath the words each Sunday, every time. So now I set my screen aside to tell her what I ate, then ask, "And are you well?"

   5.

   Which statement best expresses the theme of the sonnet?

   1. AGrandparents should try not to repeat the same old stories.
   2. BDifferent time zones make it impossible to share a day.
   3. CLong-distance phone calls are a poor way for families to stay close.
   4. DSimple, repeated questions can carry a love that is easy to overlook.
6. 6.

   In the second stanza, the speaker says, "I answer fast" and "half-hear stories." What does the word "half-hear" suggest?

   1. AThe grandmother is speaking much too softly to be understood.
   2. BThe speaker is only partly paying attention.
   3. CThe speaker is hearing the stories for the first time.
   4. DThe phone line is too noisy to hear clearly.
7. 7.

   Which line best shows that the speaker was not fully listening before the turn in the poem?

   1. AI answer fast, one eye upon my screen,
   2. BSo now I set my screen aside to tell
   3. CShe asks the things she always asks of me:
   4. Dthen laughed and blamed the hour and the line;

8. Make a Red Cabbage Color Indicator

   Is lemon juice an acid or a base? What about baking soda? Chemists answer questions like these using the pH scale, which runs from 0 to 14: a substance with a pH below 7 is acidic, a substance with a pH above 7 is basic, and pure water, at 7, is neutral. A red cabbage indicator lets you test kitchen liquids yourself.

   Materials
   half a head of red cabbage
   a knife and a cutting board
   a pot, a strainer, and a large bowl
   4 cups of water
   4 clear plastic cups and a sheet of white paper
   white vinegar, lemon juice, and baking soda
   safety goggles

   Steps

   1. With an adult's help, chop the cabbage into small pieces and place them in the pot with the water.

   2. Have an adult boil the water, then simmer it for about ten minutes, until it turns deep purple.

   3. After the liquid has cooled completely, pour it through the strainer into the bowl and discard the cooked cabbage.

   4. Pour about half an inch of the purple liquid into each cup, and set the cups on the white paper.

   5. Leave the first cup as it is. Add a spoonful of vinegar to the second cup, a spoonful of lemon juice to the third, and a spoonful of baking soda dissolved in a little water to the fourth.

   6. Stir each cup, and record the color you observe.

   What Happened? Red cabbage contains natural pigments called anthocyanins, whose molecules change shape slightly depending on how acidic or basic their surroundings are. Because each shape absorbs light differently, each one displays a different color. In acids such as vinegar and lemon juice, the indicator turns pink or red, while in a base such as baking soda solution, it turns blue or green. The untouched purple cup shows the color of a nearly neutral liquid.

   Safety Note: Wear goggles, and never taste or drink your samples. Never test bleach, drain cleaner, or other strong cleaners.

   8.

   What should you do right before you pour the purple liquid into the clear cups?

   1. AStrain out the cabbage once the liquid has cooled.
   2. BAdd a spoonful of white vinegar to the second cup.
   3. CChop the cabbage into small pieces.
   4. DSet the four cups on the sheet of white paper.
9. 9.

   Why does the procedure have you leave the first cup as it is?

   1. ATo save extra indicator for a second test later
   2. BTo give a color to compare the other cups against
   3. CTo find out whether vinegar is an acid or a base
   4. DTo keep the experiment safe for younger children
10. 10.

    How does the section titled "What Happened?" help the reader?

    1. AIt gives the exact pH number of every liquid tested.
    2. BIt explains the science behind the color changes.
    3. CIt lists what to gather before starting.
    4. DIt tells how long to boil the cabbage.