Free Printable STAAR Practice Tests 5th Grade- Math and Reading

If your fifth grade student is enrolled in a Texas public or charter school, you’re probably somewhat familiar with the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR).

These tests are designed to measure how well students have mastered the Texas Essential Skills and Knowledge (TEKS) standards. At the fifth grade level, students are tested in both reading and mathematics.

In this article, we’ll help you increase your STAAR knowledge with key information about test structure, test content, and test preparation. We’re also providing a link to a STAAR practice test for 5th graders to help your child feel confident and prepared for STAAR testing.

Click the button below to get a practice test, plus you will receive a bonus PDF "5 Top Tips to Use Practice Tests Effectively" to help your child study for the test.

STAAR Practice Test Grade 5

5th Grade STAAR Test Basics

Texas implemented the STAAR program beginning in the 2011-2012 school year. Each test is closely aligned with TEKS academic standards.

For each specific grade level and subject test, questions are guided by a set of readiness standards, which are the TEKS standards identified as most essential for that particular subject area and grade level.

5th grade readiness standards were selected for being key to both success in 5th grade and preparedness for 6th grade.

All STAAR exams, including 5th grade Math and Reading, have a four-hour time limit. These tests are administered in paper-pencil format.

STAAR Math 5th Grade

The STAAR Math 5th grade exam contains 36 total questions: 33 multiple choice and 3 griddable questions.

These questions are divided into four “reporting categories”:

Numerical Representations and Relationships

Computations and Algebraic Relationships

Geometry and Measurement

Data Analysis and Personal Financial Literacy

As with all STAAR assessments, students are allowed up to four hours to complete this paper-pencil test. Calculators are not permitted.

In the sections below, we’ll examine the skills and knowledge students need in order to succeed with each of the four reporting categories.

Numerical Representations and Relationships

These questions assess students’ ability to represent and manipulate numbers and expressions.

Fifth grade students should be able to demonstrate the following skills:

Represent the value of the digit in decimals through the thousandths using expanded notation and numerals

5th Grade STAAR - Expanded Notation sample question

Compare and order two decimals to thousandths and represent comparisons using the symbols >, =, or <

Round decimals to tenths or hundredths

5th Grade STAAR - Rounding Decimals sample question

Identify prime and composite numbers

Describe the meaning of parentheses and brackets in a numeric expression

Simplify numerical expressions that do not involve exponents, including up to two levels of grouping

Your child will be asked 6 questions in this category on the STAAR Math 5th grade exam.

Computations and Algebraic Relationships

This question type measures the ability to perform operations and represent algebraic relationships.

Fifth grade students are expected to be able to:

Estimate to determine solutions to mathematical and real-world problems involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division

5th Grade STAAR - Estimate sample question

Fluently multiply a three-digit number by a two-digit number using the standard algorithm

Solve with proficiency for quotients of up to a four-digit dividend by a two-digit divisor using strategies and the standard algorithm

Represent multiplication of decimals with products to the hundredths using objects and pictorial models

Solve for products of decimals to the hundredths, including situations involving money, using strategies based on place-value understandings, properties of operations, and the relationship to the multiplication of whole numbers

Represent quotients of decimals to the hundredths, up to four-digit dividends and two-digit whole number divisors, using objects and pictorial models

Solve for quotients of decimals to the hundredths, up to four-digit dividends and two-digit whole number divisors, using strategies and algorithms, including the standard algorithm

5th Grade STAAR - Dividing Decimals sample question

Represent and solve addition and subtraction of fractions with unequal denominators referring to the same whole using objects and pictorial models and properties of operations

Represent and solve multiplication of a whole number and a fraction that refers to the same whole using objects and pictorial models, including area models

Represent division of a unit fraction by a whole number and the division of a whole number by a unit fraction using objects and pictorial models, including area models

Fluently add and subtract positive rational numbers

Divide whole numbers by unit fractions and unit fractions by whole numbers

5th Grade STAAR - Dividing Whole Numbers and Unit Fractions sample question

Represent and solve multi-step problems involving the four operations with whole numbers using equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity

Generate a numerical pattern when given a rule in the form y = ax or y = x + a and graph

5th Grade STAAR - Numerical Pattern sample question

In a table or graph, differentiate between additive and multiplicative numerical patterns

The STAAR Math 5th grade exam includes 17 Computations and Algebraic Relationships questions.

Geometry and Measurement

With these questions, your child’s ability to represent and apply geometry and measurement concepts will be assessed.

Specifically, fifth grade students are expected to:

Represent and solve problems related to perimeter, area, and volume

5th Grade STAAR - Volume sample question

Classify two-dimensional figures in a hierarchy of sets and subsets using graphic organizers based on their attributes and properties

Determine the volume of a rectangular prism with whole number side lengths in problems related to the number of layers times the number of unit cubes in the area of the base

Solve problems involving calculating conversions within a measurement system

Describe the key attributes of the coordinate plane

Describe the process for graphing ordered pairs of numbers in the first quadrant of the coordinate plane

STAAR 5th Grade math EXAMPLE - Ordered Pairs sample question

Graph in the first quadrant of the coordinate plane ordered pairs of numbers arising from mathematical and real-world problems, including those generated by number patterns or found in an input-output table

9 questions on STAAR Math 5th grade fall within this category.

Data Analysis and Personal Financial Literacy

This category measures the ability to represent and analyze data and describe and apply personal financial concepts.

Your fifth grade student is expected to:

Represent categorical data with bar graphs or frequency tables and numerical data, including data sets of measurements in fractions or decimals, with dot plots or stem-and-leaf plots

Represent discrete paired data on a scatterplot

STAAR 5th Grade math EXAMPLE - Scatterplot sample question

Solve one- and two-step problems using data from a frequency table, dot plot, bar graph, stem-and-leaf plot, or scatterplot

Define income, payroll, sales, and property tax

Explain the difference between gross income and net income

Describe actions that might be taken to balance a budget when expenses exceed income

Balance a simple budget

STAAR 5th Grade math EXAMPLE - Budget sample

Four questions from this category appear on the test.

If you feel your child needs additional 5th grade STAAR math practice, be sure to utilize the STAAR practice tests 5th grade.

STAAR Reading 5th Grade

The STAAR Reading 5th grade exam consists of 38 multiple choice questions. Students are allowed up to four hours to complete this paper-pencil assessment.

Questions are grouped into three categories:

Understanding and Analysis Across Genres

Understanding/Analysis of Literary Texts

Understanding/Analysis of Informational Texts

Below, we’ll take a closer look at each of these three categories.

Understanding and Analysis Across Genres

As the name of the category suggests, these questions measure the ability to understand and analyze texts from a variety of genres.

For fifth grade students, this means the ability to demonstrate the following skills:

Determine the meaning of grade-level academic English words derived from Latin, Greek, or other linguistic roots and affixes

Use context to clarify the meaning of unknown words, including those with multiple meanings

STAAR 5th Grade reading EXAMPLE - Context sample

Use a dictionary, a glossary, or a thesaurus (printed or electronic) to determine the meanings, syllabication, pronunciations, alternate word choices, and parts of speech of words

Compare and contrast the themes or moral lessons of several works of fiction from various cultures

Make connections (e.g., thematic links, author analysis) between and across multiple texts of various genres and provide textual evidence

STAAR 5th Grade reading EXAMPLE - Text Connections sample question

The STAAR Reading 5th grade exam contains 8 questions in this category.

Understanding/Analysis of Literary Texts

To answer these questions, students read literary passages and then respond to multiple choice questions assessing their understanding and analysis of these texts.

Fifth grade students should be able to:

Describe the phenomena explained in origin myths from various cultures

Explain the effect of a historical event or movement on the theme of a work of literature

Analyze how poets use sound effects (e.g., alliteration, internal rhyme, onomatopoeia, rhyme scheme) to reinforce meaning in poems

Understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of drama and provide evidence from text to support their understanding

STAAR 5th Grade reading EXAMPLE - Inference sample question

Describe incidents that advance the story or novel, explaining how each incident gives rise to or foreshadows future events

Explain the roles and functions of characters in various plots, including their relationships and conflicts

Explain different forms of third-person points of view in stories

Identify the literary language and devices used in biographies and autobiographies, including how authors present major events in a person's life

Evaluate the impact of sensory details, imagery, and figurative language in literary text

STAAR 5th Grade reading EXAMPLE - Sensory Language sample question

Evaluate the point of view of media presentations

Make inferences about text and use textual evidence to support understanding

Summarize and paraphrase texts in ways that maintain meaning and logical order within a text and across texts

STAAR 5th Grade reading EXAMPLE - Summary sample question

There are 16 Understanding/Analysis of Literary Texts questions on STAAR Reading 5th grade.

Understanding/Analysis of Informational Texts

These questions are very similar to the questions from the previous category, except students must now demonstrate the ability to understand and analyze informational texts.

Additional skills required for fifth grade students include:

Draw conclusions from the information presented by an author and evaluate how well the author's purpose was achieved

STAAR Practice Test 5th Grade - Draw Conclusions sample question

Determine the facts in text and verify them through established methods

Analyze how the organizational pattern of a text (e.g., cause-and-effect, compare-and-contrast, sequential order, logical order, classification schemes) influences the relationships among ideas

Use multiple text features and graphics to gain an overview of the contents of text and to locate information

Synthesize and make logical connections between ideas within a text and across two or three texts representing similar or different genres

Identify the author's viewpoint or position and explain the basic relationships among ideas (e.g., parallelism, comparison, causality) in the argument

Recognize exaggerated, contradictory, or misleading statements in text

STAAR Practice Tests 5th Grade - Exaggeration sample question

Interpret details from procedural text to complete a task, solve a problem, or perform procedures

Interpret factual or quantitative information presented in maps, charts, illustrations, graphs, timelines, tables, and diagrams

14 questions from this category appear on the exam.

If your child could benefit from extra 5th grade STAAR reading practice, the released STAAR practice tests 5th grade are an excellent resource.

How to Prepare for STAAR 5th Grade Exams

Remind your child of the importance of paying attention in class, completing homework and classwork, taking notes, studying, etc.

Texas teachers base their curriculum on the same standards (TEKS) that STAAR tests are aligned with, so what your child learns in class will be directly linked to STAAR tests.

If your child has difficulty in school, particularly with reading or mathematics, it’s a good idea to ask the teacher for additional assistance or consider hiring a specialized tutor.

Additionally, one of the most effective ways to prepare for any standardized test is by answering sample questions and completing practice tests. In this case, the 5th grade STAAR practice tests are an excellent resource to use with your child.

Whether your child needs 5th grade STAAR math practice, 5th grade STAAR reading practice, or both, the 5th grade STAAR practice tests can help build your child’s familiarity and confidence with test content.

As you go over practice tests, be sure to discuss why right answers are correct and wrong answers are incorrect.

By using the tips and information found here, you’ll help your child perform successfully on the STAAR assessments.