STAAR Practice Test (Grade 3: Reading)
People do not only arrive to the train station to ride the train. They also have the opportunity to meet Catcha, the train station's manager who also happens to be a cat! The town of Catcha benefits from the millions of visitors it receives. Visitors spend money in restaurants, stores, and hotels when they visit. Catcha has aided in the collection of almost $12 million! Catcha is invited to stay at the railroad station, as the reader can see, because—
Correct answer: She attracts passengers.
The reader can tell that Catcha is welcome to stay at the train station because she attracts passengers.
Ken, the legendary Greek storyteller, told two stories in which a dog played a major role. In one, a hungry dog desires after a nice piece of cheese being consumed by a crow on a limb high above him. The dog compliments the crow on her beauty. He expresses his curiosity as to whether her voice is as lovely as her outward appearance. The cheese falls out of the crow's beak and is eaten by the dog when she displays her voice with a loud caw.
The hungry dog in the other fable is attempting to obtain a bunch of grapes that hang high above his head. He can't manage to get to the grapes, no matter how hard he tries. As he goes away, the dog responds, Oh, well. “They were probably sour anyway.”
What kind of character did Ken think a dog was based on these two stories?
Correct answer: smart
If you picked d, you picked the best response. There is no evidence that the dog was foolish, nice, or cruel. The dog is able to make wise choices that lead to him being content with what he is able to accomplish. If he cannot complete a task, he is able to justify why it was the for the best any way.
Dave spilled his glass of wine accidentaly.
Which of the underlined words is incorrectly spelled?
Correct answer: accidentaly
It should be accidentally.
Choose the adverb that best completes the sentence presented.
The student ran __________ than the teacher.
Correct answer: faster
In our sentence, we are comparing how the teacher and the student ran so we have two actions; thus, we are looking for a comparative adverb. Also, looking at the adverbs in our answer choices, we are dealing with a one syllable adverb. Remember, we have are looking at comparative adverbs, with one syllable. Looking back at our rules, we want to add "-er"; thus, the correct answer is "faster".
The Great Paper Airplane Fly-Off is held at the Pima Air Space Museum every year. The plane that travels the furthest distance wins! The winning design is utilized to make a massive paper airplane in the hopes that it would fly. Making paper airplanes stimulates scientific experimentation and invention. The reader can infer that the museum places a high importance on science since —
Correct answer: they encourage exploration in science and invention
The reader can conclude that the museum values science because they encourage exploration in science and invention.
Which of the following words is a common noun?
Correct answer: Doctor
Doctor is the only common noun whereas the rest are Proper Nouns
I brought Glenn a present. I couldn't wait to deliver it to __________.
Choose the best word to fill in the blanks.
Correct answer: him
I brought Glenn a present. I couldn't wait to deliver it to him.
Choose the adverb that best completes the sentence presented.
Julia walked the route to school __________than her brother.
Correct answer: more slowly
In our sentence, we are comparing how Julia walked to school and how her brother walked to school so we have two actions; thus, we are looking for a comparative adverb. Also, looking at the adverbs in our answer choices, "slowly" and "slowest" we can tell that we are looking at the rule for more than one syllable.
Remember, we have are looking at comparative adverbs, with more than one syllable. Looking back at our rules, "more" is the correct word to add before the adverb "slowly"; thus, the correct answer is "more slowly".
Play Pump may resemble a typical merry-go-round, but it is unlikely that your local merry-go-round provides you with water. In some places of the world, when clean water is nearly impossible to come by, Play Pumps are used. Play Pumps use the energy generated by merry-go-round movement to pump water from underground into a storage container for community usage. As a result, the reader can conclude that —
Correct answer: Play Pumps are important in some parts of the world.
The reader can conclude that play pumps are important in some parts of the world.
Bong is composing a letter to the principal of his school. Which of the following greetings is NOT appropriate for the start of this letter?
Correct answer: Hey there Mr. Jones,
Answer choice D is correct because if a student is writing a letter to their principal it would need a more formal greeting than, ""Hey there Mr. Derek."" The principal could take this disrespectfully and disregard the letter.
Determine who the target audience for the following passage is.
He had a nose as long as his arm. The trees swayed when he sneezed.
A meal may be smelled from a mile away.
Correct answer: class descriptive paragraph
The appropriate audience of the following passage is a class descriptive paragraph.
How many syllables does the given word have?
Beautiful
Correct answer: three
When you say the word "beautiful" slowly, you should hear a "U" sound, an "I" sound and then another "U" sound. Even though there are five total vowels in the word "beautiful", the first "eau" all form together to make one vowel sound; thus, the word ""beautiful"" has three syllables.
Albert came across a stranded and alone young hippo one day! He knows how to care for baby hippos as a game warden. Albert quickly adopted the hippo and gave him the name Jason. Jason quickly made himself at home with his new family, playing with the dogs and even sleeping indoors. Jason, on the other hand, developed swiftly and soon began smashing furniture! Albert had to begin locking Jason out of the house, but Jason remained a family member. The reader can conclude that this is unusual because —
Correct answer: hippos to live with humans.
The reader can conclude this it is unusual for hippos to live with humans.
Which of the following is not a noun that is commonly used?
Correct answer: William
A, B and D are common nouns and only Choice C represents a Proper noun
My seatmate and I have become instant friends.
The following is a sentence:
Correct answer: a statement
The sentence above is a statement.
How many syllables does the given word have?
Pen
Correct answer: one
The word "pen" can be said in one sound, uninterrupted. Also, there is only one vowel sound; thus, the word "pen" only has one syllable.
Albert came across a stranded and alone young hippo one day! He knows how to care for baby hippos as a game warden. Albert quickly adopted the hippo and gave him the name Jason. Jason quickly made himself at home with his new family, playing with the dogs and even sleeping indoors. Which of the following sentences best explains why Albert was able to care for Jason?
Correct answer: As a game warden, Albert knew how to feed baby hippos.
Albert can take care of the baby hipos because Albert knew how to feed them.
A thirsty crow discovered a pitcher with only a few drops of water in it. He could almost touch the water with his long, delicate beak, but he couldn't obtain a drink. The crow saw a lot of little stones nearby as he looked around. He patiently picked up the stones one by one, filling the pitcher with water until it was high enough for him to drink.
What does this fable's moral imply?
Correct answer: Where there's a will, there's a way.
The only saying that matches the actions of the thirsty crow is, "where there's a will, there's a way." The crow wanted the drink so he came up with a way in which to get to the water that at first was unreachable.
Which of the students has a capital letter in the proper place?
Correct answer: Cats like to purr.
Letter D is the correct answer.
Choose the response option that has an antonym for the given word:
small
Correct answer: big
An antonym is a word that means the opposite of another word.
The word "small" means to be little. The opposite of little is big; thus, big is the correct answer.
Which of the following sentences best supports the assumption that potato chips are popular today?
Correct answer: Grocery stores sometimes have a hard time keeping bags of potato chips on their shelves before they sell out.
Letter C is the sentence that best support the idea that potato chips are well-liked today and popular.
Aladdin demonstrated the dusty old lamp to his mum. "Perhaps if we polish it up first, we can sell it," she speculated. A genie appeared while Aladdin began polishing the lamp! "I'm the lamp's spirit, and I'm here to help! I am obedient to your command." Aladdin was overjoyed, so he requested the genie for food, and a feast appeared. Aladdin began to fantasize about the fantastic things he could accomplish with the genie's assistance. New clothes, a large house to live in, and camels to ride would be on his wish list.
What evidence do you have that Aladdin and his mother are poor?
Correct answer: He wishes for new clothes.
You can tell that Aladdin and his mother are poor because they want to try to sell the old lamp. The first thing they ask the genie for is food. When Aladdin starts to think of what the genie's magical powers can do, he thinks of new clothes and a new house, so they must need those things.
Which of the end marks is incorrect?
Correct answer: The cat ran fast]
A sentence should not end with "]"
Choose an answer option that has a synonym for the specified word:
small
Correct answer: tiny
The word "small" means to be little. Tiny is another word that means to be little; thus, tiny is the correct answer.
Drake wants to compete in a 5K race in his hometown. He was scared that he might not finish because he had never raced before. He put in a lot of effort and practiced every day. He even had a coach to help him out. Drake not only finished the event, but he also took first place in his age category, much to his surprise! T he reader can conclude that Drake worked with a coach because -
Correct answer: Drake had never raced and wanted the extra help.
The reader can conclude that Drake trained with a coach because Drake had never raced and wanted the extra help.