NWEA MAP Growth Test for 5th Grade Online Preparation: Free Practice Questions & Helpful Tips – 2024 Study Guide

What Is the 5th Grade MAP Growth Test?

Tracking student growth is essential to their success. The 5th Grade Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Growth Test is an excellent tool for teachers and parents to assess student learning and progress throughout the year. The MAP Growth Test is a computer-adaptive test that reflects how much a student has learned throughout the year.

Unlike other standardized tests, the MAP Exam will become more difficult as your child answers questions correctly. And conversely, the exam will become easier as they answer questions incorrectly. The test is also untimed, giving the student ample time to work through any difficult questions.

 

What Are the MAP Growth Test Sections?

The 5th Grade MAP Growth Test will consist of three sections: Reading, Math, and Language Use. The questions will be tailored to the common core curriculum for the 5th grade, so this exam will be more difficult than the previous MAP Growth Tests your child has taken.

Reading

The MAP Reading Test will consist of 40 to 43 questions. This test will have the same three key areas as the 4th grade test had, but the questions will be more advanced.

Here are the sections your child can expect to see on the MAP Reading exam:

  • Word Meaning and Vocabulary Knowledge: Students will need to use context clues to decipher the meaning of words, identify connections between words, and recognize their structures.
  • Informational Texts: Students must identify a text’s purpose and argument while considering subjectivity and perspective.
  • Literature: Students must read literary texts and identify key themes and structures.

Math

Students can expect to encounter between 47 and 53 questions on the NWEA MAP Math test. As with most math tests, the material on this exam will build on what your child already knows. Students will receive scratch paper and an online calculator when necessary.

The following are the topic areas that this test will cover:

  • Numbers and Operations: Students must use multi-digit whole numbers, fractions, and decimals to perform measurements and mathematical operations.
  • Operations and Algebraic Thinking: Students must use numerical expressions to communicate their ideas, spot patterns, and deduce answers using the four fundamental operations.
  • Geometry: Students will need to use graphs to solve problems, understand geometric concepts, and be able to recognize and use three-dimensional figures.
  • Measurement and Data: Students will use length, angles, and volume to solve measurement problems, as well as generate, represent, and understand data.

Language Use

The MAP Language Use test consists of between 50 and 53 questions. Students in the 5th grade are expanding their writing skills and focused on the following topic areas:

  • Understand and Edit Mechanics: Students must understand and correctly use punctuation, capitalization, and spelling.
  • Grammar and Usage: Students must understand and correctly use grammar conventions.
  • Writing: Students must demonstrate their understanding of the various writing stages, including researching, developing, writing, and revising.

 

How to Read the MAP Growth Test Scores?

The MAP Growth Test is graded on a standardized Rasch unIT (RIT) scale. Using the RIT scale, it is easy to see how your child has grown from the previous year or the previous test. If your child is on track and understanding the material, their score steadily rises on each test.

The score report will be available immediately after the exam and will show both a graph and a table that details your child’s RIT score, how they compare to their previous exam, and how they compare to other students their age. The score report will also project how well your child will do in the future.

The below table shows the average scores of 5th graders across all subjects. Note that your student will take the exam three times during their 5th grade year.

MAP Test Section Average Fall Score Average Winter Score Average Spring Score
Reading 204 209 211
Math 209 215 219
Language Use 204 208 210

 

 

MAP Growth Test Tips for 5th Graders

Ensure your child follows these tips to succeed on the MAP Growth Exam.

  • Read the text carefully. Your child needs to remember that the test is untimed. They should take their time to read all text to ensure they understand what they are being asked.
  • Remember, you are competing against yourself. There are no passing and failing scores on the MAP Growth Exam. All that matters is that you do better on the test than you did the last time.
  • Rest before the exam. While studying until the very last minute may be tempting, you need to rest ahead of the exam. Study, then put the books down and get a good night’s sleep.
  • Don’t wait until the last minute to study. will do better on the exam if you take the time to study and practice for the MAP test throughout the year as you are learning new material.

 

How to Prepare for the 5th Grade MAP Growth Assessment?

Because the MAP Test measures growth, you’ll want to ensure that your child is consistently learning the material so they will make progress on each exam. The best way to prepare for the MAP assessment is to use free online resources such as practice tests and study guides.

Practice tests are an excellent way for your student to experience the exam without the pressure to do well. This will show them what kinds of questions they can expect and present solutions for questions they may have struggled with.

Study guides are also a great tool that will show students how to approach questions and will give quick resources on critical things they may need to know. For example, a 5th Grade Language Use test study guide may outline the differences between the sentence types.

Students who regularly study for the MAP Growth exams are more prepared and likely to surpass their last score.

5th Grade MAP Test Example Questions:

Author’s Mood Example Question:

Anna’s little brother just broke her favorite barbie doll. She asked her mom if they could go to the store to buy a new one, but her mom told her she needed to wait until her birthday. She didn’t want to play with her little brother after that, so Anna grabbed her favorite dessert and watched a movie to try and feel better.

What is the author’s mood?

  1. Positive
  2. Negative
  3. Neutral
  4. Impossible to tell

 

Text Summarization Example Question:

Tammy and her 5th grade class went on a field trip today. The class went to the science museum, where they learned and interacted with the exhibits. First, the class went to the marine life section where they had information about ocean life. They learned about dolphins and how they sleep with half their brain.

Next, the class went to the planetarium. This was Tammy’s favorite part because she loves learning about space and all the different planets scientists have discovered. Then, the class got to interact with the exhibits. Everyone laughed when Susie stood in the footprint of a dinosaur!

Which of the following is the best summary for the passage?

  1. Tammy and her friend Susie went to the science museum with their class and learned about dolphins, planets, and dinosaurs.
  2. Tammy’s favorite part of the field trip was the planetarium.
  3. Tammy’s 5th grade class went on a field trip to the science museum where they learned about dolphins, planets, and dinosaurs.
  4. The class went to the museum and learned that dolphins sleep with half a brain and dinosaurs had huge feet.

 

Word Meaning Example Question

Jerry’s class learned about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It is an area in the Pacific Ocean where tons of marine debris have collected, endangering ocean life. Nearly 80% of the debris comes from human-discarded plastic, such as water bottles, plastic bags, and cups. The other 20% comes from boating and other marine sources. Scientists worldwide are dedicated to preventing the patch from growing and finding a solution to help clean up the ocean.

Which word means the same as “debris”?

  1. Animals
  2. Nets
  3. Boats
  4. Trash

 

Operations and Algebraic Thinking Example Question:

Charlie and Willy are both selling chocolate bars for their school. Charlie has sold 65 bars in the last 5 days. Willy has sold 84 bars in the last 7 days. How many more bars per day has Charlie sold?

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4

 

Operations and Algebraic Thinking Example Question:

Marissa’s class has 7 days to learn 44 spelling words. Marissa has been practicing her words with her dad for the last 3 days and has learned 20 words. If she wants to finish the 42 words on day 7, how many words per day does she need to learn for the remaining 4 days of the week?

  1. 4
  2. 5
  3. 6
  4. 7

 

Algebra Example Question:

Solve for y in the following equation:

40 + y = 13 x 4

  1. 10
  2. 12
  3. 14
  4. 16

 

Sentence Type Example Question:

Which of the following is an imperative sentence?

  1. Can I use your pencil to do the assignment?
  2. Hannah is out sick today.
  3. Don’t forget your backpack.
  4. I’m so happy you came over!

 

Grammar Example Question:

Which sentence below is punctuated correctly?

  1. I’m going to go to the store to grab milk bread and eggs.
  2. Cindy went to several countries this Summer, including: France and Italy.
  3. My favorite fruits are: bananas, apples, oranges, and grapes.
  4. Next year, I plan to take ballet, play basketball, and learn piano.

 

Spelling Example Question:

Which of the following words is spelled incorrectly?

  1. Plagiarism
  2. Vandalism
  3. Skepticism
  4. Altrueism

 

 

 

 

Explained Answers

  1. The end of the passage notes that Anna grabbed a dessert and watched a movie to try and feel better. This indicates that she was in a negative mood. The correct answer is B.
  2. You want to note just the key points of the text and avoid going into too much detail. The main details of this passage are that Tammy’s 5th grade class went on a field trip to the science museum and what they learned about which was dolphins, planets, and dinosaurs. The correct answer is C.
  3. The correct answer is D.
  4. To determine how many more bars Charlie sold per day, you first need to figure out how many bars each child sold per day. Charlie sold 65 ÷ 5 = 13 bars per day, and Willy sold 84 ÷ 7 = 12 bars per day. This means Charlie sold 13 – 12 = 1 more bar per day. The correct answer is A.
  5. To solve this problem, you’ll first need to figure out how many words Marissa has left to learn and divide that by the number of days she has left. So, Marissa has 44 – 20 = 24 words left to learn. She has 4 days left, so she’ll need to learn 24 ÷ 4 = 6. Therefore, the correct answer is C.
  6. Both sides of the equation must be equal. So to solve for the missing number, you’ll want to isolate the y. Therefore, 40 + y = 13 x 4 can be written as 40 + y = 52. Then, subtract 40 from each side to get y = 12. The correct answer is B.
  7. An imperative sentence is one that gives a command. Of the choices above, the only sentence that gives a command is answer C.
  8. The correct answer is D.
  9. The correct answer is D.