If you and your child have wondered what kinds of questions will appear on the 8th grade ITBS, below are some examples! These sample questions should provide you with a better idea of the quantitative and qualitative skills that your child should focus on and demonstrate during the exam. Each practice question will reflect a specific subtest that your child will come across.
During the 8th grade ITBS, sections such as “language and spelling” will increase in difficulty; the student is expected to identify an incorrectly spelled word. When dealing with more complex vocabulary, the student will have to focus on familiarizing themselves with the spelling of words during their study sessions. Flash cards and active reading will help build the necessary vocabulary skills for ITBS success. Practicing grammatical skills with your child will also greatly benefit their performance. Many of the questions look for a subtle understanding of grammar as well as punctuation.
As you are going through the practice questions, you will observe that each test level within the ITBS consists of a series of subtests that fall under specific content sections. Sections in the ITBS for third to eighth grade (levels 9-14) include:
- Vocabulary test
- Word Analysis (3rd grade, level 9 only)
- Listening (3rd grade, level 9 only)
- Reading/Reading Comprehension
- Spelling, Capitalization, Punctuation, Usage and Expression
- Mathematics Concepts and Estimation, Problem Solving, Date Interpretation, Computation and Social Studies
- Science
- Sources of Information (Maps, Diagrams, Reference Materials)
1.) Language (Spelling)
For this section, each question will have a list of words. If one of the words is spelled wrong, fill in the circle next to that word. If none of the words are spelled wrong, fill in the last circle that says “no error”.
2.) Mathematics
This test will measure how well you understand math. Use scratch paper if you need to.
Muhummad is writing survey questions about people’s vegetable-eating habits during the day. Which question below is a statistical question he should include in his survey?
a) Do you eat vegetables?
b) Do you like spinach?
c) How many servings of vegetables do you eat during the day?
d) How many vegetables do you buy at the store or market each week?
3.) Reading Comprehension
A FRENCH LESSON
From A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
When Sara entered the schoolroom the next morning everybody looked at her with wide, interested eyes. By that time every pupil – from Lavina Herbert, who was nearly thirteen and felt quite group up, to Lottie Legh, who was only just found and the baby of the school – had heard a great deal about her. They knew very certainly that she was Miss Minchin’s show pupil and was considered a credit to the establishment. One or two of them had even caught a glimpse of her French main, Mariette, who had arrived the evening before. Lavinia had managed to pass Sara’s room when the door was open and had seen Mariette opening a box that had arrived late from some shop.
“It was full of petticoats with lace frills on them – frills and frills,” she whispered to her friend Jessie as she bent over her geography. “I saw her shaking them out. I heard Miss Minchin say to Miss Amelia that her clothes were so grand that they were ridiculous for a child. My mamma says that children should be dressed simply. She has got one of those petticoats on now. I saw it when she sat down.”
“She has silk stockings on!” whispered Jessie, bending over her geography also. “And what little feet! I never saw such little feet!”
“Oh,” sniffed Lavinia, spitefully, “that is the way her slippers are made. My mamma says that even big feet can be made to look small if you have a clever shoemaker. I don’t think she is pretty at all. Her eyes are such an unusual color.”
“She isn’t pretty as other pretty people are,” said Jessie, stealing a glance across the room; “but she makes you want to look at her again. She has tremendously long eyelashes, but her eyes are almost green.”
Sara was sitting quietly in her seat, waiting to be told what to do. She had been placed near Miss Minchin’s desk. She was not abashed at all by the many pairs of eyes watching her. She was interested and looked back quietly at the children who looked at her. She wondered what they were thinking of, and if they liked Miss Minchin, and if they care for their lessons, and if any of them had a papa at all like her own. She had had a long talk with Emily about her papa that morning.
“He is on the sea now, Emily,” she had said. “We must be very great friends to each other and tell each other things. Emily, look at me. You have the nices eyes I ever saw-but I wish you could speak.”
She was a child full of imaginings and whimsical thoughts, and one of her fancies was that there would be a great deal of comfort in even pretending that Emily was alive and really heard and understood.
After Sara had sat in her seat in the schoolroom for a few minutes, being looked at by the pupils, Miss Minchin rapper in a dignified manner upon her desk.
“Young ladies,” she said, “I wish to introduce you to your new companion.” All the little girls rose in their places, and Sara rose also. “I shall expect you all to be very agreeable to Miss Crewe; she has just come to us from a great distance – in fact, from India. As soon as lessons are over you must make each other’s acquaintance.”
The pupils bowed ceremoniously, and Sara made a little curtsy, and then they sat down and looked at each other again.
“Sara,” said Miss Minchin in her schoolroom manner, “come here to me.”
She had taken a book from the desk and was turning over its leaves. Sara went to her politely.
“As your papa has engaged a French maid for you,” she began, “I conclude that he wishes you to make a special study of the French language.”
How does Sara’s character development contribute to the plot?
a) Her Indian culture makes Sara’s everyday speech and actions seem rude to those in her new home.
b) Her high social status leads oth classmates and her teacher to treat her with favoritism.
c) Her wealthy, worldly upbringing creates conflict with other children and leads to a misunderstanding with her teacher.
d) Her inability to understand French causes Sara’s teacher to hold a grudge against her and other students to whisper rudely about her.
4.) Mathematics
This test will measure how well you understand math. Use scratch paper if you need to. Choose the answer you think is best.
Jamal is creating a scale drawing of his home. The first floor has an area of 1,200 square feet. He plans to scale down the length of the sides from 10 ft. to 1 in. What is the area of the scale drawing?
a) 120 square feet
b) 12 square feet
c) 120 square inches
d) 12 square inches
5.) Language (Punctuation)
For the next group of questions, read the first 3 lines to yourself. You will notice that some of the sentences need punctuation corrections. Look for mistakes with commas, semicolons, quotation marks, apostrophes and so on. Mark the circle in the row of words that contains a mistake with the punctuation. If there is not a mistake, fill in the circle that reads no errors.
Answers:
1.) e, no errors
2.) c, This response is correct. The student may have realized that there is a range of possible answers that will shed life on the habits of the population surveyed.
3.) c
4.) d
5.) 1, I remember that our old house, the one