Give your fourth grader the confidence to succeed on the Wisconsin Forward Exam Grade 4 Math test.
This Smart Stars practice book provides five full-length, standards-aligned practice tests that mirror the length, item mix, and question types of the real Forward Exam in Mathematics. Every question was written by experienced educators, reviewed for accuracy, and built around the Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021) at Grade 4, so the topics and emphasis match what Wisconsin students actually see.
The Forward Exam is the test the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) gives to every public-school student in Grades 3-8 each spring. It is delivered online by Data Recognition Corporation (DRC) as an untimed, fixed-form test, given in two sessions, with paper and braille forms available as accommodations. The Grade 4 math test uses no calculator and no reference sheet, and it blends single-answer multiple choice with multiple-select (“select the two”), type-in answers, ordering, two-part questions, and technology-enhanced tasks. On the test a student answers about 42 scored questions, with 8 unscored field-test questions mixed in invisibly, 50 in all across two sessions of 25. Each practice test here follows that same shape: 42 scored-style questions plus 8 field-test-style questions, 50 in all, for 250 questions across the book: to build true test-day endurance.
What’s inside
- Five full-length practice tests of 50 questions each, with detailed Answers and Explanations after every test
- Coverage of every Grade 4 math area the Forward Exam reports (Operations and Algebraic Thinking, Number and Operations in Base Ten, Number and Operations) Fractions, Measurement and Data, and Geometry: weighted toward the Fractions work that carries the most questions, just like the real blueprint
- Field-test-style questions blended invisibly into each test, just like the real Forward Exam, and fully answered here so nothing on test day feels unfamiliar
- Practice in every Forward item format rendered for paper: multiple choice, multiple select (“select the two”), type-in/fill-in answers, ordering (“least to greatest”), two-part questions, matching, line plots, area models, number lines, lines of symmetry, and protractor angle measurement
- Every explanation walks through the reasoning step by step and ends with a labeled Tip, Check, or Estimate (with a Strategy on the multi-step questions), so students learn the move, not just the answer
- A combined Quick Answer Key in the back for fast self-grading
- A family letter and a test-taking tips section up front
- A built-in difficulty ramp: the later tests lean on more multi-step, multi-select, two-part, and protractor reasoning: so students stretch toward the Advanced level
A protractor is required, and there is no calculator or reference sheet. Several angle questions show an angle and ask the student to measure it, so a physical protractor is needed to work through the book. The Grade 4 Forward Exam provides neither a calculator (calculators are introduced in Grade 6) nor a formula reference sheet, so students practice exactly as they will test: with pencil, paper, and a protractor.
Topics covered
- Place value through the hundred-thousands, and reading, writing, comparing, and rounding multi-digit whole numbers, including standard and expanded form
- Multi-digit addition and subtraction with regrouping, and multi-step word problems
- Multiplying up to three-digit numbers by one digit, including the area-model method, and dividing with remainders that must be interpreted
- “Times as many” multiplicative comparison, writing comparison equations, factors and multiples, prime and composite numbers, and number and shape patterns
- Equivalent fractions, comparing and ordering fractions, adding and subtracting fractions with like denominators, and multiplying a fraction by a whole number
- Decimal notation for tenths and hundredths, and comparing decimals
- Measurement and unit conversion (feet to inches, hours to minutes, kilometers to meters), area and perimeter including composite figures, and line plots marked in fourths
- Measuring and recognizing angles, additive angle measure, and measuring an angle with a protractor
- Points, lines, rays, and angles; classifying triangles and quadrilaterals; and identifying lines of symmetry
Why parents and teachers choose Smart Stars
- Educator-authored. Every question is written and reviewed by classroom-experienced educators.
- Mirrors test day. Each practice test matches the official Forward Exam shape, item mix, question formats, and no-calculator, no-reference-sheet policy, with field-test questions blended in invisibly just like the real test.
- Built for Wisconsin. Aligned to the Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021) at Grade 4, with grade-appropriate real-world Wisconsin contexts and a diverse cast of student names.
- Explanations teach the why. Every Answers and Explanations entry shows the full worked solution, then a labeled closing Tip, Check, or Estimate (and a Strategy on multi-step problems) so students learn the reasoning.
- Varied and graduated. Slot positions, contexts, names, and number choices rotate test-to-test, and the five tests step up in difficulty: the later tests lean on more multi-step, multi-select, two-part, and protractor reasoning: so no two feel like the same practice run.