Give your fifth grader the confidence to succeed on the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA) in Grade 5 Science.
This book contains five full-length practice tests — 375 questions in all — aligned to the Illinois Learning Standards for Science (Next Generation Science Standards) and modeled on the format, difficulty, and content of the real ISA. Every question was written by experienced educators to match the item types and reasoning students meet on test day.
Take a look inside
A note on what Grade 5 science actually tests: the ISA is a banded assessment. It draws on the Grade 3, Grade 4, and Grade 5 standards together, not on fifth-grade content alone. This book covers all three years across its five tests, so nothing on test day comes from a grade your child has already put behind them.
What’s inside
- Five complete full-length Science practice tests, with detailed answer explanations after every test
- 75 questions per test, delivered in three sections, matching the scored ISA form
- Authentic ISA question types: multiple choice, multi-select, and multi-part constructed-response items scored for partial credit
- A figure, diagram, table, or data set with every single question — the way real science items present evidence
- Detailed answer explanations for every question that build real scientific reasoning, not just the correct letter
- A parent letter with test-taking tips and a Quick Answer Key for fast scoring
Topics covered
- Physical Science: forces and motion, balanced and unbalanced forces, energy transfer and collisions, waves and the transfer of information, and the properties and structure of matter
- Life Science: ecosystems and food webs, producers and consumers and decomposers, plant and animal structures and their functions, inheritance and variation of traits, and what fossils reveal about past environments
- Earth and Space Science: weather and climate patterns, the distribution of Earth’s water, the interaction of Earth’s systems, patterns of the sun, moon, and stars, and reducing the impact of natural hazards
- Engineering design: defining a problem’s criteria and constraints, and comparing competing solutions against evidence
- Science inquiry and application: forming questions, planning and interpreting investigations, and drawing evidence-based conclusions
Why parents and teachers choose Smart Stars
- Written by experienced educators who study the Illinois State Board of Education’s official ISA blueprints and released items
- Every question mirrors what students will see on test day, with no surprises
- Explanations teach the “why” behind every answer, so students learn from every mistake
- Aligned to the Illinois Learning Standards for Science tested on the real ISA
Pair it with the flashcards
Smart Stars Illinois ISA Grade 5 Science Flashcards: Four Decks, 140 Cards
140 cards in four decks: Like Test Day, Key Concepts, Vocabulary, and Trouble Spots. Short review sessions between practice tests, on a phone, a tablet, or a Kindle.
