About this book
Give your third grader the confidence to succeed on the Maryland MCAP Grade 3 Math test.
This Smart Stars practice book provides five full-length, standards-aligned practice tests that mirror the length, four-section structure, and item mix of the real Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP) assessment in Mathematics. Every question was written by experienced educators, reviewed for accuracy, and built around the Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for Mathematics at Grade 3 (the Common Core State Standards).
Take a look inside
MCAP is given to Maryland public-school students each spring.
- Delivery: developed by ETS and administered for the Maryland State Department of Education by Pearson, both online and on paper.
- Format: the Grade 3 math test is given in four sections — two without a calculator and two with a basic calculator.
- Question types: machine-scored questions (Type I), constructed-response reasoning (Type II), and real-world modeling tasks (Type III).
- Field-test items: a few unscored “field-test” questions are mixed invisibly into every real test.
- Each practice test here: 39 questions across four sections (35 scored plus a handful of unmarked field-test-style questions, nearly 200 items in all), to build true test-day endurance.
What’s inside
- Five full-length practice tests, each split into four sections, with detailed Answers and Explanations after every test
- Coverage of every Grade 3 math standard across all five domains (Operations and Algebraic Thinking, Number and Operations in Base Ten, Number and Operations — Fractions, Measurement and Data, and Geometry), weighted to match the MCAP blueprint, where Operations and Algebraic Thinking and Fractions carry the most questions
- Practice with all three MCAP claim types in the same balance as the real test, including the Reasoning and Modeling tasks that ask students to explain their thinking and model real-world problems
- Field-test-style questions blended invisibly into each test, just like the real MCAP, and fully answered here so nothing on test day feels unfamiliar
- Practice in every MCAP item format: multiple choice, multiple select (“select two”), type-in and gridded answers, two-part questions, “explain why” written-reasoning responses, “show your work” modeling tasks, number lines, line plots, area models, bar graphs, and figure-based geometry questions
- A combined Quick Answer Key at the back of the book for fast self-grading
- A family letter, a test-taking tips section, and a Grade 3 Math Study Reference Sheet up front
- Calculator practice that matches the official MCAP Grade 3 policy: two non-calculator sections and two calculator sections, so students learn when a calculator helps and when it does not
Topics covered
- Multiplication and division within 100, using equal groups, arrays, area, and “times as many” comparisons
- Properties of operations, division as an unknown-factor problem, and fluency with the basic facts
- Two-step word problems with all four operations, and using rounding to estimate and check
- Number and arithmetic patterns and the rules behind them
- Place value, rounding to the nearest ten and hundred, and adding and subtracting within 1,000
- Multiplying one-digit numbers by multiples of ten
- Unit fractions, fractions on a number line, equivalent fractions, and comparing fractions (denominators 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8)
- Telling time to the minute and solving elapsed-time problems; measuring liquid volume and mass
- Scaled picture graphs and bar graphs, and line plots marked in halves and fourths of an inch
- Area by tiling and by multiplying side lengths, the distributive property, and perimeter (including finding a missing side)
- Classifying quadrilaterals and partitioning shapes into equal parts named with unit fractions
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 MCAP format, four-section structure, Type I/II/III item mix, and calculator policy, including the reasoning-and-modeling questions on the real test.
- Built for Maryland: Aligned to the Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for Mathematics (the Common Core State Standards) and the MCAP blueprint, with varied, real-world contexts.
- 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 so no two feel like the same practice run.
