A health lesson asks students to sort pictures of foods into groups such as fruits, vegetables, grains, and proteins. Which health concept is primarily being taught through this sorting activity?

Balanced nutrition and food groups

When teaching English learners, which strategy best supports vocabulary acquisition during a science lesson on the water cycle?

Pairing new terms with visuals, gestures, and hands-on demonstration

Requiring students to memorize a bilingual glossary alone

Skipping vocabulary and focusing on the reading passage

A teacher wants students to practice using context clues to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words while reading. Which activity best targets this skill?

Reading a passage and inferring word meaning from surrounding sentences

Memorizing a list of vocabulary words and definitions

Sorting words by number of syllables

Looking up every unfamiliar word in a dictionary before reading

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PRACTICE ENGINE · TEXES CORE SUBJECTS EC-6

TExES Core Subjects EC-6 Practice Test.
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A class studies a food chain showing grass being eaten by a rabbit, which is then eaten by a fox. What role does the grass play in this food chain?

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1. A class studies a food chain showing grass being eaten by a rabbit, which is then eaten by a fox. What role does the grass play in this food chain?
- A. Predator
- B. Consumer
- C. Decomposer
- D. Producer
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Grass is a producer because it makes its own food through photosynthesis and forms the base of the food chain, unlike consumers such as the rabbit and fox that eat other organisms, or decomposers that break down dead organic matter.
2. During a music lesson, students clap along to the steady, repeating pulse underlying a song while the teacher plays. Which musical element are students practicing?
- A. Timbre
- B. Rhythm and beat
- C. Dynamics
- D. Pitch
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Clapping to a steady, repeating pulse practices rhythm and beat, the organization of sound in time, which differs from pitch as the highness or lowness of a sound, dynamics as loudness or softness, or timbre as the distinct tone color of a sound.
3. A student sorts a collection of rocks and places one in a group that formed from cooled and hardened magma or lava. Which type of rock is being classified in this group?
- A. Metamorphic
- B. Sedimentary
- C. Igneous
- D. Fossilized
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Igneous rock forms when molten magma or lava cools and solidifies, which differs from sedimentary rock formed by compressed layers of sediment over time, and metamorphic rock formed when existing rock is transformed by heat and pressure.
4. An art teacher asks students to run their fingers over sandpaper, cotton, and burlap glued onto a collage and describe what they feel. Which element of art is being explored through this activity?
- A. Color
- B. Texture
- C. Line
- D. Shape
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Describing the physical feel of different surface materials explores texture, the tactile or visual quality of a surface, which differs from color as hue, line as a mark connecting points, or shape as a two-dimensional area with defined boundaries.
5. A physical education teacher has students practice skipping, galloping, and hopping across the gymnasium during a warm-up activity. Which category of movement skills is being developed?
- A. Locomotor skills
- B. Manipulative skills
- C. Balance skills only
- D. Non-locomotor skills
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Skipping, galloping, and hopping are locomotor skills because they move the body from one place to another, unlike non-locomotor skills performed in place such as bending or twisting, or manipulative skills that involve handling objects such as throwing or catching.
6. A health lesson asks students to sort pictures of foods into groups such as fruits, vegetables, grains, and proteins. Which health concept is primarily being taught through this sorting activity?
- A. Balanced nutrition and food groups
- B. Personal hygiene
- C. Disease prevention
- D. Physical fitness components
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Sorting foods into groups like fruits, vegetables, grains, and proteins teaches students about balanced nutrition and the different food groups, which differs from hygiene, fitness components, or disease prevention, each of which covers separate health content.
7. When teaching English learners, which strategy best supports vocabulary acquisition during a science lesson on the water cycle?
- A. Skipping vocabulary and focusing on the reading passage
- B. Pairing new terms with visuals, gestures, and hands-on demonstration
- C. Only using English definitions
- D. Requiring students to memorize a bilingual glossary alone
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Multimodal input that connects new academic vocabulary to visuals and physical demonstration helps English learners build meaning alongside language, while isolated memorization or text-only definitions lack the comprehensible-input scaffolding developing learners need.
8. A second-grade student consistently spells words phonetically, such as writing 'wuz' for 'was', rather than using conventional spelling. This is characteristic of which stage of spelling development?
- A. Transitional
- B. Precommunicative
- C. Phonetic
- D. Conventional
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
The phonetic stage of spelling development is marked by spelling words as they sound rather than by memorized conventional patterns, which distinguishes it from the transitional stage where visual patterns begin to appear and from conventional spelling where standard forms are used.
9. Which graphic organizer would best help a fifth grader compare and contrast two characters from a novel the class is reading?
- A. A Venn diagram
- B. A timeline
- C. A story map
- D. A KWL chart
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
A Venn diagram is specifically structured to show shared and unique attributes between two items, making it ideal for comparison tasks, whereas a story map outlines plot elements, a KWL chart tracks prior knowledge and questions, and a timeline sequences events chronologically.
10. A teacher wants students to practice using context clues to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words while reading. Which activity best targets this skill?
- A. Looking up every unfamiliar word in a dictionary before reading
- B. Reading a passage and inferring word meaning from surrounding sentences
- C. Memorizing a list of vocabulary words and definitions
- D. Sorting words by number of syllables
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Context clue instruction requires students to use surrounding text to infer meaning while reading, which builds independent reading strategies, while pre-reading dictionary lookups, rote memorization, and syllable sorting do not require or practice inferring meaning from context.
11. A teacher notices that a student reads word-by-word in a monotone voice, even on texts at an appropriate reading level. Which area of reading development needs the most support?
- A. Alphabet knowledge
- B. Print concepts
- C. Phonemic awareness
- D. Fluency, including prosody and expression
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Reading in a monotone, word-by-word manner on appropriately leveled text signals a fluency deficit specifically in prosody, not a foundational skill gap like alphabet knowledge or print concepts, which would typically show up instead as decoding errors.
12. A student solves 5 x 7 by adding 7 five times in a row to reach the product. This strategy demonstrates understanding of multiplication as which concept?
- A. Skip counting by fives only
- B. Repeated addition
- C. An array
- D. Repeated subtraction
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Adding a number multiple times to reach a product is the definition of multiplication as repeated addition, which differs from an array model that arranges objects in rows and columns, or skip counting, which involves counting sequences rather than addition steps.
13. A teacher wants to assess whether students understand the commutative property of addition. Which question is most appropriate for this assessment?
- A. Is 7 a prime number?
- B. Does 4 + 3 equal 3 + 4?
- C. What is 4 squared?
- D. Does 4 + 3 equal 4 x 3?
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
The commutative property states that changing the order of addends does not change the sum, so asking whether 4+3 equals 3+4 directly tests this concept, unlike questions about multiplication, exponents, or prime numbers, which assess unrelated properties.
14. A student examines a diary written by a Texas settler in the 1800s as part of a history research project. This document is an example of which type of historical source?
- A. Secondary source
- B. Reference source
- C. Fictional source
- D. Primary source
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
A primary source is a firsthand account created during the time period being studied, such as a settler's own diary, while a secondary source is a later analysis written by someone without direct experience of the events described.
15. A class discusses how a farmer growing corn produces something people can hold and use, while a teacher delivering lessons provides something different. What is the teacher's contribution to the economy best classified as?
- A. A good
- B. A service
- C. A tax
- D. A scarcity
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
A service is an action performed for others rather than a physical product, so teaching is a service while the corn the farmer grows is a tangible good, and taxes and scarcity describe unrelated economic concepts rather than types of economic output.
16. A teacher asks students to place events from a story about early Texas settlement in the order in which they happened. Which skill is primarily being developed through this activity?
- A. Graphing skills
- B. Persuasive writing
- C. Map reading
- D. Chronological sequencing skills
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Ordering events by when they occurred develops chronological thinking, a core historical skill for understanding cause and sequence, which is distinct from map reading, graphing, or persuasive writing, each of which involves a different competency.
17. During a guided reading group, a student substitutes the word 'house' for 'home' while reading aloud from a story. This substitution suggests the student is primarily relying on which cueing system?
- A. Semantic (meaning-based) cues
- B. Syntactic (grammar) cues only
- C. None of the cueing systems
- D. Graphophonic (visual/letter-sound) cues
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Because house and home share meaning but not visual or letter-sound similarity, the substitution shows the reader is drawing on meaning cues from context rather than attending to the letters on the page, which would instead reflect a graphophonic-based error.
18. Which instructional approach best develops a first grader's oral language skills in preparation for later writing tasks?
- A. Silent independent reading time
- B. Copying sentences from the board
- C. Standardized spelling tests
- D. Structured turn-and-talk discussions about a shared class experience
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Oral language develops through interactive talk where students generate and organize their own ideas aloud, which directly supports the thinking needed for writing, whereas the other options involve silent, receptive, or purely mechanical tasks that don't build expressive oral language.
19. A teacher is planning a lesson on identifying an author's purpose in a persuasive text. Which question would best assess this skill?
- A. What is the setting of the passage?
- B. Why did the author write this text?
- C. How many paragraphs are in the passage?
- D. What is the main character's name?
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Identifying author's purpose requires students to reason about the writer's intent to persuade, inform, or entertain, which the direct question about why the author wrote the text targets, unlike questions about setting, structure, or character that assess different comprehension skills.
20. Which sequence best reflects a developmentally appropriate progression for teaching writing conventions in early elementary grades?
- A. Complex sentence structure before capitalization
- B. Paragraph organization before letter formation
- C. Cursive writing before printing
- D. Capitalization and end punctuation before complex paragraph organization
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Foundational conventions such as capitalizing sentences and using end punctuation are typically taught before more complex organizational skills like structuring paragraphs, following a developmentally logical sequence from simple mechanics to complex composition.
21. A teacher gives students base-ten blocks to represent the number 342. Which combination of blocks correctly represents this number?
- A. 3 units, 4 rods, 2 flats
- B. 3 rods, 4 flats, 2 units
- C. 3 flats, 4 rods, 2 units
- D. 2 flats, 4 rods, 3 units
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
In base-ten block representation, flats represent hundreds, rods represent tens, and units represent ones, so 342 requires 3 flats for 300, 4 rods for 40, and 2 units for 2, while the other combinations misassign place value to the wrong block type.
22. Which manipulative would best help a third grader understand equivalent fractions such as 1/2 and 2/4?
- A. A hundred chart
- B. Base-ten blocks
- C. Fraction bars or fraction strips
- D. A number line with only whole numbers
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Fraction bars allow students to physically compare pieces of the same whole and see that differently divided pieces can represent equal amounts, directly illustrating equivalence, whereas base-ten blocks and hundred charts are designed for whole-number place value concepts instead.
23. A teacher asks students to find the pattern rule for the sequence 3, 6, 9, 12 and extend it. Which best describes the underlying mathematical concept being taught?
- A. Data analysis
- B. Geometry
- C. Algebraic reasoning through patterns
- D. Measurement
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Identifying and extending numeric patterns is a foundational algebraic reasoning skill because it requires recognizing a consistent rule governing a sequence, which differs from geometry's focus on shapes, data analysis's focus on interpreting data sets, or measurement's focus on quantifying attributes.
24. A student incorrectly computes 3/4 + 1/4 by adding both the numerators and the denominators to get 4/8. What misconception does this reveal?
- A. Confusing fractions with whole numbers
- B. Misunderstanding decimal place value
- C. Confusing multiplication with addition
- D. Treating fraction addition like whole-number addition, adding both numerators and denominators
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Adding numerators and denominators separately shows the student is applying whole-number addition rules to fractions rather than understanding that with common denominators, only the numerators are combined while the denominator stays the same.
25. Which real-world task would best reinforce a second grader's understanding of telling time to the nearest five minutes?
- A. Counting coins to make a dollar
- B. Sorting shapes by number of sides
- C. Reading a class schedule and stating when each activity starts
- D. Measuring desk length in inches
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Reading a schedule and identifying start times directly practices interpreting clock time in a meaningful context, while sorting shapes, counting coins, or measuring length address geometry, money, and measurement skills instead of time-telling.
26. A fifth-grade class is measuring the perimeter of the classroom using a tape measure. Which understanding is most essential for this task?
- A. Perimeter is the sum of the lengths of all sides of a shape
- B. Perimeter is length times width
- C. Perimeter only applies to circles
- D. Perimeter is half of the area
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Perimeter is defined as the total distance around a shape, found by summing all side lengths, while length times width calculates area instead, and the other statements misapply or misstate the concept entirely.
27. A student is asked to find the median of the data set 4, 8, 2, 9, 5. What process should the student follow to find it?
- A. Subtract the smallest number from the largest number
- B. Order the numbers from least to greatest and identify the middle value
- C. Identify the number that appears most often
- D. Add all the numbers and divide by five
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
The median is found by arranging data in order and selecting the middle value, which differs from the mean found by summing and dividing, the mode found by identifying the most frequent value, or the range found by subtracting the extremes.
28. Which instructional strategy best supports a student who struggles to regroup, or borrow, during multi-digit subtraction problems?
- A. Modeling the process with base-ten blocks to show trading a ten for ten ones
- B. Timed drills of subtraction facts
- C. Skipping regrouping problems until a later grade
- D. Practicing only single-digit subtraction
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Concrete modeling with base-ten blocks makes the abstract process of regrouping visible and tangible, helping students see why a ten is exchanged for ten ones, whereas timed drills or avoiding the skill do not build conceptual understanding of regrouping.
29. A teacher introduces the concept of area by having students cover a rectangle with square tiles and count them. This approach primarily supports which understanding?
- A. Volume as the space inside a three-dimensional object
- B. Area as the distance around a shape
- C. Angle measurement
- D. Area as the number of unit squares needed to cover a surface
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Covering a surface with unit squares and counting them directly demonstrates that area measures the amount of surface covered, which is distinct from perimeter as the distance around a shape or volume as three-dimensional space, and lays groundwork for the length-times-width formula.
30. A student can solve word problems involving addition but struggles when the same type of problem is presented with subtraction instead. Which strategy would best help the student recognize when to subtract?
- A. Increasing the number size in the problems
- B. Practicing identifying keywords and the relationship between quantities in word problems
- C. Memorizing subtraction facts only
- D. Avoiding word problems and using only numeric equations
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
The core difficulty is problem interpretation rather than computation, so teaching students to analyze the relationships and language in word problems helps them determine the correct operation, unlike rote fact memorization or numeric-only practice, which bypass interpretation altogether.
31. A second-grade teacher gives students a map of the school grounds with a compass rose showing north, south, east, and west. If the playground is located south of the classroom, which direction would a student walk to go from the playground back to the classroom?
- A. North
- B. East
- C. West
- D. South
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Because north and south are opposite directions on a compass rose, walking from a location south of the classroom back to the classroom requires heading north, whereas continuing south, east, or west would move the student away from or parallel to the correct path.
32. A teacher asks students to sort pictures into two categories: items necessary for survival and items that are nice to have but not essential. Which economic concept is being taught through this sorting activity?
- A. Supply and demand
- B. Scarcity
- C. Needs versus wants
- D. Opportunity cost
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Sorting items into those necessary for survival, like food and shelter, versus those merely desirable, like toys, directly teaches the distinction between needs and wants, which differs from scarcity, supply and demand, or opportunity cost, each of which addresses a different economic idea.
33. A teacher explains that one group of elected officials writes the laws for a community while a different group makes sure those laws are enforced. This lesson introduces students to which civics concept?
- A. Citizenship requirements
- B. Voting rights
- C. Separate branches of government with distinct responsibilities
- D. Taxation
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Describing distinct groups responsible for writing laws versus enforcing them introduces the concept of separate governmental branches with distinct duties, which differs from voting rights, taxation, or citizenship requirements, each of which addresses a separate civic topic.
34. A class discusses how firefighters, police officers, and mail carriers all provide important services within a community. This lesson primarily addresses which social studies concept?
- A. Historical timelines
- B. Physical geography
- C. Community roles and civic responsibility
- D. Economic scarcity
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Describing helpers and the services they provide teaches students about the roles people play within a community and their civic contributions, which is distinct from geography, historical sequencing, or scarcity, each of which covers unrelated content.
35. A teacher has students share family traditions and foods from their own backgrounds during a classroom celebration. This activity primarily supports students' understanding of which concept?
- A. Physical map skills
- B. Branches of government
- C. Economic interdependence
- D. Cultural diversity and heritage
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Sharing family traditions and foods directly builds appreciation and understanding of cultural diversity and heritage among classmates, which differs from economic, geographic, or civics-focused content covered by the other concepts.
36. A student describes a landform as a large area of high, relatively flat land bordered by steep sides that rise sharply from the surrounding land. Which landform is being described?
- A. Plateau
- B. Isthmus
- C. Valley
- D. Peninsula
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
A plateau is defined as an area of relatively flat, elevated land bordered by steep slopes, which is distinct from a valley that is a lowland between hills, a peninsula that is land surrounded by water on three sides, or an isthmus that is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas.
37. During writer's workshop, a third grader's narrative has a clear beginning and events but ends abruptly without resolving the story's problem. Which revision focus should the teacher model next?
- A. Crafting an ending that resolves the story's central problem
- B. Lengthening the introduction
- C. Correcting subject-verb agreement
- D. Adding more descriptive adjectives
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
The described weakness is structural because the story lacks resolution, so the most effective conference focus is teaching how to bring the narrative arc to a close; grammar, word choice, and introduction length are separate craft elements that do not address the missing ending.
38. A fourth grader reads a passage fluently and accurately but cannot answer questions about its main idea. This pattern most likely indicates a need for instruction in which area?
- A. Comprehension strategies
- B. Decoding
- C. Handwriting
- D. Fluency
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Fluent, accurate reading without understanding points to a comprehension gap rather than a decoding or fluency problem, so instruction should target strategies such as summarizing and identifying main idea rather than the mechanics of reading aloud.
39. An art teacher asks students to create a drawing that looks the same on both halves when the paper is folded down the middle. Which art concept is being demonstrated by this activity?
- A. Perspective
- B. Symmetry
- C. Contrast
- D. Texture
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
A design that appears identical on both sides when folded demonstrates symmetry, a balanced arrangement of matching elements, which differs from contrast as differences between elements, texture as surface quality, or perspective as an illusion of depth.
40. A music teacher plays two notes on a keyboard and asks students to identify which one sounds higher. Which musical element is being assessed by this listening task?
- A. Rhythm
- B. Tempo
- C. Pitch
- D. Dynamics
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Identifying whether a note sounds higher or lower assesses pitch, which refers to the perceived highness or lowness of a sound based on its frequency, distinct from rhythm as a timing pattern, dynamics as volume, or tempo as speed.
41. During a skills station, students take turns tossing a beanbag toward a hoop set at different distances, adjusting their arm motion to control where it lands. Which category of movement skill is being developed by this task?
- A. Balance skills
- B. Non-locomotor skills
- C. Manipulative skills
- D. Locomotor skills
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Throwing an object at a target is a manipulative skill because it involves handling and controlling an object with the hands, which differs from locomotor skills that move the body through space, non-locomotor skills performed in place, or balance skills focused on stability.
42. A health teacher demonstrates the proper technique for washing hands, including scrubbing for at least twenty seconds before rinsing. Which health concept is this lesson primarily addressing?
- A. Cardiovascular fitness
- B. Emotional wellness
- C. Personal hygiene practices that help prevent illness
- D. Balanced nutrition
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Teaching proper handwashing technique addresses personal hygiene, a key practice for reducing the spread of germs and preventing illness, which is distinct from nutrition, emotional wellness, or cardiovascular fitness content covered elsewhere in health class.
43. A physical education teacher has students walk along a low balance beam while extending their arms out to the sides for stability. Which fitness or motor skill is primarily being developed by this activity?
- A. Cardiovascular endurance
- B. Balance
- C. Muscular strength
- D. Flexibility
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Walking along a narrow beam while maintaining an upright, controlled posture primarily develops balance, the ability to maintain stability during movement, which differs from cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, or flexibility, each of which targets a different fitness component.
44. A student uses a map's legend to determine that a particular symbol printed on the map represents a hospital. Which map skill is the student demonstrating?
- A. Using a compass rose
- B. Calculating map scale and distance
- C. Identifying latitude and longitude
- D. Interpreting a map key or legend
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
A map key or legend explains what symbols on a map represent, so using it to identify a hospital symbol demonstrates that specific skill, which is distinct from using a compass rose for direction, a scale bar for distance, or coordinates for absolute location.
45. A student has $5 and must choose between buying a book or a toy, since there is not enough money for both. If the student chooses the book, what economic concept describes the toy they gave up?
- A. Opportunity cost
- B. Scarcity
- C. Demand
- D. Supply
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Opportunity cost is the value of the next best alternative given up when a choice is made, so the toy not purchased represents the opportunity cost of buying the book, which differs from scarcity as limited resources generally, supply as the amount available, or demand as the desire for a good.
46. A teacher shows students a diagram of a plant's life cycle. In which order does a plant's development typically proceed from a resting seed to a mature plant?
- A. Germination, mature plant, seed, seedling
- B. Seed, germination, seedling, mature plant with flowers
- C. Flower, seed, seedling, germination
- D. Seedling, seed, germination, flower
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
A plant's life cycle proceeds from seed to germination, then to a growing seedling, and finally to a mature plant capable of producing flowers and new seeds, unlike the other sequences, which place these stages out of their natural biological order.
47. A student places an ice cube in a cup and observes it turn into liquid water after sitting at room temperature. Which change of state is being observed?
- A. Melting
- B. Condensation
- C. Freezing
- D. Evaporation
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Melting is the change from a solid to a liquid state caused by an increase in temperature, which is exactly what happens when ice becomes water, distinguishing it from freezing as liquid to solid, evaporation as liquid to gas, or condensation as gas to liquid.
48. A class observes that after several sunny, warm days, a puddle in the schoolyard has completely disappeared. Which process best explains what happened to the water in the puddle?
- A. Precipitation
- B. Condensation
- C. Freezing
- D. Evaporation
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Evaporation occurs when liquid water is heated, such as by the sun, and changes into water vapor that rises into the air, which explains why the puddle disappeared, unlike condensation as vapor turning to liquid, precipitation as water falling from clouds, or freezing as liquid turning to solid.
49. A teacher asks students to sort a collection of small objects into two groups based on whether or not a magnet attracts them. Which property is being used to classify the objects?
- A. Magnetism
- B. Conductivity
- C. Density
- D. Buoyancy
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Sorting objects by whether a magnet attracts them tests for the property of magnetism, which is distinct from density as mass per volume, buoyancy as the ability to float, or conductivity as the ability to carry electricity or heat.
50. A student pushes a toy car across a rug and notices it stops much more quickly than it does when pushed the same way across a smooth tile floor. Which force best explains this difference in stopping distance?
- A. Buoyancy
- B. Magnetism
- C. Friction
- D. Gravity
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Friction is the force that resists motion between two surfaces in contact, and a rug's rough texture creates more friction than a smooth tile floor, causing the car to slow more quickly, unlike gravity, magnetism, or buoyancy, which do not explain this surface-dependent slowing.
51. Before conducting a classroom experiment involving vinegar and baking soda, a teacher reminds students to wear safety goggles and keep the mixture away from their faces. This instruction primarily addresses which aspect of scientific investigation?
- A. Laboratory safety procedures
- B. Hypothesis formation
- C. Data collection
- D. Drawing conclusions
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Reminding students to wear goggles and avoid contact with a reactive mixture is a safety precaution meant to prevent injury during a hands-on investigation, which is distinct from the investigative steps of forming a hypothesis, collecting data, or drawing conclusions.
52. A student records the daily high temperature for one month and creates a graph to look for patterns across the weeks. Which step of the scientific process is the student primarily engaged in?
- A. Replicating another scientist's experiment
- B. Forming a testable hypothesis
- C. Identifying a research question
- D. Collecting and analyzing data
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
Recording daily temperatures and graphing them to find patterns is the process of collecting and analyzing data, which typically occurs after a research question has been identified and a hypothesis has been formed, rather than being either of those earlier steps.
53. A teacher explains that Earth completes one full rotation on its axis approximately every 24 hours. Which daily phenomenon does this rotation primarily cause?
- A. The changing seasons
- B. The cycle of day and night
- C. The phases of the moon
- D. Ocean tides
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Earth's rotation on its axis every 24 hours causes different parts of the planet to face toward or away from the sun, producing the day-and-night cycle, whereas seasons result mainly from Earth's tilted axis and orbit, moon phases result from the moon's orbit, and tides result mainly from gravitational pull.
54. A class conducts an experiment testing how different amounts of water affect bean seed germination, using identical cups, soil, and light conditions for every group. What is the amount of water in this experiment referred to as?
- A. The constant
- B. The dependent variable
- C. The control group
- D. The independent variable
Show answer & explanation
Answer: D
The independent variable is the factor the experimenter deliberately changes to observe its effect, which here is the amount of water, while the identical cups, soil, and light are the constants, and the resulting germination outcome being measured would be the dependent variable.
55. A teacher shows students pictures of a caterpillar, a chrysalis, and a butterfly and asks them to sequence the stages of development shown. This lesson is primarily teaching which life science concept?
- A. Metamorphosis and animal life cycles
- B. Food chains
- C. Photosynthesis
- D. The water cycle
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
Sequencing the caterpillar, chrysalis, and butterfly stages teaches metamorphosis, the process by which some animals undergo distinct developmental stages, which is unrelated to photosynthesis in plants, the water cycle, or feeding relationships shown in food chains.
56. A teacher asks students to identify which color is created when blue and yellow paint are mixed together during a painting activity. Which art concept is being taught through this exercise?
- A. Texture
- B. Color mixing and secondary colors
- C. Perspective
- D. Symmetry
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Mixing two primary colors like blue and yellow to create a new color teaches the concept of secondary colors formed through color mixing, which is distinct from perspective as an illusion of depth, texture as surface quality, or symmetry as balanced arrangement.
57. A teacher has students interview a grandparent about what daily life was like fifty years ago and record the responses in their own words. This activity teaches students to gather information through which method?
- A. Reviewing a prepared timeline
- B. Conducting an oral history interview as a primary source
- C. Analyzing a physical map
- D. Reading a secondary textbook account
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Interviewing someone with firsthand experience of a historical period and recording their account creates a primary source through oral history, which differs from reading an already-written secondary textbook, analyzing maps, or reviewing prepared timelines.
58. A student wants to find out whether plants grow taller with more sunlight. She sets up two identical plants, gives one extra light each day, and keeps the soil, water, and pot size the same for both. What is this practice of keeping other factors the same designed to control?
- A. The classroom temperature only
- B. The type of soil used
- C. Variables other than the one being tested
- D. The plant's height only
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Controlling variables besides the one being tested, in this case light, ensures that any difference in growth can be attributed to the light exposure alone rather than another uncontrolled factor, which is the core purpose of a fair, controlled experiment.
59. A first-grade teacher notices a student can identify the beginning and ending sounds in spoken words but struggles to blend sounds together to read unfamiliar words. Which instructional strategy would most directly address this gap?
- A. Explicit instruction in blending phonemes to decode words
- B. Silent sustained reading time
- C. Repeated echo reading of predictable texts
- D. Vocabulary flashcard drills
Show answer & explanation
Answer: A
The student's difficulty is specifically with blending, a phonics skill, so explicit blending instruction targets that skill directly, while the other strategies build fluency, vocabulary, or independent reading stamina without teaching the blending process itself.
60. A kindergarten teacher wants to build phonological awareness before introducing letter-sound correspondence. Which activity is most appropriate for this purpose?
- A. Timed sight-word quizzes
- B. Clapping out syllables in classmates' names
- C. Independent journal writing
- D. Having students copy letters from a worksheet
Show answer & explanation
Answer: B
Phonological awareness is an oral, print-free skill involving hearing and manipulating sounds in spoken language, so clapping syllables develops this skill without requiring letter recognition, whereas the other options involve print or fluency skills that come later.
61. A physical education teacher times how long students can hold a plank position to assess one aspect of their physical condition. Which component of physical fitness is being assessed by this task?
- A. Body composition
- B. Cardiovascular endurance
- C. Muscular endurance
- D. Flexibility
Show answer & explanation
Answer: C
Holding a static position like a plank for as long as possible measures muscular endurance, the ability of a muscle or muscle group to sustain repeated contractions over time, which differs from flexibility as range of motion, cardiovascular endurance as heart and lung stamina, or body composition as the ratio of fat to lean tissue.

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Key facts: TExES Core Subjects EC-6 exam

210

MCQ questions

240 scaled score on…

To pass

Time limit

$116

Exam fee

The TExES Core Subjects EC-6 is administered by Texas Education Agency (TEA) / Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES) program, administered by Pearson (NES), with 210 scored questions, a 5 hours time limit and a 240 scaled score on each of the 5 Subject Exams (pass every exam; TEA reports the overall result as Passed/Not Passed with no total passing score) result.

This free TExES Core Subjects EC-6 practice test has 61 original questions written to Texas Education Agency (TEA) / Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES) program, administered by Pearson (NES)'s official content outline, last checked against it on August 9, 2026. Every question shows a worked explanation, and nothing here requires a signup.

As of 2026, the TExES Core Subjects EC-6 exam fee is $116 ($116 for the full 5-Subject-Exam test; $58 per Subject Exam if taken separately).

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Official sources

Every exam fact on this page traces to a primary document published by the body that administers the exam.

TExES Core Subjects EC-6 (391) Test Page — Texas Educator Certification Examination ProgramTexas Education Agency (TEA) / Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES) program, administered by Pearson (NES)tx.nesinc.com
TExES Core Subjects EC-6 (391) Preparation Manual / Study Guide — Test FrameworkTexas Education Agency (TEA) / Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES) program, administered by Pearson (NES)tx.nesinc.com
TExES Payment Information — Texas Educator Certification Examination ProgramTexas Education Agency (TEA) / Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES) program, administered by Pearson (NES)tx.nesinc.com

Last verified against the official exam content outline: August 9, 2026

Frequently asked questions

How many questions are on the real TExES Core Subjects EC-6 exam?

The full exam has 210 selected-response questions spread across five separate Subject Exams: English Language Arts and Reading, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science, and Fine Arts, Health and Physical Education. Practicing with questions organized the same way helps you gauge readiness subject by subject.

What score do I need on practice tests before I'm ready for the real exam?

On the actual test, you need a scaled score of 240 on each of the five Subject Exams, and you must pass every one of them to pass overall. Aim to consistently hit that bar on practice sets for each subject before scheduling your appointment.

Can I practice and test one subject at a time instead of all five at once?

Yes. The real exam lets you take all five Subject Exams together for $116 or register for individual Subject Exams at $58 each, so you can focus your practice on one weak subject and test it separately if that fits your study plan better.

How should I actually use a practice test to prepare?

Treat each practice set like a timed rehearsal for one subject area, review every missed question against the underlying content standard, and repeat until your accuracy is stable across attempts. Pairing practice questions with the official NES study guide for your weakest subject tends to close gaps fastest.

Is this practice test free, and do I need to sign up?

Yes, you can work through the practice questions here at no cost and without creating an account. It's meant as a quick way to check your grasp of each subject before you commit to the official registration fee.