Two. No calculator is allowed in either session in grades 3 to 6.
Reporting categories
Ratios and Proportional Relationships 20%, The Number System 20%, Expressions and Equations 30%, Geometry 15%, Statistics and Probability 15%, each within 5 poi
Question types
Multiple choice, multiple select, technology enhanced, short answer and constructed response.
Questions that do not count
Five more 1- or 2-point questions and one more constructed-response question are field test or equating questions.
Results
Four achievement levels: Exceeding, Meeting, Partially Meeting and Not Meeting Expectations.
A bag holds 6 red marbles and 9 blue marbles. What is the ratio of red marbles to all the marbles in the bag?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.1
A block of metal has a mass of 54 grams and a volume of 20 cubic centimeters. A second block of the same metal has a volume of 50 cubic centimeters. What is the mass of the second block?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.3e
A paint color is mixed from 3 cups of blue for every 4 cups of white. How many cups of blue are needed for 20 cups of white?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.3a
A printer prints 180 pages in 12 minutes at a steady rate. What is the unit rate?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.2
In a school club, 18 members play chess. They are 30% of the club. How many members does the club have?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.3c
Show all 40 questions (35 more)
Ratios and Proportional Relationships, continued
Store A sells 5 notebooks for $8.75. Store B sells 8 of the same notebooks for $13.20. Which store has the lower price for one notebook, and by how much?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.3b
There are 12 inches in 1 foot. A board is 5 feet 3 inches long. How long is the board in inches?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.3d
What is 65% of 40?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.RP.A.3c
The Number System 8
A cook has 3/4 pound of cheese and puts 1/8 pound on each sandwich. How many sandwiches can the cook make?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.A.1
Four bank accounts have these balances: −$45, −$30, −$12 and $20. Which balance shows a debt greater than $30?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.C.7d
On a map grid, a library is at (−4, 3) and a park is at (5, 3). How many units apart are they?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.C.8
The point (−7, 4) is reflected across the x-axis. What are the coordinates of the new point?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.C.6b
What is 2/3 ÷ 4/5?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.A.1
What is 4.8 × 0.35?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.B.3
What is 9,361 ÷ 23?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.B.2
Which expression shows 42 + 56 as the greatest common factor of the two numbers times a sum of two numbers with no common factor?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.NS.B.4
Expressions and Equations 12
A dog walker charges $12 for each walk. The total cost is c dollars for w walks. Which equation fits, and which variable is the dependent variable?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.C.9
A freezer must stay colder than −5°C. Which inequality shows every temperature t, in degrees Celsius, that is allowed?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.B.8
How many terms are in the expression 3a + 5b + 8?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.2b
Maya paid $31.50 for 6 movie tickets that all cost the same. The equation 6t = 31.50 gives the price t of one ticket. What is t?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.B.7
Solve for x: x + 3/4 = 2 1/2Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.B.7
What is the value of 2x² − 3x when x = 5?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.2c
What is the value of 6 + 2 × 4²?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.1
Which expression is equivalent to 5n − 2n + n?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.4
Which expression is equivalent to 9(4x + 3)?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.3
Which expression is equivalent to 18a + 24b?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.3
Which expression means "7 less than the product of 4 and n"?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.A.2a
Which value of x from the set {4, 5, 6, 7} makes the inequality 3x + 2 > 20 true?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.EE.B.5
Geometry 6
A box is a right rectangular prism 2 1/2 inches long, 4 inches wide and 1 1/2 inches high. What is its volume?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.G.A.2
A rectangle has vertices at (−3, 2), (5, 2), (5, −1) and (−3, −1). What is its perimeter?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.G.A.3
A trapezoid has parallel sides of 10 feet and 6 feet and a height of 5 feet. It can be split into a 6-by-5 rectangle and two right triangles whose bases total 4 feet. What is its area?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.G.A.1
A triangle has a base of 18 centimeters and a height of 11 centimeters. What is its area?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.G.A.1
The net of a rectangular prism shows six rectangles. The prism is 5 centimeters long, 3 centimeters wide and 2 centimeters high. What is its surface area?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.G.A.4
The net of a square pyramid has a square base with sides of 6 inches and four matching triangles, each with a base of 6 inches and a height of 5 inches. What is the surface area of the pyramid?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.G.A.4
Statistics and Probability 6
A circle graph shows the 300 books in a class library: fiction 40%, science 25%, history 20%, poetry 15%. How many more fiction books than poetry books are there?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.SP.B.4a
A student scored 82, 90, 76, 88 and 94 on five tests. What is the mean score?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.SP.B.5c
Six friends get these weekly allowances: $5, $5, $6, $7, $7 and $40. Which measure best describes a typical allowance in the group?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.SP.B.5d
What is the interquartile range of this data set? 3, 5, 6, 8, 11, 12, 14Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.SP.B.5c
What is the median of this data set? 3, 7, 8, 12, 15, 21Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.SP.A.3
Which of these is a statistical question?Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics (2017), grade 6, standard 6.SP.A.1
How this list was compiled: Outline: MCAS Test Information for Grades 3-8 Mathematics, Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, https://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/tdd/testdesign/g3-8-math.docx, linked from Mathematics Test Design and Development, https://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/tdd/math.html?section=testdesign, read 2026-10-09. Each question names the grade 6 standard it practices in the 2017 Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics, https://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/math/2017-06.pdf, read 2026-10-09. No released item and no practice test of the department was read. The answers are arithmetic on the numbers in the question, worked out a second time. Licence: Own work. Questions, answer choices and explanations were written for this site. Nothing is copied or reworded from an MCAS test, a released item, a practice test of the department or another practice test.
How it works
Unofficial sixth grade practice for the MCAS math test in Massachusetts. All 40 questions are original to this site and follow the 2017 state framework. Not affiliated with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Read the full guide
What the grade 6 math MCAS covers
Massachusetts sorts the grade 6 test into five reporting categories. Expressions and Equations has the largest share, 30 percent: exponents, writing and evaluating expressions, one-step equations and inequalities. Ratios and Proportional Relationships and The Number System have 20 percent each, covering unit rates, percents, dividing fractions, decimals and negative numbers. Geometry and Statistics and Probability have 15 each. Every share can vary by 5 points.
Standards and checks
Each question lists its standard in the 2017 Massachusetts framework, such as 6.RP.A.3c. Two questions, on relating mass to volume and reading circle graphs, practice standards 6.RP.A.3e and 6.SP.B.4a of that framework. Every answer is arithmetic on the numbers given and was worked out twice.
Grade 6 allows no calculator in either session, so work each question on paper.
Questions and answers
How many questions are on the grade 6 math MCAS?
The grade 6 design has 40 common questions worth 54 points. Of these, 34 are worth one point, 2 are worth two, and 4 are constructed-response questions worth four points each. Six more are field test or equating questions that add nothing to the score.
Can you use a calculator on the 6th grade math MCAS?
No. The test has two sessions, and the state's test design allows no calculator in either one for grades 3 to 6. Calculators start in grade 7, in Session 2 only.
What are the MCAS achievement levels in grade 6 math?
There are four: Exceeding, Meeting, Partially Meeting and Not Meeting Expectations. Meeting Expectations means the student met grade-level expectations and is on track in the subject. The percent on this page is not one of these levels.
Are these released MCAS grade 6 math questions?
No. All 40 are original to this site, and no released item was read to write them. For the department's own released questions and practice tests, follow the link in the box under the questions.