A bike trail is 54 kilometers long. A sign stands at the end of every 6 kilometers. How many signs are on the trail?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.A.3
A cranberry grower packs 9 crates with 7 bags of berries in each crate. How many bags does the grower pack?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.A.3
A farmer divides 81 hay bales equally among 9 stalls. How many bales go to each stall?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.C.6
A school bus has 5 rows with 4 riders in each row. At the next stop 3 more riders get on. How many riders are on the bus now?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.D.7
Show all 44 questions (40 more)
Operations and Algebraic Thinking, continued
At a county fair, a cheese stand sets out 6 baskets with 8 cheese curds in each basket. Which expression gives the total number of curds?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.A.1
Each ice fishing shanty on a lake has 6 holes cut in the ice. How many holes do 9 shanties have?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.C.6
Greta puts 72 stickers into a binder, 8 on each page. Which equation can be used to find p, the number of pages she fills?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.A.3
Ingrid finds 8 × 7 by splitting the 7 into 5 and 2. Which expression shows her plan?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.B.4
Lupe picks 50 cherries in Door County. She eats 8 and puts the rest equally into 6 jars. How many cherries are in each jar?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.D.7
Mateo does not remember 48 ÷ 6, so he turns it into a multiplication question. Which fact answers it?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.B.5
Pa Chia shares 42 maple candies equally among 7 cousins. What does the quotient 42 ÷ 7 tell her?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.A.2
Soren has learned that 7 × 6 = 42. Which fact comes free with it?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.B.4
Thao skip-counts by fours: 4, 8, 12, 16, 20. She says every number she lands on is even. Which reason explains it?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.D.8
Which story matches the expression 4 × 9?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Operations and Algebraic Thinking; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.OA.A.1
Number and Operation in Base Ten 5
A cheese maker fills 7 racks with 60 wheels of cheese on each rack. How many wheels is that?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation in Base Ten; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NBT.A.3
A county museum counted 527 visitors on Saturday and 386 on Sunday. How many visitors came on the two days?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation in Base Ten; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NBT.A.2
A dairy farm has 286 brown cows and 412 spotted cows. Which is the best estimate of the size of the herd?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation in Base Ten; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NBT.A.1
A lake ferry has 704 seats. On one trip 268 seats are empty. How many seats are filled?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation in Base Ten; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NBT.A.2
Odalys needs 600 box tops for a class prize and has 388. She estimates that she needs about 100 more. Is her estimate too low or too high?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation in Base Ten; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NBT.A.1
Number and Operation – Fractions 9
A number line is marked in thirds. A cricket starts at 0 and makes 5 hops that are each 1/3 long. Where does it land?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.2
A quilt square is cut into 8 equal strips. Which fraction of the square is the same amount as 1/2 of it?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.3
A trail map has a number line from 0 to 1 mile that is split into 6 equal lengths. What number belongs at the first mark after 0?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.2
A wheel of Colby cheese is sliced into 8 equal wedges. One wedge is what fraction of the wheel?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.1
Kai and Lena each have a granola bar of the same size. Kai eats 3/8 of his and Lena eats 5/8 of hers. Which comparison is true?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.3
Kou marks 4/6 on a number line. Which fraction lands on the very same point?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.3
Mr. Vang says the fraction 7/4 is built from copies of 1/4. How many copies does it take?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.1
Three whole pies sit on a counter and none has been cut. Which fraction names the number of pies?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.3
Two jump ropes are the same length. One is cut into 3 equal pieces and the other into 6 equal pieces. Which is true of one piece from each rope?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Number and Operation – Fractions; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.NF.A.3
Measurement and Data 11
A barn door is 6 feet wide and 9 feet tall. What is the area of the door?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.C.7
A garden bed is shaped like the letter T: a rectangle 7 feet by 2 feet on top of a rectangle 3 feet by 4 feet, with no overlap. What is its area?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.C.7
A line plot shows the lengths of 8 oak leaves. Three X marks are above 2 1/2 inches, four are above 3 inches and one is above 3 1/4 inches. How many leaves are shorter than 3 inches?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.B.4
A rectangular ice rink has a perimeter of 34 meters and a length of 11 meters. What is its width?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.D.8
A sap bucket holds 12 liters of maple sap. Sam pours 5 liters into the boiling pan. How many liters are left in the bucket?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.A.2
A snowplow starts clearing the school lot at 7:48 a.m. and finishes 27 minutes later. What time does it finish?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.A.1
Emi covers a shape on her desk with 15 square tiles that are each 1 square unit. The tiles leave no gaps and do not overlap. What is the area of the shape?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.C.5
In a bar graph of favorite fair foods, each square stands for 5 votes. The bar for corn dogs is 6 squares tall and the bar for cream puffs is 4 squares tall. How many more votes did corn dogs get?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.B.3
In a picture graph, each fish symbol stands for 2 fish caught. Saturday has 7 symbols. How many fish were caught on Saturday?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.B.3
Nora starts milking at 6:15 a.m. and finishes at 6:52 a.m. For how many minutes does she milk?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.A.1
One wheel of cheese has a mass of 4 kilograms. What is the mass of 6 wheels?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Measurement and Data; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.MD.A.2
Geometry 5
A round cheese is cut into 4 parts with equal areas, and 3 of the parts are sold. What fraction of the cheese is sold?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Geometry; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.G.A.2
A shape has four sides of the same length and four square corners. Which list has only names that fit it?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Geometry; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.G.A.1
A window is made of 6 panes with equal areas. One pane is what fraction of the area of the window?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Geometry; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.G.A.2
Rosa draws a quadrilateral that is not a rectangle, a rhombus or a square. Which could be her shape?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Geometry; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.G.A.1
Wes sorts shape cards into a pile labeled quadrilaterals. He adds a rectangle, a rhombus and a square. What do the three cards share?Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprint, Grade 3, Geometry; Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), M.3.G.A.1
How this list was compiled: Outline: Forward Exam Mathematics Blueprints, Grades 3-8, Mathematics Blueprint Grade 3, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, https://dpi.wi.gov/media/26847/download?inline, and Wisconsin Forward Exam 2026 Test Designs, https://dpi.wi.gov/media/26486/download?inline, both linked from Forward Exam Resources, https://dpi.wi.gov/assessment/forward/resources, read 2026-10-12: the reporting categories, their cluster statements and possible points, and the number of questions. Each question names the standard it practices in the Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021), https://dpi.wi.gov/media/27134/download?inline, read 2026-10-12. The answers are arithmetic on the numbers in the question, each worked a second time. Licence: Own work. Questions, answer choices and explanations were written for this site. Nothing is copied or reworded from a Forward Exam, the department's practice test, a sample item or another practice test. The department's grade 3 mathematics practice test was not read.
How it works
Unofficial practice for the mathematics section of the Wisconsin Forward Exam in grade 3. The 44 questions are our own, one for each point of the state blueprint. Not affiliated with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Read the full guide
What Forward testing practice for 3rd grade math covers
The blueprint spreads 44 points over five reporting categories. Operations and Algebraic Thinking has the most, 13 to 15: multiplying and dividing within 100, the properties behind the facts, two-step word problems and patterns. Measurement and Data has 10 to 12: time to the minute, liters and kilograms, scaled graphs, area and perimeter. Fractions has 8 to 10: unit fractions, the number line, equal fractions and comparing. Base Ten and Geometry have 4 to 6 each.
The Wisconsin standard under each answer
Each explanation names its standard, such as M.3.OA.D.7, in the Wisconsin Standards for Mathematics (2021). That edition renumbered part of grade 3 and prints each 2010 number beside the new one, so a code may not match an older workbook.
Neither session allows a calculator, so work the multiplication and division facts by hand.
The standards limit fractions on the grade 3 test to denominators 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8.
Questions and answers
Is there a Forward Exam practice test for 3rd grade from the state?
Yes. The Department of Public Instruction posts a grade 3 mathematics practice test, online and as a PDF, on its Forward Exam practice test page. The box under the questions links to it. None of its questions is used on this page.
How many questions are on the 3rd grade Forward Exam math test?
46, in two sessions of 23. Of those, 38 are scored, for 44 points, and 8 are field test questions that do not count.
How long does the 3rd grade Forward Exam take?
It has no time limit. For scheduling, the department suggests 45 minutes for each of the two mathematics sessions, and says students may take more time or less.
What score is Meeting on the 3rd grade Forward Exam in math?
From 1548 to 1596 on a scale that runs from 1370 to 1740. Below it are Developing and Approaching, and above it Advanced, which starts at 1597. A percent on this page is practice only.