The four ELPAC domains
The ELPAC measures English language proficiency in four domains. Listening and speaking form the Oral Language composite; reading and writing form the Written Language composite.
How the domains combine
The overall score draws on both composites, so progress in oral and written language both matter. Exact weights vary by grade; the official score reports explain them.
Oral Language composite
Combines Listening and Speaking: understanding spoken classroom English, and speaking in conversation and about academic topics.
Written Language composite
Combines Reading and Writing: understanding grade-level texts and vocabulary, and writing clear sentences and paragraphs.
Listening
Part of the Oral Language composite
The Listening domain measures how well students understand spoken English in academic and social school settings. Questions feature recorded conversations between students, announcements from school staff, and classroom instructional stories.
Practice on this site
- Recorded audio for every listening passage
- Original conversations, announcements, stories, and short lessons
- Written transcript available under each passage
- An explanation after every answer, right or wrong
Speaking
Part of the Oral Language composite
The Speaking domain measures a student’s ability to communicate effectively in English: summarizing information, supporting opinions with reasons, recounting life experiences, and presenting academic topics.
Practice on this site
- Record your answer in the browser and play it back
- Optional automatic transcription, off unless you turn it on
- Personalized feedback on what you said, read from the transcript — not an official score
- Scoring rubric and a sample response for every prompt
Reading
Part of the Written Language composite
The Reading domain measures reading comprehension of literary stories, informational science and history articles, charts, and student essays. Students analyze main ideas, author purpose, text structure, and academic vocabulary in context.
Practice on this site
- Original literary and informational reading passages
- Multiple-choice questions answered from the text
- Notes explaining why each wrong answer is wrong
- Questions on main ideas, details, inference, and word meaning
Writing
Part of the Written Language composite
The Writing domain assesses paragraph development, sentence structure, punctuation, and academic argumentation. Students complete stories from pictures, write informational reports, and justify an opinion with supporting evidence.
Practice on this site
- Writing workspace with a live word count
- Optional practice timer
- Drafts saved in this browser
- Personalized feedback on your answer when you ask for it — not an official score
- The scoring rubric and a sample response to compare with
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the California Department of Education or the official ELPAC program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published task formats.