ELPAC Practice

ELPAC reading practice questions for grades 9–10

Passages followed by comprehension questions, plus word and sentence choice tasks.

These 32 questions are grouped by task type, one group at a time. Answer a question to see whether it was right and why. Nothing is timed and nothing is recorded.

Set 1 of 5. 0 of 32 questions answered.

Read a Short Informational Passage

A brief factual text — a notice, a label, a set of instructions — followed by questions.

Read the notice. Then answer the questions.

Notice: Stockroom Safety

All employees assigned to the stockroom must complete the ladder safety module before their first shift there. Closed-toe shoes are required at all times, and sandals are not permitted past the swinging door. Any box weighing more than forty pounds carries a yellow label. Do not lift a yellow-labeled box on your own; use the rolling cart or ask a second employee to help you. Report every spill to the shift lead immediately, even if you have already cleaned it up, so that it can be entered in the log. Employees under the age of eighteen may not operate the baler or the forklift under any circumstances.

Question 1 of 5

Choose the best answer.

An employee needs to move a box marked with a yellow label. According to the notice, what should the employee do?

Question 2 of 5

Choose the best answer.

Why does the notice ask employees to report a spill even after they have already cleaned it up?

Read this part of the course syllabus. Then answer the question.

Biology 1 Syllabus: Grading and Late Work

Your grade in this course comes from four categories: laboratory work, forty percent; unit exams, thirty percent; homework, twenty percent; and the final project, ten percent. Laboratory work cannot be made up after the fact, because the equipment is returned to the district at the end of each unit. If you are absent on a lab day, see me within two school days to arrange an alternative assignment. Homework turned in late receives half credit for up to one week and no credit after that. A unit exam may be retaken once, but the retake score replaces the original score whether it is higher or lower. Extra credit is not offered in this course.

Question 3 of 5

Choose the best answer.

A student is absent on a lab day. According to the syllabus, what must that student do?

Read the notice. Then answer the questions.

Borrowing a Laptop from the Library

Library card holders aged fourteen and older may borrow a laptop for up to three weeks. Borrowers under eighteen need a parent or guardian to sign the lending agreement in person the first time; after that, the student may check out laptops alone. There is no charge for borrowing, and a laptop may be renewed once if no one is waiting for it. Laptops must be returned to the service desk, not to the outdoor book drop, because the drop can crack the screen. Every laptop erases all saved files as soon as it is checked back in, so save your work to a USB drive or an online account before you return it. A laptop that is still out one week after its due date is reported as lost, and the borrower's card is blocked until the laptop is returned or replaced.

Question 4 of 5

Choose the best answer.

A fifteen-year-old with a library card wants to borrow a laptop for the first time. According to the notice, what must happen?

Question 5 of 5

Choose the best answer.

Why does the notice tell borrowers to save their work to a USB drive or an online account?

5 questions in this set are still unanswered. You can move on without answering them.

Ready for the whole thing? Take the mixed practice test 1 for Grades 9–10.

Every answer, explained

Each question has its own page with the correct answer and why each other choice is wrong.

Read a Short Informational Passage

  1. An employee needs to move a box marked with a yellow label. According to the notice…
  2. Why does the notice ask employees to report a spill even after they have already cleaned…
  3. A student is absent on a lab day. According to the syllabus, what must that student do?
  4. A fifteen-year-old with a library card wants to borrow a laptop for the first time…
  5. Why does the notice tell borrowers to save their work to a USB drive or an online account?

Read a Literary Passage

  1. Why does Nadia find her mother's calm more unnerving than shouting would have been?
  2. Read this phrase from the passage: “by the second mile the orchard rows had dissolved…
  3. What does the detail about Nadia's shoulders coming down half an inch suggest?
  4. Why does the author end the passage with the mother's words, “Again next Saturday”?
  5. Why does Lina miss the stop for her school?
  6. Read this sentence from the passage: “Sami looked up at her with his whole face, waiting…
  7. How does Lina figure out which way to walk to school?
  8. How has Lina changed by the end of the passage?

Read an Informational Passage

  1. What is the central idea of the passage?
  2. According to the passage, why is adding trees to an already-paved neighborhood slow and…
  3. In this passage, what does the word canopy mean?
  4. The passage ends by saying that paying for maintenance and hiring neighborhood residents…
  5. What is the central idea of the passage?
  6. Which detail from the passage best explains why an alert can reach people before the…
  7. According to the passage, why might a person very close to where an earthquake begins…
  8. Why does the author include the examples of trains, elevators and a surgeon in the fifth…

Read a Student Essay

  1. Which sentence contains an error in subject-verb agreement?
  2. Which sentence is missing a word?
  3. Which sentence uses the wrong verb tense?
  4. Which sentence uses an adjective where an adverb is needed?

Vocabulary and Grammar in Context

  1. The results of the traffic survey ______ that most drivers slow down when a crossing…
  2. After weeks of testing, the team was finally ready to draw a ______ about which material…
  3. By the time the inspector arrived, the crew ______ already shut off the water to the…
  4. The new battery held its charge for eleven hours in the laboratory; ______, it lasted…
  5. The teenager ______ the dog by its shoulders so that the veterinarian can wrap the…
  6. Three movers push the piano up the ramp, and a fourth mover, ______ inside the truck…
  7. The volunteers are ______ the marsh by pressing young plants into the mud along the line…

Read next

  • How to Prepare for the ELPAC: Effective ELPAC preparation is about steady daily language development rather than frantic test cramming. Here is a practical, domain-by-domain guide for parents and teachers.
  • ELPAC Scores Explained: A Summative ELPAC report gives an overall performance level from 1 to 4, plus separate results for oral language and written language. Here is what each part means, and what it does not mean.

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.