2021 STAAR Grade 8 Reading

Content accessed from https://tea.texas.gov/student-assessment/testing/staar/staar-released-test-questions
Copyright information provided below.
All content on this site is copyrighted by the Texas Education Agency and cannot be used without the express written permission of TEA, except under the following conditions:
Texas public school districts, charter schools, and education service centers can copy materials for district and school educational use.
Residents of the state of Texas can copy materials for personal use.
Do not alter or make partial copies of web content. Do not charge for the reproduced materials or any document containing them except to cover the cost of reproduction and distribution.
If you are in Texas but are not an employee of a Texas public school district or charter school, you must get written approval from TEA to copy materials and enter into a license agreement that may involve paying a licensing fee or a royalty fee.
For more information, email Copyrights@tea.texas.gov.

How is Lucy’s behavior in paragraph 23 important to the resolution of her conflict?

In paragraph 20, what does the word potential mean?

Read paragraph 21.

What does this paragraph reveal about Lucy at this point in the selection?

Why are the events in paragraphs 1 and 2 important to the plot?

What does the use of the third-person limited point of view allow the author to emphasize?

What is the best summary of this selection?

A major turning point occurs in the selection when Lucy —

Based on Lucy’s interactions with her classmates, which statement best expresses the major theme explored in this selection?

Based on paragraphs 4 and 5 of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature,” what can be concluded about the study of newly discovered animals?

In the selection “A Ghostly New Creature,” the author includes the photograph of the octopod most likely to help the reader better understand —

What is the best summary of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

In the selection “A Ghostly New Creature,” which idea about the octopod best explains why the author includes the map?

What can the reader conclude from Michael Vecchione’s comments throughout the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

Read the dictionary entry for the word screen.

Which definition best matches the way the word screening is used in paragraph 1 of the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists”?

Throughout the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists,” which idea about tiny frogs does the author highlight?

Based on information in the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists,” what can the reader conclude about the Brazilian frogs?

For what reason does the author include the photograph after paragraph 3 of the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists”?

In the selections “A Ghostly New Creature” and “Tiptoeing Scientists,” how are Michael Vecchione’s work and Marcio Pie’s work different?

One similarity between the scientists in the selections “A Ghostly New Creature” and “Tiptoeing Scientists” is that they both —

In what way is scientist C. I. Moore from the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” unlike Michael Vecchione from the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

Read this sentence from paragraph 8 of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature.”

Which sentence from the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” is related to this idea?

How do the frogs in the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” differ from the octopod in the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

In stanza 2 (lines 7–12), the reader can tell that the speaker feels —

The simile in stanza 1 (lines 1–6) helps show that the speaker —

What message does the poet hope to convey in the poem?

Which lines from the poem best identify the source of the speaker’s conflict?

What is the effect of the two-word sentences in lines 19 through 21?

Read stanza 6 (lines 28–33).

What is the poet suggesting by referring to the speaker’s “invisible twin”?

What is the most likely reason the author includes the information in paragraphs 16 through 19?

What is the most likely reason the author includes paragraphs 12 through 14?

What is the best summary of the selection?

Based on paragraphs 7 through 9, why might people assume that food forests are a “spin-off” of community gardens?

Which idea does the author highlight throughout the selection?

What is the most likely reason the author wrote this selection?

Read this sentence from paragraph 6.

What does this sentence help the reader to understand?

In paragraphs 7 and 8, what is the most likely reason the author contrasts food forests with community gardens?

The author develops the thesis of the selection mainly by —

What does the word ultimately mean in line 17?

Read line 26.

The playwright uses figurative language in these sentences to show that Alyssa —

Scene 2 is important to the play because it foreshadows that Samantha —

What is the best summary of scene 2?

The playwright shows that Alyssa has matured by revealing Alyssa’s —

What inference can the reader make based on the events that take place in scene 4?

Read Alyssa’s dialogue from line 4.

What does the playwright suggest about Samantha through the metaphor in this dialogue?

How is Lucy’s behavior in paragraph 23 important to the resolution of her conflict?

In paragraph 20, what does the word potential mean?

Read paragraph 21.What does this paragraph reveal about Lucy at this point in the selection?

Why are the events in paragraphs 1 and 2 important to the plot?

What does the use of the third-person limited point of view allow the author to emphasize?

What is the best summary of this selection?

A major turning point occurs in the selection when Lucy —

Based on Lucy’s interactions with her classmates, which statement best expresses the major theme explored in this selection?

Based on paragraphs 4 and 5 of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature,” what can be concluded about the study of newly discovered animals?

In the selection “A Ghostly New Creature,” the author includes the photograph of the octopod most likely to help the reader better understand —

What is the best summary of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

In the selection “A Ghostly New Creature,” which idea about the octopod best explains why the author includes the map?

What can the reader conclude from Michael Vecchione’s comments throughout the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

Read the dictionary entry for the word screen.Which definition best matches the way the word screening is used in paragraph 1 of the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists”?

Throughout the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists,” which idea about tiny frogs does the author highlight?

Based on information in the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists,” what can the reader conclude about the Brazilian frogs?

For what reason does the author include the photograph after paragraph 3 of the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists”?

In the selections “A Ghostly New Creature” and “Tiptoeing Scientists,” how are Michael Vecchione’s work and Marcio Pie’s work different?

One similarity between the scientists in the selections “A Ghostly New Creature” and “Tiptoeing Scientists” is that they both —

In what way is scientist C. I. Moore from the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” unlike Michael Vecchione from the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

Read this sentence from paragraph 8 of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature.”Which sentence from the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” is related to this idea?

How do the frogs in the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” differ from the octopod in the selection “A Ghostly New Creature”?

In stanza 2 (lines 7–12), the reader can tell that the speaker feels —

The simile in stanza 1 (lines 1–6) helps show that the speaker —

What message does the poet hope to convey in the poem?

Which lines from the poem best identify the source of the speaker’s conflict?

What is the effect of the two-word sentences in lines 19 through 21?

Read stanza 6 (lines 28–33).What is the poet suggesting by referring to the speaker’s “invisible twin”?

What is the most likely reason the author includes the information in paragraphs 16 through 19?

What is the most likely reason the author includes paragraphs 12 through 14?

What is the best summary of the selection?

Based on paragraphs 7 through 9, why might people assume that food forests are a “spin-off” of community gardens?

Which idea does the author highlight throughout the selection?

What is the most likely reason the author wrote this selection?

Read this sentence from paragraph 6.What does this sentence help the reader to understand?

In paragraphs 7 and 8, what is the most likely reason the author contrasts food forests with community gardens?

The author develops the thesis of the selection mainly by —

What does the word ultimately mean in line 17?

Read line 26.The playwright uses figurative language in these sentences to show that Alyssa —

Scene 2 is important to the play because it foreshadows that Samantha —

What is the best summary of scene 2?

The playwright shows that Alyssa has matured by revealing Alyssa’s —

What inference can the reader make based on the events that take place in scene 4?

Read Alyssa’s dialogue from line 4.What does the playwright suggest about Samantha through the metaphor in this dialogue?

Read paragraph 21.

What does this paragraph reveal about Lucy at this point in the selection?

Read the dictionary entry for the word screen.

Which definition best matches the way the word screening is used in paragraph 1 of the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists”?

Read this sentence from paragraph 8 of the selection “A Ghostly New Creature.”

Which sentence from the selection “Tiptoeing Scientists” is related to this idea?

Read stanza 6 (lines 28–33).

What is the poet suggesting by referring to the speaker’s “invisible twin”?

Read this sentence from paragraph 6.

What does this sentence help the reader to understand?

Read line 26.

The playwright uses figurative language in these sentences to show that Alyssa —

Read Alyssa’s dialogue from line 4.

What does the playwright suggest about Samantha through the metaphor in this dialogue?