MLS Sample Math Questions

Welcome to the MLS Sample Math Questions Site

The purpose of this website is to provide examples of the types of questions found in the MLS math tests. Our intention is for teachers to use these examples while looking at the Student Performance Reports to better understand students' skills and abilities.  

This guide contains sample questions from previous New York State Mathematics Tests that represent similar test items on the MLS Math test. Since both tests measure the New York State Next Generation Mathematics Learning Standards (NGLS), examples in each grade level are organized by domain and then further labeled with the standard they represent within that domain. 

Test item creation involves multiple criteria, such as verifying text complexity of math items, questions types, vocabulary, and proportionally representing standards within each grade level, as compared to NYS Math tests. The samples provided here illustrate not only the complexity of MLS test items, but also the proportion of standards tested within each grade level. To reflect these similarities, some domains within each grade level contain more examples than others. 

Navigate to Each Section

Page Layouts

Table of Contents: On each page you will find a table of contents. Click any link in the table to jump down to a particular section. 

Examples: Each example math item is labeled by the NGLS standard it represents. This will give you an idea of similar math questions students should expect to see at that grade level on the MLS. 

Rationale and Additional Information: The "Rationale and Additional Information" section is a drop-down. Opening this section will give you detailed information about the mathematical concepts the question is assessing, the answer to the question, and the NYS test item and year that the example was taken from. In cases where the test item is from a year prior to the introduction of the NGLS, the standard has been aligned using the NYS crosswalks provided on the NYSED website. 

For more information about citations, crosswalks, and curriculum, please see our Resources section.