Student Name: ____________________________

GRADE 8 MCAS LIFE SCIENCE

MULTIPLE CHOICE PRACTICE QUESTIONS
Strategies:
Underline or circle key vocabulary terms. This will help recall content.
Read all answer choices before selecting one. Choose the answer that is related to the
content.
Look for answer choices that are opposite. One of these is most likely the correct
answer.
Look for hints in the question or on other parts of the test. The answer may be
described on another part of the test.
Look for familiar context clues that your teacher may have used in the classroom.
GOOD LUCK
Questions organized in order by Life Science Standard.
Standard: 1 - Classify organisms into the currently recognized kingdoms according to characteristics
that they share. Be familiar with organisms from each kingdom.
#1. If a new organism were discovered, which of the following would most likely be
used to classify it into the appropriate kingdom?
A.

the color of the organism

B.

the organisms natural habitat

C.

the structure of the organisms anatomy

D.

the location where the organism was found

#2. The picture below shows a paramecium.

In which kingdom is the paramecium classified?

A.

Animalia

B.

Fungi

C.

Plantae
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D.

Protista

Standard: 2 - Recognize that all organisms are composed of cells, and that many organisms are singlecelled (unicellular), e.g., bacteria, yeast. In these single-celled organisms, one cell must carry out all of
the basic functions of life.
#3. The illustration below represents two protists.

What do these two organisms have in common?

A.

They are unicellular.

B.

They cause diseases.

C.

They live underground.

D.

They are photosynthetic.

Standard: 3 - Compare and contrast plant and animal cells, including major organelles (cell
membrane, cell wall, nucleus, cytoplasm, chloroplasts, mitochondria, vacuoles).
#4. A student prepared the following list of characteristics about a cellular organelle.

present in animal cells

present in plant cells

helps make energy available to the cell

Which of the following cellular structures is the student describing?

A.

cell wall

B.

chloroplast

C.

mitochondrion

D.

nucleus

#5. Substances enter any plant or animal cell by passing through which of the following structures?
A.

nucleus
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B.

cell membrane

C.

vacuole

D.

chloroplast

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Standard: 4 - Recognize that within cells, many of the basic functions of organisms (e.g., extracting
energy from food and getting rid of waste) are carried out. The way in which cells function is similar in
all living organisms.
#6. How is a skin cell from a mouse similar to an amoeba?
A.

Both need energy.

B.

Both have cell walls.

C.

Both move with pseudopodia.

D.

Both consume carbon dioxide.

Standard: 5 - Describe the hierarchical organization of multicellular organisms from cells to tissues to
organs to systems to organisms.
#7. Which of the following parts of the human body is most complex?
A.

Heart

B.

Kidney

C.

white blood cell

D.

central nervous system

Standard: 6 - Identify the general functions of the major systems of the human body (digestion,
respiration, reproduction, circulation, excretion, protection from disease, and movement, control, and
coordination) and describe ways that these systems interact with each other.
#8. The diagram below shows a major system of the human body.

Which of the following best describes the function of this system?

A.

absorbing nutrients from food

B.

protecting the body from infection

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C.

exchanging gases with the environment

D.

responding to stimuli in the environment

#9. Which body system typically recognizes, attacks, and destroys foreign cells or substances that
may cause disease?
A.

digestive

B.

excretory

C.

immune

D.

respiratory

#10. In the human body, which system functions primarily to defend the body against disease?
A.

digestive

B.

immune

C.

nervous

D.

respiratory

Standard: 7 - Recognize that every organism requires a set of instructions that specifies its traits.
These instructions are stored in the organism's chromosomes. Heredity is the passage of these
instructions from one generation to another.
#11. The cows in a ranchers herd of cattle have been selectively bred to produce milk. Which of the
following will cause the next generation of cows to receive the trait for producing large quantities of
milk?
A.

nutrients in the cows food

B.

essential minerals in the cows water

C.

electrical impulses in the cows brains

D.

information in the cows chromosomes

#12. The pictures below show two dogs of the same breed that have different coat colors.

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The instructions that determine coat color are stored in the

A.

cytoplasm of skin cells.

B.

membrane of every cell.

C.

mitochondria of hair cells.

D.

chromosomes of every cell.

Standard: 8 - Recognize that hereditary information is contained in genes located in the chromosomes
of each cell. A human cell contains about 30,000 different genes on 23 different chromosomes.
#13. Which of the following best describes the number of chromosomes in a normal
human liver cell?
A.

23 pairs of chromosomes

B.

46 different types of chromosomes

C.

46 male chromosomes and

46 female chromosomes

D.

23 original chromosomes and

23 duplicate chromosomes

Standard: 9 - Compare sexual reproduction (offspring inherit half of their genes from each parent) with
asexual reproduction (offspring is an identical copy of the parent's cell).
#14. Jerome crossed two purple-flowered plants. The offspring produced from this cross had either
white flowers or purple flowers, as shown in the table below.

Which of the following statements best explains why some of the offspring have white flowers?
A. These offspring were created by asexual reproduction.
B. These offspring were produced in a dark environment.
C. These offspring inherited a DNA sequence coding for white flowers from each parent plant.
D. These offspring inherited a DNA sequence coding for white flowers from only one parent plant.

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Standard: 10 - Give examples of ways in which genetic variation and environmental factors are causes
of evolution and the diversity of organisms.
#15. Which of the following is the primary advantage of sexual reproduction when
compared to asexual reproduction?
A.

There is a greater number of offspring.

B.

There is more food available to offspring.

C.

There is greater genetic variety in offspring.

D.

There is a longer development time for offspring.

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#16. One of the most common types of adaptations in plants involves the shape and structure of
each plants leaves. The surface area of leaves is related to the amount of water a plant loses.Based
on this information, which of the following plants is probably best adapted for living in a hot, dry
climate?
A.

B.

C.

D.

Standard: 11 - Recognize that evidence drawn from geology, fossils, and comparative anatomy
provides the basis of the theory of evolution.
#17. Comparing the skeletons of which of the following fish would best show the evolution of a fish
species?
A.

a male fish and a female fish that could produce offspring

B.

the same fish just before it received a cut and after it healed

C.

a fish that lived recently and a fish that lived a long time ago

D.

the same fish just after it hatched and when it was full-grown
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Standard: 12 - Relate the extinction of species to a mismatch of adaptation and the environment.
#18. Some types of bacteria can only live where oxygen is not present. These bacteria were well
adapted to life on Earth over 2 billion years ago.Which of the following changes caused many of
these bacteria to become extinct?
A.

the slow movement of tectonic plates

B.

the varying temperatures of each season

C.

an increase in volcanic activity under the oceans

D.

an increase in the number of photosynthetic organisms

Standard: 13 - Give examples of ways in which organisms interact and have different functions within
an ecosystem that enable the ecosystem to survive.
#19. Lichens are symbiotic organisms made of green algae and fungi. What do the
green algae supply to the fungi in this symbiotic relationship?
A.

carbon dioxide

B.

Food

C.

Protection

D.

Water

Standard: 14 - Explain the roles and relationships among producers, consumers, and decomposers in
the process of energy transfer in a food web.
#20. Most of the bacteria in a forest ecosystem are best classified as which of the following types of
organisms?
A.

consumers

B.

decomposers

C.

predators

D.

producers

Standard: 15 - Explain how dead plants and animals are broken down by other living organisms and
how this process contributes to the system as a whole.
#21. Which of the following best describes a role of mushrooms in ecosystems?
A.

capturing energy from sunlight

B.

consuming living plant material

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C.

taking energy from animal hosts

D.

breaking down dead plant material

Standard: 16 - Recognize that producers (plants that contain chlorophyll) use the energy from sunlight
to make sugars from carbon dioxide and water through a process called photosynthesis. This food can
be used immediately, stored for later use, or used by other organisms.
#22. Which of the following materials are direct products of photosynthesis?
A.

fats and starches

B.

oxygen and sugar

C.

proteins and amino acids

D.

carbon dioxide and water

#23. Which of the following statements best describes photosynthesis?

A.

Carbon dioxide and water are turned into sugar and oxygen.

B.

Sugar and oxygen are turned into water and carbon dioxide.

C.

Oxygen and carbon dioxide are turned into water and sugar.

D.

Water and sugar are turned into oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Standard: 17 - Identify ways in which ecosystems have changed throughout geologic time in response
to physical conditions, interactions among organisms, and the actions of humans. Describe how
changes may be catastrophes such as volcanic eruptions or ice storms.
#24. Human activity most likely contributes to which of the following changes on Earth?
A.

an increase in the length of a day

B.

a decrease in the number of volcanic eruptions

C.

a decrease in the magnitude of large earthquakes

D.

an increase in the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide

Standard: 18 - Recognize that biological evolution accounts for the diversity of species developed
through gradual processes over many generations.
#25. The diagram below shows the beaks of five species of birds that developed over time from one
parent species. The five species of birds can be found living in the same area.

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Student Name: ____________________________

Which of the following best explains why the beak shape of each species of bird developed
differently?
A.

Each beak shape helps the birds to produce different songs.

B.

Each beak shape is an adaptation to a specific source of food.

C.

Each beak shape is designed to construct a different type of nest.

D.

Each beak shape helps protect the birds from a different predator.
GRADE 8 MCAS LIFE SCIENCE
OPEN RESPONSE PRACTICE

Reporting Category: Life Science

Standard: 1 - Classify organisms into the currently recognized kingdoms according to characteristics
that they share. Be familiar with organisms from each kingdom.
Individual organisms can be sorted into different kingdoms based on their characteristics. Pictures
of six organisms and a table listing four kingdoms are shown below.

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Student Name: ____________________________

a. Copy the table above into your Student Answer Booklet.

b Write the name of each pictured organism under the correct kingdom in your copy of the table.
.
c. For each kingdom listed in the table, describe one characteristic that all organisms in that
kingdom have in common.

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