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Free ISEE Lower Level Practice Test: 10 Questions

The Lower Level ISEE is for children applying to grades 5 and 6, and it is shorter than the levels above it. These ten questions come from our full-length Lower Level exams.

Take these as an interactive quiz The full ISEE Lower Level exams

Read this, then answer the questions about it.

A garden spider begins its web with a problem: it has to get a thread across an open space it cannot walk across.

It solves this by letting out a long strand of silk and waiting. The wind carries the loose end until it catches on a leaf or a branch on the other side. The spider tugs. If the thread holds, it has a bridge. If it does not, the spider reels the silk back in, eats it, and tries again.

Once the bridge is up, the rest follows in an order that never changes. The spider walks the bridge and drops a line from the middle, making a Y shape. From there it lays down the spokes, working outward like the ribs of an umbrella. Then it spirals from the center to the edge with a dry thread that will only be used as a scaffold.

The last step is the clever one. Starting at the outside, the spider spirals back inward and lays a second thread that is sticky, eating the dry scaffold thread as it goes. That is why a finished web catches insects but does not catch the spider: the spider knows which threads are which, and walks only on the dry spokes.

A whole web takes about an hour. Most garden spiders build a new one every night, because the sticky thread loses its grip after a day and a used web is full of holes. The old silk is not thrown away. The spider eats it, and much of it becomes the web it builds tomorrow.

Question 1

This passage is mostly about
  1. A. how strong spider silk is compared with other threads
  2. B. the kinds of insects that a web is able to catch
  3. C. why it is that some spiders live in gardens
  4. D. the steps a spider follows to build a web
Show the answer

The answer is D. The steps a spider follows to build a web is right. The passage moves in order from the first bridge thread to the final sticky spiral.

  • A is wrong: The strength of silk comes up only when the spider tugs to test the bridge.
  • B is wrong: The insects caught are mentioned in one sentence, about why the web works.
  • C is wrong: Why spiders live in gardens is never discussed anywhere in the passage.

Question 2

According to the passage, how does the spider get the first thread across the gap?
  1. A. It walks all the way around the edge carrying the thread.
  2. B. It drops down to the ground and climbs up the other side.
  3. C. It throws the thread across the gap with its front legs.
  4. D. It lets the wind carry a loose strand until it catches.
Show the answer

The answer is D. It lets the wind carry a loose strand until it catches is right. The passage says the spider lets out silk and waits for the wind to catch the end on a leaf or branch.

  • A is wrong: Walking around the edge is ruled out by the opening, which says the spider cannot walk across the space.
  • B is wrong: Dropping and climbing is how the Y shape is made later, after the bridge already exists.
  • C is wrong: Throwing the thread is never described. The spider waits rather than throws.

Question 3

The passage explains that a spider does not get stuck in its own web because
  1. A. its legs are coated in a special oil
  2. B. the sticky thread does not hold anything as heavy as a spider
  3. C. it stays off the web until an insect is caught
  4. D. it walks only on the dry threads it knows are safe
Show the answer

The answer is D. It walks only on the dry threads it knows are safe is right. The passage says the spider knows which threads are which and walks on the dry spokes.

  • A is wrong: Oil on the legs is never mentioned in the passage.
  • B is wrong: Weight is not the explanation given; the passage credits the spider's knowledge of its own web.
  • C is wrong: Staying off the web contradicts the passage, which describes the spider walking on it while building.

Question 4

ANCIENT
  1. A. very large
  2. B. very old
  3. C. very far away
  4. D. very quiet
Show the answer

The answer is B. Very old is right. Ancient ruins have been standing for thousands of years.

  • A is wrong: Very large comes from picturing ancient buildings, which are often big. The word is about age, not size.
  • C is wrong: Very far away confuses distance in miles with distance in time.
  • D is wrong: Very quiet has no connection to the word at all.

Question 5

BRAVE
  1. A. physically strong
  2. B. courageous
  3. C. loud and noisy
  4. D. lucky
Show the answer

The answer is B. Courageous is right. A brave person acts even though they are afraid.

  • A is wrong: Physically strong describes muscles. A small, weak person can be very brave.
  • C is wrong: Loud and noisy describes how much noise someone makes. Brave people are often quiet.
  • D is wrong: Lucky is about how things turn out, not about how someone acts.

Question 6

Maya has 3 boxes with 8 markers in each box. She gives 4 markers to her brother. How many markers does she have left?
  1. A. 20
  2. B. 24
  3. C. 28
  4. D. 32
Show the answer

The answer is A. 20 is right. Three boxes of 8 make 24 markers, and 24 - 4 = 20.

  • B is wrong: 24 is the number she started with, before giving any away.
  • C is wrong: 28 adds the 4 markers instead of subtracting them.
  • D is wrong: 32 counts 4 boxes of 8 rather than 3.

Question 7

What is 156 + 87?
  1. A. 233
  2. B. 253
  3. C. 243
  4. D. 1,386
Show the answer

The answer is C. 243 is right. 6 + 7 = 13, so write 3 and carry 1. Then 5 + 8 + 1 = 14, so write 4 and carry 1, giving 243.

  • A is wrong: 233 forgets to carry the 1 from the tens column.
  • B is wrong: 253 carries an extra 1 that was never earned.
  • D is wrong: 1,386 multiplies the two numbers instead of adding them.

Question 8

What is 9 x 7?
  1. A. 81
  2. B. 72
  3. C. 63
  4. D. 97
Show the answer

The answer is C. 63 is right. Nine sevens are 63.

  • A is wrong: 81 is 9 x 9, using nine twice.
  • B is wrong: 72 is 9 x 8, one group of nine too many.
  • D is wrong: 97 writes the two digits side by side instead of multiplying.

Question 9

What is 452 - 178?
  1. A. 264
  2. B. 274
  3. C. 326
  4. D. 630
Show the answer

The answer is B. 274 is right. 452 - 178 = 274. Checking it, 274 + 178 = 452.

  • A is wrong: 264 loses ten during the borrowing in the tens column.
  • C is wrong: 326 takes the smaller digit from the larger in every column instead of borrowing.
  • D is wrong: 630 adds the two numbers instead of subtracting.

Question 10

What is 6 x 300?
  1. A. 180
  2. B. 306
  3. C. 18,000
  4. D. 1,800
Show the answer

The answer is D. 1,800 is right. 6 x 3 = 18, and the two zeros from 300 make it 1,800.

  • A is wrong: 180 is 6 x 30, one zero short.
  • B is wrong: 306 adds the two numbers instead of multiplying.
  • C is wrong: 18,000 has one zero too many, making it ten times too big.
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