Spring 2026 is the first time Pennsylvania 5th graders take the Science PSSA — the test moved from Grade 4 to Grade 5 under the new STEELS standards, and there is no prior-year benchmark to compare against.
Spring 2026 is the first operational STEELS-aligned PSSA Science administration at Grade 5 — and the first time Pennsylvania has tested science in 5th grade at all. PDE moved the Science PSSA from Grade 4 to Grade 5 to align with the new Pennsylvania Integrated Standards for Science, Environment, Ecology, Technology, and Engineering (Grades K-5). The 2024-25 administration was a census field test waived from federal reporting under a PA ESEA waiver; there is no comparable proficiency benchmark from prior years.
STEELS stands for Science, Technology and Engineering, Environmental Literacy and Sustainability. The standards use a three-dimensional learning model — every item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea (DCI), a Science and Engineering Practice (SEP), and a Crosscutting Concept (CCC). At Grade 5, 85 standards span four reporting categories, each targeted at 20-30% of the test: Life Sciences and Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (19 standards), Physical Sciences (18), Earth & Space Sciences (14), and Technology & Engineering (34).
The Environmental Literacy & Sustainability strand — folded into the Life Sciences category — is Pennsylvania-specific. It's not in NGSS and is organized around three core ideas: Agricultural and Environmental Systems and Resources, Environmental Literacy Skills, and Sustainability and Stewardship. The test format is 39 autoscored items + 3 open-ended (3 points each) = 42 core items / 48 core points across two 41-minute sections (82 minutes total). The test is FIXED-FORM, not adaptive.
Science cut scores have not yet been set — they will be established by PA State Board of Education action after the Spring 2026 administration. For Spring 2026, plan to evaluate your child's results against the four-level rubric (Below Basic, Basic, Proficient, Advanced) once cut scores are published.
Spring 2026 is the first all-digital PSSA. Pennsylvania moved every grade and subject onto the DRC INSIGHT platform — paper-and-pencil is now an accommodation only. New item types include drag-and-drop, hot text, inline choice, multi-select, sorting/ranking, graphing, and the equation editor for Math. Practice on the DRC OTT portal (wbte.drcedirect.com/PA) is free.
Spring 2026 is the first operational STEELS-aligned Science PSSA at Grade 5. The 2024-25 administration was a census field test waived from federal reporting under a PA ESEA waiver. Cut scores will be set by PA State Board of Education action after Spring 2026.
Source: PDE Press Release Nov 2025, pa.gov/agencies/education/newsroom/pennsylvania-releases-2024-25-school-assessment-results
Real PSSA format. Aligned to Pennsylvania Integrated Standards for Science (STEELS). Detailed explanations on every answer.
A student wants to test whether plants grow faster in sunlight or shade. What should the student keep the SAME in both groups?
Grade 5 STEELS Science has 85 standards across four reporting categories, each targeted at 20-30% of the test. Life Sciences and Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (19 standards) is heaviest by topic count, with the PA-specific Environmental Literacy strand folded in. Technology & Engineering (34 standards) is the largest by raw standard count but bundles into a 20-30% weight band. Every item integrates Disciplinary Core Ideas (what), Science and Engineering Practices (how), and Crosscutting Concepts (why) — the three dimensions of STEELS.
| Reporting Category | % of Test | Items | What's Tested |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences and Environmental Literacy & Sustainability | 20-30% | 19 standards at Grade 5 | Plant and animal structures and functions, ecosystems and food webs, life cycles, heredity. The Environmental Literacy & Sustainability strand (PA-specific, not in NGSS) covers agricultural and environmental systems, sustainability, and stewardship. |
| Physical Sciences | 20-30% | 18 standards at Grade 5 | Properties of matter (solids, liquids, gases), forces and motion, energy transfer, simple machines, sound and light. STEELS emphasizes phenomena-based investigation — what students observe and explain, not just memorize. |
| Earth & Space Sciences | 20-30% | 14 standards at Grade 5 | Weather and climate patterns, water cycle, Earth's place in the solar system, rocks and minerals, natural resources. Fewest standards but full reporting-category weight. |
| Technology & Engineering | 20-30% | 34 standards at Grade 5 | Engineering design process, identifying and defining problems, designing and testing solutions, evaluating trade-offs. Largest by raw standard count — STEELS integrates engineering practice across every other domain. |
Spring 2026 is the very first operational STEELS-aligned Science administration at Grade 5. There is no prior-year benchmark — the 2024-25 administration was a census field test that PA waived from federal reporting under an ESEA waiver. Cut scores haven't been set yet (PA State Board of Education action will come after this spring's administration). The test moved from Grade 4 to Grade 5 specifically to align with STEELS's K-5 band structure. For families: treat this year as a baseline, focus on the three-dimensional structure of STEELS (DCI + SEP + CCC together), and don't let the 'first year' framing add anxiety. Your child's school is also figuring this out in real time.
Spring 2026 is the first operational STEELS Science PSSA — there's no benchmark to study against, but there's also no benchmark for the school to compare your child to. PDE will set cut scores after the administration. Treat this year as a baseline year and focus on conceptual fluency, not score-chasing.
Drill the three dimensions of STEELS. Every item integrates DCI (content), SEP (practice), and CCC (crosscutting concept). Teach your child to identify each on practice items: 'What science content is this question asking about? What scientific practice is the question testing? What crosscutting concept (patterns, cause-and-effect, systems) connects the two?' This metacognitive habit transfers directly to test items.
Don't ignore the Environmental Literacy & Sustainability strand. It's PA-specific (not in NGSS) and most online practice materials skip it. Cover the three core ideas: agricultural and environmental systems (where food/water come from), environmental literacy skills (reading environmental data), and sustainability/stewardship (long-term resource thinking). The Progress Learning STEELS guides cover it well.
Practice the engineering design process. Technology & Engineering is 34 of the 85 standards — the largest domain by raw count. The 5-step process — identify problem, brainstorm, design, test, evaluate — appears in items across every other domain, not just T&E. Real-world examples (bridge design, water filtration, simple machines) work better than abstract diagrams.
Use the on-screen science tools on the DRC OTT portal. Science items often include interactive diagrams, drag-and-drop labeling, and graphing. Twenty minutes of practice on wbte.drcedirect.com/PA closes the digital-format learning curve. The free practice items show your child exactly what STEELS items look like on screen.
Yes — and Spring 2026 is the first year it's operational. PDE moved the Science PSSA from Grade 4 to Grade 5 to align with the new STEELS standards (Pennsylvania Integrated Standards for Science, Environment, Ecology, Technology, and Engineering, K-5). The 2024-25 administration was a census field test that did not count toward federal reporting (PA secured an ESEA waiver during the transition).
Spring 2026 is the first operational year. The STEELS standards were adopted by the PA State Board of Education in January 2022, published in the PA Bulletin July 16, 2022, and reached full classroom implementation in the 2025-26 school year. The previous (2002) PA Science Standards sunset June 30, 2025. Science was tested in Grade 4 under the old standards; under STEELS, it moves to Grade 5.
STEELS stands for Science, Technology and Engineering, Environmental Literacy and Sustainability. It's Pennsylvania's replacement for the 2002 PA Science Standards, adopted in January 2022. STEELS uses a three-dimensional learning model: every item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea (what scientific content), a Science and Engineering Practice (what students do as scientists), and a Crosscutting Concept (patterns, systems, cause-and-effect spanning domains). The Environmental Literacy & Sustainability strand is PA-specific and not in NGSS.
85 standards across four reporting categories, each targeted at 20-30% of the test. Life Sciences and Environmental Literacy & Sustainability (19 standards) — plants, animals, ecosystems, plus PA's environmental-literacy content. Physical Sciences (18 standards) — matter, motion, energy, sound, light. Earth & Space Sciences (14 standards) — weather, water cycle, solar system. Technology & Engineering (34 standards) — engineering design process, problem-solving, evaluating solutions.
About 82 minutes of operational time across two sections — 41 minutes per section. Each section has 23 autoscored items plus 2 open-ended items (3 points each). Total: 42 core items worth 48 core points. The test is significantly shorter than PSSA Math (156 min) or ELA (~210-230 min) — it's a single-day science assessment for most schools.
(1) Life Sciences and Environmental Literacy & Sustainability — plants, animals, ecosystems, plus PA's unique environmental-literacy content (agricultural systems, sustainability, stewardship). (2) Physical Sciences — matter, motion, energy, sound, light. (3) Earth & Space Sciences — weather, water cycle, rocks, solar system. (4) Technology & Engineering — engineering design process, problem-solving, evaluating trade-offs. Each is targeted at 20-30% of the test.
Yes. Spring 2026 is the first all-digital PSSA, and Science is no exception — administered on the DRC INSIGHT platform with paper as an accommodation only. Science items use multiple-choice, multi-select, drag-and-drop, sorting/ranking, hot text, inline choice, and graphing item types, plus 3 open-ended items per form scored 0-3 each.
To align with the K-5 standard band under STEELS. PDE's stated reason: 'The shift from 4th to 5th grade is designed to align the assessment with the updated Pennsylvania Integrated Standards for Science, Environment, Ecology, Technology, and Engineering (Grades K-5).' The previous test was aligned to the 2002 PA Science Standards, which used a different grade-band structure. STEELS uses K-5, 6-12 bands, putting the elementary summative test at the top of the K-5 band (Grade 5).
Three priorities. First, get comfortable with the three-dimensional structure — every item asks 'what science content?' (DCI), 'what scientific practice?' (SEP), and 'what crosscutting concept?' (CCC). Drill identifying each. Second, practice reading scientific charts, data tables, and diagrams — STEELS leans heavily on phenomena-based interpretation. Third, learn the engineering design process: identify problem → design solution → test → evaluate trade-offs. It's 34 of the 85 standards (largest single domain by raw count).
Environmental Literacy & Sustainability is a Pennsylvania-specific strand within the Life Sciences reporting category — it's not in the national NGSS standards. It covers three core ideas: (1) Agricultural and Environmental Systems and Resources (where food comes from, water systems, soil), (2) Environmental Literacy Skills (data analysis on environmental issues), and (3) Sustainability and Stewardship (long-term thinking about resources). PA includes it explicitly because of the state's agricultural and environmental priorities.
Same PSSA test, different grades and subjects. Pick the page that matches your child's situation.
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