The California Science Test (CAST) is the FIRST state science assessment your child takes, launched operationally in 2018, NGSS-aligned, phenomena-based, and built on three-dimensional learning — only 32.66% of California students reach proficient.
The California Science Test (CAST) is California's NGSS-aligned state science assessment. Grade 5 is the first time CAST is administered — it then runs again at Grade 8, and once in high school (grade 10, 11, or 12 — the district picks). CAST became operational statewide in spring 2018 after a multi-year pilot following California's 2013 adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards. It replaced the older California Standards Test (CST) for Science, which was aligned to the 1998 science standards and was retired when NGSS took over.
CAST at Grade 5 is written against 45 NGSS Performance Expectations spanning grades K-5 (yes, K-2 standards are fair game in fifth grade because NGSS is grade-band, not single-grade). The test is three-dimensional: every item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea (the science content — Physical, Life, Earth & Space, or Engineering), a Science & Engineering Practice (what scientists actually do — analyze data, develop models, construct explanations), and a Crosscutting Concept (the lens that connects sciences — patterns, cause-and-effect, scale, systems, energy/matter, structure/function, stability/change). Every item presents a real-world phenomenon — a graph of temperature over a day, a photo of erosion, a setup with two ice cubes in different materials — and asks the student to analyze, explain, or evaluate. It does not ask 'What is the chemical formula for water?'
32.66% of California students scored Met or Exceeded Standard on the 2024-25 CAST (all grades combined), per the CAASPP-ELPAC dashboard — up 1.96 percentage points from 2023-24. CAST is computer-delivered but NOT computer-adaptive (this is a common misconception). It is a linear fixed-form test with embedded equating items. Two segments: a Discrete segment of stand-alone three-dimensional items, and a Performance Task segment with 4-6 connected items, including one constructed-response item worth 2 points that must be hand-scored. Total ~50 items plus the PT cluster. Untimed; CDE estimates about 2 hours.
CAASPP uses 4 achievement levels. As of the 2024-25 score reports (October 2025), the California State Board of Education renamed them: Minimal (formerly Standard Not Met), Developing (formerly Standard Nearly Met), Proficient (formerly Standard Met), and Advanced (formerly Standard Exceeded). Cut scores did not change. Proficient is the federal 'on grade level' target. Each grade has its own scale-score range; SBAC scores are vertically scaled across grades, while CAST scores are not.
Statewide CAST aggregate for grades 5, 8, and HS combined — up 1.96 ppt from 2023-24 (30.70% per CDE press release; 32.68% per ETS dashboard). Grade 5 specific data is gated behind a dropdown on the CAASPP-ELPAC dashboard.
Source: CAASPP-ELPAC CAST Dashboard 2024-25, caaspp-elpac.ets.org/caaspp/DashViewReportCAST
Real CAST format. Aligned to California Next Generation Science Standards (CA NGSS). Detailed explanations on every answer.
CAST reports against three dimensions rather than reporting categories the way SBAC does. Every CAST item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea (the science content), a Science & Engineering Practice (the scientific practice), and a Crosscutting Concept (the connecting lens). The Disciplinary Core Ideas span four domains, which serve as the closest analog to SBAC's reporting categories.
| Reporting Category | What's Tested |
|---|---|
| Disciplinary Core Idea: Physical Sciences (PS) | Properties of materials, mixtures vs. chemical reactions, conservation of matter ('a candle burns — where did the wax go?'), forces and motion, gravity, energy transfer. The conservation-of-matter strand drives many of the higher-difficulty items. |
| Disciplinary Core Idea: Life Sciences (LS) | Matter cycling in ecosystems (water cycle, food webs), the high-leverage misconception 'plants get matter from air, not soil' (often a multi-part item), structure-function in living things, plant and animal needs. |
| Disciplinary Core Idea: Earth & Space Sciences (ESS) | Earth's systems interactions, water cycle in detail, weather vs. climate, patterns of stars and Earth's rotation, gravity pulling objects toward Earth's center. |
| Disciplinary Core Idea: Engineering, Technology & Applications of Science (ETS) | Defining a design problem, testing solutions, optimizing a design, evaluating trade-offs. Engineering integrates with every other DCI domain — students might design a water filter (LS + ETS) or a shelter for an animal (LS + ESS + ETS). |
| Science & Engineering Practices (SEP) — the 8 practices integrated into every item | Asking questions, developing and using models, planning and carrying out investigations, analyzing and interpreting data, using mathematics and computational thinking, constructing explanations and designing solutions, engaging in argument from evidence, obtaining and communicating information. |
| Crosscutting Concepts (CCC) — the 7 connecting lenses | Patterns, cause and effect, scale/proportion/quantity, systems and system models, energy and matter, structure and function, stability and change. Every item carries a CCC label. |
CAST at Grade 5 is the very first state science assessment your child takes — and it's a newer test than parents often realize. CAST became operational statewide in spring 2018 after a multi-year pilot, following California's 2013 adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards. It replaced the older California Standards Test (CST) for Science, which was based on the 1998 science standards. Four things that distinguish CAST from the SBAC Math and ELA tests your child also takes: (1) it is NOT computer-adaptive — CAST is a fixed-form test, not item-by-item adaptive routing; (2) it is three-dimensional — every item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea, a Science & Engineering Practice, and a Crosscutting Concept; (3) it is phenomena-based — every item presents a real-world observation and asks students to explain it, not recall a fact; (4) the scale-score range is grade-specific and not vertically scaled — a 230 at Grade 5 is not comparable to a 430 at Grade 8 because each grade has its own band. For families, the Grade 5 CAST is the first formal NGSS-aligned signal your family receives — most useful as a baseline before Grade 8.
Drill the three dimensions habit. Every CAST item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea (the content), a Science & Engineering Practice (the practice), and a Crosscutting Concept (the lens). On practice items, ask your child: 'What science content (DCI) is this? What scientific practice (SEP) is the question asking — analyze data, build a model, construct an explanation? What crosscutting concept (CCC) connects it — patterns, cause-and-effect, energy & matter?' This metacognitive habit transfers directly to CAST items.
Real-world phenomena, not memorized vocabulary. CAST does not reward 'What's the chemical formula for water?' It rewards 'Look at this graph of temperature over a day — what pattern do you see? What causes it?' Watch short science videos at home (Crash Course Kids, SciShow Kids), then ask: 'What is happening? Why is it happening? How could we test that?' This builds the exact analytical habit the test rewards.
The 'plants get matter from air, not soil' misconception is the single highest-leverage item topic. NGSS hammers this concept because almost every elementary student thinks plants grow by 'eating' soil. The right answer: plants take in CO2 from the air and water from the ground, and the mass of a tree comes mostly from carbon pulled out of the air. Practice it at home; it appears in some form on most CAST forms.
Use the free CDE Practice Tests and Tools for Teachers at caaspp-elpac.org. CAST has its own released-item set with the interactive simulation tools the real test uses. 30-45 minutes of interface familiarization is the cheapest test-prep intervention available.
Don't cram. CAST content spans grades K-5 — five years of NGSS. A month of cramming won't cover it. Instead, integrate science into the family routine through the school year: weekly experiments at home (boil water, mix oil and water, plant a bean), nature walks where you ask 'why,' and short kids' science articles or videos. Consistent exposure beats any test-prep workbook.
45 NGSS Performance Expectations spanning grades K-5, across four Disciplinary Core Idea domains: Physical Sciences (properties of materials, mixtures, conservation of matter, forces and motion), Life Sciences (matter cycling in ecosystems, plant and animal needs, structure-function), Earth & Space Sciences (water cycle, weather, Earth's systems, patterns of stars), and Engineering/Technology (design problems, testing and optimizing solutions). Every item integrates a Disciplinary Core Idea, a Science & Engineering Practice, and a Crosscutting Concept.
Multiple-choice is one item type among many, but CAST is not primarily a multiple-choice test. Items include multi-select, drag-and-drop, hot text, matching tables, constructed-response (typed short answers), interactive simulations, and a Performance Task with one hand-scored 2-point constructed-response item. The point of the variety is that NGSS asks students to actually do science — analyze data, develop models, construct explanations — rather than pick from four choices.
CDE estimates about 2 hours total. The test is officially untimed in California — students may take as long as the school day allows. Most districts administer CAST in one or two sessions during the CAASPP window (typically March-May, alongside the SBAC ELA and Math tests).
Anchor phenomena typical at Grade 5: a candle burning (Physical — conservation of matter), why plants weigh more after months of growth (Life — plants get matter from air, not soil), how water moves through Earth's systems (Earth — water cycle), and how to design a solution to a real-world problem (Engineering — design process). Items present a real-world phenomenon and ask the student to analyze, explain, or evaluate — never bare recall.
Yes — CAST is fully NGSS-aligned. California adopted the Next Generation Science Standards in 2013, and CAST replaced the older California Standards Test (CST) for Science, which was based on the 1998 science standards. CAST became operational statewide in spring 2018 after a multi-year pilot. Every CAST item is written against one of 175 Performance Expectations (45 at Grade 5, 59 at Grade 8, 71 at high school).
A phenomenon is an observable event in the natural world that the student must explain or predict using science. Examples on CAST: a candle burns down — where did the wax go? Two ice cubes wrapped in different materials melt at different rates — why? A plant grew significantly heavier in six months even though the soil weight barely changed — where did the mass come from? CAST items present a phenomenon and ask students to analyze data, build a model, or construct an explanation — not 'What's the chemical formula for water?'
CAST is scored on a scale from 150 to 250 for Grade 5. Four achievement levels (using the new 2025 labels): Minimal (was Standard Not Met, 150-178), Developing (was Standard Nearly Met, 179-213), Proficient (was Standard Met, 214-230), and Advanced (was Standard Exceeded, 231-250). Proficient is the federal 'on grade level' target. It is not strictly pass/fail — the score report shows the achievement level and the scale score, plus a breakdown by science domain.
The all-grades statewide rate for 2024-25 was 32.66% Met or Exceeded Standard, per the CAASPP-ELPAC dashboard. Grade 5 specific data is gated behind a dropdown on the dashboard and runs roughly within the same band. CAST proficiency moved up 1.96 percentage points from 2023-24 — the largest of the three CAASPP subjects' year-over-year gains. For your child's specific grade-5 rate, check the official CDE dashboard.
Generally no — California middle-school course placement is set by individual districts and most rely on Grade 5 SBAC ELA and Math scores plus teacher recommendation. CAST scores feed into the California School Dashboard for school-level accountability, not student-level placement. That said, a Grade 5 CAST score is the first formal NGSS-aligned indicator your family sees, and it does help identify whether a student is ready for Grade 6 science content. It is also the only CAST result before Grade 8, so it's a useful baseline.
Same CAST test, different grades and subjects. Pick the page that matches your child's situation.
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