INTRODUCTION
St. Thomas High School conducts placement tests for students entering ninth grade in math, science, and world languages. The placement tests aim to identify the right courses for each student, ensuring they start in classes that align with their academic readiness. These assessments are not part of the admissions process and are given only after a student has been admitted and enrolled.
Placement Test Overview
All enrolled students will take a mathematics placement test. Science and world language placement tests are optional; however, we strongly recommend that all students take them to ensure accurate placement and readiness.
Mathematics placement
Used to place students into one of the following courses:
• Algebra 9
• Algebra I
• Advanced Algebra I / Geometry
• Advanced Geometry
• Advanced Algebra II / Trigonometry
Science placement
Used to place student in Biology or advanced biology.
Note: Only scientific calculators may be used during the mathematics placement test. Graphing calculators are not permitted.
World language placement (French, Latin, Mandarin, & Spanish)
Used to place students into Level I or Level II of the elected language. These placement tests cover reading and writing only.
Blueprint overview
This guide includes examples for each section to help students better understand how to use blueprints to create an effective exam study plan.
Section 1: Exam Overview - The exam overview section will tell you what types of questions to expect on the exam, as well as how much each type of question will be worth toward your total score.
Section 2: Essential Standards/Objectives - The Essential Standards/Objective section outlines which objectives or topics will be assessed on the placement test, and indicates which ones will carry the most weight toward your overall score. Use this section to identify what to review and practice. Prioritize the more heavily weighted topics over the ones that will make up a smaller percentage of your score.
Pre-Algebra: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Standard/Objective or Topic
Solving and creating linear equations
Properties of linear equations
Understanding and identifying functions
Writing and interpreting inequalities
Rigid transformations
Area, volume, surface area, and distance
Interpreting and analyzing data
Real
Algebra/Geometry: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Exam Overview
Essential Standards/Objectives Breakdown
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic (Algebra)
Linear Equations and Inequalities
Functions and Graphs
Systems of Equations
Linear Equations in multi-variables
Exponential Expressions
Polynomials and Factoring
Quadratic Functions and Graphs
Real number systems
Simple interest and growth
Simplifying algebraic expressions
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic (Geometry)
Angle Relationships
Triangles
Trigonometry
Number or Percentage of Questions
Science: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Question Type
Multiple Choice (Biology)
Multiple Choice (Chemistry)
Multiple Choice (Physics)
Multiple Choice (reading a graph)
Free Response (Graphing)
(CER) Free
(Dimensional Analysis)
Exam Overview
Essential Standards/Objectives Breakdown
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic (Biology)
System interactions and homeostasis
Matter cycling, energy flow, and enzymes in living organisms
Biological structures and function
Scientific method and explaining scientific phenomena
Evolutionary theory
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic (Chemistry) Matter Atomic theory
The structure and properties of matter
Energy transfer and energy conservation
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic (Physics)
Number or Percentage of Questions
French: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Exam Overview
Essential Standards/Objectives Breakdown
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic
Students can produce the elements of a basic conversation
Students can identify school subjects and supplies
Students can talk about preferences
Students can talk about schedules and days of the week
Students can describe friends and family
Students can provide the appropriate article for a given noun
Students can identify numbers 1-100
Students can conjugate the verbs avoir, etre, aller, faire, and regular -ER verbs
Students can negotiate the past tense (indicates French 3 placement)
Number or Percentage of Questions
Latin: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Exam Overview
Identification / labeling
• Identifying person, number, tense of verbs
• Identifying verb conjugation
• Identifying noun declension
• Identifying principal parts
• Identifying case and number of nouns
Short answer / chart completion
• Verb paradigm charts (present, imperfect, future, perfect)
• Imperative forms (singular and plural)
• Adjective agreement forms
Multiple choice
• Verb tense/person selection in context
• Correct case selection after prepositions
• Subject/object identification
• Adjective agreement in sentences
Reading comprehension
• Short passage followed by comprehension questions (details, inference, sequence)
Translation
• Sentence-level Latin to English translation
• Includes participles, relative clauses, comparison, indirect context
Latin: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Essential Standards/Objectives Breakdown
Essential Standard Objective or Topic
Verb morphology and usage
• Person and number identification
• Present, imperfect, future, perfect tense recognition
• Active voice only
• Imperatives (singular and plural)
• Principal parts and their functions
• Correct tense selection based on English cues
Noun morphology and syntax
• Declension identification (1st, 2nd, 2nd neuter, 3rd)
• Case and number identification
• Dictionary entry components (nominative, genitive, gender)
• Case usage in context (subject, direct object, object of preposition, possessive
Adjectives
• Agreement with nouns in gender, number, case
• Correct form selection in isolation and in sentences
• Comparative adjective recognition and translation (callidior quam)
Pronouns and special forms
• Personal pronouns (mihi, tecum)
• Relative pronouns (quem)
• Demonstratives (illum) • Reflexive context (sē)
Reading comprehension
• Understanding a short narrative passage
• Extracting factual information
• Following sequence of events
• Identifying subjects, actions, and outcomes
Translation
• Literal comprehension-based translation
• Participles (present active)
• Ablative absolute
• Relative clauses
• Comparative constructions
• Impersonal expressions (necesse est)
Number or Percentage of Questions
Mandarin: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Exam Overview
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic
Standards/Objectives Breakdown
Number of Questions
Interpersonal Communication
• Express and exchange personal opinions or preferences in written conversation
• Tell others what they need to, should, or must do in written conversations
Interpretive Communication
• Identify key words and details from fiction and non fiction texts
• Infer meaning of unfamiliar words or phrases in highly contextualized text
Chinese Sentence / Word Order
• sentence order in general
• placement of time and place in a sentence
• order of time words
Vocabulary Usage
• Verbs
• Adverbs
• Conjunctions
• Measure Words
• Uses of
Spanish: Freshmen Placement Test Blueprint
Essential Standards/Objectives Breakdown
Essential Standard/Objective or Topic
TEKS (2) (A) - Interpretive reading, presentational writing
Students will be able to identify and define regular present tense -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs.
Students will be able to use conjugations of regular present tense -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs in a complete sentence.
Students will be able to identify and define irregular/ stem-changing present tense -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs.
Students will be able to use conjugations of irregular/ stem-changing present tense -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs in a complete sentence
Students will be able to identify conjugations of regular preterite tense -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs.
Students will be able to conjugate regular preterite tense -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs and use them in complete sentences
Students will be able to conjugate the irregular preterite tense verbs hacer, ir, and ser and use them in complete sentences
Number of Questions