PRAXISCode: 5025Early Childhood🎒 NAEYC + NGSS Aligned🚫 No Calculator
Praxis® Early Childhood
Education (5025)
Practice Test & Study Guide
Comprehensive preparation for prospective early childhood teachers — covering five content areas across language and literacy, mathematics, social studies, science, and health/PE/creative arts. No calculator permitted.
100
Questions
2 hrs
Time limit
Varies
Passing score*
5
Content categories
$130
Exam fee
4.9 · 12,400
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Explanation for every question
Domain-level score breakdown
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No calculator is permitted on this exam.The ETS Study Companion explicitly states: “The use of a calculator is not permitted.” Although mathematics questions appear throughout the exam (25% of the test, ~30 questions), all required calculations must be performed mentally or on scratch paper provided at the test center. Practice all math operations — whole numbers, fractions, measurement, and data — without calculator assistance.
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Five content areas — aligned to NAEYC and NGSS standards.Language and Literacy (30%) is the largest category, followed by Mathematics (25%), Health/PE/Creative Arts (17%), and Social Studies and Science at 14% each. The test does not emphasize pedagogy, although some questions are framed in the context of children's learning. It was developed with practicing early childhood teachers, teacher educators, and higher education specialists.
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Source: All exam details are drawn from the official ETS Praxis Early Childhood Education (5025) Study Companion. The exam aligns to NAEYC standards and the NGSS. Passing scores vary by state — always confirm at ets.org/praxis/states.
Early Childhood Education (5025) — Test at a Glance
Key facts directly from the official ETS test specifications.
Test code
5025
Computer-delivered
Total questions
120
All selected-response
Time limit
2 hrs
120 minutes
Content categories
5
Across all content areas
Calculator
Not permitted
All math by hand
Registration fee
$130
Paid to ETS
Passing score
Varies
Set by state/agency
Score reporting
~5 wks
After test date
About the Praxis Early Childhood Education (5025)
What you need to know before you register.
The Praxis Early Childhood Education (5025) is designed to assess the content knowledge that prospective early childhood teachers must have to support children's learning in the content areas. The test covers the breadth of material a new teacher needs to know to begin practice and is aligned with state curriculum standards and national standards, including the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and those of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
The test consists of 120 selected-response questions across six content areas: language and literacy; mathematics; social studies; science; health and physical education; and creative and performing arts. Questions determine whether the test taker knows the major concepts, has the skills and tools of inquiry in the content areas, can apply knowledge in the context of children's learning, knows the structure of the content areas, and understands how the content areas are interrelated.
The test does not emphasize pedagogy, although some questions are framed in the context of children's learning. The primary focus is content knowledge. The use of a calculator is not permitted for any questions, including mathematics. The test was developed with practicing early childhood teachers, teacher educators, and higher education content specialists.
The test uses a variety of selected-response formats, including single-answer, select-one-or-more, numeric entry, graphic selection (clicking on a map, chart, or diagram), sentence selection within a passage, drag-and-drop, and drop-down menu. Some questions may not count toward your score — treat every question equally.
Official Exam Blueprint: 5 Content Categories
Language and Literacy is the largest category at 30%. Mathematics follows at 25%. Health/PE/Creative Arts at 17%, and Social Studies and Science each at 14%.
Category I
Language and Literacy
Emergent literacy foundations (language acquisition stages, print awareness, phonological awareness); reading foundational skills (phonics, word analysis, fluency); comprehension of literary and informational text (key ideas, text structure, point of view, multimedia integration, text complexity); writing development stages, types, and authoring cycle; digital media literacy; research process; speaking and listening; language conventions, vocabulary, and word meanings.
30%
~36 questions
Category II
Mathematics
Emergent mathematics skills (patterns, one-to-one correspondence, subitizing, cardinality, sequencing); whole number operations and place value; fractions and decimals; algebraic thinking (patterns, properties of operations, equations with variables); geometry and shape attributes; measurement (elapsed time, money, length, area, perimeter, volume); data collection, organization, and interpretation. No calculator permitted — most questions set in the context of children's learning.
25%
~30 questions
Category V
Health and Physical Education; Creative and Performing Arts
Health: health promotion and disease prevention, major risks to children's health and safety, human body systems, mental and emotional health, environmental and consumer health, nutrition, harmful effects of alcohol/tobacco/drugs, health's impact on learning. Physical Education: motor development, health-related and skill-related fitness components, lifelong physical activity benefits. Creative and Performing Arts: purposes and functions of the arts, basic elements (color, line, melody, pitch, tempo, rhythm), organizing principles (balance, unity, contrast), artistic materials and processes.
17%
~20 questions
Category III
Social Studies
Identity, social, and emotional development (self-concept, interpersonal relationships, conflict resolution, influence of family and community, emotional regulation); culture and cultural identity (cultural perspectives, language and arts as cultural expressions, interdependence among groups); people, places, and environments (geographic concepts, geographic literacy, human-environment interaction); time, continuity, and change (chronological thinking, historical data analysis); civics and government (civic concepts, civic participation, governance structures).
14%
~17 questions
Category IV
Science
Scientific inquiry fundamentals (unifying concepts, scientific process, basic science skills); physical science (properties of matter, forms of energy — light/heat/electricity/magnetism, forces and motion); Earth and space science (objects in the sky, weather and daylight patterns, Earth materials, erosion); life science (organism characteristics and habitats, life cycles and inherited traits, ecosystems); engineering and technology (identifying problems, developing solutions, comparing and testing solutions, technology supporting scientific inquiry).
14%
~17 questions
Key Topics by Content Category
Specific competencies drawn directly from the official ETS content specification for the 5025.
Language & LiteracyLanguage and Literacy (Category I)~36 questions · 30%
Language acquisition stages: recognizing stages of oral and written language development including spelling; differentiating instruction for ELLs, students with special needs, and gifted learners
Print awareness: environmental print; print concepts; how print conveys a message; strategies to develop print awareness in early childhood settings
Phonological awareness: role as foundational literacy skill; identifying and providing examples of phonemes, syllables, onsets, rimes; blending, segmenting, substituting, and deleting phonemes
Phonics and word analysis: letter-sound correspondences; syllabication patterns (CVC, VC, CV); spelling conventions; distinguishing sight words from decodable words; using roots and affixes
Fluency: definition (accuracy, rate, prosody); impact of fluency on comprehension; strategies to develop fluency in young readers
Comprehension — literary text: key details, moral/theme; character, setting, sequence, plot; structural elements across genres (drama casts, poetry rhyme/meter); point of view and how it affects text structure
Comprehension — informational text: key details and central idea; text features (sidebars, hyperlinks, images); organizational structures (cause/effect, problem/solution, comparison); analyzing relationships among ideas and concepts
Integration and multimedia: how visual and oral elements enhance literary meaning; comparing texts across versions; comparing texts that address the same theme; text complexity factors (vocabulary, sentence complexity, images)
Writing development: developmental continuum (drawing → scribbling → letter strings); types of writing (opinion/argument, informative/explanatory, narrative); authoring cycle (brainstorming through publishing); characteristics of effective writing; digital tools for writing
Research process: steps in research; primary vs. secondary sources; paraphrasing vs. plagiarizing; locating and citing credible print and digital sources
Speaking and listening: techniques for communicating for a variety of purposes; active listening characteristics; strategies for promoting conversations; elements of engaging oral presentations; formal vs. informal language (code switching)
Language conventions and vocabulary: parts of speech and sentence types; Standard English grammar, usage, mechanics, and spelling; figurative language types and interpretation; tiered vocabulary (common, multiple-meaning, content-specific); word meaning from context, syntax, roots, affixes
MathematicsMathematics (Category II)~30 questions · 25% · No calculator
Emergent math skills: patterns recognition; one-to-one correspondence; grouping and classification by attributes; subitizing (instantly recognizing quantity); sequencing and conservation of number; positional language; representing numbers in multiple ways; counting and cardinality principles
Place value: comparing and ordering whole numbers; composing and decomposing multidigit numbers; identifying digit place and value; ten-times relationship between adjacent places; rounding to any place; expanded form
Mental math strategies: patterns, math facts, composition/decomposition, compensation; selecting and applying appropriate strategies
Whole number operations: using place value and properties of operations; concrete models, drawings, and number lines for all four operations; rectangular arrays and area models for multiplication; various algorithms; interpreting remainders; multistep word problems; identifying problem types (adding to, taking away, comparing); inverse operations
Fractions: converting fractions to decimals and percents; fractions as division problems, ratios, or remainders; visual models (number lines, area models, sets); unit fractions; equivalent fractions; comparing fractions requiring the same whole; fractions equal to 1; any whole number as a fraction over 1
Algebraic thinking: identifying and extending number, shape, and other repeating patterns; patterns in addition and multiplication tables; commutative, associative, and distributive properties; order of operations; word problems with equations using a variable for the unknown
Geometry: classifying and comparing shapes by attributes; composing and decomposing 2D and 3D shapes; partitioning shapes into equal parts and describing each part as a fraction of the whole area
Measurement and data: elapsed time, money, length, volume, and mass; perimeter and area of polygons; area related to multiplication and addition; U.S. customary and metric unit sizes; collecting, organizing, and representing data; interpreting picture graphs, bar graphs, and line plots
Social StudiesSocial Studies (Category III)~17 questions · 14%
Identity and social-emotional development: self-concept, self-awareness, and self-regulation; norms of social behavior; interpersonal relationships; tools for teaching group social skills (conflict resolution); influence of family, community, and social systems on daily life
Institutions and identity: how religious, academic, and government institutions influence individual identity, relationships, beliefs, and behaviors; how to promote emotional development and regulation in early childhood settings
Culture and cultural identity: how families, groups, and cultures address similar human needs; cultural perspectives shaping experiences; language, literature, music, and art as cultural expressions; unity and diversity within and across groups; cultural interdependence
Geography: geographic concepts (region, directional terms, landmarks, distance, location); geographic literacy (maps, graphs, charts, technology); physical and human-made characteristics of places (rain forest, desert, urban/rural); interdependence of living things, environment, and economy
History and chronology: chronological thinking skills; analyzing historical data (timelines, maps, graphs, tables); ways in which people understand their historical roots and locate themselves in time
Civics and government: key civic concepts (human dignity, justice, equality, equity, tolerance, rule of law, citizenship); civic participation in classroom, community, nation, and world; making informed decisions; balancing individual and group needs
ScienceScience (Category IV)~17 questions · 14%
Scientific inquiry: unifying science concepts (systems, cycles, constancy, change); scientific process (formulating questions, testing hypotheses, communicating information); basic science skills (observing, describing, classifying, making inferences, collecting and analyzing data, using simple tools)
Physical science: properties of objects and materials (states of matter); forms of energy (light — reflection/absorption; heat — production/conduction; electricity; magnetism); position and motion of objects; forces — how pushes and pulls change motion
Earth and space science: objects in the sky (Sun, Moon, stars) — properties, movements, locations; Earth changes (daily weather, daylight patterns, erosion) and how they can affect seasonal patterns; properties of Earth materials (solid rocks, soils, fossils, water, gases)
Life science: basic characteristics of organisms and their environments (basic needs, behaviors, structures supporting growth, habitats); life cycles of organisms including inheritance of traits; interdependent relationships in ecosystems
Engineering and technology: recognizing situations where change or improvement is possible; developing possible solutions through sketches, drawings, and physical models; comparing and testing multiple solutions to determine which best solves the problem
Technology in inquiry: appropriate technology to support scientific inquiry across science domains; science-technology connections in the early childhood classroom
Health / PE / ArtsHealth and Physical Education; Creative and Performing Arts (Category V)~20 questions · 17%
Health promotion and disease prevention: fundamental health concepts and wellness; major risks to children's health and safety and their prevention
Human body systems: basic structure and function; how body systems interrelate; impact of health on learning and development across content areas
Mental and emotional health: how mental and emotional health factors affect overall health; accessing resources to help students cope (referrals, conflict resolution, decision making)
Environmental and consumer health: environmental and community health issues affecting personal health (pollution, health care access); harmful effects of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs; importance of maintaining a healthy and nutritious diet
Motor development: typical and atypical developmental progression in physical development; skill themes and movement concepts; activities that promote motor development
Physical fitness: health-related fitness components (muscular strength/endurance, cardiovascular fitness, flexibility, body composition); skill-related fitness (agility, balance, power, speed); how to achieve and maintain physical fitness; physical activity as lifelong opportunity for learning, challenge, self-expression, and social interaction
Purposes of the arts: why works of art are created; purposes of visual and performing arts creation; interrelationships within visual and performing art disciplines; connections between arts and other content areas; arts as opportunities for appreciation, enjoyment, and self-expression
Elements of arts creation: visual art (color, line, shape, texture); music (harmony, melody, pitch, tempo); dance and theater elements; organizing principles (rhythm, contrast, balance, unity, scale, movement, pattern); materials and processes used to create and perform works of art; how artistic practice informs and enriches teaching and learning
Registration, Test Day & Scoring
Everything you need to know before and on exam day.
Registration
Where to registerpraxis.ets.org
Exam fee$130
Testing formatsIn-person or remote
ID required2 forms of valid ID
Arrive (in-person)30 min early
Scoring
Score typeScaled score
Wrong answer penaltyNone
Passing scoreVaries by state
Results available~5 weeks post-test
State requirementsets.org/praxis/states
Test Day
CalculatorNot permitted
Scratch paperProvided at station
Admission ticketPrint from ETS account
Question typesMultiple SR formats
Remote Testing
Browser requiredETS Secure Test Browser
DeviceLaptop or desktop only
Equipment neededWebcam, mic, speakers
Proctor typeLive remote proctor
Passing Score Requirements by State
Passing scores are set individually by each state or licensing agency.
Important: Passing score requirements for the Early Childhood Education (5025) are set individually by each state or licensing agency. A score that meets requirements in one state may not meet requirements in another. Always verify the exact passing score for your state at ets.org/praxis/states before registering.
Your raw score (number of correct answers) is converted to a scaled score that accounts for minor difficulty differences between test editions. There is no penalty for incorrect answers — always answer every question. Some questions are unscored pretest items that you cannot identify, so treat every question equally.
Your raw score (number of correct answers) is converted to a scaled score that accounts for minor difficulty differences between test editions. There is no penalty for incorrect answers — always answer every question. Some questions are unscored pretest items that you cannot identify, so treat every question equally.
How to Prepare for the Praxis Early Childhood Education Exam
Strategies for all five content categories — with particular attention to the no-calculator math requirement and the breadth of this unique five-subject exam.
Language and Literacy (30%) is the largest and most content-dense category — prioritize it first. With approximately 36 questions, it covers emergent literacy, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, comprehension, writing development, research, speaking/listening, and language conventions. This is the category with the most subdivisions and the most nuanced vocabulary-specific distinctions (e.g., phonemes vs. phonological awareness vs. phonics). Build a structured review plan that covers each subcategory systematically rather than reviewing it as one undifferentiated block.
No calculator is permitted — practice all math operations by hand before test day. The Mathematics category (25%, ~30 questions) requires mental math or scratch paper for all computations. Most questions are set in the context of children's learning, not as pure computation problems, but you still need to arrive at correct numerical answers without calculator assistance. Practice fraction-decimal-percent conversions, area and perimeter calculations, multi-step word problems, and basic algebraic equations without reaching for a calculator.
Health/PE/Creative Arts (17%) is the third-largest category and the most commonly underestimated. With approximately 20 questions, Category V covers three distinct subject areas — health (including human body systems, nutrition, mental health, substance prevention), physical education (motor development, fitness components), and creative and performing arts (elements and principles of visual art, music, dance, and theater). Many candidates overlook this category in their preparation. Know the components of health-related fitness (muscular strength/endurance, cardiovascular fitness, flexibility, body composition) and skill-related fitness (agility, balance, power, speed) and be able to distinguish between them.
For Science, know the content at the early childhood instructional level — including engineering design. Category IV (14%, ~17 questions) includes a dedicated section on Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science — aligned to NGSS engineering practices. Know how to recognize a problem, develop solutions through models and sketches, and compare solutions. Also know the three science domains at the appropriate depth: physical science basics (states of matter, energy forms, forces and motion), Earth/space science (Sun-Earth-Moon system, weather, Earth materials), and life science (organism needs, life cycles, ecosystems).
For Social Studies, understand content from the perspective of early childhood development. Category III (14%, ~17 questions) includes social-emotional development content unique to early childhood — self-concept, self-regulation, conflict resolution, and how institutions influence children's identity. These are tested alongside traditional social studies content (geography, history, civics). The integration of social-emotional development into Social Studies is specific to this exam and reflects its alignment to NAEYC standards.
Download the official ETS Study Companion and work through all practice questions with explanations. The Study Companion contains authentic sample questions for all five content areas with full answer explanations. The mathematics discussion questions are especially valuable — they ask you to think pedagogically about how young children learn math concepts (e.g., "What is the appropriate progression for introducing place value?"), which mirrors how the exam frames many of its mathematics questions. Review the Study Topics and Discussion Questions sections carefully — they directly reflect what the exam tests.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers sourced directly from the official ETS Praxis Early Childhood Education (5025) Study Companion.
Ready to Start Practicing?
Adaptive practice questions covering all five content categories — aligned to the official ETS blueprint. Domain-level analytics so you know exactly where to focus before test day.
Get Free Access — No Credit Card NeededSources: ETS Praxis Early Childhood Education (5025) Study Companion (official PDF, praxis.ets.org); ETS official test page for 5025; Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS); National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) standards; ETS Praxis fee schedule 2025–26. Praxis® is a registered trademark of Educational Testing Service (ETS). This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by ETS or NAEYC. Passing score requirements vary by state — always verify at ets.org/praxis/states.
Last Updated: May 10, 2026