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PRAXISCode: 5007📚 NCTE/ILA + NCSS AlignedSubtest of 5006~70% Tasks of Teaching

Praxis® Elementary Education:
Reading, Language Arts
& Social Studies (5007)
Practice Test & Study Guide

Comprehensive preparation for prospective primary through upper elementary teachers — covering Reading and Language Arts (65%) and Social Studies (35%), aligned to NCTE/ILA and NCSS standards. Approximately 70% of questions apply content through Tasks of Teaching. Subtest of the Elementary Education Assessment (5006).

55
Questions
2.5 hrs
Time limit
Varies
Passing score*
2
Content categories
~70%
Tasks of Teaching
$130
Exam fee
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Approximately 70% of questions in both Reading/Language Arts and Social Studies assess content applied to a Task of Teaching. For Reading and Language Arts, these tasks include evaluating texts for specific instructional goals, analyzing student reading and writing samples to identify misconceptions or level of development, selecting and evaluating instructional strategies, and explaining literacy concepts. For Social Studies, tasks include anticipating student thinking, selecting appropriate primary vs. secondary sources, evaluating student arguments and work samples, and designing learning experiences. Preparing for these applied scenarios is as important as studying the content itself.

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Reading and Language Arts is 65% (~62 questions) — the largest single content area on this subtest, spanning eight major topic categories. Coverage ranges from foundational skills (print concepts, alphabetic principle, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency) through comprehension, writing, research, speaking/listening, and language conventions. Questions test both content knowledge and instructional decision-making: how to teach each skill, what student errors reveal about development, and which strategies support specific literacy goals.

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Source: All exam details are drawn from the official ETS Praxis Elementary Education Assessment (5006) Study Companion, which covers both the 5007 and 5008 subtests. Passing scores vary by state — always confirm at ets.org/praxis/states.

Free Praxis Elementary Education Assessment: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007) Sample Quiz

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Which phonics skill helps a student read "chain" by recognizing "ch" and "ai" patterns?

Elementary Education: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007) — Test at a Glance

Key facts directly from the official ETS test specifications.

Test code
5007
Subtest of 5006
Total questions
95
All selected-response
Time limit
2.5 hrs
150 minutes
Reading & ELA
65%
~62 questions · NCTE/ILA
Social Studies
35%
~33 questions · NCSS
Tasks of Teaching
~70% per subject
Applied teaching scenarios
Exam fee
$130
Or as part of 5006
Passing score
Varies
Set by state/agency

About the Praxis Elementary Education: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007)

What you need to know before you register.

The Praxis Elementary Education: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007) is designed for prospective teachers of children in primary through upper elementary school grades. The 95 selected-response questions focus on the broad knowledge of language arts and social studies necessary to be licensed as a beginning teacher at the elementary school level. It can be taken independently or as part of the combined Elementary Education Assessment (5006).

The assessment was developed through work with practicing elementary teachers, teacher educators, and higher education content specialists familiar with The Standards for the English Language Arts (NCTE/ILA) and social studies content standards developed by the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS).

Approximately 70% of questions in each subject area assess content applied to a Task of Teaching. These scenario-based questions present classroom situations — student work samples, instructional decisions, assessment data, or learning goals — and ask candidates to apply their content knowledge to make professional teaching decisions. The remaining ~30% test content knowledge directly.

The test uses a variety of selected-response question formats including selecting one or more answer choices and other interactive types. No calculator is needed or available. Some questions may not count toward the score.

Two Content Categories at a Glance

Reading and Language Arts accounts for 65% of this subtest. Social Studies accounts for 35%. Both are assessed through the Tasks of Teaching lens approximately 70% of the time.

Reading & Language Arts

Elementary Reading and Language Arts

NCTE/ILA Standards · ~70% Tasks of Teaching
Weight65% of subtest
Questions~62 questions
Topic areas8 categories (A–H)
StandardsNational Council of Teachers of English / International Literacy Association
Social Studies

Elementary Social Studies

NCSS Standards · ~70% Tasks of Teaching
Weight35% of subtest
Questions~33 questions
Content areas4 strands (A–D)
StandardsNational Council for the Social Studies

Tasks of Teaching — What They Are in Reading/ELA and Social Studies

Approximately 70% of questions in both subjects present classroom scenarios requiring applied professional judgment. Know what these tasks ask you to do.

Task Type 1
Evaluating Materials
Evaluating texts, examples, and graphic representations for their support of particular Reading/ELA or Social Studies instructional goals — selecting the best text or material for a specific objective
Task Type 2
Creating & Modifying
Creating and modifying texts, examples, and representations to support instructional goals, including differentiation for particular learners — advanced, struggling, ELL, or students with special needs
Task Type 3
Analyzing Language
Analyzing language and language systems — identifying grammatical structures, recognizing figurative language, analyzing text structure, evaluating word choice, and understanding how language functions
Task Type 4
Explaining & Demonstrating
Explaining, defining, and demonstrating reading, language arts, and social studies processes and concepts for students — selecting the clearest, most developmentally appropriate explanation
Task Type 5
Evaluating Student Work
Evaluating student reading, writing, speaking, and listening to identify strengths, areas for improvement, patterns of thinking, cuing systems, misconceptions, and partial conceptions; classifying student literacy development level
Task Type 6
Designing Learning Experiences
Anticipating student thinking; selecting, adapting, and creating resources for specific instructional goals; designing learning experiences to promote student understanding in context of the school and community

Official Exam Blueprint: 2 Content Categories

Reading and Language Arts is 65% with approximately 62 questions. Social Studies is 35% with approximately 33 questions.

Category I
Reading and Language Arts
Foundational skills (print concepts, alphabetic principle, phonological awareness, phonics and word recognition, fluency); language (conventions of standard academic English, vocabulary, forms and functions of language); constructing meaning (key ideas and details, author's craft and text structure, integration and application of knowledge, text types); production of written texts (writing process, types of writing); research to build and present knowledge; discussion and collaboration; presentation of knowledge and ideas; and Tasks of Teaching Reading and Language Arts. Aligned to NCTE/ILA Standards for the English Language Arts.
65%
~62 questions
Category II
Social Studies
History (chronology, historical sources and analysis, classical civilizations, indigenous peoples, European exploration/colonization, American independence, U.S. government development, 19th–21st century U.S. history); government and citizenship (family and community, purposes and levels and forms of government, Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, responsible citizenship); human and physical geography (location, distance, direction, physical and human characteristics of place, human-environment interaction, cultural similarities/differences); economics (goods and services, producers/consumers, earning/spending/saving, supply and demand, types of economies). Aligned to NCSS standards.
35%
~33 questions

Key Topics by Content Category

Specific competencies from the official ETS Elementary Education Assessment (5006) Study Companion for the 5007 subtest — with detailed coverage of both content knowledge and Tasks of Teaching.

Reading & ELA

Reading and Language Arts — Foundational to Advanced Literacy (Category I)

~62 questions · 65%
A. Print concepts: understanding that written words communicate a message; words are separated by spaces; text is written in a particular direction; sentences have distinguishing features (capitalization and punctuation); differentiating between the pictures and the printed words on a page
A. Alphabetic principle: understanding that individual phonemes heard in words are represented by graphemes; letter-sound relationships can be analyzed and synthesized in decoding and encoding; identifying uppercase and lowercase letter names, shapes, and corresponding sounds
A. Phonological awareness: understanding that speech is composed of various phonological units varying in size (from phonemes to morphemes, syllables to words); detecting and manipulating speech sounds at four levels: parts of compound words, syllables, onset-rime, and phonemes (e.g., /b/, /a/, /t/)
A. Phonics and word recognition: pronouncing unfamiliar words by applying letter-sound correspondences, orthographic patterns, and word analogies (e.g., "bolt" sounds like "colt"); reading multisyllabic words by breaking into syllables and identifying affixes; identifying high-frequency sight words
A. Fluency: reading grade-level text with accuracy, appropriate rate, and prosody (resembling natural speech in stress, pitch, phrasing, intonation, timing); using context to confirm or self-correct; building stamina to finish reading tasks; assessing fluency through accuracy, rate, and prosody
B. Language conventions: structural rules governing clauses, phrases, and words (word tense, parts of speech, subject-verb agreement, correlative conjunctions); capitalization and punctuation conventions; simple, compound, and complex sentences; grade-appropriate spelling using alphabetic spelling, orthographic patterns, syllables, affixes, and derivational suffixes
B. Vocabulary: denotative and connotative meanings; academic words and domain-specific vocabulary; figurative and idiomatic language; strategies for determining meanings of unfamiliar words (context clues, word parts — affixes and roots, word associations — antonyms/synonyms/cognates, external resources like dictionaries)
B. Forms and functions of language: appropriate levels of formal language across contexts; analysis of English dialects and registers; selecting words, phrases, and punctuation for effect and precision; combining, expanding, and reducing sentences to infuse writing with meaning, interest, and style
C. Key ideas and details: asking and answering questions; citing textual evidence; determining central ideas or themes; summarizing/paraphrasing key supporting details; recounting stories and identifying central message, lesson, or moral; identifying relationships between characters/individuals, settings, events, ideas, or concepts
C. Author's craft and text structure: analyzing how specific word choice conveys meaning and tone; describing overall text structure (cause/effect, problem/solution, sequence); using text features (captions, tables of contents, diagrams) to locate information; analyzing craft and structure across texts (comparing how authors convey point of view for the same event; comparing informational text structures)
C. Integration and application: evaluating the validity of arguments, reasoning, and evidence; integrating information across multiple texts (synthesizing, comparing approaches, analyzing how formats contribute to meaning); applying information to new contexts; interpreting how illustrations and visual representations support reader understanding
C. Text types: narrative genres (elements: narrator, dialogue, description, sensory details, event sequencing); procedural genres (directions, instructions, steps); persuasive genres (claims, evidence, reasoning); transitional words and phrases; text structures (cause/effect, problem/solution, sequence) for different purposes; formats for introducing, sequencing, and concluding all text types
D–E. Production of written texts and research: producing clear, coherent writing adapted to audience, task, and purpose; taking writing through stages of the writing process (planning, drafting, revising); locating and selecting information from different text types; determining credibility, accuracy, and biases of sources; distinguishing primary from secondary sources; synthesizing research to support analysis
F–G. Discussion, collaboration, and presentation: using discourse conventions (taking turns, acknowledging others' comments, clarifying information, building on others' ideas); paraphrasing and summarizing a speaker's main points; expressing ideas clearly and persuasively; presenting knowledge logically with supporting facts; using digital and visual media to enhance ideas; speaking at an appropriate pace and register for the context
H. Tasks of Teaching Reading and Language Arts: evaluating texts and graphic representations for specific Reading/ELA instructional goals; creating and modifying texts to support goals including differentiation; analyzing language and language systems; explaining and demonstrating reading and language arts processes for students; facilitating discussions to elicit student thinking; evaluating instructional strategies and activities; evaluating student reading, writing, speaking, and listening to identify strengths and areas for improvement; classifying students' level of literacy development; analyzing student work to identify patterns of thinking, cuing systems, misconceptions, and partial conceptions
Social Studies

Social Studies — History, Government, Geography, Economics (Category II)

~33 questions · 35%
A. History — Chronology: understanding the concept of chronology; constructing and interpreting timelines; placing events in correct centuries; recognizing chronological thinking as a foundational historical skill
A. History — Sources and analysis: understanding how various sources (primary vs. secondary, newspaper articles vs. journals, oral histories vs. written records) provide information about the past and present; evaluating sources for perspective and reliability; comparing representations of the same event from different perspectives
A. History — Classical civilizations and indigenous peoples: contributions of classical civilizations (China, Africa, Egypt, Greece, Rome); characteristics of indigenous peoples in North America before European exploration — their diverse cultures, societies, and ways of life
A. History — European exploration to American independence: causes and effects of European exploration and colonization of North America; interactions between European colonizers and indigenous peoples; how conflict between American colonies and Great Britain led to American independence; major events and figures of the American Revolution
A. History — U.S. Government development: development of the U.S. government including the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation; the Constitutional Convention; the structure of the Constitution and Bill of Rights; how the Constitution balances federal and state power (Commerce Clause, Tenth Amendment); landmark amendments
A. History — 19th through 21st century: political, economic, and social changes in the United States during the 19th century (slavery, Civil War, Reconstruction, industrialization, westward expansion); important developments in the 20th and 21st centuries (women's suffrage, Civil Rights Movement, World Wars, Cold War, major technological changes)
B. Government and citizenship: concepts of family and community; purposes and functions of government; various levels of government (local, state, federal) and their roles; various forms of government (democracy, monarchy, autocracy, theocracy) and their characteristics; key ideas in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution including the Bill of Rights; characteristics of responsible citizenship (voting, civic duties, civic participation)
C. Human and physical geography: geographic concepts (location, distance, direction — cardinal and intermediate, landmarks, absolute vs. relative location); physical characteristics of place and how they affect human activities and settlement patterns; human characteristics of place and how humans adapt to variations in the physical environment; similarities and differences between and among people and cultures; geographic literacy (constructing and using maps, graphs, charts, and technology)
C. Human-environment interaction: how humans modify and adapt to their physical environments; how physical environment affects human economies and cultures; environmental impact of human activities; interdependence between people and their environments; global patterns of human settlement related to geography
D. Economics: how human needs are met through goods and services; roles of producers and consumers in an economy; the purposes of earning, spending, and saving money; the concept of supply and demand and how scarcity influences price; types of economies (command, market, mixed, traditional) and their characteristics; basic economic decision-making concepts
Tasks of Teaching Social Studies: anticipating student thinking in relation to social studies content (identifying misconceptions in student work — e.g., errors on historical timelines); selecting, adapting, and creating resources for particular instructional goals (choosing appropriate primary vs. secondary sources); demonstrating social studies content knowledge in instruction; evaluating student ideas in work, talk, and interactions to identify strengths and areas for focus; designing learning experiences to promote student understanding in school and community contexts; scaffolding students' understanding of complex social studies concepts (e.g., the American Revolution, the Constitution)

Registration, Test Day & Scoring

Everything you need to know before and on exam day.

Registration

Where to registerpraxis.ets.org
Exam fee$130 (confirm at ETS)
Combined test option5006 (5007 + 5008)
Testing formatsIn-person or remote
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

Reading & ELA Details

Weight65% · ~62 questions
StandardsNCTE / ILA
Topic areas8 categories (A–H)
Tasks of Teaching~70%

Social Studies Details

Weight35% · ~33 questions
StandardsNCSS
Content areas4 strands (History, Govt, Geo, Econ)
Tasks of Teaching~70%

Passing Score Requirements by State

Passing scores are set individually by each state or licensing agency.

Important: Passing score requirements for the Elementary Education: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007) 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. There is no penalty for incorrect answers — always answer every question. Some questions are unscored pretest items. If you passed the 5008 but not the 5007, you may retake only the 5007 independently.

How to Prepare for the Praxis Elementary Education: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007)

Strategies for an exam where 70% of questions test applied teaching knowledge alongside content — and where Reading and Language Arts commands the majority of every question set.

  • Reading and Language Arts (65%, ~62 questions) is the dominant category — and the developmental literacy sequence is the backbone of preparation. The eight Reading/ELA topic categories are not independent silos but a progression: print awareness → alphabetic principle → phonological awareness → phonemic awareness → phonics and word recognition → fluency → vocabulary → comprehension → writing. This progression is not just theoretical — it determines what skills must be developed before others can emerge, which means understanding the sequence helps you answer Task of Teaching questions: a student struggling with comprehension who also shows fluency problems likely needs intervention earlier in the chain.
  • Know phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, and phonics as distinct concepts with distinct instructional approaches — they are among the most frequently tested distinctions on the 5007. Phonological awareness: broad awareness of the sound structure of language including syllables, rhymes, onset-rime, and words. Phonemic awareness: the specific ability to hear and manipulate individual phonemes (e.g., blending /k/ /æ/ /t/ → "cat"). Phonics: the systematic mapping of phonemes to graphemes — a print-based skill that requires print. Know example activities for each, know what student errors reveal about which skill is underdeveloped, and know which comes developmentally before which.
  • Task of Teaching questions will ask you to analyze student reading and writing samples — practice this skill explicitly. A student who consistently substitutes the first letter of words correctly but misreads word endings demonstrates partial phonics knowledge — specifically a strength in initial consonant correspondences but weakness in final consonants or word endings. A student who reads slowly but accurately with poor expression needs fluency work, not decoding instruction. The Study Companion's discussion questions include prompts asking you to identify misconceptions, classify student literacy development level, and respond appropriately — work through all of them.
  • For Social Studies (35%, ~33 questions), know U.S. history chronologically and understand the Task of Teaching context. The Study Companion makes clear that Social Studies questions are heavily scenario-based: given a student time line with an error, identify the misconception and choose a correction strategy; given an instructional goal, determine which type of source (primary vs. secondary) best helps students achieve it; given a student argument, evaluate its strengths and weaknesses. Prepare U.S. history knowledge by building a personal timeline from 1400 through the present, then practice applying it to instructional scenarios — not just recalling dates and events.
  • Know the complete U.S. government framework — Constitution, Bill of Rights, federalism, and levels of government — tested through both content and teaching scenarios. Government and Citizenship is a consistently tested Social Studies strand. Know the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and why the Constitution replaced them; the structure of the three branches; the federalist balance between federal and state power (Commerce Clause, Tenth Amendment); key amendments; and the characteristics of different forms of government (democracy vs. autocracy vs. monarchy vs. theocracy). Tasks of Teaching questions in this area ask you to design activities that help students compare these systems or understand how the Constitution shapes daily life.
  • Download the official ETS Study Companion and work through all discussion questions and sample test questions for the 5007. The Study Companion contains complete Reading/ELA and Social Studies content specifications, extensive discussion questions (approximately 25 for Reading/ELA and 15 for Social Studies), and authentic sample test questions with full explanations. For Reading/ELA, the discussion questions explicitly address how to assess fluency, how to use repeated reading and choral reading to build fluency, how to recognize when fluency is impacting comprehension, the best methods for analyzing word meanings, and how to explain the writing process to students. For Social Studies, they include practice designing lessons, scaffolding instruction, and evaluating primary vs. secondary sources.

Frequently Asked Questions

Answers sourced directly from the official ETS Elementary Education Assessment (5006) Study Companion.

How many questions are on the Praxis Elementary Education: Reading, Language Arts & Social Studies (5007)?
The exam contains 95 selected-response questions with a 2.5-hour (150-minute) time limit. Questions span two categories: Reading and Language Arts (65%, ~62 questions) and Social Studies (35%, ~33 questions). Approximately 70% of questions in each subject area assess content applied to a Task of Teaching.
What are Tasks of Teaching on the Praxis 5007?
Approximately 70% of questions in both Reading/ELA and Social Studies are Tasks of Teaching — scenario-based questions that situate content knowledge in classroom contexts. For Reading/ELA, tasks include evaluating texts for instructional suitability, analyzing student literacy work to identify misconceptions or developmental level, explaining concepts for students, and selecting instructional strategies. For Social Studies, tasks include anticipating student thinking, selecting sources for specific goals, evaluating student arguments, and designing learning experiences.
What Reading and Language Arts topics are covered on the Praxis 5007?
Eight major areas: A. Foundational Skills (print concepts, alphabetic principle, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency); B. Language (grammar and conventions, vocabulary, forms and functions); C. Constructing Meaning (key ideas, author's craft, integration and application, text types); D. Production of Written Texts; E. Research; F. Discussion and Collaboration; G. Presentation of Knowledge; H. Tasks of Teaching Reading and Language Arts.
What Social Studies topics are covered on the Praxis 5007?
Four content strands: A. History (chronology, sources, classical civilizations, indigenous peoples, European exploration and colonization, American independence, U.S. government development, 19th–21st century U.S. history); B. Government and Citizenship (purposes, levels, and forms of government; Constitution; Bill of Rights; citizenship); C. Human and Physical Geography (location, human-environment interaction, cultural similarities/differences); D. Economics (goods/services, supply/demand, types of economies).
Can I take the 5007 independently without the 5008?
Yes. The 5007 can be taken independently or as part of the Elementary Education Assessment (5006) combined with the 5008 subtest. The combined 5006 includes both subtests (180 questions, 4.5 hours). Scores are reported separately for each subtest regardless of how you register.
What standards is the Praxis 5007 aligned to?
Reading and Language Arts aligns to The Standards for the English Language Arts (NCTE/ILA) — National Council of Teachers of English and International Literacy Association. Social Studies aligns to NCSS social studies content standards — National Council for the Social Studies.
Is there a penalty for wrong answers on the Praxis 5007?
No. Your score is based solely on correct answers — there is no penalty for wrong answers. Always answer every question. Never leave a question blank.

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Sources: ETS Praxis Elementary Education Assessment (5006) Study Companion (official PDF, praxis.ets.org), which covers both the 5007 and 5008 subtests; ETS official test page for 5007; Standards for the English Language Arts (NCTE/ILA); National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) national curriculum standards; ETS Praxis fee schedule 2025–26. Praxis® is a registered trademark of ETS. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by ETS. Passing score requirements vary by state — always verify at ets.org/praxis/states.
Last Updated: May 22, 2026