NJSLA Grade 8 Science
Frequently Asked Questions
Welcome to NJSLA Grade 8 Science!
Welcome to Albert's New Jersey Student Learning Assessments for Science (NJSLA-S) course!
This page provides specific content-related information for Albert's New Jersey Student Learning Assessments for Science course, including how it is organized, how to find questions using standards or tags, and ideas for classroom uses. If you need technical assistance, please visit our Help Center or contact hello@albert.io.
For testing information or details about the exam itself, visit the New Jersey Department of Education.
Subject Organization
Albert's NJSLA Grade 8 Science course is organized into content themes and further broken down into topics. Our full NJSLA Grade 8 Science prep course subject guide includes three themes that align with the different domains of science seen on the exam.
Themes
- Earth and Space Science
- Life Science
- Physical Science
Topic Quizzes
Within each theme, you'll find short, formative topic quizzes where a topic quiz represents a single standard. Each topic quiz is designed to be given in a single class period. The quiz questions mimic the rigor and format of the actual exam. For example, here are some topic quizzes within the Life Science theme:
- Topic Quiz | MS-LS1-2: Structure and Function of Cells
- Topic Quiz | MS-LS2-3: Matter and Energy
- Topic Quiz | MS-LS3-1: Mutations
- Topic Quiz | MS-LS4-4: Genetic Variations and Adaptations
Using Standards and Tags to Find Questions
Standards
Every question is aligned to the standards outlined in the 2020 New Hersey Student Learning Standards for Science. Each standard begins with the state abbreviation NJ.
You can find questions aligned to learning standards using our standards search tool. In the Standards drop-down at the top of the Assessments tab, you can search for standards by name (for example, NJ MS-ESS1-1) or description. When you type in characters that match one of the standards, the drop-down will populate with matching standards.
Tags
In addition to standards, each question is assigned one or more tags to help differentiate between the wide variety of questions we offer. These tags are words or phrases that encompass content, question type, and skill. All words are lower-case, and multiple word tags are connected by a hyphen. For example, “literacy” or “application.”
To search for a tag, click the Tags drop-down within the subject and enter the tag or content you're searching for in the search bar.
For more help on finding questions using standards and tags, visit our Help Center.
Question Types
Albert's NJSLA Grade 8 Science course uses a variety of question types to test students’ understanding of content and provide meaningful practice of important skills. These question types include:
- Multiple Choice
- Multiple Select
- Two-Way Tables
- Fill-in-the-blank
- Snippet Select
- Free Entry
Calculator Use
Students are allowed to use scientific calculators on all sections of the NJSLA-S. Read full details here.
Related Content
For additional material, you can combine NJSLA Grade 8 Science with our other core courses, Middle School Earth and Space Science, Middle School Life Science, and Middle School Physical Science. Our core courses are aligned to NJ standards, so you can leverage thousands of aligned practice questions across Albert to assess, reteach, and extend student learning.
Our Help Center is always available!
Our Help Center is available any time and provides articles written by the Albert team to answer questions you might have about implementing Albert in your classroom.