Praxis Middle School Content key terms

The ability to notice and work with the individual sounds in spoken words, such as blending, segmenting, and deleting phonemes. It is auditory and does not involve printed letters.

The smallest unit of sound that distinguishes one word from another in a language, as the /b/ in bat versus the /k/ in cat. English has roughly 44 of them.

Instruction in the predictable relationships between letters or letter patterns and the sounds they represent, used to decode unfamiliar printed words. It connects spelling to speech sounds.

The process of translating printed letters and letter patterns into spoken sounds in order to recognize or pronounce a written word, especially an unfamiliar one.

Reading that is accurate, appropriately paced, and expressive, showing that a reader recognizes words automatically and can group text into meaningful phrases. It bridges word recognition and comprehension.

The rhythm, stress, pitch, and intonation a reader applies to text, producing expressive oral reading. Appropriate prosody signals that the reader understands phrase and sentence structure.

The study of how words are built from smaller meaningful units such as roots, prefixes, and suffixes. Knowledge of it helps students decode and infer the meaning of unfamiliar words.

The smallest meaningful unit of language, which may be a whole word or a bound part such as the -ed marking past tense. Some words contain several of them.

A bound morpheme attached to a base or root word to change its meaning or grammatical function. Prefixes come before the base; suffixes follow it.

The central point an informational passage conveys about its topic, stated or implied. Supporting details explain, illustrate, or elaborate on it.

A recurring idea or insight about life that a literary work conveys, usually expressed as a full statement rather than a single word. It is inferred from characters, conflict, and events.

The methods an author uses to reveal a character's traits, either directly through narration or indirectly through speech, actions, thoughts, appearance, and others' reactions.

The perspective from which a narrative is told, such as first person, third-person limited, or third-person omniscient. It shapes what information the reader can access.

A storyteller whose account the reader has reason to doubt because of bias, limited knowledge, self-interest, or dishonesty. Gaps and contradictions in the telling signal the unreliability.

A conclusion drawn by combining explicit text evidence with the reader's background knowledge. It is not stated directly and must be supported by details in the passage.

Specific quotations, facts, or details from a passage used to support an interpretation, claim, or analysis. Strong responses cite and explain such evidence rather than assert opinions alone.

A reasoned claim supported by evidence and logical reasoning, often acknowledging and answering counterclaims. In writing instruction it is distinguished from mere opinion or persuasion by its emphasis on proof.

A debatable assertion that a writer or speaker sets out to support with reasons and evidence. A strong claim is specific, arguable, and appropriate in scope for the task.

Word use that departs from literal meaning to create effect or comparison, including metaphor, simile, personification, and hyperbole. It invites readers to interpret beyond the dictionary sense.

The emotional or cultural associations a word carries beyond its dictionary meaning, as cheap suggests lower quality while inexpensive does not. Word choice shapes tone through these associations.

The author's or speaker's attitude toward the subject or audience, conveyed through diction, imagery, and sentence structure. It differs from mood, which is the feeling created in the reader.

Any number that can be written as a fraction of two integers with a nonzero denominator. Its decimal form either terminates or repeats, and it includes integers and most familiar fractions.

A real number that cannot be expressed as a ratio of two integers, so its decimal expansion neither terminates nor repeats. Familiar examples include the square root of 2 and pi.

Using equivalent ratios and a constant rate to compare quantities and solve problems, as in scaling recipes or computing unit prices. It underlies percent, scale drawings, and linear relationships through the origin.

A rate expressed per one unit of a given quantity, found by dividing one quantity by the other, such as miles per hour or cost per ounce. It serves as the constant of proportionality.

A function whose graph is a straight line and whose rule can be written in the form y = mx + b. It has a constant rate of change and pairs each input with exactly one output.

The measure of a line's steepness, computed as the change in the dependent variable divided by the corresponding change in the independent variable between two points. It represents the constant rate of change.

A rule that assigns to each input value exactly one output value. Tables, graphs, equations, and verbal descriptions can all represent the same relationship.

A mathematical phrase combining numbers, variables, and operations without an equals sign, such as 3x + 5. It can be simplified or evaluated but not solved.

A mathematical statement asserting that two expressions are equal, such as 2x + 3 = 11. Solving it means finding the value or values of the variable that make the statement true.

A symbol, usually a letter, that stands for an unknown or changing quantity in an expression, equation, or formula. Its value may be determined or may vary across a relationship.

A measure of center found by adding all values in a data set and dividing by the number of values. It is sensitive to outliers, unlike the median.

The middle value of an ordered data set, or the average of the two middle values when the count is even. It resists distortion by extreme values.

A data value that lies far from the rest of the distribution. It can pull the mean noticeably while leaving the median nearly unchanged.

An original document or artifact created during the period under study by a participant or eyewitness, such as a letter, photograph, law, or diary. It offers direct, unmediated evidence.

An account that interprets or analyzes primary evidence after the fact, such as a textbook, biography, or scholarly article. It depends on and should be checked against original materials.

An explanation of past events built from evidence and shaped by the historian's questions, perspective, and available sources. Competing interpretations can coexist when evidence is incomplete or ambiguous.

A systematic slant or partiality in a source, account, or measurement that favors one viewpoint or outcome. In history it is analyzed rather than simply dismissed, since all sources reflect a perspective.

A system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and constituent units such as states, with each level holding defined powers. In the United States it is shaped by the Constitution and its amendments.

The division of government authority among legislative, executive, and judicial branches so that no single branch holds all power. It is a foundational principle of the U.S. Constitution.

Arrangements that let each branch of government limit the powers of the others, such as a presidential veto or judicial review. They are intended to prevent any branch from dominating.

The value of the next best alternative forgone when a choice is made. Because resources are scarce, every decision carries one even when no money changes hands.

The interaction between how much producers offer at various prices and how much consumers will buy. Their balance helps determine market price and quantity exchanged.

The condition in which human wants exceed the limited resources available to satisfy them. It forces individuals and societies to make choices and is central to economic reasoning.

A systematic process of asking questions, forming testable hypotheses, gathering data through controlled investigation, and revising explanations based on evidence. Conclusions are always provisional and open to further testing.

A testable, falsifiable prediction or proposed explanation that guides an investigation. It must be stated so that observations could potentially support or refute it.

An investigation in which the researcher deliberately changes one variable while holding other conditions constant, so that effects can be attributed to the manipulated factor. A comparison group often strengthens the design.

The factor that an investigator deliberately changes or selects in an experiment, often plotted on the horizontal axis. Its effect on the measured outcome is what the study aims to reveal.

The factor that is measured or observed in an experiment and that may respond to changes in the independent variable. It is often plotted on the vertical axis.

The principle that all living things are composed of one or more cells, that the cell is the basic unit of life, and that new cells arise from existing cells. It unifies biology at every scale.

The process by which plants, algae, and some bacteria use light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen. It stores energy in chemical bonds and supplies oxygen to the atmosphere.

The set of reactions by which cells break down glucose, with or without oxygen, to release usable energy stored in ATP. It produces carbon dioxide and water as byproducts.

The division of a cell nucleus that produces two daughter cells with the same chromosome number as the parent cell. It underlies growth, repair, and asexual reproduction in many organisms.

The process by which individuals with heritable traits better suited to their environment tend to survive and reproduce more, shifting trait frequencies in a population over generations. It acts on existing variation.

A heritable trait or behavior that improves an organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment. Adaptations arise through natural selection over many generations, not by individual effort.

The movement of energy from one object or system to another, as in food chains or heat flow. At each step some energy is dissipated, typically as heat, so less remains available to the next level.

The theory that Earth's rigid outer shell is broken into plates that move slowly over the mantle, causing earthquakes, volcanic activity, and mountain building at their boundaries. It explains continental drift and seafloor spreading.

The set of processes by which igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks transform into one another through melting, cooling, weathering, erosion, compaction, and heat and pressure. It operates over geologic time.