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Wisconsin Standards

Wisconsin 8th Grade Math Standards

All 28 Wisconsin math standards for 8th grade, each explained in plain English. The official wording is in Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's document, linked at the end of this page.

28 standards

The Number System

2 standards
M.8.NS.A.1
Explain that irrational numbers are those that are not rational, that every number has a decimal form, and change repeating decimals into fractions.
M.8.NS.A.2
Estimate irrational numbers with nearby decimals to compare them and place them on a number line, like showing the square root of 2 is between 1.4 and 1.5.

Expressions and Equations

8 standards
M.8.EE.A.1
Use the rules for integer exponents to rewrite number expressions, like 3² x 3⁻⁵ = 3⁻³ = 1/27.
M.8.EE.A.2
Solve equations like x² = 25 or x³ = 8 with square and cube roots, find the roots of small perfect squares and cubes, and know that the square root of 2 is irrational.
Common Core 8.EE.2
M.8.EE.A.3
Estimate very large or small amounts as a digit times a power of 10 and compare them, like 7 x 10⁹ is over 20 times 3 x 10⁸.
M.8.EE.A.4
Use technology to read and calculate with numbers in scientific notation, and choose fitting units for very large or small measures, like millimeters per year.
M.8.EE.B.5
Graph a proportional relationship, read its unit rate as the slope, and compare two such relationships shown in different ways, like a graph against an equation.
Common Core 8.EE.5
M.8.EE.B.6
Explain with similar triangles why a line's slope is the same between any two of its points, and derive the equations y = mx and y = mx + b.
Common Core 8.EE.6
M.8.EE.C.7
Solve one-variable linear equations with fractions, parentheses and like terms, and tell whether an equation has one solution, none or infinitely many.
Common Core 8.EE.7
M.8.EE.C.8
Solve a pair of linear equations in two variables by graphing or algebra, knowing the solution is where the two lines cross, and use such pairs to solve word problems.
Common Core 8.EE.8

Functions

5 standards
M.8.F.A.1
Explain that a function gives each input exactly one output and that its graph is the set of input and output pairs, without needing function notation.
M.8.F.A.2
Compare two functions given in different ways, like one as a table and one as an equation, to see which has the greater rate of change.
Common Core 8.F.2
M.8.F.A.3
Recognize y = mx + b as a linear function whose graph is a straight line, and give examples of nonlinear ones, like the area of a square A = s².
Common Core 8.F.3
M.8.F.B.4
Write a linear function for a real situation, find its rate of change and starting value from a description, table, graph or two points, and explain what they mean.
Common Core 8.F.4
M.8.F.B.5
Describe a relationship from its graph, like where it rises or falls, is linear or not, or is continuous or discrete, and sketch a graph from a description.

Geometry

9 standards
M.8.G.A.1
Check with tracing paper or software that sliding, turning or flipping a figure keeps its side lengths, angles and parallel lines unchanged.
Common Core 8.G.1
M.8.G.A.2
Know that two figures are congruent when one can be moved onto the other by slides, turns and flips, and describe the moves that do it.
Common Core 8.G.2
M.8.G.A.3
Describe what happens to a figure's coordinates when it is slid, turned, flipped or scaled up or down.
Common Core 8.G.3
M.8.G.A.4
Know that two figures are similar when slides, turns, flips and a resize can map one onto the other, and describe the sequence that does it.
Common Core 8.G.4
M.8.G.A.5
Argue informally why a triangle's angles add to 180 degrees, which angles match when a line crosses parallel lines, and why two equal angles make triangles similar.
Common Core 8.G.5
M.8.G.B.6
Justify how the legs and hypotenuse of a right triangle are related by the Pythagorean Theorem, and justify its converse too.
M.8.G.B.7
Use the Pythagorean theorem to find a missing side of a right triangle in real problems, flat or in three dimensions, like the diagonal of a box.
Common Core 8.G.7
M.8.G.B.8
Find the distance between two points on a coordinate grid by treating it as the long side of a right triangle.
Common Core 8.G.8
M.8.G.C.9
Know how the volume formulas for cones, cylinders and spheres of the same height and width relate, and use them to solve real problems.

Statistics and Probability

4 standards
M.8.SP.A.1
Make a scatter plot of two measurements, like height and shoe size, and describe clusters, outliers and whether the points trend up, down, in a line or in a curve.
Common Core 8.SP.1
M.8.SP.A.2
Draw a straight line of best fit by eye through a scatter plot that looks linear, and judge how well it fits by how close the points sit to it.
Common Core 8.SP.2
M.8.SP.A.3
Use the equation of a fitted line to solve problems, explaining what its slope and intercept mean, like 1.5 cm of growth per extra hour of sunlight.
Common Core 8.SP.3
M.8.SP.A.4
Organize yes-or-no data about two things, like curfews and chores, in a two-way table and use row or column percentages to see whether the two are linked.
Common Core 8.SP.4

The official Wisconsin documents

The plain-English lines on this page are EMStudio's own explanations of Wisconsin's standards, not the official wording, which Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction publishes in the documents above. Codes and strand names identify each standard.