Transcript Congratulations!

Congratulations!
You’re taking a reading test!
A reading test is in your future!
• You will soon be
taking a reading test
• This test will help
your teachers,
parents, and others
to find out your
strengths as a reader
Why a test?
• No one can see
inside your brain as
you read and
comprehend text
• In order to find out
how you are doing,
you need to answer
some questions
about what you read
The bright side
• There are some
good parts to taking
a reading test
• Often, you will get
to read some
interesting text
• You may enjoy the
articles and stories
that you read
Strategies for Success
• You can be successful
on reading tests
• There are some
important strategies to
remember
• If you remember these
strategies, you will find
that taking a reading
test is not as difficult!
Before the test
• Think about it!
• Brainstorm three
things that you
think you should do
before the test even
begins
Before the test
• Your success begins in
the morning
• Studies suggest that a
healthy breakfast can
help you to think and
pay attention as you
take the test
• What kinds of breakfast
foods would be good
choices?
Before the test
• But breakfast isn’t the
only way to help
yourself be successful
on the test
• Your attitude is also
important
• If you go into the test
feeling positive about
yourself, you are more
likely to try harder
Before the test
• “Positive self-talk”
is a way to build
these good feelings
• Right now, think
about three things
that you are good at
• Notice how just
thinking about these
things can help you
to feel calmer!
Before the test
• It’s important to
remember that your
effort on the test will
bring you success
• The harder you try,
the more likely you
are to be successful
Before the test
• Effort leads to
success!
• What are some
things that you have
worked hard to
achieve?
Before the test
• Let’s review!
• What are some
things that you can
do before the test to
help yourself do
well?
While you take the test
• Now, we’re going to
think about the things
that you can do while
you are taking the test
• Before we begin,
brainstorm a few ideas
• What do you already
know about taking a
reading test?
The path to success
• While you take the test,
remember to use the
good reading strategies
that you have been
learning all year long
• The best path to success
is to take your time and
learn from the text
What to do first?
• Once you get the
test, you have a
choice
• Some teachers
suggest that you flip
to the questions and
look at them to help
you get an idea of
what the text is
about
What to do first?
• But…this can cause
a problem
• Some students read
the questions and
try to answer them
right away, without
reading the text
• Can you explain
why this is a BAD
idea?
Don’t skip the text!
• Skipping the text
will not bring you
success!
• So, decide carefully
with your teacher
whether you want
to look at the
questions first
Activate your schema
• Whether you read the
questions first or not,
you will need to do
some work BEFORE
you start to read
• Jumping into a text
without preparing is
like jumping into the
deep end of the pool
before you can swim
Activate your schema
• As you look at the first
reading selection on the
test, you need to
activate your schema
• Read the little box that
introduces the text.
What is the text about?
• Look at the text
features. What kind of
text is it?
Activate your schema
• Now, activate your
schema
• This means think
about what you
already know
• Activate your
schema for the
TOPIC of the text by
thinking about what
you already know
Activate your schema
• Activate your
schema for the
KIND of text as well
• What do you know
about this kind of
text? What do you
expect to read?
Try it out!
• On the next slide, you
will see a sample
introduction box to a
reading text
• Activate your schema!
• Think about what you
already know about the
TOPIC and the KIND
OF TEXT
Activate your schema
In this
informational
text, you will
read about the
history of the
sandwich. After
you have finished
reading the text,
answer the
questions that
follow.
• What schema
should you activate?
• What should you
think about to get
yourself ready to
read this text?
Activate your schema
In this
informational
text, you will
read about the
history of the
sandwich. After
you have finished
reading the text,
answer the
questions that
follow.
• This text will be
about the history of
the sandwich
• To get ready to read
this text, think about
what you already
know about the
history of
sandwiches
Activate your schema
In this
informational
text, you will
read about the
history of the
sandwich. After
you have finished
reading the text,
answer the
questions that
follow.
• Also, think about
what you can expect
from an
informational text
that shows the
history of something
• What text structure
will it use?
What should you expect?
• If this is about the
history of the sandwich,
it is probably in
chronological order
• You should expect to
see dates
• You should also expect
to read about how the
sandwich has changed
over time
Get your mind ready
• Wow! Just by
reading a twosentence
introduction, we can
get ready to read the
text
• Try this one!
Activate your schema
In this story, you
will read about what
happens when Gwen
loses her little
brother in the forest.
After you have
finished reading the
text, answer the
questions that
follow.
• What schema
should you activate?
• What should you
think about to get
yourself ready to
read this text?
Activate your schema
In this story, you
will read about what
happens when Gwen
loses her little
brother in the forest.
After you have
finished reading the
text, answer the
questions that
follow.
• This text will be a
story
• To activate your
schema, think about
what you already
know about stories
• What elements do
you expect to find?
Activate your schema
• That’s right! Stories
have characters, a
setting, a conflict,
events, and a theme
• You already know that
one of the characters is
Gwen
• You already know that
the conflict has to do
with her brother being
lost in the woods
While you are reading
• Once you have
activated your
schema and
previewed the text,
you are ready to
start reading
• To help you
understand the text,
use an active
reading strategy
While you are reading
• An active reading
strategy will help
you to stay focused
as you read
• There are several
different strategies
that you can use
While you are reading
Questions
Who
invented
the
sandwich?
Answers
• If you are reading
nonfiction, you can try
keeping track of your
questions and their
answers
• This will help you to
focus on learning from
the text
• When you go on to
answer the questions at
the end, you will have
worked hard to
understand the text
While you are reading
• If you are reading a
story, you may want
to make a story map
and record the
characters, setting,
plot, conflict, and
theme
While you are reading
• Remember to use the
strategy of visualizing
• Make a “movie in your
mind” to picture the
events in the story or
the information in the
article
• Visualizing will help
you to see how the
pieces all fit together
While you are reading
• On some tests, you will be
allowed to use a highlighter
to highlight important
information in the text
• Check with your teacher to
see if this is okay
• If you are allowed to
highlight, be sure to mark
only the important ideas—
don’t highlight the whole
page!
While you are reading
• Another good strategy
is to use the strategy of
self-monitoring
• Pause at the end of each
paragraph to think,
“Did I understand what
I just read?”
• If you do not
understand, then go
back and read again
While you are reading
• Uh-oh! What if you come across
a word you don’t know?
• First, don’t panic
• Use what you know about the
topic and the kind of text to try
to figure out the word
• You can try other word-solving
strategies such breaking the
word into syllables, looking for
prefixes and suffixes, or using
the context
Let’s Review
1. How can you activate The correct answer is…
your schema to get
ready to read a text?
A. Eat a good breakfast
B. Highlight every word
on the page
C. Read the introduction
box and title
C. Read the introduction
box and title
Let’s Review
2. Which of the
following would
make a good
breakfast for test
day?
A. Cereal
B. Chocolate doughnuts
C. Highlighters
The correct answer is…
A. Cereal
Answering the questions
• Wow! You have
read and
understood the text
• Now it’s time to
answer the
questions
• Keep some hints in
mind and you will
do well
Multiple choice or selected
response
• This kind of
question asks a
question, and
then gives a
choice of
responses
Multiple choice or selected
response
• It is very important
that you read all of
the choices
• Then, eliminate any
choices that you
know are incorrect
• Go back to the text
to check on your
answer
Multiple choice or selected
response
• Remember, some
answers will not be
right there in the text
• You may need to put
ideas together to make
an inference
• This is why it’s so
important to activate
your schema from the
start
Multiple choice or selected
response
• Be careful!
• Sometimes, there
will be choices that
are true, but are not
the correct answer to
the question
• Also, watch out for
questions with the
words always and
never
Read EVERY choice
Look at the question
below. Why should
you NOT just pick the
first choice?
Which of the following
do you do in the
morning?
A. Brush your teeth
B. Eat breakfast
C. Get dressed
D. All of the above
Read EVERY choice
That’s right! If you
had picked the first
one, you would have
missed that the correct
answer is D
Which of the following
do you do in the
morning?
A. Brush your teeth
B. Eat breakfast
C. Get dressed
D. All of the above
Avoid careless errors
• If you are working
between a test booklet
and an answer booklet,
check to make sure that
you are marking your
answer by the right
number
• Also, remember to
check your work at the
end of each selection.
It’s very easy to mismark an answer!
Review
• What are some
things to remember
as you take a
multiple choice test?
Open-ended questions
• Sometimes, you will
have to answer
open-ended
questions
• For these questions,
you do not have
choices
• Instead, you have to
create your own
answer from scratch
Open-ended questions
• What are some
things that you
already know about
writing responses to
open-ended
questions?
Open-ended questions
• To answer these
questions, it’s
important that you
go back to the text
• You will need to
find specific text
details to support
your answers
Open-ended questions
• Think about following
these steps
• First, write a topic
sentence to state your
answer
• Then, find text evidence
to support your answer
• Finally, write a
concluding sentence to
explain how the text
evidence shows your
answer
Try it out!
• Read the text on the
next slide
• Then, write a short
answer response to
the question
• Be sure to include a
topic sentence,
specific text details,
and a concluding
sentence
Simon looked at the cabin in dismay. The brown paint
was peeling from the walls. A single light bulb lit the dim
room. Along the walls, he could see rickety metal bunk
beds. Something scampered along the floor by his feet—a
spider? A mouse? He couldn’t tell. “I don’t know if I want
to spend the week here,” Simon said.
“You’ll love it!” his father replied. “Here—spread out
your sleeping bag.”
Simon took his sleeping bag to the nearest bed. The
mattress was dingy and dirty. “Yuck,” he said.
Question: What word or phrase could you use
to describe the cabin? Support your answer
with specific details from the text.
What do you think of this
answer?
Simon looked at the cabin in
dismay. The brown paint was peeling
from the walls. A single light bulb lit
the dim room. Along the walls, he
could see rickety metal bunk beds.
Something scampered along the floor
by his feet—a spider? A mouse? He
couldn’t tell. “I don’t know if I want to
spend the week here,” Simon said.
“You’ll love it!” his father replied.
“Here—spread out your sleeping
bag.”
Simon took his sleeping bag to
the nearest bed. The mattress was
dingy and dirty. “Yuck,” he said.
I think the cabin is
not very nice because I
would not want to
spend the night here it
seems really rotten.
What do you think of this
answer?
This answer is not
very good! Notice how
it does not include
any specific details
from the text. When
you write your
answer, go back to the
text to find the
specific details.
I think the cabin is
not very nice because I
would not want to
spend the night here it
seems really rotten.
What do you think of this
answer?
Simon looked at the cabin in
dismay. The brown paint was peeling
from the walls. A single light bulb lit
the dim room. Along the walls, he
could see rickety metal bunk beds.
Something scampered along the floor
by his feet—a spider? A mouse? He
couldn’t tell. “I don’t know if I want to
spend the week here,” Simon said.
“You’ll love it!” his father replied.
“Here—spread out your sleeping
bag.”
Simon took his sleeping bag to
the nearest bed. The mattress was
dingy and dirty. “Yuck,” he said.
Simon is at a cabin
with his dad. He
doesn’t like the cabin
much and he sees a
spider. He says yuck
and doesn’t want to
stay there.
What do you think of this
answer?
Another poor
answer. This
response doesn’t
even answer the
question! Be
careful when you
take tests. Make
sure that you are
answering the
question.
Simon is at a cabin
with his dad. He
doesn’t like the cabin
much and he sees a
spider. He says yuck
and doesn’t want to
stay there.
What do you think of this
answer?
Simon looked at the cabin in
dismay. The brown paint was peeling
from the walls. A single light bulb lit
the dim room. Along the walls, he
could see rickety metal bunk beds.
Something scampered along the floor
by his feet—a spider? A mouse? He
couldn’t tell. “I don’t know if I want to
spend the week here,” Simon said.
“You’ll love it!” his father replied.
“Here—spread out your sleeping
bag.”
Simon took his sleeping bag to
the nearest bed. The mattress was
dingy and dirty. “Yuck,” he said.
I would say that the
cabin is unpleasant. I think
this for a few reasons. For
one thing, it has peeling
paint. The bunkbeds are
also rickety with dirty
mattresses. Yuck! But
worst of all, there are
things living there, like
mice or spiders. I think
this cabin is yucky and
unpleasant!
What do you think of this
answer?
 Finally, a good
answer!
 Notice the topic
sentence that
introduces the
answer
 Notice the specific
text details
 Notice the
concluding sentence
I would say that the
cabin is unpleasant. I think
this for a few reasons. For
one thing, it has peeling
paint. The bunkbeds are
also rickety with dirty
mattresses. Yuck! But
worst of all, there are
things living there, like
mice or spiders. I think
this cabin is yucky and
unpleasant!
What do you think of this
answer?
 Finally, a good
answer!
 Notice the topic
sentence that
introduces the
answer
 Notice the specific
text details
 Notice the
concluding sentence
I would say that the
cabin is unpleasant. I think
this for a few reasons. For
one thing, it has peeling
paint. The bunkbeds are
also rickety with dirty
mattresses. Yuck! But
worst of all, there are
things living there, like
mice or spiders. I think
this cabin is yucky and
unpleasant!
Remember to check your answer!
• After you have
finished writing, it
might be tempting
to just turn the page
and forget about it
• If you have the time,
read your answer to
make sure that it
makes sense
What have you learned?
• What are some
steps to
completing an
open-ended
response?
Think about this
• You might actually
enjoy some of the
selections that you
read
• One of the things
that’s hard about a
reading test is that
you often have to
read several
selections in a row
Think about this
• Before you go on to the
next selection, take a
deep breath and give
yourself some more
positive self-talk
• Once you turn the page,
remember to start all
over again with
activating your schema
Putting it all together
• What are some
things that you
should do BEFORE
the test?
• What should you do
to activate your
schema before you
start to read the
selection?
• What are some
active reading
strategies that you
can use to
understand the
selection?
• What do you need
to remember as you
answer questions?
Enjoy the test!
• And enjoy your
future reading!
by Emily Kissner