Test Preparation

K-12 Resources for Teachers, Students and Parents

The following is compilation of Internet resources that provide information, documentation and materials (lesson plans, practice material, instructional videos, etc.) in the area of test preparation.

Test Strategies
http://tennessee.gov/education/assessment/doc/tsteststrategies.pdf   - geared toward K-12 students; provides tips for students, parents and teachers. Thorough and detailed; a very good compilation and presentation of material. Prepared by the Tennessee department of education.

Standardized Test Preparation
http://intranet.cps.k12.il.us/Assessments/Preparation/preparation.html   - outstanding resources and comprehensive coverage of test preparation materials developed by staff of the Chicago Public Schools. Available are teacher workbooks and lesson plans, and student practice materials and videos. Not to be missed. Chapters 6-9 in the test prep workbooks are specific to the Illinois assessments and may not be as useful for the Kansas assessments; one of the best sites out there.

Overcoming Test Anxiety
http://teams.lacoe.edu/documentation/showknow/default.html  - a great resource; much, much information and worthy of close review. Coverage of many topics and provides access to a teaching video on test taking strategies for instructors. Well worth the time to explore in depth (home page of the Los Angeles County schools).

Objective Test Taking skills
http://www.sas.calpoly.edu/asc/ssl/tests.objective.html - geared for teacher-made tests; gives brief, surface level tips; much focus on test-wiseness skills; appropriate for older students (gr. 7-12).

No Pain, High Gain: Standardized Test Preparation
http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/assessment/nopain.htm - concise and provides sound strategies for teaching reading and math (as associated with testing formats) as well as more general strategies for test taking skills; good ideas for elementary teachers and students, and does a nice job of linking instructional approaches to test preparation.

Taking the Stress Out
http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/assessment/take_out_pencils.htm - core suggestions for reducing test anxiety in students; short and to the point, it is worth an inspection; internet references to other documents/materials also provided.