Texas. Writing. Teacher Guide TAKS. Test Practice

Transcription

1 4 Writing Teacher Guide Texas TAKS Test Practice

2 Table of Contents For the Teacher... 1 Correlation Chart... 4 Writing Prompt 1 (reproducible)... 5 Writing Prompt 2 (reproducible)... 6 Writing Prompt 3 (reproducible)... 7 Writing Prompt 4 (reproducible)... 8 Writing Prompt 5 (reproducible)... 9 Answer Form... 11

3 For the Teacher What is TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice? TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice is a review program that focuses on reading a variety of passages and answering questions about revising and editing them in preparation for taking the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) in Writing. The five-level program is designed for students in grades 1 through 5. TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice, Grade 4 student book is a 24-page book with five practice lessons. The teacher guide includes five writing prompts, which may be reproduced for classroom use. How should I use TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice? TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice can be used in two ways. To simulate most closely the test-taking procedure of the TAKS, have students complete all five practice lessons and respond to one writing prompt in one day. Correct and review student answers and compositions on the following day or days. Alternately, have students complete one TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice practice lesson each day. Review answers with students on the same day. Then have students write a composition the sixth day. Discuss their written work the next day. How does TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice correlate to the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills? The TAKS Writing test has two parts, Revising and Editing and Written Composition. TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice passages and questions are written to provide students with revising and editing experiences similar to the ones they will find on the TAKS. TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice, Grade 4 includes five passages that resemble student writing. Each passage is followed by ten multiple-choice revising and editing questions. The revising and editing questions that follow each TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice passage are designed to assess students understanding of TAKS writing objectives 3 6. Objective 3: The student will recognize appropriate organization of ideas Objective 4: The student will recognize correct and effective sentence construction Objective 5: The student will recognize standard usage and appropriate word choice Objective 6: The student will proofread for correct punctuation, capitalization, and spelling TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice, Grade 4 has a total of 50 multiple-choice revising and editing questions. The number of questions for each objective is based on the TAKS Blueprint for Grade 4 Writing. 1

4 The five writing prompts, found on pages 5 9 of this teacher guide, are designed to provide students with practice developing a composition in the TAKS format. The writing prompts reflect topics typically found on the TAKS. The prompts are designed to assess students understanding of TAKS writing objectives 1 and 2. Objective 1: The student will, within a given context, produce an effective composition for a specific purpose. Objective 2: The student will produce a piece of writing that demonstrates a command of the conventions of spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, usage, and sentence structure. For more detailed information about how each TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice, Grade 4 question and each writing prompt in this teacher guide correlate to the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) objectives as well as the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) student expectations in writing, see page 4. After students complete the book, have them respond to one writing prompt that you have chosen. (See pages 5 9 for five reproducible writing prompts). Provide one copy of the writing prompt and two pieces of lined paper per student. Students may plan their composition on the back of the writing prompt page, but they should write their composition on the two lined pages, as on the TAKS Writing test. Where do students record their answers? Students using Grade 4 of the TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice mark their answers on the answer form. An answer form with the correct answers marked is reproduced in this teacher guide on page 11. In response to a writing prompt reproduced from this teacher guide, students write their composition on two lined pages. Compositions will vary and should be evaluated according to the four-point rubric created by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). How do I introduce my students to TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice? Have students read all the information on the inside front cover of the student book. Be sure that students know how to fill in the answer bubbles on the answer form. How do I simulate test-taking procedures while using TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice? Provide two sharpened pencils and one TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice book per student. Have students remove the answer form from the back of their book on page 21. Remind students that if they change an answer, they must fully erase their first answer. How should I use the results of TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice? TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice provides a quick review of a student s understanding of the TAKS objectives and TEKS student expectations in writing. It can be a useful diagnostic tool to identify objectives and expectations that need further study and reinforcement. Use the Correlation Chart, on page 4, to identify the objective and expectation that each question or writing prompt has been designed to evaluate. For students who have answered that question or prompt incorrectly, provide review and additional practice in that area. 2

5 What is the correction procedure? If students complete all five practice lessons of the TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice and respond to one writing prompt in one day, correct the answers and review the compositions in class the following day or days. If students do one practice a day, followed by one writing prompt on the sixth day, correct each lesson orally after completion. Review compositions as a class on the seventh day. In either case, as you review the answers, explain concepts that students may not fully understand, and encourage them to discuss the thought process they used to answer the questions. When answers are incorrect, help students understand why their reasoning was faulty. Students sometimes answer incorrectly because of a range of misconceptions about the writing strategy required to answer the question. Discussing why the choices are incorrect will help students review and clarify the overall content related to a revising and editing question. Written compositions will vary. Evaluate compositions according to the TEA s four-point rubric and assign each composition a score. (See the TAKS Information Booklet, Writing, Grade 4, Revised, pages 16 19, published by TEA). Return compositions to students and help them understand their scores. Discuss ways students can improve their writing, in terms of focus and coherence, organization, development of ideas, voice, and conventions. What factors should I consider in preparing my students for the TAKS Writing test? A student s attitude toward test taking can affect performance on tests. Test anxiety often decreases when students experience success with a format and content similar to that which appears on the actual test. Making sure that all students complete TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice with a feeling of accomplishment is an effective preparation for taking the TAKS Writing test. 3

6 Correlation Chart This chart correlates each question in TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice, Grade 4 and each writing prompt in this teacher guide to a specific objective and student expectation from the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). Question TAKS TEKS Practice 1 1 Objective B 2 Objective C 3 Objective D 4 Objective B 5 Objective B 6 Objective E 7 Objective E 8 Objective D 9 Objective B 10 Objective C Practice 2 11 Objective G 12 Objective E 13 Objective B 14 Objective H 15 Objective B 16 Objective D 17 Objective C 18 Objective F 19 Objective C 20 Objective E Practice 3 21 Objective E 22 Objective H 23 Objective B 24 Objective D 25 Objective D 26 Objective B 27 Objective C 28 Objective F 29 Objective D 30 Objective C Practice 4 31 Objective E 32 Objective C 33 Objective D 34 Objective B 35 Objective E 36 Objective E 37 Objective E 38 Objective D 39 Objective B 40 Objective A Question TAKS TEKS Practice 5 41 Objective B 42 Objective C 43 Objective F 44 Objective G 45 Objective B 46 Objective B 47 Objective C 48 Objective H 49 Objective E 50 Objective H Writing Prompts 1 5 Objective A Objective C Objective D Objective E Objective A Objective C Objective D Objective B Objective A Objective B Objective D Objective A Objective B Objective C Objective D Objective E Objective F Objective G Objective H Objective E Objective H The number of questions for each objective is based on the TAKS Blueprint for Grade 4 Writing. 4

7 Writing Prompt 1 Write a composition about your favorite kind of animal. Read the writing tips in the box below. The tips will help you write your composition. n Write about your favorite kind of animal. n Write your ideas in complete sentences. Each sentence should help the reader understand your composition. n Write about your ideas in detail. Each detail should help the reader understand what you are saying. n Use correct spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar, and sentences. Use the back of this page to plan your composition. Then write your composition on the two lined pages your teacher has given you. Curriculum Associates, LLC 5 TAKS Ready Writing Test Practice, Grade 4