heartofdakota.com

Hi ladies,
We are nearing the end of our first year with HOD and I still couldn't be more pleased. My kids are *loving* school and that makes for a fun environment all the way around!! (We have 2 doing CTC, ds 5th grade and dd 4th grade, and a ds 7 doing Beyond)
My question is this: our missions organization just informed me that our children will be required to take standardized tests a month from now (Iowa Basic Skills Test). I have NO doubt about how much my kids have learned this year...all you would need to do is look at their papers, history notebooks, science notebook,etc...or talk to them about any of those subjects!! They have learned a ton.
I guess I am wondering, though, how this will translate onto a standardized test? The other kids in our org. having been doing test prep and have been "taught for the test" and mine have not.

How do I get my kids ready for a test like this in a month? Any thoughts, wisdom, or suggestions?? They would be much appreciated!!

Blessings,
JoyinIndo

I don't know specifically about the Iowa test, but if this is their first time testing, I wouldn't worry too much because it'll pretty much just be a baseline I would imagine.

The test we use is the Woodcock-Johnson and the point of it is to make sure that the child is advancing year to year.... so I might be totally wrong.

We are using the Spectrum Test Prep books to prepare. It can help (if you need to test). Rainbow Resource and CBD have them. If you do order them make sure they are in stock since you have a certain date for testing. Since you need to prepare quickly, you may need to slow down on your other subjects for a couple of weeks so as not to overload the children. This is the benefit I see. These books go over the items that are frequently on standardized tests. If your child does poorly on a section, just discuss the terms or idea on the page with the child. That is all I do. For example, one of my children did poorly on a page with the terms producer, consumer, and decomposer. We just took a few minutes to discuss it, and now he is confident in those terms. Done. We moved on. This way I can use the whole rest of the year studying what I want (HOD!!!) in the way I want and still be prepared for the standardized test. You will be pleasantly surprised how well-prepared they are from HOD anyway.

Thank you Melissa, that is very helpful. I would love to get a hold of the Spectrum Test Prep books, however, since I live overseas, the chances of getting them before the test are highly unlikely!!
I can only find the test preps as ebooks if they are state specific...meaning test prep specifically for PA or TX, etc. Since I would need to use an ebook, I am wondering if there was a state that might be close to a "general" test?

I'm glad to hear HOD does prepare them well overall. I figured as much!! I am not concerned with content as much as I am with terms on the test that they are not familiar with.

Thanks for the help!
JoyinIndo

Hello,
Your kiddos can practice taking the tests online. There is a fee though (I think around $30.) http://www.itbspractice.com/ This site allows them to practice taking the test as many times as they'd like. I haven't used it myself so can't speak from experience. HTH
JOYful Blessings,
Pam

My daughter was in 3rd grade when she first had to test. We ha used Beyond and started Bigger but didn't get far into it before the testing. I'm fact, we did an average of a unit per month at best due to health issues, new baby, etc.

Anyway, we never did test prep. You take the test for no reason other than to show you are indeed teachig them something and to make it look formal. I told her be sure to fill in the whole bubble and erase it all the way if she changed her answer. And i told her the test was just a requirebump and meant nothing but I wanted her to do her best. We made no big deal of it, no practice tests, no pressure. She was in the 99th percentile in math problem solving using the math activities carrie planned. Way up there in everything actually. She was relaxed and calm. She knew it had no effect about where we'd go with school and didn't mean anything about where we'd been.

Don't sweat it! If they can listen and follow directions, and can use a pencil to fill a bubble, they've got all the prep they need.

FYI, in our state, I think anything about a 33% actual correct answers is average. And I think it was 40% for above average. My girl made 95-100% in nearly every area and I promise you if thu answer even a third correct the scores will be fine. There were no uncommon terms. No confusing directions. The test goes back about two years and progresses to current grade and a little past. They aren't expected to know it all and it's all totally explained and nearly spoon fed to them in the testing room. It's the official papers the testers must read. So I really think the low key approach is best.

The grade equivalent my daughter scored after our slow year was 8.4. So that meant as a 3rd grader, she scored what am average student in the 4th month of 8th grade would have scored taking the exact same test. It really is very simplified.

Thank you so much for all of your help! Thank you for helping me to both prepare and not to sweat it!!
Blessings to you!
JoyinIndo

The only thing I will do when the time comes to test is show my child how to fill out the test sheet by making up an example. That way he will know what to expect and not be caught off guard. Other than that, you should be fine. I know many on this board test without any kind of prep. Our children are learning for sure!

http://teacherexpress.scholastic.com/do ... th-grade-3
http://teacherexpress.scholastic.com/do ... th-grade-4
http://teacherexpress.scholastic.com/do ... th-grade-5
http://teacherexpress.scholastic.com/do ... bble-tests
These are on the dollar days and would help with getting used to the standard test format. They didn't have below 3rd grade that I saw, but you could always search the site more. They are ebooks.
We test and it is required here. I don't think these practice tests helped my children with the content on the tests, but it did help them to feel more comfortable going into the test. They knew how the test would work and we practiced with time limits at home as well. I wouldn't stress it, but I would prepare them for the actual test-taking process.

I know that this is alittle late to the conversation but I just got my son's IOWA test results. He did AWESOME! The reason I am sharing is because I did NOTHING to prepare him for the test besides HOD! I forgot to even explain about filling in the bubbles. I hope this encourages you to trust in what you have been doing and not teach to the test.

Hi JoyinIndo! It's so good to hear your year is still going great - thanks for sharing! We too take the Iowa Basic Skills and do not do anything to prepare, other than talk about test taking skills in general. Our dc have done well. First, do you absolutely HAVE to take the test? It seems like this should be optional in this situation, especially as you were given no prior notice of this policy until one month before the test, but you will know best here. Second, I think it is a good idea to talk about test taking tips in general before they take the test. For example, since this test is timed, it is a good idea to try to have half of the questions answered when half of the time has passed. Move quite quickly through the questions, but don't be careless. Read through the entire problem before answering. If you don't know the answer, eliminate the answers you know are wrong, and make your best guess from the remaining options. Make sure you are on the right problem. Fill in the circle completely and don't have stray marks. If you make an error, erase it completely. If you see there is only a bit of time left and have some unanswered problems, make a guess, and make the same guess for all those remaining (i.e. answer all "B's" for the five you won't be able to finish; some of them should be right). Get enough sleep the night before the test. Just do your best. Reread it if you don't know the answer. Be prepared for the questions that have the answers "none of the above" or "all of the above" (just explain what this means to your dc. These are all tips we gave dc back when I taught public school and administered this test, and they are tips I tell our dc too. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

Thank you so much for your encouragement ladies. I do so appreciate it!! Yes, unfortunately, Julie, they don't have any choice but to take the test since we are with an organization and they pay for our hs'ing materials that gives them say as to what we do. Ah well. I love all of your suggestions and I am going to make sure to tell my children all of these tips for taking the test!

I am sure that they will do fine, but I do wish that ALL that they have learned this year {which is a HUGE amount} would come across on a test like this. I can't say enough about how much my kids will be taking away from this year. I am truly amazed!!
Thanks so much everyone!!
Joy

Hi Joy!

I'm sure the testing will be just fine! I think the biggest hurdle is just to help your children feel comfortable and not intimidated by the test. I really tried to encourage my DS to just do his best and not transfer my "test anxiety" to him, you know? He did GREAT on the Iowa last year!

One other question: are you by chance the "Joy" from here? http://www.facebook.com/gracefullmama I read this blog and LOVE it! Just wondering!