5th Grade: iLEAP Parent Meeting

2013 - 2014

Test dates:◦ April 7 – April 10

Will focus on Common Core State Standards

Transitional iLEAP

Test Design Number of Points Time(suggested)

Writing 12 90 min. Research 8 40 min. Read and Respond 32 75 min. Language 13 20 min.

Writing/ ELA

Session 1: Writing asks students to read one or two passages and then write a composition that includes evidence from the text(s) to support the writer’s ideas.

The writing prompt on the practice test was used on last year’s spring iLEAP test and asks students to convince someone of their position.

Other grade 5 prompts may direct students to write a story or develop an explanation or description.

Writing

Sample 5th Grade Writing PromptRead the passage about school gardens. As you read the passage, think about whether you believe your school should or should not have a garden. Then use the passage to help you write a well-organized multi-paragraph letter.

School Gardens

Many schools today have gardens. School gardens are planted by students and staff and are filled with flowers, often lavender and sunflowers, and crops such as tomatoes, carrots, and peppers. Whether the garden is large or small, the students and school community who care for the plants have a rewarding experience while they learn new skills and information.

Teachers can find many ways to use school gardens as part of their lessons. For example, math teachers can take their students out to the garden to measure the heights of different plants. Science teachers can use a school garden to help students learn how plants grow. Art teachers can ask students to decorate pots or create signs for each type of plant in the garden. The educational possibilities are endless.

There are just as many benefits for the students who work in the school gardens. One of the most important things they learn is responsibility. By being in charge of a section, they learn how to care for their plants. Students also see the consequences when they fail to do the work. Gardens also provide lots of opportunities for teamwork. Students work together to prepare the soil, plant the seeds, and care for the plants as they grow. They see a whole process that depends on the class working together as a team.

A school garden not only benefits the whole school; it also benefits the entire community! By allowing community members to help tend the garden, students can get to know the people in their community. The food grown in the garden can be donated to local food banks, which will make students feel proud about helping their neighbors. In addition, studies have shown that students who are actively involved in their community earn higher grades.

However, there are some disadvantages to school gardens. A school garden can be fun and educational, but it also takes a lot of time and requires a lot of space. If schools do not have an area for the garden, additional supplies must be purchased to create a garden area. Some schools may not be able to afford the wood, soil, seeds, water, and tools needed to build a raised garden. Students could injure themselves while using gardening tools if safety rules are not followed. Insect bites and allergies may also affect some students who spend time in the garden.

In addition to cost, space, and safety concerns, there is also the question of who will care for the garden during the summer when students are not in school. A garden can be a good addition to a school, but it may not be right for every school.

Sample Outline of Garden Opinion Paper

Students will be expected to write a well-organized story of at least 3 paragraphs. The story should include at least 4 facts from the article with details indicating that they have read the passage.

_______________________________________Sample Outline

Paragraph 1: Why you are writing and what your opinion is. Paragraph 2: Three ways a garden would benefit your school:

1. Learn lessons (use details from ph 2 in article)2. Learn responsibility (use details from ph 3 in article)3. Benefits Community (use details from ph 4 in article)

Paragraph 3: Reiterate how garden would be good for school.

Scoring 5th Grade iLeap Grade 5 Writing Tests are untimed, but students should be given a minimum of 75

minutes to read the passage(s), plan and write their compositions, and check their work.

Scoring InformationThe LEAP compositions are scored for Content and Style, but they also are scored for the conventions of writing: Sentence Formation, Usage, Mechanics, and Spelling.The Content dimension measures

*the focus of the student’s central idea; *the development of that idea, including the appropriate and accurate use of

information from the passage(s); and *the organization of the student’s ideas.

The Style dimension evaluates the ways in which the student shapes and controls the language and the flow of the composition. Features of Style include: *word choice; *sentence fluency, which includes sentence structure and sentence variety; and * voice, the individual personality of the writing.

For each of these two dimensions, a student can earn from 1 to 4 score points. In addition, the grade 4 compositions are rated as showing either “acceptable control”

or “unacceptable control” in the conventions: Sentence Formation, Usage, Mechanics, and Spelling. An acceptable rating earns 1 score point, while an unacceptable rating earns none.

Summary of 4th and 5th Grade Scoring

Dimensions Maximum Possible Points

Content 4

Style 4

Sentence Formation 1

Usage 1

Mechanics 1

Spelling 1

Total Points 12

Session 2: Research to Build Knowledge asks students to read a set of informational resources on a given topic and demonstrate a thorough understanding of the resources by answering multiple-choice questions.

Example:How does the account of Taylor Hernandez’s sponge block invention in the book Inventors differ from the account in the magazine Inventors’ Resource? A. The book account explains why the blocks take up very little space. B. The book account describes how the blocks are held together when they are stacked. C. The book account explains what gave Taylor the idea for inventing the blocks. D. The book account tells about an award Taylor won for her invention.

Research to Build Knowledge

Session 3: Language asks students to apply language skills by answering a series of multiple-choice questions.

First, students identify mistakes in several short writing samples.

Then they read two short passages and answer questions on how to improve the writing in the passages.

Language

In the past, Language has had different sections for spelling, usage, mechanics, and grammar.

Now, it is one set of directions and students are proofreading for all possible mistakes within each question.

Language

Example:

A. In spite of their name koala bears areB. not actually bears. They are marsupials,C. which carry their young in a pouch.D. (No mistakes)

Language

Session 4: Reading and Responding asks students to read several passages and answer multiple-choice questions and an extended constructed-response item to show their understanding of the passages.

This section will focus on measuring reading comprehension. The grade 5 CCSS ask students to draw inferences, determine two or more main ideas of a text and identify key details, compare and contrast characters, and explain or describe other aspects of a text (the structure, point of view, reasoning, etc.).

Reading and Responding

The Reading section will include the following: • Several reading passages, both literary and

informational texts • Multiple-choice items that measure reading

comprehension • Multiple-choice items that measure important vocabulary in the passages • An extended-constructed response item that

asks students to analyze a text and use evidence from the text to create a written response that addresses all parts of a complex task

Reading and Responding

Structure Points Time (suggested)

Multiple Choice, No calculator 30 60 min.

Multiple Choice,With calculator 20 40 min.

Constructed Response 8 30 min.

Math

Operations and Algebraic Thinking - 10% Number and Operations in Base Ten - 25% Number and Operations in Fractions - 45% Measurement and Data - 25% Geometry - 5%

Math

5th GradeSCIENCE iLEAP

TEST PREP

This year compared to last year

2013-2014 grade 4 LEAP continues to assess Louisiana’s science benchmarks.

The design of the multiple-choice and short answer sessions of the test remains the same as it was in 2012-2013.

This year, the LEAP contains a task aligned to the Common Core Standards for English language arts and science benchmarks.

5 Science Strands of Content

Science as Inquiry Physical Science Life Science Earth and Space Science Science and the Environment

Test StructureTest

SessionsNumber of

ItemsNumber of

PointsSuggested

testing time

Multiple Choice

46 46 60 minutes

Task 4 Multiple choice

1 extended response

8(multiple choice=1

point each, extended

response=4 points)

30 minutes

Test Specifics for Multiple-Choice Session

Strand/Category % of Points

Science as Inquiry 22

A. The Abilities to do Scientific Inquiry

B. Understanding Scientific Inquiry

Physical Science 20

A. Properties and changes of properties in matter

B. Motion and Forces

C. Transformations of Energy

Test SpecificsStrand/

Category% of Points

Life Science 20

A. Structure and function in Living Systems

B. Reproduction and Heredity

C. Populations and Ecosystems

D. Adaptations of Organisms

Test SpecificsStrand/

Category# of Points MC

Earth and Space Science 22

A. Structure of Earth

B. Earth History

C. Earth in the Solar System

Science and the Environment 16

TOTAL 100

Physical Science

Science as Inquiry

Earth and Space Science

Structure Points Time(suggested)

Multiple Choice 40 60 min.Task: 45 min. 4 multiple choice 4 1 extended response 4

Social Studies

Social Studies

Geography - 50%The World in Spatial TermsPlaces and RegionsPhysical and Human SystemsEnvironment and Society

History - 50%Historical Thinking SkillsUnited States History

Description of Stimulus Material for Tasks

The multiple-choice and task sessions of the grade 5 test may incorporate the following types of stimulus material: • an excerpt from a text-based primary or secondary source • a map or illustration of a globe • a table or graph presenting numerical data to be read or interpreted • a timeline, chart, illustration, photograph, historical poster, or graphic organizer  

Social Studies

Resources

Below are links to resources that offer additional information about the

transitional tests, the CCSS, and the PARCC assessments:

• www.doe.state.la.us/topics/assessment_guides.html(Assessment Guides for all subjects and grades tested)• www.louisianapass.org(transitional writing prompts on the Practice Assessment/Strengthes Skillssystem)• www.doe.state.la.us/topics/common_core_samples.html(CCSS-aligned items)• www.parcconline.org/samples/item-task-prototypes(samples of PARCC assessment items)

Be at school on time. Once the test has started, no one is allowed into the room.

Eat a healthy breakfast.

Get a good night’s sleep.

Have a good morning.

No beeping watches.

Reminders: