helping your child prepare for mcas

Helping Your Child Prepare for MCAS

M-C-A-S. These four letters can spell anxiety for some parents and students.

This PowerPoint provides some helpful tips and strategies to better prepare your children for these upcoming tests.

Please be assured that your children are learning all that they can during their school day at FVMMS.

What is the MCAS? The MCAS stands for the Massachusetts

Comprehensive Assessment System. It is a series of standardized tests designed to measure what students have learned in a given year and subject area.

The tests consist of multiple choice, open response, and short answer questions (Math), plus a writing prompt for the ELA composition.

Tips to Help Your Child Prepare for MCAS: 1. Encourage your child

to read, read, read. No activity is linked to academic success as much as reading.

2. Make sure your child gets enough sleep, eats properly, and gets to school on time. During test time, make this a special effort.

3. Review the Massachusetts Department of Education guide at:

http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/parents/.

http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/parents/



The Day of the Test: Make sure that your child is well

rested and eats breakfast. See that your child arrives to school

on time and is relaxed. Make sure that your child is in

comfortable clothing. Encourage your child to do the best

work possible and have a positive attitude.

The Day of the Test: (continued): Encourage your child to listen/read

carefully to all test-taking directions and to ask questions if any directions are unclear.

Remind your child not to get stuck on any one item.

Encourage your child to check their answers for accuracy.

To Reduce Test Anxiety: Talk about the test in a positive way. Encourage best efforts, but have

realistic expectations. Encourage your child to focus on his or

her strengths, such as a good memory or strong analytical skills.

Assure your child that the test is only one measure of academic performance.

ELA MCAS Resources:These links will take you to MCAS Open Response practice. Read the selections with your child and review the responses that scored a 4.

Pay attention to how the open responses use details and quotes from the selection to help answer the question

Grade 6: http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/stu

dent/2013/question.aspx?GradeID=6&SubjectCode=ela&QuestionID=26786

http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/student/2009/question.aspx?GradeID=6&SubjectCode=ela&QuestionTypeName=Open Response&QuestionID=6442

http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/student/2012/question.aspx?GradeID=6&SubjectCode=ela&QuestionID=21465





http://www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/student/2009/question.aspx?GradeID=6&SubjectCode=ela&QuestionTypeName=Open%20Response&QuestionID=6442










ELA MCAS Resources: Grade 7: http://www.doe.mass.ed

u/mcas/student/2013/question.aspx?GradeID=7&SubjectCode=ela&QuestionID=26812



Grade 8: http://

www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/student/2013/question.aspx?GradeID=8&SubjectCode=ela&QuestionID=26826






































helping your child prepare for mcas

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