Soph the vet Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 My dd11 will be taking this in January. I thought we should get as much experience with large group test taking as possible due to dd difficulty in being timed, etc. I looked at the example questions online and they seemed very close to where she is at now. But....then I ordered the flashcards to help her prepare and after looking at those I may be sending a sheep to the wolves! She is way above her 6th grade level in almost every subject, at 12th grade in reading comprehension and overall was considered at 11th grade for her composite, so I thought an 8th grade test would be OK. Now I'm not so sure. If you have any experience with this test please chime in here, especially if you have a younger student who has taken it. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenC Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 She was in 6th grade at the time. She did enjoy taking an above level test. We did the sample questions at the web site and I bought a standardized test prep book for 8th grade. I didn't know there were flashcards. I explained to her that some topics, particulary in math, we haven't covered yet. So, she's not expected to get all of those problems correct and to just do her best. She did well. The only topic she felt rushed for time with was the math. Since your dd is above level is many areas, I would definately have her take it even though she may not have covered all of the material yet. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OHGrandma Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 Grandson took it at 9 years, 4th grade, in Feb of this year. He did quite well, compared to the 8th grade norm. We reviewed a few math topics, like fractions & decimals since they really hadn't done much with that at school. I also had him practice using a calculator. I think it will be a good way to assess where your daughter is; and she'll probably score better than you anticipate, considering her reading comprehension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soph the vet Posted November 22, 2009 Author Share Posted November 22, 2009 Thanks everyone, so much, I am feeling better about the decision now. I didn't want her to get in there and find she couldn't do ANY of the test! That wouldn't be much positive reinforcement for test taking;). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 Ds took it last year and did fairly well and enjoyed it. The one thing I plan to do differently this year is give him some time to practice with a calculator and work on some simple strategies (like how to figure remainders when using a calculator that gives the remainder in decimal form, etc). Since I had not allowed calculator use almost ever before that time, I think he actually wasted time on the math portion trying to figure out how to make the calculator do some of the work (that he could really have done faster in his head). The only other thing I'd say is to make sure she understands that she isn't *expected* to know how to answer all of the questions. Talk about marking the right answers and moving on, then coming back to the ones she's unsure about... Several friends are taking the test the same day ds is. The mommies are going to hang out and have coffee and visit (the test site is a ways from home), then we've promised the kids lunch out (without younger siblings) afterward. So they're excited about that aspect as much as the test... :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenC Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 I had never allowed calculators and it took her some time to get used to using it. Half the time, she never remembered to use it until she had already finished the question. Also, the EXPLORE test was the first standardized test that she had taken. She had to get used to finishing within the allowed time. If your dd is already familiar with testing, then I wouldn't worry about a test prep book. Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soph the vet Posted November 22, 2009 Author Share Posted November 22, 2009 We haven't used calculators yet either, so she'll have some fun learning about them! The flashcards I found for this test are too extensive, like you could never "flash" them and read it all fast enough! So I have to figure out how to help her prepare without scaring the heck out of her either!:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 My dds took it with absolutely no prep. I wanted to get a really accurate idea of where they were at. I would recommend going in with no prep, unless you want a certain score to qualify for a program. I warned dds ahead of time that it was an above-grade-level test so that they would not stress about it. I forgot to teach my younger dd, as I shared here two years ago, how to bubble, though. She has some trouble comprehending written instructions if there is background noise, so she didn't get the proctor's directions to bubble, either. She neatly circled each little bubble. Dh called the testers, and they said that the proctor could correct bubbling errors, and ours must have, because she did receive her scores. Both girls loved the test, and we got great information from it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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