1. Welcome to F.S.A. 2015

2. What is F.S.A.? Florida Standards Assessment It measures individual student achievement relative to the Florida Standards. The results give parents, teachers, and schools one measure of student learning and school performance.

3. What is tested? 3 rd graders are only tested in Reading and Mathematics. Reading includes multiple choice and short written response. Math is multiple choice and supported responses.

4. When is F.S.A.? Testing begins as follows: Monday, March 16 Reading Session Part 1 80 minute session Tuesday, March 17 Reading Session Part 2 80 minute session Wednesday, April 1 Math Session Part 1 80 minute session Thursday, April 2 Math Session Part 2 80 minute session Students who are absent or late will be included in make-up session (date to be determined).

5. How is it scored? READING Maximum Score is 5 Lowest Score is 1 3 rd graders MUST score a 2 or higher, in order to be promoted to 4 th grade. If they score a 1, then we look at their Reading Portfolio. This is a 2 nd chance for the student to demonstrate whether or not they have mastered the reading comprehension skills required in grade 3. MATH Maximum Score is 5Lowest Score is 1 Scores on math DO NOT effect promotion to 4 th grade.

6. How are we preparing at school? Explicit lessons have been provided. Practice has been given on ALL of the reading skills tested. All skills have been taught and will be reviewed until the administration of the tests. They have also been taught the reading strategies (Things All Good Readers Do), which are used in all subjects.(Predict, Make Connections, Reread, Infer, Ask Questions, Visualize) Lastly, students have been taught test taking strategies such as how to read and interpret questions, how to eliminate answer choices, how to scan/skim passages to find answers using key words in questions, how to carefully identify fiction and nonfiction text, and how to use text features to locate answers. The third grade team is time testing reading passages for practice.

7. Is there a way to predict success probability on F.S.A.? In addition to teacher observation, the I-Ready Diagnostic helps identify struggling readers. Another tool that helps identify areas of concern with reading comprehension is the interim assessment.

8. What will the Reading section of F.S.A. look like? Please check the Florida Department of Education’s website. http://www.fsassessments.org/ I-Ready targets test preparation. Your child has been assigned 30 minutes or more nightly.

9. What will the Math section of the F.S.A. look like? Take a look at the F.S. A. website : http://www.fsassessments.org/ Your child’s math homework from their Practice Book provides F.S.A. style questions. I-Ready, Reflexmath.com, and Ten Marks are indispensable tools to utilize for practice.

10. How to help at home? Ask if they have finished their Cold Read. Make sure they circle key words in questions, identify “distractors”, and go back to the passage to underline the answer/proof that determines the answer. Take all opportunities to ask comprehension questions. Use math to solve real life problems at home, and keep drilling your child on addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts. Ensure your computer is working, so your child can take advantage of all computer based resources. Provide a quiet area for them to complete their homework. Get them accustomed to going to sleep early and eating a healthy breakfast. Ensure timely arrival to school and no early dismissal. We are on a district mandated pacing guide and preparing for this assessment, leaving little or no time for missed lessons.