Welcome Parents Presented by the Clermont Elementary

Review of Last Year’s Test Scores Please look at the handouts that have been passed out to you. Discuss what you can do to help? What are we doing here at school to bring these scores up?

What is FCAT 2.0? 1. What is the FCAT 2.0? The Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test® 2.0 (FCAT 2.0) is a criterion-referenced test that measures student achievement of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. The transition from FCAT to FCAT 2.0 will be phased in, with 2011 FCAT 2.0 Reading (grades 3 – 10) and Mathematics (grades 3 – 8) being the first assessments to begin this transition. FCAT 2.0 Science (grades 5 and 8) will be administered to students for the first time in the spring of The proposed transition schedule for FCAT 2.0 is provided on the FCAT 2.0 website. All Florida schools are required to teach the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards, and the FCAT 2.0 will provide parents, teachers, policy makers.transition scheduleFCAT 2.0 website

How is FCAT 2.0 Different The FCAT measures student achievement of the Sunshine State Standards, while the FCAT 2.0 measures student achievement of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards, which are more rigorous grade-level expectations. The major differences between the FCAT 2.0 and FCAT are listed below: Some test items on the Grades 3 and 4 FCAT 2.0 Mathematics assessments require the use of the provided ruler to answer questions. These test items may include measurements in either metric or customary units. The Grade 4 FCAT 2.0 Mathematics assessment will include not only multiple-choice test items, but also gridded-response test items. The gridded-response test items in FCAT 2.0 Mathematics for grades 5 through 8 have different grids than those on the FCAT. Additionally, the option for negative answers is now included for grades 7 and 8. The FCAT 2.0 Reading assessments in grades 3 through 10 will include a greater number of reading passages from the public domain, such as historical documents and works by classical authors. The FCAT 2.0 Reading assessments in grades 3 through 10 will include a greater number of test items that require reasonable inferences and reasonable prior knowledge. FCAT 2.0 tests will not have any performance task items.

Testing Dates Feb 25th-February 26th GRADES 4 & 8 FCAT WRITING APRIL 14 – 25, 2014 GRADES 3 – 10 FCAT 2.0 Reading & Math

FCAT Writing+

–Writing Prompt Assessment Students will have 60 minutes to complete each portion

Types of Writing Prompts EXPOSITORY: –Expository writing explains, defines, or tells how to do something NARRATIVE: –Narrative writing tells a story that is either real of imagined

Prompts from the Past EXPOSITORY Write to explain why you think a certain pet would be good for your classroom. Explain why it is important to eat healthy foods. Write to explain why you would like to be a particular person for a day. NARRATIVE Tell a story about your most embarrassing moment. Tell what happens after you go through a door that is always locked. Tell a story about the day the teacher surprised the class.

Writing Rubric Student papers are scored using a 1-6 rubric based on the following guidelines: –Focus –Organization –Support –Conventions

Fourth Grade Rubric May only minimally address topic Is slightly related to topic or may offer little relevant information Is generally focused on topic but may include extraneous or loosely related material Focuses on topic Is focused on the topic

What You Can Do to Help Read! Provide writing materials Be a writer yourself Share some of your work related writing Respond to your child’s writing by: –Keeping it positive! –Being excited! –Making suggestions for improvement when needed –Being the Coach…Not the Writer

How can you help prepare your child? The FCAT 2.0, like the FCAT, is intended to measure student mastery of Florida’s educational standards. Students who have been actively engaged in the learning process in Florida’s public schools should be well prepared for success on the FCAT 2.0 without the need for special coaching or intensive instruction in test-taking strategies. To help students, parents, and educators understand what the FCAT 2.0 test items will look like, the Department provides FCAT 2.0 Sample Test Materials online for public reviewFCAT 2.0 Sample Test Materials

FCAT Reading

Types of Questions: –Multiple Choice (1 Pt) The Reading SSS Assessment is broken up into two sessions (80 minutes each) Students will answer approximately 50 questions which include only multiple choice Passages will be based on documents, non-fiction and fiction passages

FCAT Reading Reading questions are based on the Sunshine State Standards benchmarks: –LA Vocabulary –LA Author’s Purpose –LA Main Idea, Details, Sequence –LA Cause and Effect –LA Compare and Contrast –LA Plot Development/Resolution –LA Reference and Research

Types of Reading Passages Literary Text 50% –Short Stories, Literary Essays, Excerpts, Poems, Historical Fiction, Fables and Folk Tales, and Plays Informational Text 50% –Subject-Area Text, Magazine and Newspaper Articles, Diaries, Editorials, Informational Essays, Biographies, Autobiographies, How-To Articles, Advertisements, Tables and Graphical Presentations of Text Passage Length Ranges from Words (Average 400 Words per Passage)

Complexity Levels The complexity of questions are based on Webb’s Depth of Knowledge: –Low (read the lines) –Moderate (read between the lines) –High (read beyond the lines)

What You Can Do to Help Read! Provide reading spaces at home Be a reader yourself! Ask your child questions about what they read Connect reading and writing

FCAT Math

Students will take two sessions of the FCAT SSS on the same day with a break in between They will have about 120 minutes to answer approximately 50 multiple choice questions FCAT Math is based on the New Generation Standards

The Five Strands of Math Number Sense Measurement Geometry and Spatial Sense Algebraic Thinking Data Analysis and Probability

Number Sense

Measurement

Geometry and Spatial Sense

Algebraic Thinking

Data Analysis and Probability

What You Can Do to Help Help your child master basic facts Explore math in every day life Make mathematics part of your children’s daily life Help your child learn the vocabulary of mathematics Encourage your child to do math “in their head”

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Remember that the most important person in your child’s education is you. Thank you for coming and have a great evening!