HIGH SCHOOL ACT PREPARATION FOR SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES It’s the little things that matter.....

What the ACT looks like……. TestQuestionsTimeContent English7545Measures standard written English and rhetorical skills. Math60 Measures mathematical skills students have typically acquired in courses taken up to the beginning of grade 12. Reading4035Measures reading comprehension. Science4035Measures the interpretation, analysis, evaluation, reasoning, and problem-solving skills required in the natural sciences. Optional Writing Test1 prompt30Measures writing skills emphasized in high school English classes and in entry-level college composition courses.

Why and what are we trying to accomplish?  Help all students improve their general knowledge about the ACT Reading test.  Pre-expose students to timing, font size, and test format.  Practice, Practice, Practice!  Expose students to new, rich, and rigorous vocabulary terms on a daily, weekly, or trimester basis.  Teacher friendly.

GE Practices  1….teacher models desired behaviors  3. ….whole group instruction  4. …..Connected to subsequent curricula  5. Critical Thinking Skills are taught  6. …conducive to risk taking  7. Enriched vocabulary…  11. Word identification skills are used as a foundation….  14. All students experience success…  15. …holds high expectations  17. Celebrating success…

ACT Reading  There are 4 passages, with a total of 40 multiple choice questions.  Students are given 35 minutes for the reading test. That is about 8 minutes and 30 seconds per passage, answering10 MC questions.

What the reading test looks like……. Content AreaSubjectNumber of Questions% of Test Prose FictionNovel or Short Story1025 Social StudiesAnthropology, archaeology, business, economics, education, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology 1025 HumanitiesArchitecture, art, dance, ethics, film, language, literary criticism, music, philosophy, radio, television, and theater Natural ScienceAnatomy, astronomy, biology, botany, chemistry, ecology, geology, medicine, meteorology, microbiology, natural history, physiology, physics, technology, and zoology Passages 750 Words/two pages in a typical book

Nice and Easy……..  Classroom Ideas  Entrance/Exit Activities  ACT Vocabulary Terms  Pair-Share Activity  Matching Game  Whole Hour  1 complete reading test with rules  Timer  Grade  Computer Lab  ACT Practice test

You Tube can help…..  

Science Format  The scientific information is presented in one of three different formats:  data representation (graphs, tables, and other schematic forms)  research summaries (descriptions of one or more related experiments)  conflicting viewpoints (expressions of several related hypotheses or views that are inconsistent with one another) 

Breakdown of the Science portion Content AreaNumber of Questions Number of Passages % of Test Data Representation 15238% Research Summaries 18345% Conflicting Viewpoints 7117%

The questions require students to…  recognize and understand the basic features of, and concepts related to, the provided information  examine critically the relationship between the information provided and the conclusions drawn or hypotheses developed  generalize from given information and draw conclusions, gain new information, or make predictions 

Science Preparations  Practice Tests  Michigan e-library  Resource Books  ACT Website  Scholarly Journals  National Geographic Magazine  Discovery Education Website  Books ( i.e. Inviting Disaster)  YouTube