1. MAP Test and EOG Preparation
Study Skills and ELA Terms

2. BEFORE the Test
According to the University of Louisville, setting goals is an important step to success:
“Setting goals helps you decide what is important, gives you a plan for success, and keeps you focused. Setting goals takes five steps: decide what you want to accomplish, set smaller goals to motivate yourself, decide what it will take to get you there, evaluate your progress and when you’ve accomplished your goal, set a new goal.”

3. Test Preparation Tips from The University of Louisville
Review class notes nightly.
Plan a study schedule. You cannot prepare effectively by studying only the night before.
Read all assignments and review homework
Quiz orally with a study buddy or a tutor
Make and use flash cards…they are very effective- WHEN USED.
Ask yourself, “What type of questions would you ask if you were the teacher?”
Get good night’s sleep
Eat breakfast
Review one more time before the test.

4. Preparing for Tests: Tips for Reducing Test-Taking Anxiety from TestTakingTips.com
Being well prepared for the test is the best way to reduce test taking anxiety.
Space out your studying over a few days or weeks and continually review class material. Don't try to learn everything the night before.
Try to maintain a positive attitude while preparing for the test and during the test.
Exercising for a few days before the test will help reduce stress.
Get a good night's sleep before the test.
Show up to class early so you won't have to worry about being late.
Stay relaxed, if you begin to get nervous take a few deep breaths slowly to relax yourself and then get back to work.
Read the directions slowly and carefully.

5. Preparing for Tests: Tips for Reducing Test-Taking Anxiety from TestTakingTips.com continued…
If you don't understand the directions on the test, ask the teacher to explain it to you.
Skim through the test so that you have a good idea how to pace yourself.
Write down important formulas, facts, definitions and/or keywords in the margin first so you won't worry about forgetting them.
Do the simple questions first to help build up your confidence for the harder questions.
Don't worry about how fast other people finish their test; just concentrate on your own test.

6. Preparing for Tests: Tips for Reducing Test-Taking Anxiety from TestTakingTips.com continued…
Focus on the question at hand. Don't let your mind wander on other things.
If you're still experiencing extreme test anxiety after following these tips, seek help from your school counselor.

7. Test-Taking Tips from The University of Lousiville
Read all answer choices
Mark out the ones you know are incorrect
True/ False Items:
Look for absolutes: all, always, never. These are usually false.
Words like some, sometime, frequently are usually true.
Trust your first instinct.
Focus on keys words.
Remember, a question partially false is false.

8. More Test-Taking Tips from The University of Lousiville
Test-taking begins with daily preparation homework
Review several days prior to the test
Practice math problems, especially the ones you found difficult on homework
Read the directions for the test
Stay relaxed. Take deep breaths and let them out slowly several times. You can also roll your head or shrug your shoulders to reduce stress
Review each question after completing the test
Look for possible answers in other questions.

9. Test-Taking Tips from TestTakingTips.com
Read the question before you look at the answer.
Come up with the answer in your head before looking at the possible answers, this way the choices given on the test won't throw you off or trick you.
Eliminate answers you know aren't right.
Read all the choices before choosing your answer.
If there is no guessing penalty, always take an educated guess and select an answer.

10. More Test-Taking Tips from TestTakingTips.com
Don't keep on changing your answer, usually your first choice is the right one, unless you misread the question.
In "All of the above" and "None of the above" choices, if you are certain one of the statements is true don't choose "None of the above" or one of the statements are false don't choose "All of the above".
In a question with an "All of the above" choice, if you see that at least two correct statements, then "All of the above" is probably the answer.

11. Close-Reading Strategies
Underline the title
Number the paragraphs
Walk through the questions
Read the passage twice
Answer the questions
Prove it (underline the answer in the text AND write the paragraph number by the question)

12. More Close-Reading Strategies

13. Learn More
Check out this helpful website for more helpful resources on test-taking preparation, study skills, and reducing test anxiety.
Use the resources at FinchELA.weebly.com to help you study

14. Adjectives Words that describe nouns Click here for practice
Image from: A Cupcake for the Teacher

15. Affix
Click here to learn more about prefixes, suffixes, and Greek and Latin roots.
A prefix comes BEFORE the root or base word
A suffix comes AFTER the root or base word

16. Affixes Continued
Image from: Crafting Connections

17. Antonyms and Synonyms Antonyms: Words that have opposite meanings
Synonyms: Words whose meanings are the same
Practice identifying antonyms and synonyms by clicking here!
Image from: Crafting Connections

18. Non-Fiction Text Features
Click here for more information

19. Nonfiction Text Features Continued…
Image from this website.

20. Author’s Purpose
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21. Theme
Image from Miss Klohn’s Classroom

22. Capitalization
Image from Fabulous in Fifth

23. Main idea is what the text is mostly about.

24. Compare and Contrast
Compare: Consider what’s alike between two or more things.
Contrast: Consider what’s different between two or more things.
Image from Create-Abilities

25. Dictionary & Thesaurus
Use a thesaurus to find synonyms and antonyms.
Use a dictionary to find definitions, pronunciation, and part of speech.
Image from The Moffatt Girls

26. Conflict
The conflict is the problem in the story.

27. Dialogue
Image from Teaching With Cupcakes

28. Encyclopedia
Click here to learn about encyclopedias.

29. Flashback
Image from Life in 4B Blogspot

30. Making Inferences
Image from Mentor Text Magic

31. Narrative
A narrative is a story
A narrative poem tells a story

32. Narrator
The person who tells the story.

33. Sequence
Image from Magic and Markers

34. Idioms
Idioms are expressions!
Image from Crafting Connections

35. Poetry

36. Image from Mrs. Morris’s blog
Elements of Poetry
Image from Mrs. Morris’s blog

37. Point of View The perspective from which the story is being narrated.
Image from Teachers Pay Teachers. Click the image to download it.

38. Plot

39. Figurative Language
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