Test Taking Strategies for Teachers and Students

Spring is the time of year when students begin to get restless. The end of the year is in sight, and summer vacation is just weeks away. Unfortunately, this is also the time of year when we begin state testing. We spend all year preparing our students for these tests. They are often used to determine a student's class placement for the next year, and are used for school rankings. It is sometimes difficult to motivate students to take these high stakes test, especially in the spring-time when the weather is nice, and most students would rather be outside enjoying the warmer weather.

In order to get my students excited, and in “test-taking” mode, I try a few different tactics to get them prepared. The first order of business is to help students understand the importance of the test. Students need to be aware of the effect these tests can have on their future. At our school, our principal and vice principal spend the weeks prior to testing visiting classrooms giving “test talks” in which they discuss why doing well benefits them as individuals, as well as our school community. Students are more likely to buy into testing if they understand why it is important.

The next thing that I go over is how to read the different test questions. Students need to get accustomed to key phrases that can help them identify the type of test question they are answering. For instance,  when working on a math test, students can surmise that when a question calls for a “product” most likely they will be asked to multiply. Many of my students rush through the test. They know that they have a time limit and hurry through in order to finish all the problems. I try to stress the importance of slowing down when doing the reading portion of the test. I also encourage my students to read the question prior to reading the selection when they are working on the comprehension portion of the test. Then, as they are reading the short story or the essay they have a directed reading approach. They are more likely to recognize the correct answer because they know what they intended purpose is.

I also stress the importance of context clues. When students are faced with an unfamiliar word in a sentence, they should try to infer the meaning of the word from the surrounding words. Another trick that my son’s teacher uses is to plug the various multiple choice answers into the sentence. She tells them to look for the word that best fits in the sentence. This approach also works well when students are looking for antonyms or synonyms.

A final approach that students can use when taking a multiple choice test is the elimination method. I always tell my students that they can usually eliminate two answers right away. This will leave them with two answers to choose from. At that point they can go back through the reading, or the problem, to look for the correct answer. The odds are much better when choosing between two choices, rather than four.

Testing is often a nerve-wracking and stressful time for teachers and for students. I always encourage my students to eat a good breakfast before school. But, I always try to have healthy snacks and bottled water on hand during testing time. I also try to ease off on homework in order to keep any undue to stress to a minimum. I have found by implementing these test-taking measures I can help make the test-taking process a little less stressful. What follows are lessons that can help prepare your students for testing.

Test Taking Strategies:

It's Time for Test Taking Skills Rock

In this fourth grade lesson students practice test taking strategies by working on a song that reinforces test taking skills. Students practice taking tests, as wells as evaluating their own skills to see where they need to improve.

Editorial Bumper Stickers

Students practice test taking skills by working on multi-step directions. In this lesson students are working on a book project in which they create an editorial bumper sticker. They also practice test taking.

Testing, Testing, Testing

In this testing lesson, students get the opportunity to read and explore books about testing. Students work through reading skills and explore how to find similarities and differences.

Test-taking Skills Practice

In this upper level test practice lesson students are given the opportunity to take a practice test. The teacher can use this lesson as a guided practice or individual work.