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Product Review Last Revised February 28, 2009 |
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Spectrum Test Prep Series — Grades 1 through 8 Revised Edition Published by McGraw-Hill Children’s Publishing; 140-160 pages, paperback Even though we don’t have to use structured tests to know what our children are learning in homeschooling, some states require families to report grades. Other states require standardized tests be taken at various intervals. So often times we have to administer tests even though they don’t fit our approach to homeschooling. Taking a test is like any other skill – it has to be learned. We can’t assume that our children automatically know how to take a test. There are strategies that can be taught and things to look for in certain types of questions. Plus, test-taking is a lot like writing – the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Some children panic when they have to take a timed test just because they’re not used to it. Spectrum’s Test Prep workbooks are a simple and relatively painless way to give students practice in taking tests. The workbooks cover grades 1 through 8, with each book containing practice exercises and tests for math and language arts. The Reading section covers word analysis, vocabulary, and reading comprehension. The Language Arts section covers listening, mechanics, writing, spelling, and study skills. The Math covers concepts, computations, and applications. Science and Social Studies are not covered specifically, but the questions given in the other sections include science and history topics. Each lesson gives sample questions and tips on how to answer that type of question. The exercises are multiple-choice questions like those found on tests. The student even fills in the bubble or circle to show the answer. And the directions are similar to those found on the standardized tests. The answer key for all the exercises and sample tests is in the back, along with progress charts. Once the child has completed the exercises, there is a sample test so the student can test his or her testing-taking skills! This series is not designed to be a test itself or a measure of what your student has learned. Your child will probably come across topics that you haven’t covered yet in your homeschooling. That’s okay. Have the child skip that question, but be sure to look it over to see if it really hasn’t been taught yet. The purpose is to teach your children how to take a test and give plenty of practice in doing so. KEY WORD: test, prep, Spectrum
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