Test Taking Tips Or How I Learned to Do Well On Tests in Mr. Faulkner’s Class and How Incredibly Grateful I Was For Such

Why do our tests look like this? Your tests consist of cold reads and multiple choice questions because they are meant to look like the English II state test you will take next year and also the English portion of the ACT (So no, Mrs. Kelly, Mrs. Gough, and I – we don’t make these “hard” to fail you. I promise.)

Would you like to hear the good news?

The good news is…. As long as you follow these Test Taking Tips I give you, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t ace these Cold Read tests (Actual picture of me on Test Day)

For these next slides, you must write down everything that is underlined

Tip #1: you have to pace yourself appropriately Take your time with each question and always TRY to answer every single one. Come back to the ones you are unsure about later. Remember, take your time but you cannot take all day. You will only have a certain amount of time. Trick question --- Which is better: to answer 30 questions on a test and miss a few of them but you answered all the questions OR to answer 15 questions out of 30 and they are all right but you only did half the test?

Tip #2: make sure you understand the question Read through the question TWICE before you look at the answer choices. You will be surprised at how much easier it is to understand the question when you just re-read it. Break the question down in a way that is easier to understand for you. Example: a vocab question might say “Which of the following words might work as an ANTONYM for the word obtrude?” You already know that ANTONYM means “the opposite” so you could shorten that to “Which of these means the opposite of obtrude?”

Tip #3: Skim the questions, then read the passage slowly First, skim the questions for that selection. Then, go through and read the passage SLLLLOWWWWLLLLYYY. It does not matter how fast or slow you read, it is a PROVEN SCIENTIFIC FACT that people who read things slower understand it and retain it better.

Tip #4: any time a question tells you where to look, go back and look there Any time you see a location (paragraph #, line #, sentence #), you should go back to that spot in the reading. Re-reading the sentence/portion again makes a world of difference seeing the thing you are looking for in its context.

One more and we’re done We’re so close to the end, Mr. Frodo.

Tip #5: for EVERY QUESTION, NARROW IT DOWN TO THE 2 BEST CHOICES AND THEN PICK THE 1 ABSOLUTE BEST CHOICE You need to first get rid of the 2 choices that it cannot be every time you are doing a question. After you have narrowed it down to the top 2, decide which of those 2 is the absolute best and once you feel sure about it and JUSTIFIED in your reasoning, pick it and move on. Remember, if you ever feel unsure about an answer you made, just make yourself a little note and come back to that question later. (It’s better to answer all questions and miss a few than to only answer some and some not at all.)

You have an opportunity for extra credit!

Any questions? “I’m listening.” -Loki