1. Tips for ELA TAKS

2. Before the Test…
Eat a healthy, balanced dinner the night before the test.
Carbs and grains as good brain food!
Set your alarm earlier than usual.
You don’t want to arrive late and be anxious and rushed before the test.
Get a good night’s rest.
Eat a good breakfast! There are no snacks in testing room.

3. Before the Test… Wear comfy clothes and bring a jacket!
Bring two #2 pencils already sharpened!
Arrive at testing room early and relax.

4. During Testing… No Electronics!!!
Shut all of your electronic devices OFF and give them
to the test administrator as requested.
Use a dictionary or thesaurus when you need to use them. DON’T guess!
If you get tired, you can take a short mental break, but DON’T go to sleep.

5. Taking the Test..
Remember that the personal narrative prompt and the visual in the triplet are thematically related.
Read the personal narrative prompt before reading anything else on the test.
Be sure to look at multiple choice and OER questions BEFORE reading so you know what to look for while reading.

6. Taking the Test..
Read ALL of the directions provided thoroughly and carefully.
Annotate in the space provided in the margins as you read.
Make connections between the selections by thinking of similarities between them.

7. The Narrative…
You may choose to write your narrative before or after completing the reading portion of the test.
Every single student MUST write a rough draft in the pages provided in the booklet.
Edit and revise your rough draft before writing your final draft on the lined pages.
Take advantage of the dictionary and thesaurus available to you.
If you are unsure of how to spell a word, look it up.
Don’t say “sad,” or “mad,” find a better word in the thesauraus.

8. Revising and Editing…
Revising and editing is the last section of the test.
You must break a separate seal to start this part of the test. Do NOT break the seal too early.
You MUST return your dictionary and/or thesaurus before beginning this part of the test.
If you don’t, your test will be invalidated!

9. A Few Other Notes… You have ALL day to take this test – Don’t rush!
Finish answering every question before turning in your answer document.
Check over ALL your answers and your essay before turning your test in to the administor.

10. For a Little Recap…

11. Oh, and good luck!