5th Grade Tests and Assessments on Georgia Test Prep

 

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“Am I doing everything I can to help my child prepare for the Georgia Milestone Assessment exam?”

is what every Georgian parent is asking themselves.

We know the teachers are doing a good job of teaching the curriculum, but we also know that just going to school isn’t enough to ace the exams. And the Georgia Milestones Assessment System is going to test your child every year to see if they are on course with national education standards.

That’s exactly why we created Georgia Test Prep, a tool for parents and their kids to take 5th grade online assessments from anywhere, at any time.

Practice testing is the key to long-term retention of subject material and concepts. This is proven by science, and is called the “testing effect”. Forcing the brain to recall information makes it stick for longer. The way to do this most effectively is to do practice testing in parallel with normal studying.

And Georgia Test Prep isn’t just a bunch of random 5th grade questions! Our bank of thousands of math and ELA questions are designed by Georgia teachers and based on the current Georgia state curriculum.

Georgia Test Prep is also a very convenient tool. Forget about buying and lugging around several 5th grade math practice workbooks, our entire question bank is online. It fits into your kids’ hands and goes with them wherever they go. Practice at home, on vacation, or in the car on the way to the grocery store.

Also, there’s no point in simply testing if you don’t know if your child is improving. That’s why we’ve implemented a dashboard for both you and your kids, so you can both track your child’s progress together. Everything is easy and contained within the app itself.

Here’s an example of the 5th grade math practice and ELA practice questions that we’ve got in store for you:

Our math bank of questions tests students on all the math concepts they are learning in the 5th grade.

Our ELA bank of questions tests students on concepts of English language and grammar, and reading comprehension.

Georgia Test Prep is the premier 5th grade GMAS study companion that your child needs. To wrap up, the benefits of the tool are:

• It will help you test quickly after learning a topic.

• It will help you test frequently.

• This will improve long term retention, which will help students do better on the final GMAS tests.

• It’s easy to use and to track your child’s progress.

• Everything is based on the Georgia state school curriculum, so questions are based on what your kids are actually learning in school.

And all of this is available for less than $0.10/day. That’s less than a Jolly Rancher lollipop, and it will last a lot longer too!

How to Get the Most Out Of Practice Testing

 

Imagine taking an archery workshop. A trained guide gives you a brief history of archery, shows you how to hold a bow and notch an arrow, and teaches you how to fire an arrow. Does that make you an archer?


No! It will only provide the base. What will make you an archer is your ability to hit the bulls-eye, and that will only come after practice, practice, and more practice.

This is how human beings are wired. It applies to any kind of skill in life, including how well your kids do on their exams! It’s not enough that they pay attention in lessons at school and in their homework. In order for concepts to really stick kids need repetition. It’s the only way to ensure they hit their targets.

The notion that practice makes perfect isn’t just an intuitive one when it comes to testing – it’s backed by science. In fact, there’s even a word for it: it’s called the “testing effect,” which refers to the finding that long-term memory is often increased when some of the learning period is devoted to retrieving the to-be-remembered information.

Numerous studies since the early ‘90s have shown that learners who tested their knowledge during practice later remembered more information than learners who spent the same amount of time studying the complete information. This makes practice tests not only an assessment tool,but a crucial part of the teaching toolkit.

Read it again: Practice tests will help increase your kids’ long-term memory recall of the subjects practiced.

Practice testing basically exercises the brain like a muscle. Every time you retrieve information, you build new connections between synapses in your brain, strengthening the connections and consolidating the memories. This, in turn, enables you to more easily access the information in the future.

So, as parents, we definitely want to implement practice testing at home. But we want to do this effectively, without overloading our kids and thereby undoing any potential good effects it can have. How do we get the best out of practice testing? Well, science has some pointers.
How long to dedicate to practice tests?
Answer: At least 30 minutes practice per week

In order to get the benefits of practice testing, ensure that your kids are getting at the very least 30 minutes of practice on online programs every week. Multiple studies (including a peer reviewed study by Edmentum, an eLearning solution) have shown that students who spend at least this much time per week practicing online experienced significantly more growth than those who did not.

This finding is also backed by a meta-analysis on the effectiveness of educational technology applications published by Cheung and Slavin in 2013.
How long should practice sessions be?
Answer: Distribute practice over several sessions

For maximum effect of these online practice sessions, stick to several short sessions rather than really long blocks of time. The study mentioned in the previous point has also shown that students who have one session of 15 minutes or longer as a part of their 30 minutes of practice each week achieved the best results. The technique of spacing out short practice sessions over time is one of the highest-utility learning techniques according to leading research.

However, remember that longer sessions help students to build their stamina and focus their efforts on a single topic for a longer period of time. Work with your child to strike the right balance.
What kind of question formats to practice?
Answer: Different types of test formats

A 2017 meta-analysis of 118 research articles found the following regarding retention of information with different test formats for practice tests:
The most effective type of practice test was mixed format practice tests, which have more than one question type. This is perhaps because different question formats require students to load different cognitive processes and resolve the interference between them, leading to better long-term retention and transfer. This is due to a process called interleaving, and this strategy is particularly useful if you’re studying something that involves problem solving, like math practice.
The best single-format tests were multiple-choice practice tests. This may be because MCQs are easier, and research suggests that less demanding retrieval practice activities promote stronger retention because they allow students to focus all of their cognitive energy on a simple task.

What does this mean for test day? It means that it is of absolute importance to practice all the different formats. Memories are easier to retrieve when the retrieval process is similar to how they were encoded during an initial learning activity, due to a phenomenon known as Transfer-Appropriate Processing. So mix it up and make sure your kids are exercising all of their test-taking abilities.
Final thoughts

Practice testing is one of the easiest and most effective things you can implement at home to help your kids do well in school. And Georgia Test Prep has a comprehensive bank of GSA questions designed by Georgia parents and teachers to help you do this.

The right online tools can be a big help in designing a rigorous and effective test preparation program for your child without taking up all of your time. Georgian Test Prep has your back with a tool that is created especially for Georgia state students.

Georgia Parents’ Ultimate Guide to Prepare your Child for Georgia Milestones Testing

As parents, we all want our children to succeed in life. In their early years, a large part of that involves doing well at school, and for Georgia state students a major landmark in their school years are the Georgia Milestones Tests.

The question on all of our minds is, “What can I do to help my child ace the Georgia Milestones Tests?”

The most important thing to understand is that preparation doesn’t happen overnight. It is an ongoing process that spans the entire school year. The good news is that Georgia state teachers are doing a great job in keeping students up to date with the curriculum, and there are things that you as a parent can do to motivate your children, help reinforce learning, and prepare them for Milestones Tests.

In broad strokes, parents can help their kids with Georgia Milestones preparation in the following ways:

• Help with subjects/school work
• Help with mental preparation
• Taking enough practice tests

Now, we parents are not trained educators, and we don’t have unlimited time to devote to our kids’ schooling. Although there are things that you can do to inculcate learning at home, you will need to entrust the majority of the load of curriculum teaching to the teachers. But mental preparation and practice testing are things that we can do that are high-impact and not high-load.

To that end, based on our research and experiences as parents who want their kids to thrive in their studies, we at Georgia Test Prep have put together this Georgia Parents’ Ultimate Guide to prepare your child for Georgia Milestones Testing.

Let’s get into it!
Treat your kids as stakeholders in their own studies

Your kids shouldn’t see going to school, learning, and taking tests as something that is forced upon them. Of course, it’s natural for kids to feel like this, and we’ve gone through it ourselves. But it’s our job to continuously create a positive mindset around their “learning career,” because learning doesn’t stop when school ends. Since assessments are an important part of school life, children must see them as a valuable part of their own growth journey. Building such an attitude starts with the way you talk about it with your children.

Encourage your kids to set goals

Setting a goal and writing it down is widely known as one of the best ways to motivate ourselves to do something. The same applies to our kids. Ask them to set a goal that is relevant to them. Perhaps they want to focus on being able to complete the test in time or to aim for getting a certain percentage of questions correct. Setting a goal encourages them to compare their actual results with intended results, and to assess what is working or not working in their own efforts. Children who set study goals progress more reliably than those who do not.
Encourage self-reflection

School moves a fast pace, and there’s a lot on a child’s mind other than their studies (let’s be frank). Recognize this, encourage your kids to recognize this, and adapt. One of the most effective things they can do is take some time for quiet self-reflection to contemplate and internalize what they know and what they still need to work on. This is why setting goals is very important rather than having a vague objective of “getting good marks”.
Build test-taking stamina

Studying for tests and the actual act of taking tests requires stamina, a fact that many of us ignore. Stamina is something we associate more readily with gym class. But when testing season comes around, reading, thinking, rereading, and answering questions for several hours, several days in a row is very taxing and requires a great deal of mental stamina to maintain focus.

One of the best test-prep tips you will hear is:

 Help your kids build their test-taking stamina, so they will be better prepared to answer GSA exams when the time comes. You can start small if need be, with 10-15 minute bursts of reading time or test-taking, and work up from there. Create a regimen along with your child that suits them best. This is gym class for the mind.
Read a little every night

Encourage your child to sit for 20 minutes reading silently to him or herself to build stamina. This shouldn’t be a problem if your child already has a reading habit, but if not, it’s a good opportunity to give them a bit of that. If they have focus issues, you can mix up the way reading is done by asking them to read to you, or listen while you read to them, or read together.
Praise the process

Praise is very important as a positive reinforcement, but praise wisely! In another article we covered in-depth the importance of creating a growth mindset in your kids. To summarize here, praise the process they took to solving problems and completing tests. This puts focus on the approach rather than sheer efforts or results, and instills in them a habit of refining their process to get better and better which will ultimately improve results.
Create a quiet study area

Designate one area as their test-focus zone. Free it of distractions (as far as possible) during their practice test time. You can keep a chart to track their total study time or testing progress, anything that will help motivate them and keep their eye on the prize.
Review grades/speak with teacher

Parents no doubt keep a track of their kids’ grades with progress reports and report cards. If you notice any anomalies in their grades, arrange to meet with your child’s teacher. See how you can work together to set up a plan to make sure your child is successful during the school year. You can ask them for Georgia Milestones resources or if they have any test-taking tips that have worked with students.
Plenty of rest and a nutritious, hot breakfast

Maintain a routine bed-time 

Kids need to get a solid 8-9 hours of sleep. Routines are especially important during testing time, as there will be a lot of testing for several days back to back. If your child isn’t already in routine, it becomes difficult to adjust at short notice. Your child will benefit on test day with plenty of rest, so make it a habit.

Let’s not forget, a good, healthy breakfast (low in sugar) in the morning is very important! And while there’s nothing wrong with a bowl of cereal and cold milk, try and make something hot for them to warm up the stomach and the mind.
Practice typing on the computer

With testing moving towards being online-based, it’s a good idea to make sure your child is familiar with typing. In all likelihood, today’s kids are more computer-friendly than we are, but if they need help then there are online resources to help them get better such as typingclub.com and typehop.com.
Practice testing

This is one of the most important things you can implement at home. And Georgia Test Prep has a comprehensive bank of GSA questions designed by Georgia parents and teachers to help you do this.

Practice testing has been proven to be one of the most effective learning techniques. It has been found that taking practice tests on studied material promotes greater subsequent learning and retention on a final test as compared to relying on more common study strategies. This is called the "testing effect".

In other words, science supports what we know intuitively: in order for kids to retain what they’ve learned, they need to practice, practice, practice!

For maximum effect, do online practice for at least 30 minutes every week, and practice in short bursts over several sessions rather than long sessions. Read more about the benefits and science of practice testing in our other post.

The right online tools can be a big help in designing a rigorous and effective test preparation program for your child without taking up all of your time. Georgia Test Prep has your back with a tool that is created especially for Georgia state students. Check out our tool for online math practice and ELA questions.
Final thoughts

Preparing your child for the Georgia Milestones Tests is a multifaceted effort that takes time. Essentially, to prepare for any test requires two parallel efforts:
Preparing for the subject of a test, that is, getting strong with the curriculum taught in school.
Preparing for taking the actual test, that is, familiarizing your child with the test format, the different kinds of questions, and what the test actually feels like.

It sounds like a lot of work, but now that you know all the bases you won’t have to spread yourself thin. Concentrate your activities where your child needs the most help, keep an eye on their progress, and intervene with their teacher as and when necessary.

The most important thing to remember, before all else, is to make learning a positive experience. If kids are constantly living in fear of tests then it will hinder their learning process and knowledge absorption ability.

Check out the other articles on our blog for Georgia State Assessment preparation tips, tricks, and best practices.

How to Help Students Get Themselves “Unstuck”

 

Your student (or child) is trying to solve a math problem. They’ve been staring at the paper for a while now. You can almost feel their struggle. You can see the wheels turning, but no progress is being made. Finally in frustration they blurt out, “I’m stuck!”

We’ve all been there – in life we are often faced with problems that we cannot find an immediate solution to. We experience a kind of paralysis of decision-making because we simply don’t know how to proceed.

So, seeing your student or child in this position, what do you do?
Beware of Learned Helplessness

We need to avoid the temptation to immediately provide solutions. If students are always given a way out whenever they get stuck, it could lead to “learned helplessness”.

Learned helplessness is a condition whereby they believe they cannot do anything without help (especially when they expect help to always come). So whenever they are faced with a problem, they immediately give up rather than try to solve it.
Importance of teaching problem solving

Real life is full of problems that are complex, without well-defined and straightforward solutions. Children will have to be able to identify and apply various strategies to solve these problems.

Children will not always have their parents and teachers to help them. They need to learn to become problem solvers – that is the deeper purpose of their education. But problem solving skills don’t come naturally; they need to be built through instruction and practice.

To this end, we need to be helping students to be able to think about achieving a particular goal and how to manage their mental processes in doing so. This is called “metacognition”, and will help students become better problem solvers.

This post covers how to approach teaching problem solving to the end of helping students get themselves unstuck.

There are a couple of things we need to understand before we proceed:


You must be patient. We’ve all learned something new at some point or another, and we know how difficult it can be. Everyone progresses at a different pace. Don’t give in easily and give them the solution, that will negatively influence them to give up early.


Students must be allowed to struggle! They must even be allowed to feel the frustration and pain of it. It’s all part of the learning process. It’s not just about teaching them problem-solving skills, they also need to learn to deal with the emotions that come with getting unstuck.

Alright then, without further ado let’s get into it!
How to help students get themselves “unstuck”

Make “being stuck” positive

Instil the attitude that getting stuck is a positive sign, and call it what it is: an indication that we are growing. Getting stuck means we have an opportunity to learn something.

Normalize the idea of “getting stuck”. Use positive language when helping them get unstuck. Teach your kids to recognize the quality of being stuck and to approach it with a positive mindset. This is something they can carry with them for the rest of their life.
Get students talking

Instead of just giving them the answer, get them to verbalize their difficulties. The more they talk about the problem, the more it helps them get unstuck.

If no one is around, encourage them to set up their own internal dialogue. They can ask themselves, “What do I know?”, “What do I need to know?”, and “What methods do I have at my disposal?”

The simple act of talking the problem out will help them organize their thoughts and get specific about where they are stuck.
Find out what they know

This will help hone in on the real area of “stuck-ness”.

Being stuck can tend to feel like this vague blanket of emotion that students don’t know how to navigate.

By determining what they do know, they can begin to plot a map out of the situation.

Find the root of their stuck-ness

Once they know what they know, ask them what exactly is making them feel stuck?

Is it the academic language? Is it the context they aren't familiar with? Do they have too many variables? Do they not see a pattern?

This will require them to think more about the problem itself and what they need to overcome it. So when they are faced with a similar problem later, they will be able to think back to what helped them before.
Questions that you can teach your student to ask that force them to look more carefully at the problem they face:

1. What do you know?
2. Is this like any other question you’ve done?
3. How is this different from the last question you did?
4. Is there anything in the question you haven't used?
5. What do you understand by this word/symbol?

Teach them to be wary of prior assumption

We all sometimes make assumptions about a situation that we may not even realize we are making. In teaching about problem solving, we need to also make sure students are aware of this tendency.

Help students think in terms of the information provided and not to make unwarranted assumptions.
Give them the language to solve problems

For instance, if a student writes the information from a math problem down in a chart, you can simply say: “Very good, you organized the important information into a chart.” This will give him or her the language to match what they did, so they now have a strategy they can use in other problems.
Encourage experimentation

When answers to a problem aren’t readily apparent, and you don’t know what will work, then sometimes the only option is to experiment and figure things out.

Build this habit in students who get stuck. See if they can approach a math problem with easier numbers, and build a method to follow up again. Or they can approach it with a trial-and-error methodology, trying out different things to see what works.
Just start writing

Encourage your student to start writing instead of staring at a blank piece of paper. The mere act of writing something is enough to get into the flow of solving the problem.

Get them to write anything. They can start with jotting down the given information from the problem if nothing else, and maybe possible methods to solve the problem – anything that gets their mental juices flowing.

Draw something

Some problems lend themselves better to diagrams. Ask your student to “draw out” the problem if that helps them picture it better. This can be especially useful for word problems and geometry problems (which often require a diagram anyway).

Besides, drawing can be quite fun. It can inject a little creativity into solving math.
Check in with them

This doesn’t mean come to their rescue all the time!

By following the previous tips, you’ll be able to set your student on the path to solving a problem. Then check back in with them to see how far they were able to get after the previous intervention, and if they are still stuck then you can strategize the next plan of approach with them.

As far as possible, encourage them to self-remediate. They have all the information with them in the form of textbooks or online help. Let them look for what they need to solve their problem themselves (a skill that will be invaluable to them throughout life).



Remember, we don’t just want to teach our kids how to solve problems on the blackboard, we want them to grow up with the ability to be problem-solvers! Teaching them to get unstuck will not only help them in their schoolwork, but it will prepare them for life.







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