Pettersen's Tips for the Test

Ahead of Time:

• Come prepared with an oxygenated brain – get plenty of sleep and exercise beforehand.
• Arrive early, and ignore other people who are acting nervous and crazy. For the moment, they are not your friends.

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Creating the Big Picture: Back & Forth
When you start the test, begin a back & forth process of moving between the text and the questions.

Text: First get an overview of the text. Read first and last sentences of paragraphs; skim in between. Think. What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage? What will you need to find out?

Questions: Click through the questions. You don’t need to read every a, b, c option. Just read the stems and ask yourself what they are looking for.

Text: Go back to the text and begin your careful reading.

• If you find something that you know answers a question, you can go back and answer that question immediately.

• Otherwise, just read the whole passage with the questions in mind.

• Keep thinking: Where is the author going? What does he or she want you to get out of the passage?

Questions: Go back to the questions. Reread the stem. Consider what your own answer would be before looking at their choices. Now you need to get really analytical:

• Most of their choices will sound very reasonable. Many will draw words or phrases directly from the passage. Don’t be tricked by that. It’s the meaning, not the exact words, that you’re looking for.

• On vocabulary questions, don’t be tricked by familiar words. They’re likely to give you a familiar word with an unfamiliar meaning.
  
  
• Expect questions that ask you to imagine what the author (or a character if it's fiction) might think or do in a different situation.
  
  
• Save “main idea” and “main purpose” questions for last. You’ll have the best idea of the overall picture after doing the more detailed questions.
  
  
• Analyzing the questions is where most of your brain space needs to go. The reading passage is the easy part. Pick the questions apart. That's where the fine distinctions are. Here is where you need to outfox the test maker. You can do that! You've been analyzing texts all semester. It's time to show off!
  

Pacing:

• Take your time! Some people will leave before you; some will still be working when you get done. Ignore them!
  
• The length of time that the computer keeps giving you passages is irrelevant to your success. Some people are on for a short time and pass. Some are on for a long time and pass.

So put yourself on your own schedule, give it your whole brain, and celebrate when you finish! I should have the scores for you in just a few days.

Ding - THAT WAS EASY!

Assignment for Friday 4/24

We'll be doing test prep practice on Friday. The practice is on handouts that I'll need to email to you, so send me a message asking for them. There will be a quiz on one of them, so you do need to get them.

You need to be caught up on your writing on Eat That Frog through Chapter 18. I'll be checking those on Friday. If there are any assignments that you did not complete over spring break, they need to be turned in for Friday.

Splitting into two groups worked really well last time, so if there's anybody who can come in the "second shift," we'll meet at 1:30. Be on time, because I'll show the end of Shawshank Redemption to both groups at that time.

Assignment for Wednesday 4/1

Just email me, and I'll send you the work!

Assignment for Wednesday 3/25

First, there are several things that need to be made clear:

• Using a cellphone or iPod during class is rude, disrespectful, and disruptive. From now on, doing so will be cause for dismissal from class.
• When the teacher or another student is addressing the class, anyone who cannot listen quietly and respectfully will be dismissed.
• People who do not turn in homework will not be able to take the ACT test at the end of the semester, which means repeating the class.

Shawshank
For Wednesday, the Shawhank assignment is very short because I'm giving you a take-home written test on those pages. The pages are 70 - 73. You need to email me for the test.

Vocabulary
I gave out a new vocabulary page. You need to email me for that as well.

Eat That Frog!
Chapter 12, the usual

Assignment for Friday 3/20

Eat That Frog! Chapter 11 (the usual)

New WordCloud page (you need to email me for it)

LATE paragraph assignment bringing together "Reflections on a Broken Zipper" and Parenting Styles Theory

Bring Why Do People

Hot Potatoes Instructions

• Click on the HotPotatoes.net link under Links on the right-hand side of this page, or go to HotPotatoes.net and click on the log-in link.
• Both your User Name and your Password will be your last name.
• Click on Pages.
• The first set of quizzes is Parenting Styles. As you work in the on-line quiz, use the paper packet to do the analytical marking and to record any that you have trouble with.
• When you finish a quiz, you will flip automatically to the Comments page. In the box, you can send me the numbers of any questions that you missed, and I'll look at them with you.
  
• Then hit the "click here" link to go back to Pages and the next quiz.
• If the computer tells you that you have not completed the quiz, it's because you never found the right answer. On each question, keep working till you get it.

THAT WAS EASY!

Quizlet Instructions

• Go to Quizlet.com or follow the link from my blog.
• Go to the search box in the upper right hand corner. Type in Readspot, and you will go to my page. There are now four sets of quizzes for you to choose from.
• You can start with Familiarize or Learn if you feel like you need it, but I suspect that you’re ready to go straight to the games in the second row. See what you think. Have fun.