Dear Parents and Children,
Welcome to CNNWEA's STAR Assessments practice pack for the 1st and 2nd grades. Congratulations on taking the first step toward helping yourself or your child be successful on the STAR tests!
About the STAR Test:
The Renaissance Star Assessments are a series of short tests administered to grades K-12. The Star Assessments are multiple-choice tests used to monitor students for their reading and math progression throughout the school year and provide teachers and parents with actionable insights into each student's academic proficiency.
STAR tests provide a personalized assessment by adapting to each student's learning level. If a student answers a question correctly, the test progresses to a more challenging question. If a student answers incorrectly, the test follows up with an easier question. *
The tests are not timed, so students may take as much time as they need to complete them. However, certain questions have a time limit for security purposes and in order to keep the test moving. On average, the STAR Reading and STAR Math tests each take less than 30 minutes to complete.
The STAR Enterprise versions are the primary and most used versions of the test, designated for screening and benchmarking periodic assessment. They consist of 34 questions and are administered a few times a year. These tests also have shortened versions intended for progress monitoring; these versions consist of 24-25 questions (24 for Math and 25 for Reading) and are designed to be administered more frequently. **
* CNNWEA's STAR practice tests use a different technology than the actual STAR test and are not adaptive. However, the questions on each test span a wide range of levels of difficulty, centered around the average level for the given age group. This will also ensure that you are exposed to varying types of questions that may be asked on the actual STAR test if you cruise to different levels.
** This PrepPack is based on the STAR Enterprise versions, meaning that the practice tests on this pack are intended to simulate the extended versions of the tests (34 questions). However, since the shorter versions are based on the same materials and consist of fewer questions, this pack can prepare effectively for all versions.
What's included:
Our preparation pack comprises a great selection of online practice materials to help your child prepare for STAR Assessments. They include:
Four reading practice quizzes, one for each of the STAR Reading test domains:
Word Knowledge & Skills
Comprehension Strategies & Constructing Meaning
Analyzing Literary Text
Understanding Author's Craft
Three full-length STAR Reading practice tests, accurately simulating the actual STAR Reading test
Four math practice quizzes, one for each of the STAR Math test domains:
Numbers & Operations
Algebra
Geometry
Data Analysis, Statistics & Probability
Three full-length STAR Math practice tests, accurately simulating the actual STAR Math test
A complete STAR Math Study Guide, including general information, solving tips, and extensive study materials
How to use this pack:
We recommend practicing for the STAR Assessments in the following order:
Start by carefully going over the STAR Math study guide to ensure you have the basic mathematic knowledge required to understand the different questions.
Take the first full-length STAR Reading Practice Test and STAR Math Practice test.
Complete the subject-specific quizzes to understand the different topics and question types better and gradually improve your problem-solving skills. Focus on subjects you had difficulty with on the first full-length practice tests.
After gaining enough confidence and understanding of the various types of questions, take the second full-length STAR Reading Practice Test and STAR Math Practice test.
Based on your performance on the second full-length practice test, focus on the topics you had difficulty with, reread the relevant parts of the study guide if necessary, and retake some of the quizzes to ensure your complete understanding of them.
Take the third and final full-length STAR Reading Practice Test and STAR Math Practice test.
Recommended Studying Techniques:
Begin preparing at least two weeks before the STAR
There are some differences between the practice tests and the actual test, so it is important to read the instructions given at the beginning of each practice test.
Thoroughly review all answers and explanations. The explanations include important tips and solving methods. Even if you answered correctly, it is still possible to learn a new strategy or way of thinking from the explanations that will help you with questions on the real test.
We encourage retaking practice tests more than once to reinforce your areas of success and comfort and strengthen your weaknesses. In addition, you can track your progress with our interactive score reports, which are available at the end of each test.
