STAAR TESTING STRATEGIES (ENGLISH I EOC, SPRING 2014)
The Reading Section: Read Everything Carefully
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Budget about 2.5 HOURS for the ENTIRE reading section
o 1.5 hours to read all the passages AND answer the multiple choice questions
o ONLY 1 hour for the SHORT ANSWER SECTION (approximately 15-20 MINUTES per short answer)

Don’t let the subject matter of a passage or its length throw you; trust that you can handle anything this
test throws at you.
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You’ve been working on strategies for this test all year long in class, even if I didn’t specifically tell you it
was STAAR related—YOU ARE READY.
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Read the passages twice
o Read once for comprehending the passage and identifying the overall theme or main idea; and
o Read a second time (after glancing at the questions) for making notes about details, literary
elements, unfamiliar vocabulary, etc.
AS YOU READ…
o Read EVERYTHING—charts, graphs, maps, legends, keys, etc.
o Ask yourself questions about the passage, make PREDICTIONS, and draw CONCLUSIONS
o Create mental pictures by VISUALIZING what is occurring in the text
o Look for LITERARY ELEMENTS, e.g. themes, symbols, irony, etc.
o Make connections with what you already know; use your SCHEMA
o SUMMARIZE the text in your own words, and write summaries for every couple of paragraphs if you
must
o Think about what is IMPORTANT
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Imagine we are back in the classroom, and we just finished reading
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What questions would I ask you?
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What do I usually make sure you focus on?
o Underline, circle, and highlight (mark up) the text and take notes
o Since you have a dictionary, look up words you do not know; STAAR passages are written on the
9th-grade reading level and HIGHER
o Use your finger or a place marker to underscore the line you are reading
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This forces your mind to slow down and really focus

Ignore everything (and everyone) else in the room
The Reading Section: Tackling the Multiple Choice Questions

NOTE: There will be 7 FIELD-TEST QUESTIONS added to the base test in this section.

Read each question carefully, highlighting key words and phrases; you may have to decode—uncover,
decipher, or reword—the question to figure out what is really being asked.

Carefully read ALL of the answer choices for each question, even after you think you know the answer.

When you decide to eliminate an answer choice, mark it off with your pencil; it may also help to write
WHY you eliminated that answer choice in the margin.

Answer choices must COMPLETELY answer the question.
SPECIFIC STRATEGIES TO USE…
Process of elimination method
o Eliminate any OBVIOUSLY WRONG answer choices
o Eliminate any answer choices that are TOO BROAD OR TOO NARROW in scope; these answer
choices include unnecessary, extra information or not enough information to satisfy the
question
o Eliminate ILLOGICAL answer choices (these don’t make sense)
o If two answer choices are close (and there will be some that seem somewhat reasonable),
choose the BEST answer—the answer choice that answers ALL PARTS of the question
Substitution method (fill-in-the-blank)
o REPHRASE the question, leaving a blank where the answer should be
o Fill in the blank with each answer choice until you find the BEST answer to the question
Using the context clues method
o When a question directs you to a specific set of lines, words, or phrases, LOCATE THE
REFERENCE
o Read the sentence PRECEDING the reference, the sentence OF the reference, and the
sentence FOLLOWING the reference
o Choose the BEST answer to the question
The Reading Section: Surviving the Short Answer Questions

NOTE: There will be 1 FIELD-TEST SHORT ANSWER added to the base test in this section.

Budget NO MORE THAN 1 HOUR for the short answers (approximately 15-20 MINUTES per short answer)

Read the questions carefully, highlighting key words and phrases; you may have to decode—uncover,
decipher, or reword—the questions to figure out what is really being asked.

While most short answer questions will be about a single selection, you will encounter at least one
CROSSOVER QUESTION, a question that asks a question about a thematically-linked pair of passages.

Your response to each short answer question should mainly be IN YOUR OWN WORDS, with quotes
sprinkled throughout “like chocolate chips in cookies”.
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Word choice is ESSENTIAL in communicating an effective response; utilize the dictionary and thesaurus
provided to you to improve your diction. [Caution: Your word choice must compliment your writing style.]

The response box contains 10 lines (including the bottom); you CANNOT write outside this box, nor can
you add any lines within the box.

You must still complete the writing process for each short answer question: brainstorm, rough draft,
revise, edit, and final copy.

Your handwriting must be LEGIBLE; if the graders cannot read it, or if your handwriting is difficult to
discern, your score will suffer.
Step 1: Answer the Question [gift]
o Answer the question by restating part of the question
o Be sure your answer sufficiently responds to all parts of the question
o When responding to a crossover question, provide the title of each story in your response
Step 2: Back Up Your Answer [wrapping paper]
o Support you answer by giving TWO (2) RELEVANT, DIRECT QUOTES from the passage that are
relevant to the question
o Use only what textual evidence is NECESSARY to support your answer
o A quote should NEVER stand alone; provide a lead-in or introduction to the quote, the necessary
textual evidence, and follow-up with commentary
o When responding to a crossover question, provide TWO (2) QUOTES from each story in your
response
Step 3: Connect Answer and Evidence (proof statement) [bow]
o Explain HOW the textual evidence relates to the question’s answer
o Analyze rather than recite by using some of these stems:

Since ___, then ___

Because of ___, then ___

As a result of ___, then ___
o Provide a thematic link between the passages for the crossover question
The Writing Section: Reaching the Revising and Editing Questions

NOTE: There will be 6 FIELD-TEST QUESTIONS added to the base test in this section.

Budget about 2.5 HOURS for the ENTIRE writing section
o 30 MINUTES to read the revising and editing passages AND answer the multiple choice questions,

Contrary to TAKS, you are now ALLOWED to have a dictionary and thesaurus in the revising and editing
section of the STAAR test.

Read each passage provided SLOWLY AND CAREFULLY; note in the margin any errors in GUMPS you
notice as you read.

Read the questions carefully, paying close attention to HOW the question and answer choices are worded.

After you have chosen the BEST answer to a question, go back to the passage and physically MAKE THE
CHANGE in each passage (questions build on another).
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The correct answer WILL NOT contain an error.
The Writing Section: Waltzing Through the Written Composition
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NOTE: There will be 1 FIELD-TEST PROMPT added to the base test in this section.

Budget about 2.5 HOURS for the ENTIRE writing section
o NO MORE than 1 HOUR PER ESSAY (10 minutes to brainstorm, 20-25 minutes to write a rough draft,
10-15 minutes to revise and edit, and 15-20 minutes to NEATLY write your final copy).

Read the prompt carefully, highlighting key words and phrases; you may have to decode—uncover,
decipher, or reword—the prompt to figure out what is really being asked of you.

Remember, the STAAR essay prompts contain a considerable amount of extraneous information; this is
designed to ease students into the prompt but is sometimes more confusing for students and can be
marked out.
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Students must write using MULTIPLE INDENTED PARAGRAPHS; your essay should contain AT LEAST 3-4
PARAGRAPHS.
o Introduction
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3-4 lines that must contain a hook (beginning) and your CLEAR thesis (end of introduction)
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Restate part of the prompt to help form your thesis if needed
o Body paragraph(s)
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18-20 lines (If writing multiple body paragraphs, try to have similar lengths)
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Must contain SPECIFIC EXAMPLES to help EXPLAIN or illustrate your thesis statement
o Examples can be a personal anecdote, from current events, from historical events, etc.
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DO NOT make your personal example into a narrative.
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You ARE NOT telling a story; you’re simply referencing something from you own
experience to support your thesis
o It’s not enough to include examples; you must also answer/explain this question: How
does my example prove my thesis?
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They must be clearly organized and effectively developed—NOT a hit-and-run example
o Conclusion
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2-4 lines
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Restate your thesis

Diction, or word choice, is ESSENTIAL in communicating an effective response; utilize the dictionary and
thesaurus provided to you to improve your diction. [Caution: Be sure your word choice COMPLIMENTS
your writing style. You don’t want to end up like Joey on Friends.]

Language to avoid:
o Anything from the “no-no” list: contractions, misspelled words, abbreviations, slang, a lot/a lot,
alright, get, got, getting, stuff, things, you, your, it is, that is, there is, there are, they are, etc.
o Phrases such as, “I think” or “I believe”—remember, these phrases WEAKEN your essay

The response box contains 26 LINES (including the bottom); you CANNOT write outside this box, nor can
you add any lines within the box.

You must still complete the writing process for each short answer question: brainstorm, rough draft,
revise, edit, and final copy.

Your handwriting must be LEGIBLE; if the graders cannot read it, or if your handwriting is difficult to
discern, your score will suffer.