Sunday, August 2, 2015

New School Year!!

Welcome to a new school year!! 

     This year we are getting excited about technology. We will be using more technology in the classroom and I am hoping that more students and parents will be visiting the site and finding new ways to learn. 

     Remember that you can always contact me with any questions and concerns!! 
Let's make this a fabulous 2015-2016 school year!! 

Miss Brandt
carmen.brandt@csd83.org

Monday, March 23, 2015

Update for AzMerit!!

Yay! We have rescheduled our AzMerit!

New test days!
April 8th: Writing Test
April 10th: Part 1: Reading and Math
April 13th: Part 2: Reading and Math

Let me know if you have any questions.
623-691-2315

Friday, March 6, 2015

AzMerit Test--March 30!!!

Hello students and family! 

Well, it is finally time. We received information saying that we will be starting the AzMerit test the week of March 30-April 3. Remember that this test is given on the Ipads with keyboards. 

Helpful hints: 

Typing Skills: practice, practice, practice!! I wish I had enough time to teach everyone typing skills, but we do not have the resources or the time to do this.
The website I recommend is Fun To Type. Have the students just practice certain rows, or if they are doing well, have them practice short words.

http://www.funtotype.com/



AzMerit Practice Tests: They have released some practice tests for the students. Click on the link below and find the area on the right hand side that says "Sample Tests". Your student knows how to sign in (we sign in as "guest" and choose the grade level). They should be practicing reading and math. If they would like to give the writing a try that is fine as well.

http://azmeritportal.org/



Other practice tests: The other two practice tests are still available as well. SAGE and PARCC are excellent practice for the kids to give them different kinds of practice with many types of problems.

SAGE:   http://sageportal.org/training-tests/

PARCC:  https://login4.cloud1.tds.airast.org/student/V85/Pages/LoginShell.aspx?c=SBAC_PT



As always, let me know if you have any questions!

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Testing, Testing, Testing!

Hello Parents and Students!

Well, I hear ya! Testing is not fun! But with our new state test approaching, I have high expectations for our kiddos.

Our new state test is called the AzMerit Assessment. We will be taking this test on the computers, which is new for our school. Our class has been practicing typing skills, but it is always good to practice at home too. Here are two sites that are great for practicing typing skills.

Fun to Type--our class loves this one!!
http://www.funtotype.com/

Learning Games--also has some excellent games!!
http://www.learninggamesforkids.com/keyboarding_games.html


Now with the AzMerit, it is important that we are practicing! Here are some sites to visit to take practice tests. There are some fabulous examples on these sites. Remember to practice Reading and Math. Let me know if you need anything or have any questions about the AzMerit Test.

AzMerit Reading and Math Practice Test: http://www.azed.gov/assessment/azsampleassessmentitems/

SAGE: (similar to AzMerit-Utah version) Reading and Math Practice Test:
http://sageportal.org/training-tests/

PARCC: (Similar to AzMerit) Practice Test:
https://login4.cloud1.tds.airast.org/student/V85/Pages/LoginShell.aspx?c=SBAC_PT