Concept 3 - taks toppers
Transcription
Concept 3 - taks toppers
TEST PREPARATION MADE EASY by Alana Sloan FREE SHIPPING ON BOOK ORDERS OVER $500! This offer expires 07/01/2010. Details on page 5. Visit www.TAKStoppers.com. STUDY GUIDES CATALOG SPRING 2010 www.TAKSToppers.com QUALITY STUDY GUIDES WRITTEN FOR TEACHERS BY TEACHERS When you require the best, you naturally go to the experts. After years of study, along with some trial and error, Alana Sloan developed the TAKS Toppers Study Guides to assist teachers in preparing students for their state-mandated tests. As an educational expert, she has utilized her knowledge of curriculum development to write and edit the study guides as well as enlisted the support of guest authors and published professional writers. Alana Sloan TAKS Toppers founder 2 For information, call 469.422.3622 The end products, TAKS Toppers Study Guides, have proven to be remarkably successful for teachers and students alike. TAKS Toppers are valuable tools for remediation and enrichment and provide excellent resources for before, during, and after-school tutoring sessions. For students studying for the state-developed Alternative Assessments and for those requiring retesting, TAKS Toppers is an ideal vehicle. In addition, the study guides provide substitute teachers with quality teaching opportunities. Geared to grade levels, each of the TAKS Toppers Study Guides encompasses a wealth of information and teaching aids to ensure the success of students including: • Standards and Objectives: Outlines the skills required for students to master the TAKS tests. • Activities: Contains interesting stories and activities to promote problem solving and high-level analytical skills. • Assessment: Designed to assist teachers in assessing a student’s grasp of an objective. • Warm-up and Review: Questions are designed at various levels of difficulty. • Graphic Organizers and Question Stems: A valuable tool to teach TAKS objectives. • Answer Key: Teachers and tutors can quickly check for accuracy and comprehension of material. • Practice Tests: Designed to help students understand what the actual test is like. CONENTS ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ Grades 2-3 4-5 Grade 4 6-7 Grade 5 7 Grade 6 8 Grade 7 9 Grade 8 10 MAKE A CHOICE. MAKE A DIFFERENCE. by Reading NEW THIS ISSUE Alana Sloan We have all heard the phrase “No Child Left Behind,” and now, in this era of educational accountability, the phrase has more meaning than ever. Every student deserves a school’s best efforts. Starting with the principal, the teachers, and continuing on to the cafeteria workers and custodians, each member of the school staff must make a choice to join the effort to make a difference to help all students achieve success. ■ GRADE 7 READING This book provides middle school students with a collection of highly readable passages accompanied by high-level questions similar to those addressed on TAKS. The failure of even one student can eliminate your school from being on top. As a teacher who has worked extremely hard to help his or her students pass the state TAKS tests, this can be very disheartening. This hard, cold fact became the impetus for me to create the TAKS Toppers Study Guides. See page 9 for details ■ GRADE 8 READING This book provides a collection of reading passages designed to inform and entertain students in middle school. This book prepares students for TAKS and future literacy success at the high school level. See page 10 for details FREE SHIPPING ON PURCHASES OVER $500 Enter “FREESHIP” during checkout or mention the promo code via phone ordering to receive your discount. Does not apply to faxed orders. Offer valid only for teachers and schools. Expires 07/01/2010. Order online at www.TAKStoppers.com After teaching at the same school for 17 years, I was approached by a principal to come help that “one student who failed.” Torn between leaving my school or accepting the challenge, I decided to make a change in the hope of making a difference. After looking objectively at the problem, I knew we had to concentrate on every student and look at every child as if he or she would be the one who might not master the TAKS objectives. I placed emphasis on an all-out effort to coach every student before school, after school, during planning periods and even on Saturdays. In establishing this plan, I enlisted the aid of every staff member of the school, and to our amazement, we were awarded Exemplary status by the State of Texas at the end of the school year. That experience led me to create the TAKS Toppers Study Guides that are making a difference in schools today. We continue to improve our guides and look to the future to continue to ensure that “no child will be left behind.” You can make a choice to make a difference for your students, too. TAKS Toppers Study Guides have a proven track record for methods of coaching your students to become successful. To order, visit us online at www.TAKStoppers.com 3 GRADE 2 RAVE REVIEWS PREPARING FOR RETESTS TAKS is based on standards the state has determined its students should be able to understand and do. When a student does not master TAKS, it is our job to alter the conditions for testing through positive academic intervention. ■ “We have used many of your materials with great success and look forward to any new items you have coming out.” – teacher, Houston ISD ■ “My principal has asked that I give a benchmark this year. The 5th grade teachers gave me a workbook that I really like, but it is 5th grade level. It is your TAKS Toppers. I LOVE IT!” – teacher, 3rd Grade Science ■ “I love the way your 3rd grade reading has social studies TAKS.” – consultant, Dallas ISD & Irving ISD ■ “I have a copy of your TAKS Toppers Grade 3 Reading and feel that it is as close as anything I have seen in regards to the TAKS format and question stems.” Teachers, coaches, and tutors can – and should – intervene with intensive, accelerated instruction by providing students with the knowledge and skills they require to achieve TAKS mastery. Schools may group their students before and after school, during the school day, and even on Saturdays to achieve the desired test results. And, by incorporating TAKS Toppers Study Guides, teachers reinforce the skills essential for each student to succeed in both school and life. In preparing for retests, we have found that even the most well-written and relevant material can become boring to learners, particularly to those who have previously not mastered the state-mandated tests. In assisting these students, seek out ways in which to stimulate young minds with enrichment activities — mini-lessons that incorporate the TAKS skills. Incorporate a math brain teaser, find an analogy in language arts, create an experiment in science, or present a surprising fact in social studies. After you successfully gain your students’ attention, you and your students will reap the benefits of positive results. – teacher, Goose Creek ISD ■ “Our principal just got a copy of TAKS Toppers Grade 3 Math. She loves it and would like to order three more.” – teacher, Dallas ISD GRADES 2-3 READING Give your second grade students a head start on TAKS and provide an introduction to TAKS for third graders. Great for review, too! Books include 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. GR AD E3 TM g Readththin Wi Wi ies udies Stud ciall St So Socia nt ntent Co Conte Available in English and Spanish GRADES 2-3 READING $31.95 4 For information, call 469.422.3622 Written by Alana Sloan GRADE 3-4 HOLIDAYS AND CELEBRATIONS As a teacher, do you have to stop your regular curriculum and plan a special activity for the holidays? With this delightful book, you can keep your curriculum moving along and still enjoy the holidays with your students. Contains both reading and writing passages for educational fun and 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. TAKS TIPS GR AD ES TM s Holiday ions lebrat and Ce & Writing) g (Readin Written by Alana Sloan 3-4 ■ 3rd grade MAKE A SMOOTH TRANSITION Third graders are expected to make a giant leap from second grade. They need to start slowly. Introduce single skills in shorter reading passages and math problem-solving. Gradually, add skills and length. This builds student confidence and promotes success. GRADES 3-4 HOLIDAYS AND CELEBRATIONS $29.95 ■ Grades 3-8 Math PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT FREE SHIPPING ON PURCHASES OVER $500 Enter “FREESHIP” during checkout or mention the promo code via phone ordering to receive your discount. Offer valid only for teachers and schools. Does not apply to faxed orders or to wholesale orders. Expires 07/01/2010. Order online at www.TAKStoppers.com From a veteran math teacher: Make sure students know how to use the TAKS Measurement Chart and the paper ruler. While they may seem simple to us, these tools require a lot of practice for students to become comfortable with them. Don’t forget that TAKS Math is a reading test, too. To improve students reading on problem-solving, start with shorter problems and gradually increase their length. GRADE 3 MATHEMATICS D REVISE N IO EDIT Available in English and Spanish GRADE 3 MATHEMATICS $37.95 GRADE 3 READING Written with social studies content, this book allows you to teach two subjects at the same time. Starts with large print that decreases in size. Includes 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. GRADE 3 READING $31.95 D REVISE N IO EDIT 3 GRADE This 400-page book is crammed with TAKS math skills that move from easy to the more difficult levels of the actual TAKS test. Books include 100 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. To order, visit us online at www.TAKStoppers.com 5 HIGH PRAISE ■ “Last year, we purchased Grade 4 Writing Assessments and Writing: Revising and Editing for each of our elementary campuses. Our teachers have been pleased with the books and found them very useful. ” – reading/language arts specialist, Lubbock ISD GRADE 4 MATHEMATICS A 300+ page handbook, this book contains exercises for each of the six TAKS math objectives, 100 TAKS warm-up and reviews and two full-length TAKS-based practice assessments. The book is loaded with lots of graphics to spark the imagination of 4th grade math students. Also good for 5th grade remediation and 3rd grade enrichment. D REVISE N IO EDIT Available in English and Spanish ■ “...We had 100 percent pass the 4th grade writing test. Of course, we used your materials.” – principal, Orange Grove ISD ■ “I have purchased your TAKS Toppers GRADE 4 MATHEMATICS $37.95 GRADE 4 READING Grade 4 Writing, and I am finding it very useful as a starting point for my 6th graders.” This book is filled with interesting passages, including lots of paired passages. Also includes 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. – teacher, Wharton ISD Available in English and Spanish ■ “The Grade 5 Science book is like having GR AD E4 TM g Readin Written by Alana Sloan GRADE 4 READING $31.95 the entire curriculum in a nutshell.” – teacher, Arlington ISD ■ “I love your TAKS Topper Science Grade 5 Book.” – teacher, New Caney ISD ■ “I purchased the Math TAKS Toppers for 5th grade this year... I love the book and use it frequently.” – teacher, Lewisville ISD GRADE 4 6 For information, call 469.422.3622 GRADE 4 REVISING AND EDITING GR AD E4 TM Written with social studies content, this book provides practice in the TAKS format, mini-lessons for individual skills and includes 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. ING: WRIT g in Revis & Editing Written by Alana Sloan GRADE 4 REVISING AND EDITING $31.95 GRADE 4 WRITTEN COMPOSITION This book provides an overall view of the writing process that is suitable for every grade level – 3rd through 8th. It also includes 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. GR AD E4 TM n Writte sition Compo Written by Alana Sloan Available in English and Spanish GRADE 4 WRITTEN COMPOSITION $31.95 VISIT US ONLINE WWW.TAKSTOPPERS.COM This book contains practice tests for TAKS with the appropriate number of items. It also includes prompts for written composition. GRADE 4 WRITTEN ASSESSMENTS $24.95 GR AD E TM g Writin ts smen Asses Written by Alana Sloan GRADE 5 MATHEMATICS This comprehensive book is filled with 300+ pages of preparation exercises which meet all six of the TAKS math objectives. Books include 100 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review and two full-length TAKS-based practice assessments. Excellent for remediation for new 6th graders, too! 4 5 GRADE GRADE 4 WRITTEN ASSESSMENTS D REVISE N IO EDIT GRADE 5 MATHEMATICS $37.95 GRADE 5 READING Your 5th graders will enjoy the passages in this book. It includes paired passages, science passages and 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. Available in English and Spanish GRADE 5 READING $31.95 GRADE 5 SCIENCE If you teach 5th grade science, you’ve got to have this book. Passages are written in the 5th grade TAKS reading format with numbered paragraphs and cover all the topics tested on TAKS Science. Contains 65 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. Available in English and Spanish GRADE 5 SCIENCE $31.95 TAKS TIPS ■ Grade 5 Science VOCABULARY IS IMPORTANT Hands-on science is a research-based best practice. For students to do well on TAKS Science, however, they must devote time to learning vocabulary and applying what they learn in hands-on activities to written passages and graphics. Prepare the way for your hands-on activities with an intensive vocabulary lesson and follow them up with written practice to let students know what this would look like on TAKS. To order, visit us online at www.TAKStoppers.com 7 GRADE 6 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS This 300+ page handbook prepares 6th grade students for TAKS and lays the groundwork for a successful transition to 7th grade mathematics. This book contains exercises for each of the six TAKS math objectives, 100 TAKS warm-up and reviews and two full-length TAKS-based practice assessments. Also good for 7th grade remediation. GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS $39.95 GRADE 6 READING GREAT NEWS! This book provides practice with the high-level questions addressed on TAKS. Lots of questions that relate to author’s craft, paired passages, and 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. ■ “Your materials are excellent!” GRADE 6 READING $31.95 – teacher, Burnet ISD D REVISE N IO EDIT GR AD E6 TM g Readin Written by Alana Sloan ■ “We use your product and find it invaluable.” – teacher, Deer Park ISD ■ ”I am an ELA 8th Grade teacher. I recently went to a book store in Kingsville, Texas, and bought your 7th grade reading. I will be ordering the 6th grade one, but I really would like to know when the 8th grade will be available for reading. Please let me know. I have enjoyed using it.” – teacher, Freer ISD ■ “We love the TAKS Toppers materials. It would be incredibly beneficial to have TAKS-M Toppers. Our district would snatch them up in a heartbeat.” – specialist, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD ■ ”I purchased your TAKS Toppers Grade 8 and am impressed with the contents.” – teacher, Austin ISD ■ ”I have found the 5th grade TAKS Toppers to be a great review right before the test!” – teacher, 8th Grade Science 8 For information, call 469.422.3622 SPANISH VERSIONS FREE SHIPPING WHEN YOU PURCHASE AT LEAST 10 COPIES OF THE SAME TITLE Just enter promo code “SPAN” during checkout. Hurry! Offer expires 07-01-2010. TAKS TIPS ■ Grades 4 & 7 Writing THERE IS AN ADVANTAGE TO MEMORIZING THE RULES Make sure students memorize the rules that are tested on TAKS Writing. When they are proofreading a passage, have students justify their answer with a rule. It may seem time consuming, but it will be worth it in the end. Students will internalize the rules, and proofreading will be a lot easier for them. ■ Grades 3-8 PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT GRADE 7 MATHEMATICS This 300+ page book provides detailed mini-lessons, vocabulary lists and practice items to help students improve their skills for TAKS Mathematics. It contains lessons which meet all six of the TAKS math objectives. Books also include 100 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review and two pre-tests with the actual number of items tested on the “real” TAKS. Excellent resource for Grade 7 students, Grade 8 tutoring and Grade 6 enrichment. No matter the grade, students need to be comfortable with the test format. Make sure your students know how to use process of elimination to eliminate incorrect answers. Have them provide evidence for why they are eliminating three answers and choosing a fourth. Again, it seems time consuming, but it is a critical TAKS skill. GRADE 7 MATHEMATICS $39.95 This book provides middle school students with a collection of highly readable passages accompanied by high-level questions similar to those addressed on TAKS. Author’s craft and paired passages are included in the text. GRADE 7 READING $31.95 Reading 7 GRADE NEW! GRADE 7 READING To order, visit us online at www.TAKStoppers.com 9 NEW GUIDE AVAILABLE FALL 2010 GRADE 8 SCIENCE This guide which will be packed with interesting passages written in the 8th grade reading format promises to present science content. This book will be designed to improve students’ science knowledge and their scores on the state science test. It will include 50 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review. SAMPLE PASSAGE TAKS Topper 10: Hurricanes During the 2005 hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean, Hurricane Katrina was born. At least 1,836 people lost their lives in the actual hurricane and accompanying flooding, and damage estimates were in excess of $100 billion. The most severe loss of life and property took place in New Orleans, Louisiana. New Orleans was flooded because the levee system, or embankment that protected the city from flooding, failed. Eventually, 80 percent of the city and large neighboring areas were covered by floodwaters that lasted for weeks. Katrina, an intense, rotating oceanic weather system, carried with her winds exceeding 74 miles per hour. Like a giant engine, Katrina used warm, moist ocean air as fuel to form and move inward toward land. Several conditions had to be present for Katrina to grow into the devastating storm that she became. First, warm, moist air rose upward from the surface of the Atlantic Ocean, forming an area of lower air pressure below. Next, air with higher pressure pushed into the low pressure area. Then, the “new” air became warm and moist, rose higher, and was replaced with swirling air. Clouds formed, and the entire system of clouds and wind rotated wildly into Hurricane Katrina. What fuels a hurricane? (TEKS 10C) a. Floodwaters b. Low air pressure c. High air pressure d. Warm, moist ocean air* * D is the correct answer GRADE 8 MATHEMATICS GRADE 8 10 For information, call 469.422.3622 This 300+ page book provides detailed mini-lessons, vocabulary lists and practice items to help students improve their skills for TAKS Mathematics. It contains lessons which meet all six of the TAKS math objectives. Books also include 100 TAKS Toppers for warm-up and review and two pre-tests with the actual number of items tested on the “real” TAKS. Excellent resource for Grade 8 students, Grade 9 tutoring and Grade 7 enrichment. GRADE 8 MATHEMATICS $39.95 NEW! GRADE 8 READING This book provides a collection of reading passages designed to inform and entertain students in middle school. With its high-level questions, the book prepares students for TAKS and future literacy success at the high school level. GRADE 8 READING $31.95 D REVISE N IO EDIT IMPORTANT DETAILS WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU! Our goal at Wordsmiths Publishing is customer satisfaction. We strive for accuracy and appreciate it very much when customers wish to provide feedback after using any of the TAKS Toppers study guides. If you wish to communicate information about our products, please contact Alana Sloan at bsloan@flash.net or write to Alana at Wordsmiths Publishing Company, 3603 Urban Avenue, Dallas, TX 75227. TO PLACE AN ORDER You can purchase books on the Web at www.takstoppers.com or remove and fill out the order form in the center of this book and simply fax to 214.388.0035 or mail it to the address above. ABOUT ALANA SLOAN VISIONARY, PIONEER, DEDICATED TEACHER, AND CHILD ADVOCATE...THIS IS ALANA SLOAN Ms. Sloan enjoyed a long and fruitful career as an accomplished journalist but felt she was missing something. “Even though I found journalistic projects to be extremely rewarding, I missed working directly with people,” said Ms. Sloan. In 1981, she decided to complete her degree in teaching and was named Outstanding Education Graduate at the University of North Texas. She has since been named Teacher of the Year three times during her 23-year tenure as a teacher in Dallas’ inner city school system and has been awarded master teacher status from the state of Texas. In 1982, she was also selected to serve as teacher of the talented and gifted, a position she held for 20 years. Ms. Sloan continued to write books and articles while teaching, thus curriculum writing seemed a natural transition for her. Early in her teaching career, Ms. Sloan began to observe an obvious lack of alignment between district-provided materials and the statemandated standardized test. Because of her dedication and her pioneering spirit, her dream of developing test preparation materials the students could relate to and learn from launched into reality. SPANISH VERSIONS FREE SHIPPING WITH PURCHASE OF 10 COPIES OF THE SAME TITLE Just enter promo code “SPAN” during online checkout. Offer not valid for wholesalers and expires 07-01-2010. FREE SHIPPING ON PURCHASES OVER $500 Enter “FREESHIP” during checkout or mention the promo code via phone ordering to receive your discount. Does not apply to faxed orders. Offer valid only for teachers and schools; no wholesalers. Expires 07/01/2010. Order online at www.TAKStoppers.com Ms. Sloan made use of her journalistic abilities and began to write original reading and writing materials. Very early in the process, she recognized that there were few quality writing materials or procedures in place to teach students how to write or to aid them in achieving mastery on the state test. That realization planted the first “seeds” of the course of action that she still draws on to teach students to write. Due to use of her self-developed materials, Ms. Sloan’s students began to show a remarkable increase in their test scores. Her labors did not go unnoticed by her principal, and she was asked to develop curriculum for all subject areas as well as to present professional development workshops for her school and district. Since 2002, she has been author and publisher of the TAKS Toppers series, utilizing her knowledge and experience as a developer of test preparation materials. Through TAKS Toppers, Ms. Sloan provides quality test preparation materials for busy teachers who do not have time to develop the materials themselves. “Teachers have the hardest job in the world,” Ms. Sloan says. “My objective is to do all I can to make their job easier.” To order, visit us online at www.TAKStoppers.com 11 by Alana Sloan 3603 Urban Avenue Dallas, Texas 75227 FREE SHIPPING ON ORDERS OVER $500! Hurry! This offer expires 07/01/2010. Details on page 5. APPROVED SCHOOL DISTRICT VENDORS CLICK www.TAKStoppers.com CALL 469.422.3622 CATALOG CONTACT US TODAY! To receive additional books Visit us online to order books for your school. Come back often as we will be launching a new Website this spring. We’re always available to answer your questions or to take orders. Want to give a catalog to your principal or curriculum specialist? Email bsloan@flash.net to get your questions answered or to request copies of the current catalog. • Alba-Golden ISD • Alto ISD • Alvin ISD • Arp ISD • Athens ISD • Beckville ISD • Belton ISD • Big Sandy ISD • Boling ISD • Broaddus ISD • Brownsboro ISD • Bullard ISD • Burleson ISD • Carlisle ISD • Cathage ISD • Cayuga ISD • Center ISD • Central Heights ISD • Central ISD • Chapel Hill ISD • ChirenoI ISD • Cross Roads ISD • Crowley ISD • Cushing ISD • Deer Park ISD • Denton ISD • Diboll ISD • Douglass ISD • Dumas ISD • East TX Charter Schools • Edgewood ISD • El Campo ISD • Elkart ISD • Elysian Fields ISD • Etoile ISD • Eustace ISD • Excelsior ISD • Frankston ISD • Fruitvale ISD • Freer ISD • Galveston ISD • Garrison ISD • Gary ISD • Gilmer ISD • Gladewater ISD • Goose Creek ISD • Grand Saline ISD • Hallsville ISD • Harlingen CISD • Harleton ISD • Harmony ISD • Hawkins ISD • Hemphill ISD • Henderson ISD • Hudeson ISD • Huntington ISD • Jacksonville ISD • Joaquin ISD • Karnack ISD • Katy ISD • Kilgore ISD • Klein ISD • Lamar CISD • Laneville ISD • Lapoynor ISD • Leveretts Chapel ISD • Lexington ISD • Lindale ISD • Longview ISD • Lufkin ISD • Malakoff ISD • Martins Mill ISD • Martinville ISD • McAllen ISD • Midway ISD • Mineola ISD • Mount Enterprise ISD • Murchison ISD • Nacigdoches ISD • Neches ISD • New Diana ISD • New Summerfield ISD • Northside ISD • Ore City ISD • Overton ISD • Palestine ISD • Pasadena ISD • Pecos-BarstowToyah ISD • Pine Tree ISD • Plugerville ISD • Point Isabel ISD • Port Arthur ISD • Quitman ISD • Rains ISD • Rusk ISD • Sabine ISD • San Augustine ISD • Shelbyville ISD • Slocum ISD • Southwest ISD • Spring ISD • Spring Hill ISD • Tatum ISD • Taylor ISD • Tenaha ISD • Timpson ISD • Trinidad ISD • Troup ISD • Tyler ISD • Union Grove ISD • Union Hill ISD • Van ISD • Waskom ISD • Waxahachie ISD • Wells ISD • West Rusk ISD • West Sabine ISD • Westwood ISD • Wharton ISD • White Oak ISD • Whitehouse ISD • Winnsboro ISD • Winona ISD • Woden ISD • Yantis ISD • Zavalla ISD SPANISH VERSIONS PURCHASE 10 COPIES OF THE SAME TITLE AND GET FREE SHIPPING Details on page 11.