CURRICULUM FOR PSAT PREP GRADE 8
This curriculum is part of the Educational Program of Studies of the Rahway Public Schools. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Dr. Kevin Robinson, Program Supervisor of STEM The Board acknowledges the following who contributed to the preparation of this curriculum. Michael Celoski Christine H. Salcito, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Subject/Course Title: Date of Board Adoptions: PSAT Prep March 18, 2014 Grade 8
RAHWAY PUBLIC SCHOOLS CURRICULUM UNIT OVERVIEW Content Area: Test Preparation Unit Title: PSAT Mathematics Target Course/Grade Level: PSAT Prep/8 th Grade Unit Summary: In this unit, students will gain an understanding and an appreciation of what is to be found in the mathematics sections of the PSAT. Essential tactics and strategies that good test takers need to know to do their best on the math part of the PSAT will be given and practiced. Diagnostic tests will be administered and assessed for understanding. Approximate Length of Unit: 3 weeks Primary interdisciplinary connections: Mathematics LEARNING TARGETS Standards: Content Strands: Number and Quantity Algebra Functions Modeling Geometry Statistics & Probability N-RN.1-3 N-Q.1-3 N-CN.1-9 N-VM.1-12 A-SSE.1-4 A-APR.1-7 A-CED.1-4 A-REI.1-12 F-IF.1-9 F-BF.1-5 F-LE.1-5 F-TF.1-9 G-CO.1-13 G-SRT.1-11 G-C.1-5 G-GPE.1-7 G-GMD.1-4 G-MG.1-3 S-ID.1-9 S-IC.1-6 S-CP.1-9 S-MD.1-7 MP.1-8
21 st Century Life and Career Skills: 9.1.8.A.1 Develop strategies to reinforce positive attitudes and productive behaviors that impact critical thinking and problem-solving skills. 9.1.8.D.2 demonstrate the ability to understand inferences. Unit Understandings: Students will understand Numbers & Operations Algebra & Functions Geometry and Measurement Data, Statistics & Probability Problem Solving Representation Reasoning Connections Communication Unit Essential Questions: Students will be familiar with and be prepared to answer the following types of math questions found on the PSAT: Multiple-Choice (28 questions) Student-Produced Response (10 questions) Knowledge and Skills: Students will know Numbers, number systems and operations. Fundamental properties of integers and elementary number theory. The concept of function and functional notation. The Pythagorean Theorem as well as special properties of isosceles, equilateral and right triangles. How mathematical ideas interconnect and build on one another to produce a coherent whole. Students will be able to Do arithmetic word problems, including those involving percent, ratio and proportion. Compute fluently with real numbers, including rational numbers expressed in fraction and in decimal form. Solve problems involving sets and problems involving sequences and series. Write and simplify algebraic expressions, including those involving exponents. Solve linear, quadratic, rational and radical equations, as well as systems of equations and inequalities. Use mathematical models to represent and understand quantitative relationships. Work with absolute value as well as with direct and inverse variation. Use algebra to solve word problems. Analyze characteristics and properties of points, lines and angles in the plane as well as of two- and three-dimensional geometric shapes. Solve problems involving length, area and volume. Work with geometric figures in the coordinate plane and are familiar with the concepts of slope and similarity. Develop mathematical arguments about geometric relationships. Understand and interpret data displayed in tables and graphs, including bar graphs, circle graphs, line graphs, histograms and scatterplots. Evaluate inferences and predictions that are based on data. Understand and use descriptive statistics, including the mean, median and mode. Apply basic concepts of probability to solve problems. Solve problems that arise in abstract as well as real contexts. Apply and adapt a variety of strategies to solve problems, including both routine and non-routine problems. Monitor their process as they work toward the solution to a problem, and they can evaluate their answer in terms of the original question asked. Create and use representations to organize, record and communicate mathematical ideas. Select, apply and translate among mathematical representations, including the verbal, numerical, symbolic and graphical, to solve problems. Recognize reasoning and proof as fundamental aspects of mathematics. Make and investigate mathematical conjectures, and develop and evaluate mathematical arguments and proofs. Use what they know and build a logical progression of statements to explore the truth of their conjectures. Break things down into cases, recognizing when the cases exhaust all possibilities. Recognize and use counterexamples, and they can use logic to justify their conclusions. Recognize and use connections among different areas in mathematics, particularly between geometry and algebra. Recognize and apply mathematics in applied contexts. Use the definitions, symbols and notation of mathematics to express mathematical ideas precisely. Organize and consolidate their mathematical thinking through communication. Communicate their mathematical thinking coherently and clearly. Analyze and evaluate the mathematical thinking and strategies of others.
EVIDENCE OF LEARNING Assessment: What evidence will be collected and deemed acceptable to show that students truly understand? Textbook checks Journal checks Computer program assessments Quizzes Tests Informal assessments Learning Activities: What differentiated learning experiences and instruction will enable all students to achieve the desired results? Modeling Guided Instruction Conferencing Group Work Self-reflection Peer conferencing RESOURCES Teacher Resources: Barron s PSAT/NMSQT Test Preparation Equipment Needed: Computers Projector
RAHWAY PUBLIC SCHOOLS CURRICULUM UNIT OVERVIEW Content Area: Test Preparation Unit Title: PSAT Critical Reading Target Course/Grade Level: PSAT Prep/8 th Grade Unit Summary: In this unit, students will gain an understanding and an appreciation of what is to be found in the critical reading sections of the PSAT. Essential tactics and strategies that good test takers need to know to do their best on the critical reading part of the PSAT will be given and practiced. Diagnostic tests will be administered and assessed for understanding. Approximate Length of Unit: 3 weeks Primary interdisciplinary connections: Language Arts LEARNING TARGETS Standards: Content Strands: Reading: Literature Reading: Informational Text RL.9-10.1-10 RL.11-12.1-10 RI.9-10.1-10 RI.11-12.1-10 21 st Century Life and Career Skills: 9.1.8.A.1 9.1.8.D.2 Develop strategies to reinforce positive attitudes and productive behaviors that impact critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Demonstrate the ability to understand inferences. Unit Understandings: Students will understand The meaning of words Author s craft Reasoning and inferencing Organization and ideas Literary elements Unit Essential Questions: Students will be familiar with and be prepared to answer the following types of critical reading questions found on the PSAT: Sentence Completion (13 questions) Passage Based Reading (35 questions) Knowledge and Skills: Students will know How the different parts of a sentence fit together. An author s intended purpose in a text. How an author s choices achieve certain effects and support his or her purpose for writing. How a text is organized and recognized the functions of different parts of a text.
Students will be able to Analyze vocabulary and sentence structure. Use knowledge of the meaning of words, including difficult and specialized vocabulary. Analyze an author s use of language and devices. Identify an author s tone and recognize the use of word choice, literary devices and rhetorical devices. Use reasoning and critical thinking to extend or elaborate on a text. Use reasoning to connect, compare, contrast and integrate ideas and information within and across texts. Connect an idea within a text to a different or analogous situation outside the text. Recognize implications and infer information that is not explicitly stated in a text Analyze the ideas in and organization of a text. Identify the central or main idea and the supporting details of a text or a section of a text. Connect, analyze and understand the relationship of ideas within a text or across texts and make text-based conclusions. Use knowledge of literary elements. Recognize and understand elements of setting, plot, characterization, theme and narrative perspective. EVIDENCE OF LEARNING Assessment: What evidence will be collected and deemed acceptable to show that students truly understand? Textbook checks Journal checks Computer program assessments Quizzes Tests Informal assessments Learning Activities: What differentiated learning experiences and instruction will enable all students to achieve the desired results? Modeling Guided Instruction Conferencing Group Work Self-reflection Peer Conferencing RESOURCES Teacher Resources: Barron s PSAT/NMSQT Test Preparation Equipment Needed: Computers Projector
RAHWAY PUBLIC SCHOOLS CURRICULUM UNIT OVERVIEW Content Area: Test Preparation Unit Title: PSAT Writing Skills Target Course/Grade Level: PSAT Prep/8 th Grade Unit Summary: In this unit, students will gain an understanding and an appreciation of what is to be found in the writing skills sections of the PSAT. Essential tactics and strategies that good test takers need to know to do their best on the writing skills part of the PSAT will be given and practiced. Diagnostic tests will be administered and assessed for understanding. Approximate Length of Unit: 3 weeks Primary interdisciplinary connections: Language Arts LEARNING TARGETS Standards: Writing Content Strands: RL.9-10.1-10 RL.11-12.1-10 RI.9-10.1-10 RI.11-12.1-10 21 st Century Life and Career Skills: 9.1.8.A.1 9.1.8.D.2 Develop strategies to reinforce positive attitudes and productive behaviors that impact critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Demonstrate the ability to understand inferences. Unit Understandings: Students will understand Word choice and grammatical relationships between words. Grammatical structures used to modify or compare. Phrases and clauses in a sentence. Correctly formed sentences. Order and relationships of sentences and paragraphs. Unit Essential Questions: Students will be familiar with and be prepared to answer the following types of writing questions found on the PSAT: Improving Sentences (20 questions) Identifying Sentence Errors (14 questions) Improving Paragraphs (5 questions) Knowledge and Skills: Students will know Parts of speech and how they agree in a well-formed sentence. The function of modifying words and phrases and recognize when they are used correctly. The relationships between phrases and clauses in well-formed sentences and recognize when clauses are formed correctly using appropriate subjects and verb forms.
Students will be able to Correct errors in grammatical relationships between and among words in a sentence in order to communicate ideas clearly and concisely. Manage modifiers and objects to ensure that the modifier-object references are clear, logical and correctly formed. Correct errors in modifier-object references, comparative structures and superlative structures in a sentence to communicate ideas clearly and concisely. Use well-formed sentence structures to indicate relations between and among elements of a sentence. Recognize when clauses are formed correctly using appropriate subjects and verb forms. Correct errors in how phrases and clauses are structured in a sentence to communicate ideas clearly and concisely. Recognize that a clear organization and a smooth progression of ideas improve coherence both within and among the paragraphs in an essay. Signal the main point or theme, use effective transitions to signal development, and use rhetorical conventions to structure ideas. Correct errors in organization and development to improve the focus and flow of a paragraph or paragraphs in an essay. EVIDENCE OF LEARNING Assessment: What evidence will be collected and deemed acceptable to show that students truly understand? Textbook checks Journal checks Computer program assessments Quizzes Tests Informal assessments Learning Activities: What differentiated learning experiences and instruction will enable all students to achieve the desired results? Modeling Guided Instruction Conferencing Group Work Self-reflection Peer Conferencing RESOURCES Teacher Resources: Barron s PSAT/NMSQT Test Preparation Equipment Needed: Computers Projector