Anonymous wrote:It's the reading test they use to pick the "level" of books your kid comes home with.

The scale is from 1-28. IIRC, the "advanced" kids were reading at 6-9 by the end of K, but mine was not.

Incorrect info.

The DRA Word Analaysis test is used in kindergarten. The scores are 0 to 193. It is not uncommon for a child to be at 160 or 170 in the fall and many will be at 193 at the end of the year (doesn't mean your kid is a genius). I think the benchmark for the end of the year is 170 (that's the minimum score they want each child to attain).

The DRA (which is what the quoted PP is talking about), will be given in first grade and beyond. It does not end at 28. 16 is the benchmark for first grade in FCPS and 28 (I think) for second grade. The "leveled" readers that they are or will be sending home are based on your child's DRA scoring (and progression). You can google to find how DRA score (which is a score for the student) relates to Guided Reading Level (which is a score for the book from A-Z). If your child is blowing through the DRA WA, then the teachers may test the child up to one year ahead (which would be DRA 16). So, at the end of kindergarten, you could get both a DRA WA score of 193 AND a DRA score of 6. Typically, they like to see kids starting first grade at a 4 or 6. Anything above that would reflect that your child is above average in reading (often, kids can read the words of much higher level books, but they get knocked down on DRA score for not having the comprehension piece, so don't be surprised if the DRA is lower than you would expect based on what books they can read).

It's the reading test they use to pick the "level" of books your kid comes home with.

The scale is from 1-28. IIRC, the "advanced" kids were reading at 6-9 by the end of K, but mine was not.

It usually isn't presented to the kids as a test at all - just that they are going to read to the teacher. It is more a reading assessment to determine their reading level than a typical standardized test. All it involves is the teacher (or volunteer) sitting reading 1:1 with a student. The student reads a passage then teacher gives the reading a score for accuracy, fluency and comprehension and that translates to a level (a number). Students don't know or see their scores. It should be done twice a year to see progress.

Its the same test that was administred in the fall. Did you not get your child's score from the fall? We got this information at the conference. The test contains letter sight and sound recognition, a couple sight words, and stuff like that I think. Its pretty basic and they've been "teaching to this test" the entire year so that their scores will improve in the spring. I'm sure your child will do fine without any prepping.

Got a letter in the Thursday folder that DS' Kindgarten class will be administered the DRA2 WA over the next few weeks. I was under the impression that standardized testing doesn't begin until later - guess I was wrong. What is this test?

And how can I prep my five year old for it? JK. Chill peeps.