STAAR Tests Next Week – Is Your Child Ready?

A large portion of the STAAR tests, which are mandated for public school students in grades 3-12, will be administered next week for the elementary and middle school levels. Students in grades 3-8 will be tested in math. Students in grades 3-4 and 6-7 will be tested in reading, and students in grades 5 and 8 will be tested in science. Students in grade 8 will also be tested in social studies.

A student’s STAAR scores are used to determine whether they have mastered the material sufficiently to advance to the next grade, and STAAR scores can also help students to demonstrate academic eligibility for magnet admissions lotteries. They are also used in the abstract to judge a school’s effectiveness.

The best way to prepare your child for STAAR tests is to make sure they get plenty of rest and feel confident going in to the assessment. If your child has issues with test anxiety and you’re concerned that the tests will cause them undue stress, practice tests can help. TEA provides practice test questions for this purpose.