This course focuses entirely on preparing students to pass their first ELA New York State test with flying colors.
The test is generally given in two sessions on two successive days in early April, with each session lasting about two hours. Students read a mix of fiction and non-fiction passages and poems and then answer questions about them presented in either a multiple-choice format or as brief written responses (of about 3 or 5 sentences).
We will meet weekly until the test is given, to practice on previous years’ tests as we break down and identify the formulas and strategies needed to provide correct and complete answers.
Our aim is to build students’ confidence and sense of mastery. To improve students’ writing skills, we will also work through questions of grammar and usage as they come up.
