4th Grade STAAR Test in Language: Key Concepts and Skills

The 4th Grade STAAR Test in Language: What Students Need to Know

The 4th grade STAAR (State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness) test is designed to measure the academic progress of Texas students. The language section of the STAAR test focuses on assessing students' abilities in Reading, Writing, Listening, and Oral and Written Conventions. In this article, we will discuss the key concepts and skills that students need to master in order to perform well on the 4th grade STAAR test in language.

Reading

The reading section of the 4th grade STAAR test evaluates students' ability to understand and analyze various texts, including literary and informational works. Students are expected to:

• Analyze and understand the author's purpose: Students should be able to identify the author's purpose in cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding [4.10].
• Summarize the main idea and supporting details: Students need to summarize the main idea and supporting details in a text in ways that maintain meaning [4.11(A)].
• Determine meaning of academic English words: Students should be familiar with academic English words derived from Latin, Greek, or other linguistic roots and affixes [4.2(A)].
• Use context to determine unfamiliar words: Students should be able to use the context of the sentence to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words or multiple meaning words [4.2(B)].
• Use a dictionary or glossary: Students should be able to use a dictionary or glossary to determine the meanings, syllabication, and pronunciation of unknown words [4.2(E)].
• Identify similarities and differences: Students should be able to identify similarities and differences between events and characters' experiences in a fictional work and the actual events and experiences described [4.7(A)].

Writing

The writing section of the 4th grade STAAR test evaluates students' ability to compose and revise written texts:

• Write persuasive texts: Students should be able to write persuasive texts to influence the attitudes or actions of a specific audience on specific issues [4.19(A)].
• Understand and use conventions: Students should be able to understand the function of and use the conventions of academic language when speaking and writing [4.20].
• Write legibly: Students should be able to write legibly [4.21].
• Use appropriate capitalization and punctuation: Students should be able to use appropriate capitalization and punctuation conventions in their compositions [4.21].
• Spell correctly: Students should be able to spell correctly [4.22].

Listening and Speaking

The listening and speaking section of the 4th grade STAAR test evaluates students' ability to listen and respond to the ideas of others while contributing their own ideas in conversations and in groups:

• Listen and respond: Students should be able to listen and respond to the ideas of others while contributing their own ideas in conversations and in groups [110.15].

Oral and Written Conventions

The oral and written conventions section of the 4th grade STAAR test evaluates students' ability to use the oral and written conventions of the English language:

• Use oral and written conventions: Students should be able to use the oral and written conventions of the English language in speaking and writing [110.15].

These are the key concepts and skills that students need to master in order to perform well on the 4th grade STAAR test in language. By focusing on these areas, students can prepare themselves for the exam and demonstrate their academic progress.