 About
the Exam:
The New York
State Elementary Level Test in Social Studies is
administered to fifth grade students in November.
This test is designed to be used as an early
indicator to determine if the students are meeting
the five NYS social studies standards. The test is
administered over two days and includes:
Session 1: Part I and II which contains 35
multiple-choice questions (60 % 4th grade content
and 40% 3rd grade content) and several short answer
constructed-response questions (CRQ) within 90
minutes
Session 2: Part IIIA: Document-Based Short Answer
Questions, also known as scaffolding. This part of
the exam contains the documents followed by one or
more short answer questions. Part IIIB: The Document
Based Essay
Question: one question based on the documents in
part IIIA within 90 minutes
The multiple-choice questions will be scored using
an answer key. The short answer constructed response
questions are scored with a question specific
scoring guide called a rubric. The rubric score for
this portion of the exam can be from a zero to a
three. The Document Based Essay Question is scored
using a four point rubric system and is based on the
student's thinking and writing skills in the area of
social studies. The final test score is based upon a
four point rubric where 4 is the exemplar and
students show evidence of mastering the standards at
that grade level. At the opposite end, a score of 1
indicates a student is at risk and will need extra
support to meet the standards.
Purpose of this Site:
This site is designed to provide useful information
about the NYS Social
Studies Test for teachers, parents and students.
Becoming familiar with the test format will take
away the "fear of the unknown" aspect of the test
and build confidence in students. This site is
organized around the two sessions of the exam. For
each session there will be a variety of resources
and activities that can be used. These resources
have been designed as:
Lessons (L)- These are tutorials
that students can go through to gain a better
understanding of the individual skills needed to be
success on the exam.
Practice (P)- These practice pages
are for the students to use to assist them in seeing
if they have grasped an understanding of the
lessons. These practice pages typically give
immediate feedback to the students.
Interactive (I)- These pages are typically
practice pages that are highly interactive. Students
can engage in these activities to help test their
knowledge of the skills taught.
Teacher Resource (R)- These pages provide
ideas for both parents and teachers. These pages can
consist of ideas and/ or activities that can be
prepared for the students to help enrich their
understanding of the skills taught.
Literature Connection (LI)- These are pages
which highlight books that correspond with the
particular concepts that are being taught. These
pages may also have activities that you can
incorporate into your classroom instruction when
using the books.
CRQ- (CRQ)-These pages will provide sample
CRQ's that can be used to practice for the Social
Studies 5 test.
DBQ- (DBQ)- These pages will
provide sample DBQ's that can be used to practice
for the Social Studies 5 test.
** The links to grade 3 and 4
are content based. The link to grade 5 will provide
students with some geography skills along with test
taking skills for test success. Click on the buttons
above to go to the grade level you want to focus on.
Click on the
Index button at the top of this page to bring you to
links for all of the work that has been done for
grades 3, 4, and 5. You can also click on the CRQ
and DBQ links to open up a list of these types of
resources you can use to practice with your students
in preparation for the test. |
