LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE

School Counselor: Nicole Pinelli Date: January

Activity: Navigating the Math ASPIRE Test
Grade(s): 3rd

ASCA Student Standards (Domain/Standard/Competencies):

M5: Belief in using abilities to their fullest to achieve high-quality results and outcomes
B-LS 1: Demonstrate critical-thinking skills to make informed decisions
B-SMS 6: Demonstrate ability to overcome barriers to learning
B-SS 1: Use effective oral and written communication skills and listening skills

Learning Objective(s):
1) For students to learn how to navigate the ASPIRE Math test to avoid test anxiety and the
overwhelming feeling of not understanding how to solve a problem

Materials: Test Strategy pre-test, pencils, bell ringer, Grade 3 Math - Skill Builder, PARCC
Assessment Rehearsal (Operations & Algebraic Thinking: Two-Step Problems)

Procedure:
1. Introduction (5 minutes): Introduce yourself, what your role as a school counselor is
within the school, and explain the activity that the students will be completing

2. Pre-test (5 minutes): Administer the pre-test below and ask students to list as many test
taking strategies that they already know

3. Have students individually complete the Grade 3 Math - Skill Builder, PARCC
Assessment Rehearsal (Operations & Algebraic Thinking: Two-Step Problems) and ring
the bell when the allotted time is up (15 minutes)

4. Grade Quiz/Discussion (15 minutes): Read off the answers to the quiz, but do not go into
an explanation as to how the problem was solved. Discuss what made each question
difficult to understand; Strategize ways to a) eliminate incorrect multiple choice answers,
skipping difficult problems and coming back at the end to answer them, thinking logically
and ruling out answers that seem illogical, and going with your gut when you truly do not
know an answer

5. Closure (5 minutes): Answer any questions

Plan for Evaluation: How will each of the following be collected?

Process Data: All 3rd Grade students will participate in a 45-minute lesson every other week on
Tuesdays beginning in January prior to the ASPIRE test in April. The lesson will be primarily

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focused on test taking strategies geared predominantly towards the math portion on the
ASPIRE test.

Perception Data: Students will display math comprehension through Grade 3 Math - Skill
Builder, PARCC Assessment Rehearsal. Then, 100% of 3rd Grade students will be able to
explain how they felt when overwhelmed with a difficult math problem and how they used testing
strategies to overcome those difficulties.

Outcome Data: Increase 3rd Grade Math ready percentage from 86% to 89% within a year.

Follow-Up: Continually follow-up with the 3rd grade every other week implementing a test-
taking strategy workshop. Additionally, seek out students who are struggling overall with math
and intervene with individual or small group tutoring. At the conclusion of meeting with students
every other week, administer the “Testing Strategies” questionnaire and see if students were
able to report more strategies than before.

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