Woodcock Johnson III Reports, Recommendations and Strategies

posted by Karen Quinn, The Testing Mom - July 15th, 2013

Used widely in assessing the achievement of students and adults, the Woodcock Johnson III Test of Achievement is a test your child will likely take at some point during their academic career. If your child is gifted and will be seeking admittance to a TAG or advanced-placement school, they will almost certainly take this test as part of an entrance examination. Understanding exactly what will be tested can help you assist your student in testing preparation.

Intended as a guide for administrators, the Woodcock Johnson III Reports, Recommendations and Strategies guide is also an excellent resource for parents. You can read more about this guide at http://www.amazon.com/Woodcock-Johnson-III-Reports-Recommendations-Strategies/dp/0471419990, although it is available from a variety of other vendors as well.

Once you understand what criteria administrators will be looking for and how the test is scored, you can begin test preparation with your child. It’s important to remember that over-preparation can lead to test anxiety and poor performance, so avoid placing any undue pressure on your child. A few brief and enjoyable review sessions, however, will help your child feel familiarized and comfortable with the rest itself. A relaxed and confident student is much more likely to score accurately than one who is anxious. 

The best way to ease your child into test preparation is to start with some questions a few grades below her current grade level, to help her get comfortable with the feel of the material and the format of the test. Then spend some time working with questions designed for her grade level, which is where you should spend the bulk of your prep time. Once your child is comfortable with the material, try a few questions from a grade or two above her level to challenge her and give her some practice with harder questions in case any pop up on the test.